3: The dream

Jessica shook her head in the bathtub, knowing that Dylan usually made love to her in the bathroom whenever they bathed together as a couple. Now, however, he was avoiding her.

She resumed bathing in the white bathtub with her sponge, soap, and water. After she was through with her bath, she rinsed her body and finally walked out of the bathroom and into the bedroom to dress.

Dylan had already put on his white night robe and was sitting on the bed, feeling tipsy from the alcoholic drinks he had consumed at Rosie's home.

As Jessica stepped out of the bathroom, Dylan immediately turned his gaze away from her and stared at the wall as he laid back on the bed. He turned his back to her, and she frowned at her husband’s behavior, realizing that he was truly avoiding her.

Jessica walked up to their wardrobe to take out a nightgown. She tried hard not to cry; she didn’t want to divorce Dylan.

She knew he had been behaving strangely lately. He had been absent from home for two days in a row, and she wondered to herself, "Who's the new woman in his life now?"

Jessica searched for a single nightgown to wear for what felt like hours. Finally, she touched the white nightgown she had chosen, but instead of taking it out, she stood beside the wardrobe, lost in her thoughts as hot tears streamed down her cheeks.

After a moment, she snapped out of her trance and took out the white nightgown she had been holding. She put it on and glanced back at her sleeping husband on the bed.

Her eyes wandered to the divorce papers on the headboard, and she shook her head in sadness before walking over to the bed to join him.

Dylan was fast asleep, but as Jessica climbed onto the bed, her weight made him stir. He opened his eyes slightly and stared at her pretty, tear-streaked face.

Realizing that the beautiful woman was his wife, whom he was about to divorce, and that she was sobbing, Dylan sat up and sleepily asked, "What's wrong, babe?"

Jessica sniffled and tried to reply, but Dylan laid back down, the alcohol still heavy in his system. He was tired and exhausted after spending time in Rosie’s room since he got off work at 5 PM.

Dylan turned his back on Jessica again, adjusting his pillow under his head before settling back into sleep. Jessica blinked her tears away as she sat on the bed, staring at her husband for a moment.

Not wanting to accept the reality of their impending divorce, Jessica thought to be the good wife she was. She wrapped her left arm around Dylan’s waist and moved closer to him, despite his back being turned. 

She cuddled close, inhaling his manly scent as she hugged him, seeking warmth. Jessica rested her head on Dylan's left arm, caressing his face and jaw, but he inhaled Jessica’s sweet floral scent, which stirred him awake again. This time, he sprang up from the bed, even in his drunken state.

"What's wrong with you, Jessica? Why don’t you want me to sleep tonight?" Dylan asked angrily, noticing that she wore no bra under her nightgown, which was almost transparent.

Dylan looked away, and Jessica replied, "I want you, Dylan."

"But I don’t want you anymore, Jessica. I want a divorce. You should sign the divorce papers tomorrow and leave! I'm not joking about it," Dylan said curtly, yanking his pillow from the bed. He drunkenly stepped down, slipped on his black slippers, and headed out of the bedroom, snatching his pillow from Jessica’s grasp as she tried to stop him.

Dylan walked out of the room, leaving Jessica alone in their master bedroom. She cried out, "No, sweetheart! Wait! Where are you going?"

Jessica hurriedly got off the bed and chased after Dylan as he exited their sitting room upstairs and went downstairs to the guest room to sleep.

"Dylan! Open this door!" Jessica shouted, banging on the guestroom door, demanding that he unlock it from within.

Dylan ignored her, heading to bed in the guest room since she had tried to seduce him in their bedroom.

"Dylan! Open this door now! It's me, your wife!" Jessica cried out, her fists pounding against the door.

She glanced at the corridor clock and saw it was already past midnight. 

Eventually, Jessica sighed and went back upstairs to their master bedroom to sleep alone, not wanting to wake their kids. The master bedroom was the biggest room in the mansion, and she climbed onto the king-sized bed, covered in a white bedspread.

Lying down, Jessica tried to sleep, knowing that her kids would need to get up for school the next morning. But sleep eluded her as she cried, consumed by thoughts of the new woman who may have come into her husband’s life, destroying her marriage and their once-happy home.

Jessica continued to think about how she could lose weight to impress Dylan and become the slim woman he desired. She reflected on her previous attempts to lose weight, which had not been easy for her since she loved food and preferred staying at home instead of working.

Jessica had spoken to her best friend, Esther Friday, about her weight loss plans. Esther advised her that the best way to lose weight was to hit the gym. Although Jessica had been exercising daily, losing weight was still a struggle.

After sniffling on the bed again, Jessica fell asleep, dreaming that a beautiful short woman entered her home, carrying a large black traveling bag of clothes. This woman was not her; Jessica was taller. The short woman looked at her irritably and ordered Jessica to serve her meals.

In the dream, Jessica found herself serving this beautiful, slim woman while the woman sent her away from her husband’s home. Jessica pleaded, "Please, you cannot send me away! Leave Dylan alone; I am his wife!"

The woman coldly replied, "No. I have known Dylan longer than you have. Your time in his life is up, so go away."

Jessica then saw Dylan tossing her clothes outside their home, indifferent to their children's presence, as he declared, "Leave my house, Jessica! This marriage is over between us. Get out of my life!"

"Please, Dylan! Don’t send me away..I love you.. Please, Dylan…" 

Jessica continued to struggle on the bed while dreaming, still lying on the luxurious white bed in the master bedroom.

She kept pleading with Dylan in her dream, "Please, Dylan, don’t send me away. Please…"

Jessica watched as Dylan rushed to her in her dream, dragging her away by her left wrist and throwing her outside of their mansion. She cried out to him more desperately, "Please, Dylan! You cannot send me away! Dylan! Dylan! Dylan, please!"

"I'm here, Jessica! Wake up!" Dylan shook Jessica vigorously on the bed to wake her. He sat down beside her and shook her again and again to rouse her from her nightmare.

He had woken up in the guest room where he had slept the previous night. With a headache, he remembered that he had returned home the night before with the divorce papers that Rosie Andrew had given him to deliver to Jessica. He had also asked Jessica to sign them.