A 'SUB' REQUEST (Cate Blanchett x OC)

Chapter 19: An abrupt separation

Disheveled, in sweatpants, my hair in a messy bun, my face pale from illness - this was not how I envisioned meeting Andrew Upton for the first time. On the other hand, he looked surprisingly dapper given that he was asked to be here on such short notice, as if he had been preparing for this moment all day long. Worst of all, he had lost quite a bit of weight during the pandemic, his bulgy stomach had retreated, and there was even a hint of muscle tone on his arms. 

The kids all rushed to him and congregated in a bear hug. "Daddy, you're home!" He took turns kissing each of their heads, a paternal smile emerging from his face. The kids' faces shone with pure excitement, and it was apparent to any outsider that they absolutely adored and revered their father. The sight was so heartwarming that for a second, I almost understood why Cate stayed in the marriage for so many years. 

Before I had the chance to properly introduce myself, he asked me curtly, "where is she?" 

I gestured him towards the bedroom without saying a word. The children followed him around, completely oblivious to the cold divide between their father and myself. 

They seemed to be in Cate's bedroom for an eternity while I waited alone in the living room like a visitor, torturously. Then, Andrew emerged from the door, all of his initial hostility melting away. He even extended a hand towards me, and we exchanged warm greetings. 

"Thank you for taking care of the kids while they were sick," he said, "It means a great deal to me and Cate." 

"You're welcome," I responded, "no hassle at all. They're really the loveliest kids." 

"Aren't they?" he smiled, "they speak highly of you too." 

"I appreciate that," 

"But Cate isn't doing so well," he continued courteously, "and I thought it'd be best for me to take her to the hospital, while you watch the kids at home. Is that all right with you? And I'm more than happy to compensate you for your time." 

The proposition made my heart sink. I would've snapped back in a heartbeat if the kids weren't present, overhearing our every word. 

But instead - "No, you don't have to pay me," I said coldly. 

"That's so generous of you," he nodded in my direction, and quickly helped a feeble Cate out the door, "at least let me reimburse you for the Uber." 

After they were gone, I declined the kids' invitation to a game of Monopoly with them. I walked up to Cate's bedroom, sat down on the bed where I could still feel her body heat from lying there minutes before, and started sobbing quietly until my mind went blank. The only image that I couldn't unsee was how tightly Cate's arm clung to Andrew as they left the house. 

-----

Cate turned out to be fine. She was prescribed some Tylenol and ibuprofen, and was sent home to rest as the hospital was overcrowding with more severe cases. She went straight back to sleep after coming back later that night. The kids, a bit distraught by their mother's illness and exhilarated by their father's presence, requested that he stayed until she got better. As this presented an extremely uncomfortable situation for me, I decided to go back to my own place for a few days, promising the kids I'd visit after their mother recovered. 

"But why do you have to go?" Edith, the youngest, tugged on the hem of my dress as I packed up later that night. She looked like a doll, her curly blond locks framing her cherubic face, "who's going to play chase with me?"

"The house is only so big, precious," I said, "and it's getting a bit crowded for all of us." and I was not lying. 

"But mommy's not gonna see you when she wakes up in the morning - she'll miss you," the toddler said. 

"I know, sweetie-pie," I bent down and cupped her chubby cheeks in my hands, "tell her I'll miss her as well." 

I spent the next 3 days getting blackout drunk every night and waking up at 4am in the morning to realize that my tears have soaked my pillow. My "get well" messages to Cate received the briefest of responses. The idea of Cate surrounded by her family stood in sharp contrast to my isolation. I kept having nightmares in which I lost my job in Hollywood, had to pay my bills by becoming a babysitter, and every time I arrived at a gig Cate would open the door, smiling her megawatt smile with dollar bills in her hand. And I'd jerk awake, painfully aware of how alone I was in my apartment, cut off from the rest of the pandemic-stricken world. 

Having hit rock bottom with no way of climbing up, I called my boss in an extremely inappropriate act of desperation.

"...you're together with who now!???" I could hear his gay voice exploding with excitement. 

"yea, you heard me right..." I muttered. 

"CATE FUCKIN' BLANCHETT! I take back everything I said, girl," I could see him snapping his thumbs off, "Boy have I underestimated you. The woman's a MILF. I'm gayer than a tree of monkeys, but even I wanna eat her pussy. She can peg me with both of her Oscars at the same time..." 

"A little respect please, we're pretty serious - unlike you and Mr. Blanchett." Then I told him everything, how Cate and I met, how Hylda and Andrew worked together to blackmail us like a bunch of jealous maniacs, and how I caught him and Andrew together and blackmailed them right back, and that was why my relationship with Cate never saw the light of day. 

"Hot damn," was all he could say.

"But I'm fairly certain that Cate and Andrew are gonna get back together after this. You should've seen them - they were one big happy family and there was no place for me. I should've known better." 

"Do you love her?"

"Of course!"

"Then blackmail the bastard back. Show the world what a friggin' fag he is!" 

"I can't do it to the kids," I said solemnly, "it'd break them." 

"You're overthinking. If my dad was a fag," he said dramatically, "I would've turned out a lot more adjusted. Trust me." 

I laughed out loud for the first time in days. 

And right then, I received a text from Cate. 

"Hi darling - I'm better now. Can you come over one of these days? I've been doing a lot of thinking, and we need to talk." 

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