When Everything Fell Apart

“Knock, knock! Babe!”

Annie’s voice bounced off the hallway walls. She laughed softly, adjusting a paper bag of takeout in one hand and her phone in the other.

“Babe, open the door! I brought your favorite grilled chicken and fries!”

Silence.

Her smile faltered. She knocked again, this time harder. “Great? You home?”

No answer.

Her heart began to beat not from fear, but from that strange, heavy feeling that comes when something isn’t right.

She tried calling. The phone rang once, twice, then went straight to voicemail.

Annie frowned.

He said he was going to the gym an hour ago. But his car was parked right there.

She set the takeout bag down on the floor and moved towards the side of the building towards the window.

The curtains were half-drawn. The same window she once laughed through when he called her his peace.

She pushed the window open just a little.

And her entire world stopped.

Inside, a woman tall and curvy, wearing nothing but an oversized shirt  was tucking in the bedsheet she bought . And there, half-dressed in gray boxers, was Great. Her Great.

He stood by the wardrobe, back turned, searching for something maybe his shame.

Annie blinked, hoping she imagined it. But the woman laughed a soft, flirty giggle and that was it. The sound burned through her like acid.

She slammed the window shut and marched to the door, her body trembling.

“Open this door, Great!” she yelled.

Inside, muffled whispers. Footsteps. The creak of the bed.

Her voice cracked louder, “I swear, if you don’t open this door”

The knob twisted. The door opened.

There he was bare chest gleaming with sweat, guilt flooding his dark eyes. Behind him, the woman grabbed her purse and slipped out like a shadow.

“Annie, babe, I can explain”

Her laugh came out sharp, broken. “Oh, this is the gym you went to, right? Is this how you do your push-ups now?”

“Please,” he said, stepping closer. “It’s not what you think”

She backed away. “Not what I think?” Her eyes glistened with unshed tears. “Do I look stupid to you, Great?”

He reached for her hands. “Annie, I messed up. It just happened, okay? It didn’t mean anything.”

“Don’t. You. Dare. Touch. Me.” She slapped his hands away, her voice shaking with fury. “You lied to me. You looked me in the face this morning and told me you loved me!”

“I do! ”

“Love doesn’t look like this!” she screamed. Her voice echoed through the apartment.

“Love doesn’t cheat. Love doesn’t hide another woman in the room we picked curtains for!”

Great lowered his head, ashamed or pretending to be. “I’m sorry,” he muttered. “I don’t know what came over me.”

For a moment, she just stared at him the man she’d prayed for, defended, sacrificed for and realized she didn’t even recognize him anymore.

Her voice dropped, cold and quiet. “It’s over. You hear me? Whatever we had, it’s done.”

He tried to reach for her again, but she shoved him back, eyes fierce. “Get your filthy hands off me, Great.”

And with that, she turned and walked out.

The night air stung her skin as she stepped outside. Her knees felt weak, but she refused to fall apart here. Not in front of him. Not yet.

She got into her car, hands trembling as she started the engine. 

Her phone buzzed on the passenger seat. Tasha, her best friend.

She swiped to answer, voice trembling. “Tasha…”

“Annie? You sound weird. What’s going on?”

Annie’s voice cracked. “I just caught Great with another woman.”

“What?! Wait, what?”

“Tasha, I saw them  in his bed. He said he went to the gym.”

“Are you freaking kidding me?!” Tasha yelled. “That useless man! I told you he was moving weird. Ugh! I swear, if I see him”

“Tasha, please,” Annie sobbed. “I can’t even breathe right now.”

“Where are you?”

“In my car. I’m outside his place.”

“Annie, drive here. Now. Don’t you dare sit there crying over that fool.”

Annie sniffed, wiping her tears. “I don’t even know if I can drive.”

“Yes, you can. Get up, queen. You’re not about to let a man who doesn’t use soap on his legs ruin you,” Tasha snapped, her voice fierce and protective.

A small, broken laugh escaped Annie’s lips. “You’re crazy.”

“I’m serious! That man is dirt. Now come over before I show up there and slash his tires myself.”

