Today has been the hardest day of my life.
We sat in the dean’s office and shared our stories, exposing the scars James cut into us. I go last, tears at my eyes from listening to the stories, and break down harder at the reveal of my intimate life.
Never have I been flooded with so many emotions.
Anger. Sadness. Shame.
For so long, my fear circled around being judged, but the dean, she isn’t disgusted with me.
She’s disgusted with James.
Two hours later, she apologizes for James’s behavior and thanks us for our honesty. Asking what she planned to do with James is on the tip of my tongue, but I bite it back, letting it go for now.
I’m not sure anyone knows the answer to that yet.
“We did it,” Margie says with a low sigh when we walk out of the building.
“We did it,” I repeat, matching her sigh.
If you’d told me a week ago that I’d be here with Margie, giving James what he deserves, I would’ve said you were as nuts as him.
Rex, his love, brought out that strength in me.
I’ve always had it. I just needed the nudge to build it.
We leave the university and load into Margie’s car.
Where else do you go after you’ve told on your creep of a professor who’s also your husband? The store for wine, junk food, and frozen pizza.
We veg out in front of the TV, watching Netflix, and when I finally go to sleep, it’s with a smile on my face because I have my friend back.