Tristanism
06-06-2003, 01:14 PM
Karone shielded her eyes from the morning sunlight as it poured in through the windows.
“Cool it with the blinds,” she let out, looking up to see that Zhane had just opened them. She wiped the sleep from her eyes, looking up at him with a smile on her face to greet her husband. But as usual, he did not seem to notice. Instead, he simply passed her up to grab the towel on the bed, then turned away to hop into the shower.
Karone’s smile faded away. But she supposed that she should not have been surprised. Just about every morning was like this. After the car accident two years ago, it had become a routine. She would wake up to a husband that no longer paid her any attention, have a walk through the park, perhaps hang around with friends, and eventually end up back at home in bed. The cycle had become tedious a great while ago.
But, being the cheerful person she had grown to become after Dark Spectre’s defeat, she usually managed to simply shrug it off and go about her day. This day was no exception.
She stepped out of bed and walked over to the bathroom, filled with steam from the running shower, and tip-toed over to surprise her husband. Perhaps this would get his attention. She gently pulled the strap from around her satin robe as she began to head for the foggy shower door. But just before her hand reached the door, something caught her eye on the floor.
The shirt that Zhane had been wearing the previous day. There was something on it… Consumed by curiosity, she knelt down to see what the red mark was. But she knew already. It had not been the first time she had discovered such a thing. It was makeup. A shade that she had never worn.
The sound of the shower dying down snapped Karone out of it, and she quickly rushed back into the room. ‘He’d never know I was there.’
As she could hear him collecting his things and coming out, a million thoughts raced through her mind, but none of them were anything new. She knew that she would eventually end up right back where she started, forgetting it had all ever happened. But perhaps… it was time to change that.
Zhane emerged from the bathroom with a towel around his waist, and walked right past Karone to the small dresser on the other end of the room. After a few moments, Karone summoned up the courage to try something new. She rose from the bed and turned toward him.
“Zhane,” she spoke as she slowly began to walk toward him. “Is… Is there something you need to tell me.”
No answer at first. She walked over to realize that Zhane had opened up the small top drawer, which had always been empty, and pulled out a ring- his wedding ring! He had not worn it in over a year. Karone looked into his eyes, startled to find that he had almost begun weeping right there in front of her. The sight of it was something she could not bare, forcing her to drop the issue. She could not go through with it… He was sorry.
****
Days passed as normal- or as normal as they could have been during this moment in Karone’s life- until the night Carlos had come over for a drink. The three of them sat around the table, catching up on old times. Karone did not have much to tell, and the others responded oddly to any of her gestures, if at all. Zhane and Carlos, however, had loads of things to discuss. Karone was fine with that- she was just happy to finally be in a situation that didn’t involve her worrying. Of course, those situations never lasted very long…
They had begun to recall the car accident, which Karone had all but forgotten… or at least she had tried to. Because it had been the night that they had both lost a dear friend of theirs- Carolyn. The three of them had been out late, and were coming home, only to be hit by a drunk in the middle of nowhere. They managed to reach the hospital, but not before Carolyn had passed.
“You… been to her grave lately,” Carlos asked.
“Whose? Oh, ya mean… Yeah, the other day. I think… I think I might stop.”
“Stop going,” Karone asked. “I didn’t know you went at all.”
“Never thought I’d hear you say that,” Carlos let out.
“It’s just getting too hard. To look down and see that…”
Carlos placed her hand on his shoulder, but it brang no comfort. Karone approached the thought of trying to comfort him, but knew that it would be just as futile. She could never help him when he got into these moods. Carlos knew that it was time to shift the conversation.
“So,” he said, in a more chipper voice. “How’s Jessica?”
Karone looked at Carlos in confusion. She had never known anyone by that name, and was fairly certain that Zhane had not either. Unless he had met her recently, but even then, why would he not mention it to her?
Zhane looked over past Karone, almost as though he was unable to look at her directly, then turned away.
