The Marshes

THE MARSHES

by Derek Patz

Natalie's misfortune began when she decided to drop out of college. Her boyfriend, Todd, fiercely objected; he had this ideal vision of Natalie spending almost half of her life in school. His family consisted of all college graduates (such as doctors, lawyers, and even elite businessmen who worked for the big banks) who didn't help matters much. It only made things worse for her—the expectations were set entirely too high, especially in the eyes of her boyfriend.

"No girlfriend of mine is gonna spend the rest of her life serving beer to drunk guys and living off of tips," Todd would assuredly claim. "You're going to school to either be a nurse or a teacher or-"

"Or what?" Natalie interjected, glaring at him with eyes that told she wasn't having any of his bullshit. "You'll break up with me? Beat me? That works for your dad, right? He just hits the living shit out of your mom every time he doesn't get his way?"

In a fit of rage, he grabbed her wrists and started twisting. Stopping only to realize that he was becoming his father. Hearing her scream in pain brought him back to his own mother.The sleepless nights of screaming and his mom coming to sleep in his room just to get away from his dad.

But it was too late. It was the last draw. She couldn't take it anymore. Natalie gave him back the engagement ring and went back to her apartment.

Natalie woke up to see 13 missed calls when she realized she forgot to block his number. Looking at her bare hands made her realize all the jewelry was from him. From the " Im sorry" moments which resulted in make-up sex.

She decided to go to the local cheap jewelry store at the end of Northern Willow Avenue. The shop employee informed me of a few-minute wait to process the items, so she gazed around the store in a pastime.

"Where's your jewelry counter?" she wondered.

The worker answered, "Just right around the corner. We have necklaces for ten percent off today."

"I'll take a look. Thanks."

Most of the necklaces looked quite cheap, though one caught her eye; it looked like one she had when she was a young girl—a silver heart with her name inscribed in the middle. It was part of a gift set paired with another necklace, crafted by her mother's jewelry store. She was never allowed to see it.

The heart read Ashley in the center, and on the back of it was the Gibbon's Jewelers logo. She bought the necklace without hesitation and took it to her mother, who lived in a dilapidated house within walking distance from the jewelry store.

********

"Oh! Hey, Naddie. This is a surprise!" her mother exclaimed once the door opened.

"Yeah, it's been a long day," Natalie huffed tiredly. "I broke up with Todd today. You were right, mom; he was controlling and manipulative. I just... didn't want to see it, so I ignored it."

Her mother sighed in sympathy. "That's normal, unfortunately. We try to see the best in the ones we love—or think we love, but it ends up biting us in the end. It'll get better, hun. You're better off in my opinion, anyway."

"I hope so. Hey, I was off selling some of the shit he gave me and I came across this necklace. It's almost identical to the one you gave me when I was little," Natalie nonchalantly mentioned as she presented the piece to her mother.

"Oh, there were a million necklaces like that." She waved it off with disregard, as if it were a meaningless object that inflicted no emotion. "Are you coming over next weekend?"