A Pear Blossom, Moonlight and Shattered Days

The night I found out Harrison Sullivan had been cheating on me, I climbed onto the river bridge.

I stared down at the black water, so deep there was no bottom to it, and I looked back at him like something in me had broken loose.

I told you. If I ever found out you'd betrayed me, I'd make you regret it for the rest of your life.

At the last possible second, it was my best friend who pulled me back, and she was the one who lost her footing and went into the river.

Before the water swallowed her, her voice cut across the whole scene, a warning aimed at Harrison.

"If you ever wrong Fee again, I'll come back from the dead and make you pay!"

For the two years after that, over and over, I stood at the window wanting to throw myself down.

It was Harrison who held me when I lost control, crying as he spoke.

"I was wrong. I'll never do anything to hurt you again."

"If something happens to you, then Edwina died for nothing!"

After that, I fought to hold myself together. But he was the one who started vomiting constantly, and lost a lot of weight.

Whenever I asked, he'd just wave it off and say he was under stress.

Then, the day before Valentine's Day, while I was picking out a gift at the mall, a post scrolled past on my phone.

When a man loves a woman deeply enough, he can experience sympathetic morning sickness while she's carrying his child.

Nonsense, I thought. Then I turned my head and saw Harrison walking out of the movie theater, holding a woman's hand.

"This little guy is such a handful already."

"When he comes out, I'm definitely giving him a good spanking!"

And the woman on his arm, glowing with happiness, was the best friend who had fallen into the river two years ago trying to save me. Edwina Pruitt.

The gift slipped from my hand and hit the floor. I ignored the salesclerk calling after me and followed them.

Edwina listened to Harrison and answered, all bashful.

"Oh, come on, he's only three months along and you already want to spank him? What kind of father are you?"

"Besides, how do you even know it's a boy or a girl?"

Harrison held her hand, and his voice carried that tenderness and patience I knew so painfully well.

"If it's a girl, of course I'd be thrilled. But I hope it's a boy even more."

He paused, and a flicker of irritation crossed his eyes.

"Fiona Swanson's moods swing all over the place. I'm afraid I won't be able to keep this from her forever, and she might turn on you."

"If it's a boy, he can protect you along with me."

Edwina's whole face went soft with emotion. She rose onto her toes and pressed a kiss to the corner of his lips.

"Harrison, thank you for loving me."

His eyes reddened, and he ruffled the top of her head.

"Silly. I'm the one who let you suffer through all this."

"Come on. Let's go home and I'll make you something good."

I flagged down a taxi and followed. Twenty minutes later the car stopped outside a villa district in the suburbs.

The estate's patrolling steward spotted me and asked at once, on guard.

"Ma'am, who are you looking for?"

My throat was tight. I forced out a smile.

"I'm the cook Mr. Sullivan called for."

Understanding dawned on his face, and it filled at once with envy.

"Mrs. Sullivan really is a lucky woman. You're the fifth cook he's had come out this month."

"It's building fourteen, just up ahead."

I thanked him and walked over.

The moment I reached the door, I saw Harrison through the huge floor-to-ceiling window, cooking in an apron.

Every motion smooth and easy, his knife work fluid.

Edwina hugged him from behind, praising how good he was.

I watched it, my eyes stinging, and I remembered seven years ago.

Back then, we'd just graduated.

Harrison ignored his parents' objections and insisted on being with me.

To prove himself, he started a business from nothing.

We lived in a single room with terrible ventilation.

He couldn't cook, so it fell to me.

Over time, I came down with a bad case of bronchitis, my voice so raw I couldn't get the words out.

Harrison held me, aching for me, and promised.

"Fee, just hold on a little longer. Once I've made it, I'll never let you step into a kitchen again as long as you live."

I cupped his face and teased him.

"So you'll cook for me instead?"

He took my hands and said, gently.

"My cooking's terrible. When the time comes, we'll hire the best cook we can find."

But now, here he was, making a nourishing home-cooked meal for my best friend.

The surge of it jammed up in my throat, and I couldn't take any more. I turned and went to the home of Emmet James, the boy I'd grown up with.

I knocked, and when Emmet saw me, his face filled with worry.

"Fee, what are you doing here?"

"Did that bastard Harrison hurt you again?"

