When Jonathan’s wife starts coming home late with strange marks on her wrists, doubt begins to creep into their once-solid marriage. An unexpected visit to his office threatens to unravel everything, until a deeper truth forces him to question not his loyalty, but how he truly sees the woman he loves.
My wife used to be home before dinner.
Always.
Even when things were hectic at work, Nara would get home in time to eat with us, help Lena with her homework, and maybe sneak into one of those murder mystery shows she’d sworn she didn’t like.
A man standing in a kitchen | Source: Midjourney
A man standing in a kitchen | Source: Midjourney
She is one of the accounting managers in a large company. Nara is intelligent, organized, the kind of woman who never loses track of time.
But lately, things have changed.
She started coming home well after Lena’s bedtime. Every night,
a woman sat at a desk. | Source: Midjourney
A woman sitting at a desk | Source: Midjourney
“We’re in the middle of something important. I have to stay late. It’s just work,” she said when I asked.
I wanted to believe her. My wife never gave me any reason not to. Yet, I couldn’t shake the unease that gripped me. The hardest part?
When our 10-year-old daughter, Lena Rose, started frowning and shaking her head.
“Is Mommy coming home tonight?” she asked, picking at the dinner I had prepared that evening.
A little girl sitting at a kitchen counter | Source: Midjourney
A little girl sitting at a kitchen counter | Source: Midjourney
It had been about a week since Nara had adopted her “new routine” when I noticed the marks.
She was in the bathroom, brushing her hair after her shower. I barely had the energy to keep my eyes open, but I hadn’t seen her properly for days.
“Sleep, Jonathan,” she said. “I’ll be upstairs in a moment. I’ll kiss Lena goodnight first.”
A woman standing in a bathroom | Source: Midjourney
A woman standing in a bathroom | Source: Midjourney
As her hand moved up and down, I focused on two faint lines around her wrists. They were red, almost raw. They were the kind of lines that looked like they came from a tight watch strap.
But here’s the thing: Nara hates wearing watches.
When we first started dating, we walked past a jewelry store and I was looking at all the fancy bracelets.
Bracelets displayed in a store | Source: Midjourney
Bracelets displayed in a store | Source: Midjourney
“They’re beautiful, Jon,” she told me. “But not for me! I don’t like anything on my wrists. I wear a watch occasionally, but even that’s a bit too little for me.”
She had said it casually, as if it were one of her mannerisms. But I remembered. It was Nara, how could I not remember?
So when I saw the marks, I asked him directly. I figured we were strong enough to have an honest conversation.
A man sitting on a bed | Source: Midjourney
A man sitting on a bed | Source: Midjourney
My wife blinked, as if I’d caught her off guard. Then, surprisingly, she blushed. Another rare thing for Nara.
