Chapter 2The Day Before He Vanished

The flight confirmation popped up on my screen.

As I stared at it, Harrison called.

"Chloe, a handyman is coming over to fix the plumbing and the hallway lights. Make sure you're dressed and leave the door unlocked for him."

"If you're scared, FaceTime me."

The lights and the sink had been broken for a month. I had asked him ten times to fix them or call someone. He always used work as an excuse.

When I suggested hiring a pro, he’d snap at me for wasting money or being incapable.

Now, suddenly, he was handling it. It was part of his exit strategy.

He was checking off boxes to ease his conscience before he vanished.

I leaned against the kitchen island, zoning out. I thought back to when Harrison and I first started dating.

We met in college, on the debate team.

I remembered the topic clearly: Is Freedom more important than Love?

I argued passionately for Love, claiming it conquered all.

He was the opposition. He argued that Freedom was the ultimate human need.

We met, we debated, we fell in love.

He used to carry me on his shoulders at concerts. He rode the carousel with me even though he hated it. He kissed me at the top of the Ferris wheel, promising we’d be together forever.

Everyone said we were a power couple. Soulmates.

Until yesterday, I believed it too.

But our love had eroded over a decade of mundane reality.

My affection became "clinginess" in his eyes. My desire to be close became "suffocating."

I recently found a photo in his cloud storage. It was a picture of my back while I was cooking. The caption read:

Suffocation.

My thoughts were interrupted by the handyman knocking.

I patted my stiff cheeks and smiled at the worker.

"Thanks for coming out. I'll pay you for your time, but you don't need to fix the lights or the water."

This house has been broken for so long. There’s no point in fixing it now.