She’d fallen in love many times before, each real, meaning she’s fickle, meanwhile he had never had a girlfriend, meaning he’s emotionally undeveloped. Coupl’a lightweights.

They were insanely attracted to each other. They played at home, tried on outfits and posed before mirrors and snapped photographs. They cooked together. They laughed. They were twenty-four and in love and they married. Why wouldn’t it last?

But in a love affair you are blind as in a subterranean cave and you bump into walls and you paw them, at least you hope it’s a wall That’s a relationship for you. You never know what’s going on.

You know for certain when it’s over. For example, with this couple, it was coming up on Valentine’s Day and she started hinting. Right away this annoyed him. ‘I can be an asshole all year if on February 14th I bring you a bunch of garbage, it’s all OK?’ he huffed as he shopped. He bought the usual, flowers, a red velvet heart shaped box of chocolates and a beach dress that he knew she liked. Upon his return she tried to conceal her displeasure to receive these things, obviously from the local drugstore, unwrapped. Then it came time to try on the dress and she could not squeeze into it. “Wrong size! Are you saying I’m fat?” she pouted, frowning. She threw the chocolates to the floor. She was exhaustingly dramatic. To save the day he hustled off to exchange the dress for a  larger size.

While he was gone the doorbell rang and the girl met a delivery man with a box. There were twelve long stem roses, as any romantic would relish. She reckoned he’d played a trick on her. She was so relieved. Maybe they had a chance. She read the notecard, it was from somebody else.

The roses, they died.

image: www.leighvogel.com