(Highest ranking: #253 in Chicklit - 3 October 2017) Cynthia finds lipstick on her husband's shirt and it isn't her shade. She goes out for a walk trying to process the shocking news of her husband's infidelity, and that's when she finds Stacy, a wo...
"I know I should be happy. He's giving me more money than I could have earned in my entire life, much more than I asked for. And all I have to do is keep quiet about his affairs. Tell everyone that we just weren't working out anymore. We have shared custody of the kids, and we both promised we wouldn't poison them against each other. But somehow, I just feel... I feel like I lost something. I don't know what. 10 years of my life maybe? My twenties?" Cynthia chuckled at this. She was standing with Stacy by the window watching the last trails of the sunset fade away.
The first thing she had done after signing the divorce papers was call her friend to celebrate. She thought she would want to celebrate, but somehow one crucial component of a celebration was missing: happiness.
She suspected it's the same as what war writers wrote about in books. After a long and emotionally draining war like the one she had been through, it was impossible for either one of the parties to win. There was no winning in such a war. Only loss and more loss.
For her, she had lost her innocent belief that by doing everything right, life would go perfectly for her. She always believed in playing by the rules. She always tried her best to please everyone. And in some twisted turn of fate, her life turned out worse than the lives of people who ignored the rules their entire lives.
"It's okay, Cynthia." Stacy said, leaning onto the windowsill, "Just think of it like a really long life lesson. You still have many more years ahead of you where you can live your life differently. After all, no one promised us that following the rules will keep us safe. It's just something we all assume. Sometimes it just doesn't matter. It's not to say people like me will have it better. Both our fates could be a mere coin toss."
"We live and we learn, right?" Cynthia took a sip from the glass of juice in her hand. Then, putting the cup down on the chair next to the window, she said, "I brought my camera. Let's take some of those pictures you wanted to put on Instagram."
"Oh. Right. Thanks for the help. I don't know if I have the right outfits though," Stacy responded.
"Those khaki pants of yours would be perfect." Cynthia was at the sofa getting her camera out of her backpack. "We're going for street style first, so those pants, a white T-shirt, and some converse boots. There's a photo editing app on my laptop and I have some ideas on how we could play with the colors."
"I forgot where I put them," Stacy said, walking towards her bedroom. "God forbid they're still in the laundry basket." Camera in hand, Cynthia followed her friend as she changed some of the settings on her camera.
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