“Let’s not talk about that right now…”
****
Karone found herself back in bed that same night, her thoughts dwelling obsessively on what had transpired an hour earlier. Who was Carlos talking about? Why did Zhane suddenly seem to get so damned worried about it when her name was mentioned? If this had something to do with the makeup she had found on his shirt….
Something within Karone seemed to click for her that night, as she sat alone in the dark. For so long now, she had been drowning in evidence of Zhane’s deceptive ways, but she had grown so used to their little cycle that she was not prepared to do anything about it. But not anymore. She would not allow him to put on some crying act and stop her from discovering the truth.
And as for her so-called friends, who seemed to all know about this, she would deal with them soon enough as well.
Her friends… All this time, that was what she thought them to be. She must have been a fool to think so- to believe them. It wouldn’t be the first time someone had claimed to care for her and turned out to be a liar. Out of all the things one could do to you, this was the thing that Karone knew she should not forgive- she could not forgive any longer.
****
After that night, things began to take perspective for Karone. She would watch her man leave in the morning, come home perhaps an hour or two later than she expected, and she would find a strand of hair or smell the other woman’s perfume on his skin.
And every day she had to look into his eyes, her anger increased. Did he think she wouldn’t find out? Did he take her for that much of a fool? Or perhaps he thought that she had had such a bang-up life before all this that it wouldn’t matter. That she would just sit back and let it happen, because she didn’t know how to deal with it any other way.
But if that’s what he thought, he was wrong. Astronema knew how to deal with treachery. And so too did Karone. Even so, nothing could have prepared her for the following day.
****
Karone awoke from a nap on the living room couch. She looked up at the clock and buried her face in her hands, for she had slept right through half the dinner party she had been planning to go to, and it was about the time Zhane was supposed to be home.
Just then, she heard the sound of the door creaking open. From the living room, she could not see the door, so she got up to see, but when she began to hear what sounded like two people giggling, she backed out of sight.
It took seconds to realize that it was not only Zhane that had just come through the door, but some other woman! Jessica! With outrage in her eyes, she turned around the corner, only to find that the two of them did not even notice her in the corner as they headed toward the staircase.
Karone was about to rush up to make her preasance known, but the sight of Zhane’s unbuttoned shirt stopped her. Something inside snapped. She could hardly move, as Jessica embraced him as though she had known him for years- as though it were second nature.
Karone watched as the two stumbled up the stairs and into the bedroom- HER bedroom- in-between kisses.
Moments passed as tears fell from Karone’s eyes. It was true…. How dare he? How DARE he bring that woman into their house? He really thought he could get away with taking her into HER bed?
Karone was not going to stand for this any longer. She would show him just who he was dealing with.
The bedroom door swung open an hour later- just enough time for Karone to build up the courage to hate him. And apparently, just enough time for Zhane to pull his naked body from under the sheets and step out of the bed.
Karone could hardly stand to look at him. The bastard still was unaware that she was in the room. He walked over to the mirror and looked at himself as though he did not recognize the man he saw.
But this time, Karone made sure that she would be seen. She stepped through the doorway and stood in the middle of the room, in-between Zhane and the woman lying in bed.
She looked down at Jessica and was shocked out of her mind that she did not even seem to mind that she was there. In fact, Jessica curled herself up in the sheets as though they were her own now.
“Come back to bed, honey,” Jessica said to Zhane, looking right past Karone.
“I don’t believe this,” Karone finally shouted. “You have the nerve to come into my house and--“
But that is when she realizes it. Nothing she does or says has any affect on either of them.
“I think you should go,” Zhane said quietly. Karone rushed over to him in an attempt to force the traitor to look at her. But before she could grab him, she realized that Zhane had pulled out his wedding ring again, and begun to stare down at it, with tears in his eyes.
“Go,” Jessica asked, surprised.
“Yeah, I think you should go.”
“Is this about that Karen-girl again,” Jessica asked, not caring to move.
