Chapter 2

I was pouring the remaining soup down the sink when my phone rang at 3 AM. The call from Tristan rang only three times before I picked up. It was noisy on his end, and I could hear Jodie yelling, "Goal!" from his side.

Tristan tried to suppress a laugh as he asked me, "Were you asleep?"

I stared at the sink as the soup slowly flowed down. "Nope."

Tristan sounded happy with that answer. "Go to my study and look at the second drawer on the left. There's a blue scorebook in there. Get the driver to deliver it to my office tomorrow morning."

I clenched the phone hard. "What do you want to do with it?"

I started that scorebook eight years ago. It recorded the teams he supported for every World Cup, the amount of alcohol he consumed, and the time of the match when he held my hand. The last page even had the note he secretly passed to me after he was punished and forced to kneel on the ground. Tristan told me back then that the match's champion could change at any time, but the woman next to him would never change.

He said with indifference, "Jodie is meeting a client tomorrow who wants a World Cup theme for his project. She needs some references, and you don't need that scorebook now anyway."

Jodie could be heard speaking near him. "The match is about to start, Mr. Hayes. Hurry up! You shouldn't miss this."

Tristan gave her an affirmative reply before saying to me, "Take a picture for me when you find the scorebook. Make sure not to lose it."

He hung up after that.

I stood in the study for a long time before finally pulling the drawer open. The blue covers of the book had aged, and the corners were covered with cellophane tape that I had used to hold it together. When I flipped to the last page of the book, I found the note still there, but an unfamiliar silver brooch lay beside it. The brooch looked like the one Jodie had on her tonight.

As I stared at the brooch, I was suddenly reminded of how Tristan had come home very late last week. A small gift bag had fallen out of his suit pocket while he was taking a shower. When I questioned him about it, he took the bag from me and replied nonchalantly that it was a gift from a client. I guessed that 'client' was the one who pinned the brooch on my old scorebook.

Tristan returned the next morning when the driver stopped by to pick up the scorebook. He was still reeking of alcohol, but he did not look tired at all.

I passed the scorebook to him. "I took the note. Remember to return the scorebook once you're done with it."

Tristan's hands paused while flipping the pages. "It's just some old pieces of paper. Why do you care about it?"

I looked at him. "You wrote it for me."

Tristan closed the scorebook. "Souvenirs shouldn't be turned into shackles, Dahlia. Stop treating every single thing as something so important."

Jodie's head poked out from behind him. She was hugging a folder in her hands. "Good morning, Mrs. Hayes. I'm here to pick up some documents for Mr. Hayes. I'm sorry to have disturbed both of you."

She was not wearing the brooch on her chest, but I could see a thin string tied on her wrist. It was the last of the blue thread I used to sew the ankle brace with. I reached out to stop her. "Where did you get that piece of string from?"

Jodie looked down at it. "Mr. Hayes said it's the same color as Argentina's jersey. I thought it looked nice, so I tied it on my wrist."

Tristan pulled her behind him. "It's just a piece of string."

I smiled. "Everything seems to be nothing to you."

Tritan's face fell. "Stop embarrassing yourself in front of my subordinate."

Jodie quickly shook her head. "Mrs. Hayes didn't do it on purpose, Mr. Hayes. I must have crossed the line."

I pulled my hand away. "Yes, you must have."

Jodie got teary-eyed, and Tristan quickly handed the scorebook to her while saying in a slightly cold tone, "Wait for me in the car, Jodie."

Before Jodie left while hugging the scorebook to her chest, she gently caressed the blue string. Tristan and I were left standing at the door. He looked at me. "The company is hosting a World Cup-themed event tonight. You should attend it, or others might think something is wrong with our marriage."

I asked him, "And who am I supposed to be there as?"

Tristan acted like he did not understand the question. "As Mrs. Hayes, obviously."

I glanced at the closed door. "But your Mrs. Hayes is someone who can't even get something she wants right away. Even she is forced to wait her turn for it."

Tristan clasped a watch over his wrist as his tone remained calm and composed. "You were always willing to share what you had with others, Dahlia. When did you become so petty?"

I lowered my eyes. "I guess it comes with age."

Tristan paused. He was about to say something when his phone rang. Jodie's name appeared on his phone's screen, and he quickly picked up and replied in a gentle tone, "I'll be down soon."

When the door closed once more, I saw a small, fuzzy piece of blue thread on the cupboard at the door. I picked it up to see that it had been forcefully torn off.