Obsession With My EX-wife

Chapter 11: Hindsight Is Always 20/20

Catherine entered the apartment, closing and locking the door behind her, and then she leaned her back against it. She was relieved to be away from Leonard finally.

Mr. and Mrs. Brown heard Catherine come in, and they hurried out of the kitchen to say hello. When they say her, though, it was apparent to them that she was in distress, and Mr. Brown asked her what was wrong. 

Catherine didn't want to get into the details with them, so she forced herself to smile and said, "It's nothing. I'm fine. I wanted some exercise, so I ran up the stairs, and now I'm out of breath." 

"You need to take it easy," Mrs. Brown said. "You look like you were running to beat the Devil!"

Catherine stuck her tongue out and patted her chest lightly, and then she said, "I just wanted to get my heartbeat up high enough to burn fat. " 

Catherine was afraid that Mr. Brown and Mrs. Brown would ask another question, so before they could, she said, "Mr. Brown and Mrs. Brown, if you don't mind, I'd like to go to my room now." And without waiting for a reply, she took off down the hall.

Catherine opened the door to her room, went inside, and closed and locked the door behind her. She was glad that she lived on the fifth floor. Otherwise, the elderly couple would have heard Leonard shouting for her to come out. 

***

Once it was clear to Leonard that Catherine would not be returning, he stopped shouting. He still felt a bit lost, though, and he was more than a little upset about how she'd treated him. He looked at the door and sighed. "Until next time," he muttered. "She can't evade me forever."  

As Leonard turned away from the apartment, he felt his phone vibrating in his pocket. He pulled it out, read the message, and wrote a quick reply: "I'm coming." 

***

Catherine watched Leonard through the window as he turned around, hurried into his car, and drove away. Then, as his vehicle disappeared, it occurred to her that Leonard had looked anxious, and she wondered if something terrible had happened. They were no longer together, though, and she had to remind herself that his problems were no longer her problems. While thinking about this, Catherine went into the bathroom with her pajamas and got ready for bed.

***

Leonard dealt with the company emergency, and by the time he returned to his apartment, it was already eleven o'clock. Once inside, he turned on the lights. The lights illuminated the apartment, but he felt cold and lonely. No matter how late he had come home, there had been a light left on for him in the past. Since his divorce, the apartment was always dark when he came back from work.  

Leonard had become so accustomed to warmth, that he couldn't endure his current desolation, and his loneliness magnified his depression. Leonard turned off the lights and went to his room.

Every corner of the apartment reminded him of Catherine's body and the warmth of her breath. His past haunted him, and his memories with her refused to fade. Catherine had been indispensable. Unfortunately, he hadn't realized it until she was gone. "Humans are so strange," he muttered. "We don't appreciate the things we have until they are gone. Of course, hindsight is 20/20… and there's no going back to fix the mistakes we make." 

***

At six o'clock the next morning, Catherine opened her eyes and got up. When she married Leonard, she got in the habit of waking up at six o'clock every day to make him breakfast. Now, getting up early was a part of her routine. When they were together, Catherine had worked tirelessly to take care of Leonard's needs, but he had taken her for granted, and she was glad to have him out of her life. 

Catherine no longer made breakfast for anyone, not even for herself. Instead, she bought it on the way to work and ate it in the car on the freeway.

Today was the first day of the weekend, which meant that it would be hectic at the hospital. Even the cardiology department was overcrowded over the weekend. After arriving at the hospital, Catherine put on her white gown, and then – with a clipboard and case records in hand - she began to make her rounds. Before she could get to her first patient, though, a woman approached her. Catherine smiled and said, "How do you do? How can I help you?" 

"Are you Catherine Winston?" the woman asked.

Catherine nodded and said, "I am. I'm a cardiologist. If you..." 

Suddenly, the woman shouted, "Clap!" interrupting Catherine's words. 

Catherine was so startled that she had to take a step back. She looked at the woman nervously and asked her if there was a problem.

"What do I mean?" the woman hissed. "Is there a problem! Of course, there is a problem! You seduced my husband! Do you deny it?" 

Catherine frowned as she realized that a crowd was beginning to gather around them. She covered her beaten face and said, "I'm sorry, but you are mistaken. I don't even know who your husband is. And besides, I am a single woman now." 

If Catherine hadn't been in the hospital, she wouldn't have been so easy-going, but this was her place of employment, so she couldn't afford to make a scene.

The woman laughed bitterly, and then she said, "You claim that you don't know him, and yet he comes here to see you every day! Do you think I am blind? Or stupid?"