But Zhane snapped around, past Karone and looked her dead in the eyes.
“Her name is Karone.”
“Cool it with the blinds,” she let out, looking up to see that Zhane had just opened them. She wiped the sleep from her eyes, looking up at him with a smile on her face to greet her husband. But as usual, he did not seem to notice. Instead, he simply passed her up to grab the towel on the bed, then turned away to hop into the shower.
Karone’s smile faded away. But she supposed that she should not have been surprised. Just about every morning was like this. After the car accident two years ago, it had become a routine. She would wake up to a husband that no longer paid her any attention, have a walk through the park, perhaps hang around with friends, and eventually end up back at home in bed. The cycle had become tedious a great while ago.
But, being the cheerful person she had grown to become after Dark Spectre’s defeat, she usually managed to simply shrug it off and go about her day. This day was no exception.
She stepped out of bed and walked over to the bathroom, filled with steam from the running shower, and tip-toed over to surprise her husband. Perhaps this would get his attention. She gently pulled the strap from around her satin robe as she began to head for the foggy shower door. But just before her hand reached the door, something caught her eye on the floor.
The shirt that Zhane had been wearing the previous day. There was something on it… Consumed by curiosity, she knelt down to see what the red mark was. But she knew already. It had not been the first time she had discovered such a thing. It was makeup. A shade that she had never worn.
The sound of the shower dying down snapped Karone out of it, and she quickly rushed back into the room. ‘He’d never know I was there.’
As she could hear him collecting his things and coming out, a million thoughts raced through her mind, but none of them were anything new. She knew that she would eventually end up right back where she started, forgetting it had all ever happened. But perhaps… it was time to change that.
Zhane emerged from the bathroom with a towel around his waist, and walked right past Karone to the small dresser on the other end of the room. After a few moments, Karone summoned up the courage to try something new. She rose from the bed and turned toward him.
“Zhane,” she spoke as she slowly began to walk toward him. “Is… Is there something you need to tell me.”
No answer at first. She walked over to realize that Zhane had opened up the small top drawer, which had always been empty, and pulled out a ring- his wedding ring! He had not worn it in over a year. Karone looked into his eyes, startled to find that he had almost begun weeping right there in front of her. The sight of it was something she could not bare, forcing her to drop the issue. She could not go through with it… He was sorry.
****
Days passed as normal- or as normal as they could have been during this moment in Karone’s life- until the night Carlos had come over for a drink. The three of them sat around the table, catching up on old times. Karone did not have much to tell, and the others responded oddly to any of her gestures, if at all. Zhane and Carlos, however, had loads of things to discuss. Karone was fine with that- she was just happy to finally be in a situation that didn’t involve her worrying. Of course, those situations never lasted very long…
They had begun to recall the car accident, which Karone had all but forgotten… or at least she had tried to. Because it had been the night that they had both lost a dear friend of theirs- Carolyn. The three of them had been out late, and were coming home, only to be hit by a drunk in the middle of nowhere. They managed to reach the hospital, but not before Carolyn had passed.
“You… been to her grave lately,” Carlos asked.
“Whose? Oh, ya mean… Yeah, the other day. I think… I think I might stop.”
“Stop going,” Karone asked. “I didn’t know you went at all.”
“Never thought I’d hear you say that,” Carlos let out.
“It’s just getting too hard. To look down and see that…”
Carlos placed her hand on his shoulder, but it brang no comfort. Karone approached the thought of trying to comfort him, but knew that it would be just as futile. She could never help him when he got into these moods. Carlos knew that it was time to shift the conversation.
“So,” he said, in a more chipper voice. “How’s Jessica?”
Karone looked at Carlos in confusion. She had never known anyone by that name, and was fairly certain that Zhane had not either. Unless he had met her recently, but even then, why would he not mention it to her?
Zhane looked over past Karone, almost as though he was unable to look at her directly, then turned away.
