Chapter 9: Family Fallout

I didn’t expect my parents to show up. I hadn’t told them about my divorce from Rachel, so they didn’t know I’d married Natalie. Natalie’s parents had asked me many times when the two families would meet. Natalie, afraid I’d feel awkward, always helped me brush it off. I was waiting for the right time to take Natalie to meet my parents.

So when I got my dad’s call, I panicked. I hurriedly asked for leave from my boss and rushed home. As soon as the elevator doors opened, I heard Natalie crying.

Her sobs echoed down the hallway. I dropped my keys twice trying to unlock the front door.

“Dad! What are you doing!”

I walked in. Natalie was sitting on the floor, crying like a flower in the rain. My parents sat in the middle of the sofa, glaring at her. I helped Natalie up, and as soon as she was steady, my dad slapped me across the face. The slap cracked through the room, hot and humiliating. For a second, I was ten years old again, desperate to disappear. Natalie screamed in fright and cried even harder. I knew: Natalie had done nothing wrong. The one at fault was me.

“Babe, go back to the bedroom first. It’s okay.”

I comforted Natalie and pushed her into the bedroom. The sound of cups shattering came from the living room. My parents’ repeated questioning made me feel annoyed—annoyed at Rachel.

“Rachel, Rachel, Rachel! It’s you who like Rachel, not me! We divorced two months ago, divorced!”

I yelled. All those bad feelings I thought were long gone were actually still buried deep in my heart.

My father just shook his head, muttering about family, about shame. My mother started crying, and I realized I’d never really known how to make anyone happy.