The shock!

The feeling of utmost dismay- how did I find myself here? I’ve been married for just a few weeks and here I am, in the house of another man.

But why does it feel so good?  It feels warm, it feels right. The scent of the room, the colors of the walls; all the little things that had formed my life are still so present and so fresh. Ah, all these wonderful memories- who could forget? How can I forget?

“But I shouldn’t be here!”, I think to myself.

How do I tell my husband? How do we work through this situation and work on our marriage? So many questions and emotions are going through my mind.

I dress as quickly as I can and dash down the stairs, where I’m met with stares.

My parents are having breakfast with my husband. I’m rooted to the spot. What do I say? What can I say? Before I can collect my thoughts enough to formulate a sentence, I’m met with a wave of greetings.

“Good morning honey!”

“Good morning babe!”

“Good morning everyone”, I say, not knowing whom to respond to first.

“It’s okay, sit down. When you walked in and went straight upstairs to your room, we let you have a minute hoping that you’d eventually join us for dinner. Mom came upstairs and found you sound asleep, so she just tucked you in and switched off the lights. When she came back downstairs, we called Frank to tell him you were safe with us.”

Bewildered, I look over at my husband with a feeling of utter embarrassment.

“I’m so sorry babe”, I say. “I just left the office and found myself driving here, to my old home, my old room.”

He draws closer to me and takes me into his arms, embracing me like he did countless times before, and with his ever reassuring soft voice whispers in my ear,

“I know come here when things get hard for you. You grew up here, and this will always be your home. Now let’s go and make a home for the both us.”