I'm The Vampire's Bed Warmer

The Anniversary That Never Was  

I stood in front of the conceited mirror, adjusting the diamond bracelet Alex had proficient me in the remaining year. The diamonds glittered below the smooth bed room light, however the sight of them stuffed me with bitterness in place of joy. Tonight became alleged to be our fourth wedding ceremony anniversary, but the silence of our penthouse spoke louder than words.  

The grand dinner desk downstairs becomes set with great china and crystal glasses, the heady fragrance of freshly baked soufflé lingering withinside the air. I had spent hours with the chef, cautiously curating Alex’s favored meal. The flower arrangements had been flawless—white lilies, my favourite , even though I doubted he’d even notice.  

I glanced at the clock. 8: forty seven p.m. He became alleged to be domestic via means of seven.  

I pulled out my telecel smartphone and opened my messages.  

Anita: Alex, wherein are you? Dinner is ready.  

The message was confirmed as delivered, however there has been no response. Typical.  

I leaned towards the brink of the bed, my throat tightening because the weight of our damaged marriage pressed down on me. This wasn’t the primary time he’d selected paintings over me, however this night felt different—final.  

The sound of the front door starting downstairs made my coronary heart leap. I moved quickly out of the bedroom , my heels clicking towards the polished hardwood ground . “Alex?” I am known as out, descending the staircase.  

There he stood with inside the foyer, tall and implementing in his tailor-made charcoal suit, his darkish hair barely messed up as aleven though he’d been walking his fingers thru all of it day. His sharp, chiseled functions that when made me vulnerable withinside the knees had been now a masks of indifference.  

“I didn’t assume you’d nevertheless be up,” he said, his voice without emotion.  

I stopped halfway down the stairs, clutching the banister to constant myself. “It’s our anniversary, Alex. Of course, I’m nevertheless up.”  

He loosened his tie, his eyes darting away as aleven though he couldn't examine me. “I had an assembly . It ran late.”  

“A assembly ?” My voice cracked, anger effervescent to the surface. “You couldn’t even ship a text?”  

“I advised you this week to become critical, Anita. We’re remaining the most important acquisition deal withinside the company’s history. I didn’t have time for—”  

“For us? Is that what you had been going to say?” I reduce him off, descending the relaxation of the stairs. My heels sank into the luxurious rug as I approached him, my chest heaving. “Because that’s the way it feels, Alex. Like we don’t count to you anymore.”  

His jaw tightened, his typical protection mechanism kicking in. “Don’t be dramatic. You understand how plenty this deal matters to me, to us. Everything I’m doing is for our future.”  

“No, Alex,” I said, my voice trembling. “Everything you’re doing is for your empire. You’ve constructed partitions so excessive around yourself that I don’t even understand the person I married anymore.”  

He sighed, walking a hand through his hair. “I’m tired, Anita. Can we no longer do that tonight ?”  

Tears stung my eyes, however I refused to allow them to fall. “You’re continually tired, Alex. Tired of me, uninterested in this marriage. So inform me, what are we even doing here?”  

He didn’t respond, and the silence became deafening.  

I stepped back, wrapping my palms round myself as evensasw thought to defend my coronary heart from shattering completely. “I waited for you, Alex. I waited, and as soon as again, you selected your enterprise over me. This isn’t a marriage. This is a enterprise arrangement, and I’m finished being your silent partner.”  

“Anita, don’t—”  

But I become already strolling away, my heels clicking towards the ground like a gavel sealing my decision. I grabbed my coat and bag from the entryway, my hand trembling as I opened the door.  

“Where are you going?” he demanded, his voice ultimately laced with urgency.  

I came back, assembling his piercing gaze with a newfound resolve. “Home. To an area wherein I don’t experience invisible.”  

And with that, I walked out, leaving the person I as soon as cherished and the lifestyles we had constructed collectively behind.  

As the elevator descended, I allowed an unmarried tear to escape, however I wiped it away quickly. This is now no longer the end of my story—it has become the start of a brand new one.  

The elevator doors opened to show a person unexpected—an acquainted face from my past, a person I hadn’t seen in years however whose presence now felt like fate.