Emerging out from the bathroom, Shadee noticed how silent and deserted the house seemed to be.



Apparently Sebastien had finished his telephone conversation as no sound was emerging from behind the once again closed door.

She shook her head, then returned to the bedroom for another few hours of solitude. She could start reading a good book or something… Who was she trying to kid? She wouldn’t be able to concentrate on a word, all she could think of was Sebastien, whether he had understood that his marriage life had reached a crisis point, if he was actually giving their previous argument any second thought.

Shadee had lunch all alone in the kitchen.



She still wasn’t ready to forgive her husband and was determined to let him fend for himself with food, laundry and whatnot. She strained her ears for quite some time afterwards, waiting to hear when he went to get a bite to eat, but her attempts were fruitless. Apparently he wasn’t hungry at all, or maybe had a secret stash of chocolate bars in his office, as he didn’t leave it for the rest of the day.

When evening finally came, the young woman decided to take pity on him and call him for dinner. She once again approached his office door and listened intently for a sound giving away his activities, but still couldn’t make out anything. She knocked. For a few seconds there was no response, but in the end a soft moan beckoned her to enter.

She had expected to find him immersed in some hospital papers or studying some advanced medical books, but his desk was empty and his computer had been turned off. He was simply sitting there, staring at the blank screen, his eyes bloodshot and puffy.



Shadee stopped in the doorway, surveying him for a few moments, then coughed lightly. Sebastien turned towards her and smiled faintly.

She was quite content at the thought that her words had weighed so much on Sebastien, that he seemed to care for the two them after all and had stopped working to think things over.



‘Dinner is ready.’ She said quietly, surprised herself at the tenderness in the tone of her voice ‘Come down if you’re hungry.’

She then closed the door with a soft click and descended into the kitchen, starting to lay the table. Soon afterwards, Sebastien appeared into the room, looking slightly dazed and confused.



He sat down on one of the chairs and dreamily ran a hand through his hair, intently observing the food on his plate.



Shadee took a seat across from him and proceeded to eat her dinner without speaking. The silence seemed to press on them from all the sides, the woman suddenly regretted calling him down, his presence there next to her. They seemed so estranged and uncomfortable, she couldn’t remember ever having felt that way.



‘So… who was on the phone earlier?’ she decided to start a neutral topic, not mentioning their previous fight.

Sebastien shrugged, deliberately chewing longer on his bite of steak ‘It was no one important...someone advertising something…’

‘Oh, got it…Did you manage to finish the report for Sloane?’

‘No, not yet.’ He shook his head and bit his bottom lip ‘Got a few more loose ends to tie up…’

Shadee gave up on trying to strike a conversation and returned to eating her dinner in silence. She threw her husband furtive glances from time to time. He seemed to be somewhere far, far away. His eyes were unfocused and his hand kept filling the fork mechanically, without actually registering anything. Finishing the last bite, the young woman stood up to gather the dishes, but Sebastien shook his head at her outstretched hand.

‘No, let me. I’ll do the dishes this time!’



Shadee grinned widely. He actually cared! They would finally go back to the way they used to be! She giggled happily and craned her neck to give him a light kiss on the lips.



Sebastien looked at her startled before turning his head in the direction of the door. Her lips touched his cheekbone, suddenly turning cold and numb. She looked at him frowning, feeling deeply hurt. She had spoken too soon…



‘I’m sorry!’ Sebastien spoke, realising his mistake ‘I just need some time…for…thinking…for myself…’ he sighed and took the dishes to the sink, turning the tap.

Shadee stood there, rooted on the spot for a few moments; she was still shell-shocked about what had just happened.

‘I think it would be better if I slept on the couch tonight.’ Her husband’s voice wafted from the sink.



Swallowing hard, the young woman nodded and heard her own raspy voice say ‘Okay...’

She turned on her heel and headed back for the bedroom. Several waves of shock swept over her successively. The reflection in the mirror showed a very white face staring back.



She couldn’t grasp the events, it couldn’t be happening! She had been so sure that Sebastien was her soul mate, that their marriage would be perfect. But now, only two years after uniting their destinies, they seemed to have hit rock bottom. Was this the end?