Northern_Lights_2017

39 Three Days After Holly Holborn Olivia sat on the couch. She was zoning out, waiting for the rando she picked up at the bar last night to get up and leave. What was her name again? ...Nikki? That sounds kinda right… A noise came from the bedroom and Olivia purposely looked at her phone as the young woman walked over to join her on the couch. Seven missed calls. Four voicemails. Great, Mom. Can’t you get the hint that I don’t want to talk to you? She locked her phone and tossed it to the other side of the couch. “I had a really good time last night, babe.” “Don’t call me ‘babe’…uh…what’s your name?” Olivia removed the hand that was creeping up her thigh. “Uh…Natalie? Don’t you remember me?” “Well, NAT-UH-LEE. The only thing I remember is that my wife is the only one allowed to call me that name and she probably wouldn’t appreciate you hanging around our apartment. So you might want to get the fuck out.” Natalie stood up and stared at Olivia, thoroughly insulted and confused. After a minute of awkward silence, she proceeded to gather her things…loudly. She dressed herself and stomped over to the door. With her hand around the knob, she took one last look at Olivia, who sat unaffected on the couch. “Bye,” muttered Natalie before slamming the door behind her. “At least I got the first letter right.” The traffic of downtown Seattle answered her brag with the sound of tires splashing water onto the sidewalk. Olivia glanced out the patio door to glare at the gloomy sky as she walked over to the front door to lock it. She threw up her middle fingers in the direction of the elevator before throwing the deadbolt and shuffling back to the brown suede couch. She plopped over and stared at her fuzzy reflection in the television. Her blonde hair contrasted with the darkness of the brown couch. Viola always loved earth tones. Suddenly, Olivia recoiled as saw a flash of light by her face. Her phone was ringing. Mom. Really? For fuck’s sake. She picked up her vibrating cell and rolled onto her back, adjusting the taupe throw pillow to support her head. She glimpsed at the large clock on the wall by the door. Jeez. It’s only 9:27 in the morning. You can’t even wait until after noon to bother me today? She locked her phone and placed it on her chest. On the wall next to the clock was the gift Viola had given to Olivia for their first wedding anniversary. The varnished, wooden letters spelling out L-O-V-E caught her eye. I can’t believe that was over four years ago. She closed her eyes. Viola giggled while Olivia struggled with the ribbons on the box. “Oh, Liv. I love you. You make my wrapping efforts worthwhile.” She let out another laugh. Finally, the ribbons relinquished their hold on the box and Olivia was able to take the lid off. Viola reached over and grabbed the gift so Olivia could see the whole thing. She was beaming at Olivia. “I made it for us. Whadya think, Liv?” Hanging down from the big letters were smaller letters arranged vertically on a chain with a few symbols hanging between the words. Olivia slowly read the sentence aloud. “Love…equals…Olivia and Viola…for Ever.” She started tearing up at how perfectly cheesy the gift was. Olivia took the gift from Viola and gently set it back in the box before she embraced her wife. “I love you so much, babe.” Olivia’s faced was covered in salty tears. It had been three days since the accident. She would never be able to hold her wife again. She couldn’t tell her how much she loved her again. Viola couldn’t really care who she brought home from a night of binge drinking. The realization was hitting Olivia again. I’m a 31-year-old widow. How the hell did this happen? She was sobbing uncontrollably now. Her phone lit up and Olivia picked it up to see the notification. Mom. Oh, God. How can you not understand that I just don’t want to hear it right now?! Talking to Viola’s parents was hard enough. Olivia took a deep breath and closed her eyes again. Her mother was helping Olivia get ready for the wedding. The day was perfect. The sun was shining. The flowers woven into the wooden gazebo were just idyllic. The only things left to do were walk down the aisle with her mother and get married. “Are you sure about this, Olivia?” This was the umpteenth time Olivia had heard her mother say this. “Mom. How many times do I have to tell you? I have never been more certain of anything in my life.” She was really starting to get annoyed by her mom, but she didn’t want anything to ruin her and Viola’s wedding day. “I just really think three months isn’t long enough to be engaged…I mean, you two only just met last December and now it’s June. You can take your time, ya know?” she said with a raised eyebrow. Her mother’s comments were starting to strike a nerve with Olivia. In as calm of a voice as she could manage, she intoned, “I know…but if you aren’t in support of this marriage, I would rather you just leave.” Her mother gave her a pointed look and said candidly, “Olivia, you know I love you, right?”