“Let’s not talk about that right now…”
****
Karone found herself back in bed that same night, her thoughts dwelling obsessively on what had transpired an hour earlier. Who was Carlos talking about? Why did Zhane suddenly seem to get so damned worried about it when her name was mentioned? If this had something to do with the makeup she had found on his shirt….
Something within Karone seemed to click for her that night, as she sat alone in the dark. For so long now, she had been drowning in evidence of Zhane’s deceptive ways, but she had grown so used to their little cycle that she was not prepared to do anything about it. But not anymore. She would not allow him to put on some crying act and stop her from discovering the truth.
And as for her so-called friends, who seemed to all know about this, she would deal with them soon enough as well.
Her friends… All this time, that was what she thought them to be. She must have been a fool to think so- to believe them. It wouldn’t be the first time someone had claimed to care for her and turned out to be a liar. Out of all the things one could do to you, this was the thing that Karone knew she should not forgive- she could not forgive any longer.
****
After that night, things began to take perspective for Karone. She would watch her man leave in the morning, come home perhaps an hour or two later than she expected, and she would find a strand of hair or smell the other woman’s perfume on his skin.
And every day she had to look into his eyes, her anger increased. Did he think she wouldn’t find out? Did he take her for that much of a fool? Or perhaps he thought that she had had such a bang-up life before all this that it wouldn’t matter. That she would just sit back and let it happen, because she didn’t know how to deal with it any other way.
But if that’s what he thought, he was wrong. Astronema knew how to deal with treachery. And so too did Karone. Even so, nothing could have prepared her for the following day.
****
Karone awoke from a nap on the living room couch. She looked up at the clock and buried her face in her hands, for she had slept right through half the dinner party she had been planning to go to, and it was about the time Zhane was supposed to be home.
Just then, she heard the sound of the door creaking open. From the living room, she could not see the door, so she got up to see, but when she began to hear what sounded like two people giggling, she backed out of sight.
It took seconds to realize that it was not only Zhane that had just come through the door, but some other woman! Jessica! With outrage in her eyes, she turned around the corner, only to find that the two of them did not even notice her in the corner as they headed toward the staircase.
Karone was about to rush up to make her preasance known, but the sight of Zhane’s unbuttoned shirt stopped her. Something inside snapped. She could hardly move, as Jessica embraced him as though she had known him for years- as though it were second nature.
Karone watched as the two stumbled up the stairs and into the bedroom- HER bedroom- in-between kisses.
Moments passed as tears fell from Karone’s eyes. It was true…. How dare he? How DARE he bring that woman into their house? He really thought he could get away with taking her into HER bed?
Karone was not going to stand for this any longer. She would show him just who he was dealing with.
The bedroom door swung open an hour later- just enough time for Karone to build up the courage to hate him. And apparently, just enough time for Zhane to pull his naked body from under the sheets and step out of the bed.
Karone could hardly stand to look at him. The bastard still was unaware that she was in the room. He walked over to the mirror and looked at himself as though he did not recognize the man he saw.
But this time, Karone made sure that she would be seen. She stepped through the doorway and stood in the middle of the room, in-between Zhane and the woman lying in bed.
She looked down at Jessica and was shocked out of her mind that she did not even seem to mind that she was there. In fact, Jessica curled herself up in the sheets as though they were her own now.
“Come back to bed, honey,” Jessica said to Zhane, looking right past Karone.
“I don’t believe this,” Karone finally shouted. “You have the nerve to come into my house and--“
But that is when she realizes it. Nothing she does or says has any affect on either of them.
“I think you should go,” Zhane said quietly. Karone rushed over to him in an attempt to force the traitor to look at her. But before she could grab him, she realized that Zhane had pulled out his wedding ring again, and begun to stare down at it, with tears in his eyes.
“Go,” Jessica asked, surprised.
“Yeah, I think you should go.”
“Is this about that Karen-girl again,” Jessica asked, not caring to move.
But Zhane snapped around, past Karone and looked her dead in the eyes.
“Her name is Karone.”