Crystal Ball: Old Wine

She stared at the old tired eyes in the mirror, patting her cheeks and
carefully observing the reflection opposite her, she pondered on the
changes that had occurred on that face over the years; the once shiny,
full, black hair had lost its lustre and had splashes of grey in it,
her eyes had lost the spark in them, they were more wrinkles around
them than she could remember, She had not been getting enough sleep
for the past few days so she had dark circles around them. Her eyes;
those used to be her most beautiful feature; they were big and bright
like a white saucer full of rich dark chocolate. She let those eyes
roam around the room as though that was the first time in it, which
could probably be her last in it. She had spent thirty-five beautiful
years in this house; it was big and spacious and used to be filled
with children’s noise but was now empty and hollow, like the look in
her eyes. She had lived, loved and sacrificed but now, she had to give
it all up. Using the mirror’s reflection, she took a long look at the
man lying on the bed, in spite of the years he still looked young and
vibrant, the man she had fallen in love with over forty years ago. She
gaped at his broad chest and remembered how it used to give her so
much pleasure to lay her head on that chest, not speaking, just
listening to his heartbeat and how it matched with hers in a perfect
rhythm. He let out a soft whistle as was his habit when he was fast
asleep jolting her out of her little reverie, she let out a deep sigh
and massaged her forehead with her index finger, in spite of the air
conditioner she could feel moistness on it. She let her roaming eyes
do their job once more and this time it rested on her wedding ring
which she had worn faithfully for the past thirty-five years, it was
the bond that joined her to her husband in holy matrimony and every
time she looked at it, the picture of them standing together at the
altar exchanging their vows became fresh in her mind, at that moment
the world seized to exist and all that mattered was him and only him.
Beautiful memories clouded her thinking and she could not help but let
the tears out, She was leaving all these behind. She sobbed silently
and wished she was young and vibrant all over again but time, time was
on a chariot of tornado, so hard to keep up with. The children were
grown, married living a life of their own overseas. She could picture
the look on her last daughter’s face if she told her she finally left
her father, she confided in her with everything and her daughter would
tell her from time to time, “You are stuck with this man, you are one
flesh and blood now, you cannot leave him”. She was leaving now
anyway. The divorce would be quick; she had saved up a bulk of money
over the years to start a new life. She intended to leave the country
immediately after it, to cool off and avoid questions from family,
friends and the press. She wiped her tears, went into the bathroom to
have a quick shower, dressed up and picked the bag which she had
packed earlier in the day while she husband was out playing golf with
the “boys”. The clock stuck 5am as she stepped out of the room; she
had barely stepped out of the room when the lights came on. She
dropped her bag from shock and turned to see him staring at her, “You
are leaving me, aren’t you?”, She burst into another round of tears as
he moved closer to her and led her back into the room and sat her on
the bed and after pouring her a cup of water from the bedside fridge
asked her in the most pain-filled voice I have ever heard him speak,
“Why?”. That was it, she let out what was killing her since she hit
menopause ten years ago, how she thought she no longer excited him
like she used to, how she quivered in pain when he looked at another
woman, how she thought he would leave her for a younger woman, how she
could not bear to think of it… she could have gone on for ages if he
had not placed a finger on her lips and proceeded to plant a deep kiss
on her forehead taking all her fears away and giving her all the
assurance she needed. He looked away from her to the bed they had
shared every night for thirty-five except when he was away on business
trips, then looked back at her, “This Bed will miss us”, he then
planted another kiss on her forehead and held her tight in a warm
embrace, one hour later, it felt like their first night at the
honeymoon cottage.