Page 7 of Love You Madly

Me:

Just got off work. Hope this doesn’t wake you. I’ll text you when I get back to Dad’s.

Sabrina:

Thank you.

Me:

I’m sorry it had to be this way. I couldn’t face you. I knew if I did, I would never be able to go through with leaving.

I pulled out of the parking lot, gripping the steering wheel tighter than necessary. Her words cut deep, but I knew she was right. I made this choice, and now I had to live with it.

The roads were quiet, only a few other cars passing by this early on a Saturday morning. The silence was oppressive, giving my thoughts too much room to roam.

She deserved so much better than this, better than me. I had thought about what to say a thousand times but could never find the right words. Maybe that’s because there weren’t any.

As I drove, memories flooded back–our wedding day, Barrett’s birth, the countless little moments that had once made us inseparable. Now, those memories felt like a cruel joke. How had we come to this? Was there a moment when everything had gone wrong, or was it a slow, inevitable decay?

My phone buzzed again with a text I was sure came from Sabrina. It would be another twenty minutes before I could look at it, though.

When I pulled into my dad’s driveway, the sky was beginning to lighten with the first hints of dawn. I turned off the engine and sat there for a moment, gathering the strength to face whatever happened next. Hesitantly, I looked at the last text I’d received while I was driving.

Sabrina:

It didn’t have to be this way, Owen. You made it this way. And you’re an asshole for it.

She wasn’t wrong. I made this choice, and now I had to live with it. I texted her back as I walked up the sidewalk, the cool morning air biting at my skin.

Me:

I know… I just pulled into Dad’s. Do you need me to come get Barrett so you can get some sleep?

I opened the door as quietly as I could, trying not to wake my dad and his wife, Beverly. The house was dark and silent, the only sound was the creak of the floorboards under my feet. I made my way to the guest bedroom, my old room now converted into storage space for old furniture, forgotten memories, and Dad’s coin collection. I set my bag down and sank onto the bed, exhaustion hitting me like a wave. My phone buzzed again.

Sabrina:

No, that’s okay. Thank you though.

Me:

It’s the least I can do. Let me know if you change your mind and need help with him this weekend. Hey cops, if I die today, she 100% was the culprit.

Sabrina:

Too fucking soon for jokes, Dickweed.

Me:

That’s fair. I really am sorry, Sabrina.

Sabrina:

It’s not okay. See you Monday.

three

LOVE / HATE HEARTBREAK - HALESTORM

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