Bit by bit, Zach and I started to act more like a real married couple. That lost part of my memory felt less and less important.
What mattered was that I was happy now.
But the happier I became, the more uneasy I felt. I was terrified that all of this would disappear the moment my memory returned.
People are complicated, aren’t they?
And as if on cue, a new “complication” appeared.
Zach and I were out shopping for Cooper’s birthday gift when he went to park the car. I waited on the sidewalk when a young man called my name.
“Jenny?”
I looked over to see a fresh–faced guy, full of youthful energy, smiling at me. He was taller than me, by a good few inches, and honestly not bad–looking. But compared to Zach’s sharp features, this guy barely registered on my radar.
The problem was, I had no idea who he was.
But he acted like he knew me well.
“Jenny, have you been super busy? I’ve called you a few times, but it always says you’re on another call. What have you been up to?”
My brain was blank, no recollection of this guy at all. Even if I wanted to make small talk,
I didn’t know where to start.
“You… don’t remember me?”
The guy’s eyes widened in disbelief.
I nodded awkwardly. “Sorry…”
09:33 Sun, 29 Jun BO
<
88%
He aιan’t seem too potnerea. In fact, ne just smiled wider and kept talking.
“It’s cool, don’t worry! Remember how you asked me to pretend to be your admirer? You wanted to make your husband jealous. We had a plan to give him a bit of a reality check!”
What?
No!
I had no memory of that. There was no way I’d do something so ridiculous!
So that mysterious text last week–was it from this guy?
So, I hadn’t cheated. This whole thing was just a huge, embarrassing misunderstanding?
Before I could react, the guy stepped closer and casually slung his arm around my
shoulder, leaning his head against me.
“Hey, isn’t that your husband over there? Perfect timing! I’ll really sell it this time!”
What? No! I don’t need any more help!
Before I could protest, the guy dramatically started his performance.
“Jenny, please don’t leave me! You know I only love you! You said after the divorce, we’d be together. I’m willing to wait forever if that’s what it takes.”
I glanced over at Zach, who stood on the sidewalk, hands in his pockets, his expression
unreadable.
Was this the calm before the storm?
I opened my mouth to tell the guy to stop when he suddenly dropped to his knees and wrapped his arms around my legs.
“You remember, don’t you? That night, you told me you hadn’t been satisfied in forever!”
Zach’s face darkened immediately.
<
Congratulations, kid. You just stepped on a landmine.
I quickly shook my head and tugged at the guy.
“Alright, enough. The act is over!”
But he was fully committed now, clinging to my legs like his life depended on it.
I fought the urge to kick him into next week.
Zach finally started walking toward us, his footsteps slow and deliberate.
“No, no, Zach, listen! I swear, I don’t even know him! He’s probably got some kind of…
condition! A mental one!”
“Film academy, class of 2019, third–year acting student. Charles Dean’s student, right?”
The guy’s tearful act vanished instantly.
“How… how do you know that?”
“Charles Dean is a good friend of mine. Given your behavior, I think it’s time I had a little
chat with him.”
The guy shot up, gave a deep bow, and bolted out of there faster than I thought humanly
possible.
Zach clearly knew the whole situation–did this mean he knew all along that I wasn’t
actually cheating?
“So… you’ve known all along that this was just one big misunderstanding?”
“Did you think I’d be that easy to fool?”
“But now that we’ve cleared that up, I think we need to have a real conversation about
your ‘satisfaction.”
Oh no.
<
“No! He was just making stuff up!”
“Was I not enough for you?”
“No!”
“Sounds like Mrs. Warren has some unmet needs…”
“They’re all lies!”
Zach smirked.
“Why wait? We’ve got time. Let’s take care of those unmet needs right now.”
“I was wrong, Zach!”
10
