LIFE IN ORDER
“Emily, I forbid you to speak to your sister and her family! They have their own life, and we have ours. Did you call Margaret again? Complaining about me? I warned you. Dont blame me if something happens,” Benjamin gripped my shoulder painfully.
As usual in such moments, I silently retreated to the kitchen, bitter tears welling up. No, I never complained to my sister about my life. We simply talked. Our elderly parents needed care, and there was always something to discuss. Benjamin despised Margaret. Her family had peace and prosperity, something we sorely lacked.
When I married Benjamin, I thought I was the happiest woman alive. He swept me off my feet in a whirlwind of passion. His height didnt bother mehe was a head shorter than me. Nor did I pay much mind to his mother, who stumbled drunkenly into our wedding. Later, I learned she was a chronic alcoholic.
Blinded by love, I ignored the warning signs. But after a year of marriage, my happiness crumbled. Benjamin drank heavily, staggering home drunk. Then came the affairs. I worked as a nurse, earning a modest wage, while he spent his time in pubs. He had no intention of providing for me. Though I once dreamed of children, I now settled for a stray cat named Whiskers. I couldnt bear the thought of bringing a child into this mess. Yet, somehow, I still loved him.
“Youre a fool, Emily! Men flock around you, but youre blind to them, stuck on that drunkard! What do you see in him? You walk around with bruises hidden under makeup. Do you think no one notices? Leave before he kills you in a rage!” My best friend and colleague, Alice, never minced words.
Benjamins temper was unpredictable. Once, he beat me so badly I couldnt work. He even locked me inside the flat, taking the key. After that, fear consumed me. My heart pounded every time his key turned in the lock. I thought he resented mefor not giving him children, for being a bad wife. So I endured the abuse, the insults, the cruelty. Why did I still love him?
His mother, gaunt and bitter, once told me, “Emily, obey your husband. Love him with all your heart. Forget your family and friendstheyll only lead you astray.” So I did. I cut ties, submitting completely to Benjamins control.
I craved his apologiesthe moments hed kneel, beg forgiveness, kiss my feet. Our reconciliations were intoxicating. Once, he scattered rose petals on our bed, and I felt weightless, as if floating in clouds. Never mind that hed stolen them from a neighbors gardenhis drinking buddys wife grew them lovingly, only for her husband to sell them cheaply to other drunks. Wives swooned over the stolen roses, forgiving their mens sins.
I might have stayed forever, trapped in this cycle, if not for a strangers cruel words. “Leave Benjamin. He has a son with me. Youre barren. Useless,” she spat.
“I dont believe you! Get out!” I snapped, but Benjamins silence confirmed the truth.
“Emily, Ive never seen you happy. Trouble?” Dr. Harold Wilson, the hospitals chief physician, had always seemed indifferent. His sudden concern startled me.
“Everythings fine,” I mumbled, flustered.
“Thats good. When everythings in order, life is beautiful,” he said cryptically.
Rumors said Harolds wife had cheated, leaving him single at forty-two. Unremarkable in appearancebalding, bespectacled, shorthe carried an intoxicating confidence. A hint of cologne lingered around him, impossible to ignore. Id flee before temptation could take root.
But his words haunted me. *When everythings in order.* My life was chaos. Time wouldnt pause for me to fix it.
So I left. My mother gasped when I appeared on her doorstep. “Emily! Did Benjamin throw you out?”
“No. Ill explain later,” I whispered, ashamed of the truth.
Benjamins mother screamed curses over the phone, but I stood tall, breathing freely for the first time in years. Thank you, Harold.
Benjamin raged, threatened, stalked me. He didnt realize his power over me had shattered. “Focus on your son, Benjamin. He needs you. Ive moved on. Goodbye,” I said calmly.
I reunited with Margaret and my parents, rediscovering myselfno longer a puppet.
Alice noticed immediately. “Emily, youre glowing! Youre like a bride!”
Then Harold proposed. “Marry me, Emily. You wont regret it. Just call me Haroldsave the titles for work.”
“Do you love me?” I asked, stunned.
“Ah, women need the words. Yes, I suppose I do. Though actions speak louder.” He kissed my hand.
“I accept. I think I could love you too,” I whispered, joy bursting inside me.
Ten years flew by. Harold proved his love dailyno grand gestures, no empty words, just steady devotion. We never had children; perhaps I truly was barren. But Harold never blamed me. “We have each other. Thats enough,” hed say when I grieved motherhood.
His daughter gave us a granddaughter, Sophie, who became our light.
As for Benjamin? He drank himself to death before fifty. His mother glares at me, venom in her eyes, but her hatred dissolves harmlessly. I pity hernothing more.
Harold and I? Everythings in order. Life is beautiful.
*Sometimes, walking away isnt defeatits the bravest step toward happiness.*
