Mr. Schuler.
The entire house is completely silent.
Blake runs his fingers through his hair, and steps forward.
And he punches Tyler, grabbing the front of his shirt
"Are you fucking stupid?" he snarls.
"What?" Tyler spats, shoving Blake off of him.
"Look around!" Blake yells at him. "Do you know who's not here? Your wife! She left."
Silence.
The engine to the Range Rover starts a couple minutes later, and tires squeal, and the sound fades into the distance.
More silence.
And then footsteps.
Tyler
She's gone.
She's gone.
She left.
I made her leave.
She loves me. She loves the kids.
But she left.
She left for the kids. She left. She's so strong.
She left, even though I know it killed her.
I didn't go after her.
I think back to the wedding. In her vows, she was saying how we're going to get in fights, and how if she leaves, she's only leave to calm down. That she'll come back. She told me that if she says goodbye and then she leaves, then I need to be worried. She said Don't worry when I fight with you. Worry when I stop. When I stop, it means there's nothing left.
She stopped.
And then Emily walks into the living room, holding onto her blanket.
"Daddy?" she whispers.
Everyone looks at her.
"What's wrong, Daddy?" she looks around the room. "Where's Momma?"
I wrack my brain for something to tell her.
"She went to the store." I whisper. "She's going to the store."
Carmen can't leave.
We have a lot left to fight for.
Our story isn't done yet!
I think to all the times she drives me crazy, and reality hits.
It'd rather fight with her for the rest of her life, every single day, than spent another second away from her.
"Did she really go to the store?" Emily whispers.
I look down at her.
"Because I don't think she did."
Her eyes are full of tears.
I don't know what to tell her.
I don't deserve to cry.
I didn't fight.
I can't think.
I can't fucking think.
I don't know what to tell Emily.
I can't look at Emily.
She's a replica of Carmen.