Annie managed a weak smile. “Okay… I’m coming.”

She hung up, started the car, and pulled onto the road.

The city lights blurred through her tears as she drove. She turned on the radio maybe the music would drown out the noise in her head.

Mariah the Scientist’s “Rainy Days” came on.

The soft hum of the first verse filled the car, then that one line hit her right in the chest 

“Still I pray for love instead of common sense…”

Annie let out a shaky breath, her vision blurring again.

That was her  always praying for love, always giving grace to people who didn’t deserve it.

Her grip on the steering wheel tightened. She pressed her head against the seat, trying to steady her breathing, but the tears wouldn’t stop. 

She hit replay.

Then again.

And again.

Each time that line echoed, it carved deeper into her chest until she could barely breathe through the ache.

By the time she pulled into Tasha’s neighborhood, her face was streaked with tears and mascara, lips trembling from silent sobs.

She suddenly felt nauseous as she parked shakily outside the familiar beige apartment building, tears still streaming down her face.

The nausea hit again sharp and sudden. She barely opened the door in time before vomiting onto the pavement.

“Annie?!” Tasha yelled 

She had heard the car pull up and came running out of her apartment, wearing an oversized hoodie and pink slippers, curls bouncing as she moved.

She froze when she saw Annie by the car, doubled over, rain dripping down her face, vomit on the pavement.

“Oh my God, babe,” Tasha gasped, rushing forward. “What happened?!”

Annie tried to speak but her voice cracked. “He…he was with someone else,” she choked out. “In our bed, Tash. He said he was at the

“That lying bastard.” She grabbed Annie’s arm, steadying her. “Nah, because I swear I’ll find him and end him. How dare he do this to you?”

“He said it’s not what I think.”

“Oh please,” Tasha snapped, rolling her eyes. “Men always say that right after they get caught. 

“Let’s get you inside, babe.” She slipped an arm around Annie’s shoulders and led her up the stairs, through the rain, into the apartment building.

The moment they stepped inside Tasha’s apartment, warmth hit her skin  the faint scent of vanilla candles and soft R&B humming from the living room speaker. The world outside faded.

Tasha guided her to the couch. “Sit down,” she said firmly, fetching tissues and a glass of water. “You’re shaking.”

Annie sank into the couch, staring blankly at the wall. Her hair was damp, mascara streaked down her cheeks. She looked like the ghost of herself.

Tasha knelt beside her, wiping her face gently. “You’re too good for him, Annie. You hear me? You gave him everything. Your time, your loyalty, everything. And this is what he does?”

Annie sniffled, voice trembling. “I feel so stupid.”

“No, baby, you’re not stupid. You were in love.”

Tasha sat beside her, rubbing her shoulder as Mariah the Scientist’s “Rainy Days” played softly from the speaker. The lyric floated through the quiet apartment like a whisper:

“Still I pray for love instead of common sense…”

Annie’s eyes filled again. “That line,” she whispered. “It’s me. I keep praying for love… even when I should know better.”

Tasha’s voice softened. “Love doesn’t make you dumb, Annie. It just makes you human.”

The room fell silent for a moment only the sound of rain tapping against the windows.

Annie took a deep breath. “Tash… I’ve been feeling sick for days. I thought it was stress, but…” She trailed off, her eyes looking away.

Tasha frowned. “What do you mean sick?”

“Like nausea. Dizziness. My period’s late too,” Annie murmured.

Tasha froze, her expression shifting from anger to concern. “Wait… late how long?”

“Almost two weeks.”

Tasha stared at her for a long second, “Annie,” she said slowly, “are you saying you might be…”

“Don’t.” Annie’s voice cracked. “Please don’t say it.”

Her eyes welled up again, and she buried her face in her hands. “Not now. Not with him.”

Tasha reached out, pulling her into a hug. “Hey. You’re not alone in this, okay? Whatever happens, we’ll figure it out together. You’re stronger than you think.”

Annie’s body trembled against hers. The rain outside fell heavier, but inside the apartment, everything was still like time had paused.

“If you are pregnant, Annie… are you going to keep this baby?”