Chapter 13 I Cried...

Her lips quivered a bit, and she quickly turned away from the TV, clutching the pillow like it was her lifeline. She finally managed to get some words out. "Well, if you're in such a rush, you better get packing."

She tried to sound chill, like she didn't care, but even she knew she was failing miserably. Her voice dripped with sarcasm.

George knew she was pissed. He totally got why she was mad. As a husband, he had seriously dropped the ball these past few years.

Seeing Ellie all curled up on the couch, looking so fragile, it felt like someone was stabbing him in the heart over and over. He clenched his fist tight, took a deep breath, and then slowly let it go.

"I'll go pack. Once this survey mission is done, I'll put in for all that annual leave I've been hoarding and spend more time with you and your folks."
This was a promise, but Ellie was done believing it. He'd said stuff like, "I'll get some rest after this trip," way too many times. But every single time, he'd bounce the moment his phone rang.

He couldn't have just extra days off, let alone his annual leave. George always picked work over everything, even over Ellie.

In less than ten minutes, George came out with his suitcase. He'd already changed into his usual dark gray shirt and pants, the ones he always wore for business trips, and had his glasses on. He was carrying a black travel bag.

Just like every other time, he walked to the entrance, turned around, and looked at her. "I'm leaving."

But this time, Ellie didn't get up to see him off with that sad look in her eyes. She just kept staring at the TV, her face blank. "Mhm."

George tightened his grip on his travel bag, clenched his teeth, and headed for the door.
As the door clicked shut, Ellie's body shook a little. Her mind replayed scenes from earlier that night, the family happily eating dinner, him promising to find someone to cover for him at work. And then, the image of tomorrow, they'll celebrate one month since Fiona's baby was born, all of them toasting with wine. Tears started streaming down her face.

In the end, work was always more important.

Ellie buried her face in the pillow, crying helplessly, feeling completely lost. On the flip side, George wasn't doing any better.
The image of her curled up on the couch kept haunting him. A deep sense of powerlessness settled in his chest.

In his ten years at Section Seven, he'd faced countless life-or-death situations, but he'd never felt this helpless. Seeing her so disappointed and sad, all he could do was apologize and ask her to wait. He couldn't do anything else.

That night, Ellie cried herself to sleep, not even knowing how long it took.
When she woke up the next day, her eyes were crazy swollen, and her whole face looked puffy. She felt totally drained.

She really wanted to call in sick and skip the one-month celebration in the afternoon. But in the end, she sucked it up, got herself together, and headed out.

At the kindergarten, the other teachers noticed her swollen eyes and tired look. They asked what was up, and Ellie just smiled and said she caught a cold.

She still went to the one-month celebration in the afternoon. There was no dodging it; she had to face it.

Just like she expected, everyone noticed she came alone. They either asked about her husband or when she planned to have kids, all sorts of "concern."

She was thankful her eyes had gone back to normal by the afternoon. If they had seen her in the morning, she couldn't even imagine the kind of "concern" she would've gotten.