Page 19 of Two Friends in Marriage
Even if the last time I kissed her on the lips, it was entirely performative.
Chapter 7
Jane
AsIemptythedishwasher, familiar laughter floats through the open kitchen window.I can only hear bits and pieces of the conversation, but it sounds like Evan and the man next door are talking about travel plans.Well, his travel plans—we don’t have any.
I figure I should actually meet the neighbor, rather than just waving at him from a distance, so I slide on the flip-flops that I keep by the back door.I walk toward the low fence on the left side of our backyard and put my arm around Evan.
“Hey,” I say.The other man is shorter than Evan and has dark curly hair.
“Gordon, this is my wife, Jane,” Evan says.
I’m not used to being someone’s wife, and it feels strange.Not bad, just…strange.Instinctively, I twist the platinum band on my finger.I haven’t fully adjusted to wearing it.
We talk for a few minutes, until someone shouts “Daddy!”from inside the other house, and Gordon says he better get going.I admire Evan’s skill at socializing with people he only just met or hasn’t known for long.I feel like it takes me a while to get used to someone, but he’s already adapted to our new neighborhood.
The next morning, I come downstairs after my shower to find my freshly poured coffee on the kitchen table, as always.I appreciate the little routines we’ve developed.
But today, Evan does something I don’t expect.
“Let’s go outside,” he says.
I give him a puzzled look but follow him to the small back patio.To my surprise, there’s actually a place to sit: two black chairs have been pushed under a table.
“I thought we weren’t going to spend more money?”I blurt out, gripping my coffee mug.We’ve bought so much stuff for our house lately, and this looks like a good quality set.Sure, we have money in our joint account—all the gifts from our wedding—but still.“You should have asked…” I trail off, feeling guilty for my outburst.Evan got something nice for me.I just thought we were going to discuss all of our large purchases.That’s what we agreed on.
I know finances are one of the biggest sources of conflict in marriage.One of the reasons I agreed to marry him?I thought we were on the same page when it came to such things.
“If it wasn’t for the money,” he says, “would you be unhappy with it?”
I shake my head.
“I got it for free,” he tells me.“I joined a neighborhood group on Facebook.People post stuff they’re giving away, and all I had to do was pick it up.”
“Someone was giving away their patio furniture?It’s in really good condition.”
“Isn’t it?I’m lucky I saw it as soon as it was posted.”
I take a deep breath and exhale slowly.Then I sit down on one of the chairs, and Evan sits down on the other.
“I should have told you that I was getting it,” he says.
“No, no,” I rush to assure him.“I shouldn’t have assumed.”
“I promise I won’t surprise you with things that cost more than two hundred dollars.”He reaches across the small table and clasps one of my hands.His earnestness causes something to clench in my chest.
I shift my chair so it’s next to his.It’s not like we have an incredible view—just our little backyard with its empty vegetable garden—but it’s still pleasant to sit outside on a summer morning.It’s supposed to get hot later, but right now, it’s not too bad.I sip my coffee and smile.
“In 2020,” he says, “it certainly would have been nicer to be here with you, making masks out of old T-shirts and struggling to find toilet paper.”
“I agree.”
The next day, I leave my home office after I finish work and find Evan in the kitchen.
“I got you another surprise,” he says.
“Oh?”I’m about to tell him to wait until I have a snack, but he looks rather excited.
