One of the Good Ones

He slipped the blade in and out of her stomach quickly, then slowly twice more. It went in very easily, like a ripe cantaloupe. The pain was perfect. She gasped again and again, her mouth forming a shocked oval. She tasted the blood and swallowed it back as quickly as she could. Her eyelids tightened and she could feel the pressure through the tension in her face. All of her organs had been damaged. Her core devastated. Once more he slid the sharp edge into her soft unexpectant torso, then nervously walked away. He changed his mind and walked back towards her slicing off her ear and placing it in his pocket.  He looked back into her lovely eyes with the greatest of repentance. He disappeared out of the door of the crowded restaurant into the darkness.

A few of their fellow diners had noticed the situation and looked down nervously at their phones, not wanting Susan to feel uneasy about the two of them making a scene. Blood dripped over her lovely new blouse. The sleeves were lace and even with the spattered blood her figure still looked quite pretty. She had purchased the garment for just this occasion.

She walked home with her head hung low, holding her side. Her arms were beginning to feel tingly and numb. Nausea and dizziness washed over her small frame. Arriving home at her suburban apartment she cried with embarrassment as she washed out the blood from her new blouse. The material was thin and she knew she couldn’t mend the shirt. She had wasted twenty dollars on yet another blouse. She quickly got to work turning on the stove and heating a butter knife to cauterise the wounds. She winced. Her screams cut the air. She would hope for the best with the internal bleeding. She opened the fridge and picked out the packet of blood that was scheduled to expire soonest. It was an “O-” which always left her feeling a little off, but she didn’t want to risk having it expire and going to waste. She slipped a needle into her arm and within an hour felt much more herself with the fresh blood. She blushed deeply as she raised her hand to her missing ear.

“Crap!” Susan whispered in the dimly lit room.

This would be harder to explain.

“I’ll just have to wear a hat,” she thought quickly, but then remembered that spring would be here in a few weeks. She was trying to imagine if she could pull off a head scarf when her phone vibrated with a text. Liam was apologizing again. She smiled a little with crimson delight. She paused for a minute but then quickly slid her password over the phone to reveal the sweet, thoughtful apology.

“Sue I am so so sorry. I was such an ass tonight. I found your ear in my pocket and felt like such an idiot. You know I didn’t mean a bit of it. I know I can be too sensitive sometimes. Can I come over? I really don’t want us to go to bed mad.”

Her heart raced, loving that he was thinking about her. Of course she forgave him. Relationships were filled with disagreements and she knew she had one of the good ones who at least knew when he was in the wrong.

“You’re right... You are an ass ;) “ She replied flirtatiously.

He didn’t respond for a few minutes. Fearing she might have upset him she quickly sent another text.

“Come over! We can watch TV and just forget about the whole thing. I have Ben and Jerry’s. Don’t pretend you can resist.”

A few minutes later he responded.

“Lol, you know me too well. I’ll be over in half an hour.”

She smiled and her heart swelled and contracted the way only he could make it. They had been together for about a year and a half. Their disagreements were far less frequent than most of her friends’. Things got a little out of hand every now and then, but they were both having really stressful times at work, and his dad was sick. She loved him and she didn’t romanticize the idea of relationships. She knew people were people and sometimes you had to bend certain expectations of happiness.

She noticed that her blood was still all over the floor. She quickly set to work cleaning it up so he wouldn’t feel uncomfortable noticing it when he got to her place.

He used his key to get in and walked on uncertain feet. He looked up bashfully and shrugged his shoulders with a wry smile.

“I am really sorry Sue.”

“Let’s just forget it. I love you so much.” She wrapped her arms around him, pressing her body against his and softly placing her hand on his cheek. Then, nervously remembering, paused and asked “Did you happen to bring the ear?”

His eyes shot down with angry embarrassment.

She instantly regretted having brought it up and blurted out, “Oh my gosh! No! I’m sorry I even asked! Let’s just have a good time okay?”