Alone in Rome

There were so many amazing things to do in Rome; Kate could hardly imagine where they would start. A few lazy days in bed, room service, champagne. Now that is the best way to start a honeymoon. Of course, they would leave the hotel room eventually, see the sights, all those other boring things tourists do. While Kate was daydreaming at her desk, she did not notice Elise standing at her office door. By the time she snapped out of her little fantasy and looked up, Elise was gone. Hell, she had not even realized it was well past five already. Kate snatched up her bag and started for the door, barely remembering to lock up her office. She was always in such a daze lately. Her head was swimming with ideas for the wedding, and it was still months away. She had been with Ryan for almost four years. Sure, they had had their fair share of ups and downs. What regular couple had not? Lately, it just seemed to be up all of the time. Especially since he had proposed, Kate was positively giddy with excitement at the thought of finally marrying the man she loved. It was the last item on her list, the one she had made many years ago with all the things she wanted to achieve in life. Before Kate and Ryan ever met. The list always ended with marriage. She had not thought much further past that point. Before she had met Ryan, Kate was a full-time law student. Once she had graduated, he suggested they both move in and that they did. The suburbs sure were different from the city lifestyle to which she had grown so accustomed. It was now a nightmare just getting herself to work and back, but it was much closer to The Daily. Ryan worked long hours so it was only fair that she moved in with him. Though somehow, he always managed to arrive home before her. As she walked out to the car park, all Kate could think about was getting home, picking up her dress, and getting to her fitting on time. Elise was under the impression they were headed straight to the dressmaker, but after this morning's make-out session got a bit too steamy, she ran out in a hurry and left her dress hanging in the guest room. Kate wondered why Elise had stopped by her office. Maybe she just had an errand to run beforehand? Kate would probably meet Elise at the dressmaker, though she knew there was still at least an hour of traffic to get through. Those were the days, she said to herself when an hour could be spent enjoying a good book, not sitting in traffic trying to stave off a severe case of road rage. She finally turned off the highway and onto her street and noticed Ryan's car was not there. His brand new sports car had recently staked its claim on the safest parking spot in the building, while Kate's old reliable hatch spent its nights parked on the street. His loss for now, Kate thought, as she turned into the driveway, hoping she could make it back out with her dress safely in hand before Ryan made it home. As Kate walked up the steps to the entrance of their building, she could not help but notice the street was much quieter than usual. Making her way up to their fifth-floor apartment, which was more like dragging herself up the staircase equivalent to Everest, she made a mental note to hit the gym before work tomorrow. It had been a few months since her last fitting and Kate was just a bit concerned the dress might be a little, let's just say fitted. Okay, who are we kidding, the word is tight. As Kate neared her floor, she could hear a couple arguing, that is a bit more like it, she thought. As she got closer, it seemed to get a little louder, and the voices scarily familiar. By the time she had reached the front door, she could hear Ryan shouting profanities at the top of his voice and a woman; crying. "It's more than over you are insane" she heard Ryan scream at the crying woman. "Get out of my apartment! I should have seen this coming a mile away! Get out before Kate gets here, don't even think about coming back. If she sees you in this state...” While the woman inside her apartment continued to cry, Kate was rummaging through her bag, frantically looking for her keys. At this point, she was in such a panic that she could not bring herself to open the door even if she had managed to find the damn things. Kate could not believe her ears. She threw her handbag to the ground and collapsed in a heap at the foot of the door, sobbing quietly to herself. Tears flowing from her almond brown eyes, the same eyes that Ryan had so often told Kate were her best and his most favourite feature.  It took Kate a few minutes before she realized the shouting had finally subsided, now replaced with the sound of her fast and heavy breathing. There was total silence inside the apartment. She was in a complete state of shock, trying hard to take in the last 10 minutes and process everything she had heard. “If she sees you in this state...” "What did that even mean? Who the hell was in there with him?" She thought. Kate was trying to make sense of it all. Suddenly, her concentration was broken. The apartment door swung open and Kate fell with it, the back of her head crashing against the newly polished timber floors. Once Kate had managed to regain her composure, she stood up. Still facing the empty hallway, it took everything she had to turn herself around and face the chaos that was just moments ago ensuing behind her. A shocked, yet still sobbing Elise, hurried past her and out of the open door. Kate was sure she heard her mumble something about the bridal shop. Likely the fact that she was meant to meet her there, not come home first. It was going to be a long and awkward night.