Unhappily Married ✓

16. Accident

"I love being married. It's so great to find that one special person you want to annoy for the rest of your life."—Rita Rudner

I sit comfortably on one of the two barstools and put my elbows on the countertop. I have barely read a mail on my laptop when my mind drifts over to something else.

It has been two weeks since I moved in with Todd and today we had to pay a visit to Caroline for our next counseling session. Her questions were the same and so our answers were the same. We didn't tell her about our kissing and cuddling because it's something we wouldn't like to discuss with a third person, not even if she's our relationship counselor. She said that we were making steady progress, but I don't know if kissing is considered as making progress.

Todd and I are in the same boat and I know it's a rough journey, but we'll make it through together. After two weeks, we'll both be freed to carry on with our own lives.

"Hey, what are you doing?" Todd asks, placing cocoa powder on the table.

I shrug my shoulders. "Just reading some mails."

"Fan mails, huh?" He raises his eyebrows at me.

"No, they're more like hate mails."

"What do you mean?"

I clear my throat. "I will read one out to you—hey, why don't you just stop writing. Your articles make my eyes bleed."

Todd opens his mouth to speak something, but I hold my hand up to stop him. "This one's actually quite funny: My cat's writing is better than yours."

We both burst out laughing.

Todd puts a hand over his mouth, coughing a few times. "But they're downright rude to you, Stella."

"Yeah, I know, but now I'm immune to all these rude comments," I say, leaning forward. "I've learned that no matter how hard you work people will always find ways to bring you down and therefore, you should always be ready to dodge through them in your suit of armor."

A small grin spreads across his lips. "You're very grown-up. I'm happy to see you so confident."

"Thank you." I nod.

He puts a saucepan full of chocolate bars on the stovetop and the rich aroma of chocolate fills my nostrils.

"By the way, how's Dad doing now?"

"Oh, he's doing fine. In fact, the doctors will discharge him tomorrow morning," I smile.

"That's good news."

"I know."

It feels like old times, but there's still something missing and I can't really put my finger on it. However, it's a good thing we're finally acting normal.

Todd puts sugar, flour, cocoa and baking powder in a large glass bowl, giving me a sidelong glance.

"Can you give me a hand?"

"Sure."

I rise from the barstool, rubbing my hands on my jeans as I walk over to him.

"What are you making though?" I ask.

"Lemon drizzle cake. Sweet and tangy—the perfect combination," he smiles.

"Wow!"

I pick up the bowl and beat the batter with a wooden spatula. Todd breaks three eggs into the bowl and I start mixing the ingredients again. The batter looks too smooth and I think some more flour should be added, but I need to ask Todd before I add something into the mixture.