She Never Chose Me

To cure her indecisiveness, my wife Vivian started drawing lots to decide whether she would spend time with me or with Julian, her childhood sweetheart. The short slip had my name. The long slip had his. Every wedding anniversary, every holiday, every birthday that should have belonged to us, she somehow "happened" to draw the long slip. "Can't help it. You're just unlucky. I have to go with Julian." I cried. I argued. I even stood on a rooftop begging her to stay, and all she did was call me crazy. Eventually, she stopped answering my calls and stopped coming home at all. Only after Julian landed an engagement with an old-money heiress and blocked Vivian the night before the engagement did she finally decide to return to our marriage. She threw away the lot-drawing jar herself. She cooked, she did laundry, and she became the perfect wife everyone praised. On my birthday, she made an entire table of food and knelt to help me change my shoes. "I was confused before. From now on, I'll spend every birthday with you." I took out the lot-drawing jar and smiled at her. "This past year, I developed indecisiveness too." Right in front of her, I drew the long slip with Lily's name on it. Lily was waiting outside. I picked up the suitcase I had packed long ago and repeated Vivian's old words back to her. "What a shame. I didn't draw your name. "You're just too unlucky. Nothing I can do."