Sister Wife

Deception

The next morning I wake up to my phone ringing. It takes me a while to even find it. Usually I plug it in on the nightstand but I must have forgotten. My eyes are swollen and puffy from crying myself to sleep.

I finally discover my phone on the dresser. When I see who's calling I have to think for a few seconds if I really want to answer. The ringing stops but starts again almost right away.

"Hi Beth," I sigh, deciding she's not likely to give up if I ignore her.

"Are you married to Justin Bieber?" Beth doesn't even say hello.

"I've missed you too," I ignore her question. It's only 8 and I'm still upset about how my night went. The absolute last thing I want to do right now is defend my marriage. Is that because I'm not sure about sharing Justin anymore? Or just because I'm tired of having the same fight with Beth?

"Answer me," Beth demands

"No," I don't bother hiding my yawn.

"No what?" Beth snaps. "No, you won't answer?"

"Beth what do you want?" I'm almost never this rude but my head is starting to hurt.

"Just tell me the truth, Charlotte," Beth sighs. "I promise not to tell anyone," she adds. I don't know why but I get a sick feeling in my stomach when she says this.

"I am Justin Bieber's girlfriend, okay? That's all over the internet, it's no secret," I tell her.

"Charlotte!" Beth says my name like it's a swear word.

"It's always so nice to talk to you," I say. "But I need to go," I don't even say goodbye before I hang up. 

Why every single detail of my fake relationship with Justin was carefully considered and established but I never even thought about Beth and how she would react when this news came out I don't know. The whole phone call makes me nervous but I'm not sure why.

I really want to go back to bed but I need to find something for my headache first. There are some pills in the bathroom so I swallow two and get back in bed. My phone gets plugged in and then I think of my birth control pills. If I forgot to charge my phone because I was so upset I probably forgot to take my pill too. I go back to the bathroom.

Only my pills aren't there. They're always on my sink so I'll remember to take them when I brush my teeth for the night. I check in all the cabinets but they're not anywhere. I wish I could remember how far into the pack I was because I don't think I finished it. I haven't gotten my period so I must be somewhere in the middle, right?

It might be stupid but I start checking everywhere in my room. I look through every drawer in the room before I move on to the rest of the house. I'm starting to feel like a crazy person when I open the silverware drawer to check. And of course they don't show up there or anywhere else in the kitchen, or the dining room, or the family room, or the other rooms I haven't yet figured out how to use.