Chapter 11
I thought, Is he telling the other woman it is over? Is he finally choosing to come back to his family? But as I listened, there was no relief, no joy- just a cold, heart–wrenching sadness.
The call ended. I was the one to hang up
I called a cab and headed straight home, slipping the driver some extra money to speed up. Just as Dexter’s car pulled up in front of our building. I stepped out of the cab at the exact same moment.
“Selvia?” He looked surprised to see me,
1 gave a quick smile and walked straight over to the passenger side door, Sure enough, my phone was right there on the seat. I grabbed it, slipped it into my bag, and handed him his phone.
“So I picked up the wrong one again. I swear, I’m hopeless. He laughed awkwardly. “Why didn’t you just call me? I could’ve brought it back for you.
“I did call,” I replied casually. “But when I picked up. I couldn’t make out a word you were saying. If the hospital hadn’t registered me with my phone. I wouldn’t have bothered. Your phone works fine”
I shrugged nonchalantly. “By the way, can you reimburse me for the taxi fare?
For a moment, Dexter looked flustered, but he quickly composed himself. “Of course. Whatever you need.”
I turned to leave, but he called after me. “Sylvia, let me take you back to the hospital.”
“No need” I said, “Is this really fun for you, going back and forth like this? Go home and be with our son. I’ll be back tomorrow morning. It’s Saturday, after all. He doesn’t have school, and I can spend the whole day with him.”
He sighed in relief. “Alright. I’ll bring you breakfast to
tomorrow and pick you up to take you home.”
I waved goodbye to Dexter and took a cab back to the hospital
In the car, I couldn’t wait any longer. I unlocked my phone… the page that had been stuck earlier t off my shoulders–thank goodness, Dexter hadn’t checked my phone.
reappeared, and at that moment, I felt a weight lift
I refreshed the page, and when the email appeared, my heart began to race. I scrolled down slowly, each line making my heart beat faster. The hotel check–in date was from over a year ago, at 3:15 PM. I kept scrolling, and finally, I reached the most important line–the name of the g
guest.
But when I saw the name, I froze, thinking, How can this be? The name on the hotel record was my name. It was written in black and white, crystal clear: Guest Name Dexter, Sylvia
A sharp pain shot through my chest, and everything went black for a moment. The lead I had been so desperately chasing had just slipped through my fingers.
I almost laughed bitterly at myself. I thought, “How can I have been so naive Dexter, such a smart man–how can he have left such an obvious trail behind” Looking at the absurd combination of names on the page, I almost wanted to slap myself.
“Calm down, Sylvia. Don’t panic‘ I took deep breaths, trying to steady myself.
Finally, I arrived at the hospital. I stumbled out of the cal and made my way back to the ward.
Martha was lying in bed, getting ready to sleep. Seeing her pale face, I couldn’t hold back the tears that welled up in my eyes.
When she saw me like that, her expression softened. She quickly tried to comfort me. “Sylvia is the best. Why are you crying? You’re not a child anymore. Didn’t the doctor say? My condition might be complicated, but it’s treatable.
“You and Dexter are doing well now. You’ve built a solid life in the city. So, what’s there to worry about? I’m not scared, so why should you be?
I pressed my hands to my face, feeling the weight on my chirst grow heavier. Finally, I couldn’t hold it is anymore. “Mom, if… I mean, if Dester and I got divorced, what would you think?“
