A year.
A whole year wasted. The tears fell hot and fast as Rose threw the last of Rex's things into a trash bag. They had not been living together, so there was not much to throw away. But still, looking down at the plastic bag, Rose was overcome by rage. She kicked it across the floor, instantly regretting it when her foot connected with something hard.
She yelped in pain, hopping around on one foot, her toes on fire. She made her way to the sofa, throwing herself on the comfortable material, and gently placed her injured foot on the edge of the coffee table. Taking off her sock, she checked her toes for injuries and was relieved to find none. Massaging her throbbing foot, Rose glared at the offending trash bag. She cursed the day she met Reginald 'Rex' Gunther. All blonde hair and blue eyes, charming her with his smooth tongue.
Once her pain was manageable, she heaved herself off the couch and went to get ready. After that, she went downstairs to her little flower shop. Eden was not open that day, but she made sure to water the plants in the back garden, and check that everything was in order. An hour later, Rose was seated in a small café, nursing a warm cup of coffee and trying to project to the world that she was perfectly fine. She caught sight of Rex across the street and redoubled her efforts. After the hotel debacle she'd made a promise to herself. That man would never see her cry again, she would never let him see how much he had hurt her.
"Rosalind," He said as he sat down across from her. Completely unbothered, like he was greeting an acquaintance instead of the woman who had caught him cheating on her two days earlier. She wanted so badly to throw herself across the table and strangle him. Instead she counted to ten in her head. Rage under control, she reached into her pocket and pulled out her engagement ring. Placing it on the table, she pushed it towards him, the metal scrapping the dark table top. One of the waiters, having noticed his arrival came over. Ready to ask for his order, the girl saw the ring, felt the arctic atmosphere between them and back off without a word. Both of them ignored her.
Rex for his part, looked from the ring to her, then from her to the ring, seemingly not understanding.
"So this is it?" He asked.
"You're giving up on us without even fighting for our relationship,"
"You're running at the first sign of trouble, all because I made a mistake,"
For a moment Rose was certain she had not heard him correctly. But looking over at him, she realized he was absolutely serious. Taking a moment, Rose chose her words carefully.
"Reginald," She hissed, voice low "You did not make a mistake,"
"A mistake is when you take someone's bag by mistake,"
"A mistake is when you accidentally drop something,"
"What you did was make a decision,"
"You cannot call falling between another woman's legs with your dick a mistake,"
"You were brave enough to cheat, so be brave enough to call it what it is,"
"You cheated on me, plain and simple," She had never talked to him like that before, and it showed, his eyebrows had almost disappeared into his hairline. He looked at her for several long moments, then he reached across the table, trying to take her hands in his. She not so subtly took her hands off the table and folded them on her lap. He leveled a hurt look at her and she met it with a cold stare.
"Rosie, darling" Ahh, so she was Rosie again, and his darling too.
"What I did was wrong, I know that,"
"You have been nothing but good to me, and I broke your trust," He got up suddenly, coming to kneel by her side.
"Baby please, just give me a second chance," The café, was mostly empty, but the few people that were there, were now stealing glances at their table. Sensing drama and wanting front row seats. Rose hated being made a spectacle, but Rex was too busy begging to notice her discomfort.
"I can change,"
"Just give me another chance and I promise I will be better,"
"We can fix this," And there in lay their problem. As far as Rose was concerned there was nothing to fix. They had not been having any problems, quite the opposite actually. They had been two weeks away from registering their marriage. There had been no arguments, and they had been keeping up with each other. Going out together at least once a week no matter how busy they were. In fact, most of the times when they could not have quality time, he had been the one to cancel. Being that he was a top fashion photographer, she had always been understanding. But now a new thought occurred to her. How many times had he stood her up, just so he could go be with his floozie.
"That was not the first time, was it?" In answer he hung his head, looking ashamed.
"How long have you been seeing her?"
"A while," He said, and an alarm bell tripped in Rose's head, he was not giving an exact time, which meant it had been a long time. Maybe even their entire relationship. If she had come in with any hope of their relationship surviving, his answer sealed their fate. What he had given was the reply of a seasoned cheater, someone who loved to play the field. Marriage might have been a lifelong dream, but she wanted it to be a happy one.
Looking down at Rex, the man doing his best impression of a kicked puppy, Rose realized she could not have that with him. She would also be paranoid, not trusting him. Reaching on the other side of her chair, she grabbed the bag full of his things and handed them to him.
"Goodbye, Rex," She left him kneeling there, feeling like she had both gained and lost something.