Chapter 4

For the next few days, I stayed at a hotel near the school and worked through the handover process step by step. I didn't contact Jeanie, and I didn't answer any calls from my parents.

On the last day of the handover, I went back to what was supposedly our marital home, since I'd left some of my teaching materials behind.

Vince saw me come in and stayed slouched against the back of his chair, all casual arrogance.

"Well, look who bothered to show up," he said. "I figured you'd sworn off ever coming back."

I ignored him and crouched down to search for my materials. Vince got up, walked over to me, and nudged a stack of books on the floor with his foot.

"Hey, Keith, these old books of yours are taking up too much space. I had Jeanie get me a computer, and there was nowhere else to put it, so I just stacked them here for now. You don't mind, do you?"

I stood up and looked at him coldly.

"Where are my materials?"

Vince shrugged, all innocence.

"What materials? Never seen them," he said. "Jeanie did a big cleanout the other day. They probably got thrown out with the trash."

Something in me went cold. I grabbed him by the collar.

"I'll ask you one more time. Where are my materials?"

Instead of being scared, Vince just smiled wider, more pleased with himself than ever.

"Careful, Keith. Don't get physical," he said. "If you hurt me, Jeanie's going to be heartbroken. She's completely wrapped around my finger these days. I ask, she gives, no questions. This apartment, your promotion, and..."

He paused deliberately, then leaned in close to my ear and lowered his voice. "Even her."

My stomach turned over. I shoved him back, hard. Vince stumbled and fell to the floor, letting out an exaggerated cry of pain.

"Ah! Keith, why would you hit me!"

Right then, the door swung open and Jeanie walked in carrying groceries. The moment she saw the scene, she dropped the bags and rushed over to help Vince up.

"Vince! Are you okay?"

She turned and looked at me like I was her worst enemy.

"Keith! Have you lost your mind? Why would you push him?!"

I didn't even have the energy left to explain myself.

"I came back for my materials."

Jeanie froze for a second, then yanked a stack of papers out of a drawer and hurled them at me.

"Here! Take your worthless papers!" she snapped. "Keith, did you think disappearing on me would scare me? I'm telling you, this cold-shoulder act of yours just makes me sick. Vince is ten times more considerate than you'll ever be!"

I picked up my materials off the floor and looked at her coldly.

"Jeanie, I put down the down payment on this apartment, and I'm the one paying off the mortgage. I'm putting it on the market next month. I'll pay you back for your half of the renovation costs."

Jeanie's eyes went wide, like she couldn't quite believe what she was hearing.

"Keith, have you completely lost your mind? If you sell the apartment, where are we supposed to live after we get married?"

Then she gave a sudden, cold little laugh, her tone softening.

"Fine, enough with the tantrum. I know you've been in a bad mood these past few days.

"Tell you what, next Monday's a good day. I'll take the day off, and we'll go register the marriage. That should settle things, shouldn't it?"

I looked at her and smiled without a word. My smile was pure mockery, but she didn't notice, and mistook it for me giving in.

"That's more like it. Go on, get out of here. I'll come find you at your office on the eighth."

I walked out the front door with a cold smile on my face, then blocked her number, along with every number belonging to anyone in my family. I turned in my materials at the school, then took the high-speed train back to my hometown.

...

A week later, Jeanie showed up at my office just as she'd said she would. But I wasn't there, and my desk had already been cleared out.

She frowned and grabbed a teacher standing nearby.

"Ms. Richards, where's Keith? Doesn't he have class today?"

Melinda Richards made a small, surprised noise.

"You don't know?" she said. "He quit last week."