(ARIELLE’S POV)
“Is everything alright?” Ashley asked, noticing my sudden stillness.
I turned to face her. “It’s Jared.”
Her eyes widened. “What is he doing here?”
I shook my head. “I don’t know.”
Ashley stood up, concern on her face. “Do you want to let him in?”
I took a deep breath and nodded.
“Alright. Do you want me to stay?”
“No, I’ll handle this.”
She nodded, carried her meal and walked to her room. After she left, I exhaled sharply, before pulling the door open.
I almost fumbled when I met Jared’s intense gaze, but I quickly got a grip on myself. I put on a blank face, completely erasing all emotions from my face. “Hi,” I said, my voice icy.
Jared’s unnerving gaze didn’t waver, and he didn’t acknowledge my greetings either. Instead, he walked past me into the house, his movements sharp and angry.
I was taken aback, stunned by his audacity. I shut the door and faced him. “What the hell?”
He ignored me, his eyes scanning the room briefly before settling back on me. “We need to talk.”
I placed my hands on my hips, my tone sarcastic. “Oh, really? About what exactly?”
His jaws clenched, eyes flashing red. “About everything! About why you denied me access to see you in the hospital, getting discharged and refusing to return home, and worse of all, sending your lawyer to me with divorce papers. Do you know how humiliating all of that was?”
My stance didn’t change. “I have nothing to say to you, Jared.”
“Oh, you have a lot to say to me, Arielle,” he took a step closer, his voice rising. “And can you quit this obnoxious attitude of yours? You’re acting so strange and unlike you.”
A sudden burst of laughter tore from my lips, mixed with fury and bitterness. “Is that it? Now tell me, Jared, who remains the same after catching her husband in bed with his best friend, getting hit by a car because of them, calling and sending a text to him asking for help while almost bleeding to death on the street, but got an “I don’t care. Sort yourself” response. Loses her baby as a result, and risked never being able to walk again? Tell me, Jared, who?”
My laughter died down, leaving behind a cold, hard anger. “Show me that one woman, and I swear, I’ll let go of everything.”
Jared’s expression changed from anger to confusion, but I was not buying it. “What text, Arielle? You’re not making sense.”
“Of course not,” I spat. “You’re trying to evade accountability.”
His face reddened. “Arielle, stop acting like you’re without fault. You’re not a saint after all. You hid the information about the conception of my child from me. Who does that to their husband and the father of their child?”
I felt a stung by his words, but I regained my footing quickly. “I did it for a reason.”
“What reason?” He sneered. “To
spite me? And please, save me the “you wanted the perfect time to
break the news to me” nonsense. There’s no such thing as a perfect time. You had the opportunity to tell me about the pregnancy over dinner, the times I drove you to, and back from work. We fucking slept in the same room and on the same bed every day, and you still didn’t tell me.”
“Jared!” I tried to interrupt, but he kept talking.
“You’re guilty as much as Sofia and I are. If I was aware you were pregnant, I sure as hell would have stopped you from working or even engaging in anything that would endanger our child’s life. So yes, Arielle Smith, you lost our baby out
of your own negligence. You’re guilty
just like the rest of us.
I froze, unable to believe my ears. Was Jared really turning the tables on me? Goodness, being reminded of the death of my child in such a manner and being blamed for it hurt much more than any form of pain. “Jared, you’re unbelievable!” I screamed, tears glistening in my eyes.
But he remained stoic. “I’m just stating the truth, Arielle. You’re not innocent in all of this. You’re guilty just as I am.”
My heart twisted in my chest, like it was being gutted with a knife. Only that it was not a knife, but Jared’s words. How could he possibly shift the blame to me? I felt a blinding fury surge through me, and before I knew it, I was screaming.
“Get out! Get out of here right now, Jared! You have no right to be here, no right to speak to me like that! You, who destroyed our marriage, our family, and our child! You, who didn’t even care when I was dying on the street! Get out!” “Arielle, tune it down,” he pleaded, trying to hold me but I backed away.
“Get out!” I insisted.
“Fine, I’m sorry,” he said, throwing his hands up in surrender. “I shouldn’t have said what I said, and I take it back. All of it.”
That worked a bit on me as I stopped screaming, but my eyes still stared daggers at him.
“Can I ask a question?” I asked, my voice coming out low and fragile, surprising me.
Jared looked surprised as well, but he nodded.
“If Sofia and I were drowning, and you had the opportunity to save just one of us, who would it be?”
I saw his face pale in surprise, and then he recovered. “I….I um,” he stuttered.
“Go on,” I urged.
“Umm… Arielle, that’s not important now. Can we talk of something else?”
I shook my head. He didn’t have to say it, the answer was palpable. “You and I are done. Good bye, Jared. See yourself out.” “Wait, what? Come on, Arielle. What changed? This is not you. What has happened to the cool, calm and collected wife I married.”
I closed the distance between us, staring at him deep in the eyes. “Heaven has no fury like a woman scorned in the heart…”