Our mothers had been close for decades. We'd known each other since before we were even born.

He'd always protected me like a little sister. Whenever I was in danger, he'd be there.

Looking at him, my nose stung and the tears just fell, my voice shaking.

"Edwina never died!"

"And she's having a baby with Harrison"

"What am I supposed to do? Why would they do this to me?"

Any other time, hearing that, Emmet would have rolled up his sleeves and gone to teach Harrison a lesson.

But now something was off in his expression. He even sounded disappointed as he spoke.

"I told him this plan wouldn't work. I said you'd find out sooner or later."

I froze, then slowly lifted my head to look at him.

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"What do you mean, I'd find out sooner or later?"

The tears came harder. I grabbed his sleeve and screamed at him.

"Emmet! Say something!"

Something reluctant flickered in his eyes and was gone, and then he spoke like a man who'd given up holding it back.

"I'm sorry, Fee. I didn't mean to keep it from you."

"The truth is, the night you got drunk at your wedding, Harrison and Edwina had already slept together."

"And the day you found out, you were so out of control, so far gone, they were both afraid you'd do something to yourself. That's why they came up with this plan."

He paused, gripped my shoulders, and looked at me.

"Fee, take my advice. Don't dig too hard into some things."

"You don't have to hide and sneak around the way Edwina does. Being the Mrs. Sullivan everyone acknowledges, that's already pretty good."

"Edwina finally has someone who loves her. You two were so close. Don't make things hard for her."

My breath locked in my chest. I let out a scoff, shook his hands off me, my voice thick with mockery.

"I'm making things hard for her?"

"Ha. You've all lost your minds!"

I turned to leave.

Emmet caught my wrist.

"Fee, calm down."

"Today's our monthly get-together, the three of us. Harrison and Edwina are already on their way over."

"Since you know now, some things are better said out in the open."

"I have nothing to say to any of you!"

I kicked him hard in the shin and yanked the door open, only to run straight into Harrison and Edwina.

My eyes dropped to their tightly clasped hands, then fixed on the slight swell of Edwina's belly. I let out a soft laugh.

"Edwina. Long time no see."

Panic flashed across Harrison's face, and then, as if he'd seen some wild animal, he shoved her behind him and watched me warily.

"Fee, what are you doing here?"

I looked at him, my throat swelling shut, my chest heaving.

"Then what are you doing here?"

"Didn't you say you were away on a business trip?"

"Why are you standing in front of me with this dead woman?"

Edwina wrenched her hand free of Harrison's, her eyes brimming.

"Fee, let me explain, I"

"I don't want to hear it!"

I clapped my hands over my ears, cutting her off.

"Do you have any idea? All these years, I dreamed about you day and night!"

"How many times I almost jumped down there to be with you!"

Her tears fell. She stepped forward and grabbed my hands, shaking her head over and over.

"I'm sorry, Fee. It was my fault, all of it!"

"I didn't know I'd hurt you this much"

I raised my hand and slapped her hard across the face.

"Keep your filthy hands off me!"

"If you know you wronged me, then why did you seduce my husband and get every last one of them to lie to me?"

Harrison's pupils shrank. The wine glass in his hand shattered on the floor. He rushed to pull Edwina into his arms, and when he saw the red mark on her face, his eyes filled with pain.

"Eddie!"

Then he glared at me, hard.

"Fiona, Eddie is pregnant. How could you raise a hand to her?"

My heart felt like it was being crushed to pieces, and the pain left me shaking all over.

I wiped my tears and met his eyes.

"Harrison, what right do you have to question me?"

"She's a mistress. If I beat her to death, she'd have it coming!"

"Fiona, you're the one who's actually"

"You shut your mouth!"

Edwina cut Harrison off, crying, and dropped straight to her knees in front of me.

"Fee, stop fighting, both of you."

"This whole thing is my fault. I'm the shameless one. I threw myself at Harrison, I made Emmet keep it from you."

"I'll go get rid of the baby tomorrow. From now on, I'll never show up in front of you again."

Emmet spoke up, like he couldn't stand to watch anymore.

"Fiona, that's enough. You know better than anyone how hard the road's been for Edwina."

I clenched my fists and lowered my eyes.

The summer after our junior year, Edwina's mother was gravely ill, and her father, driving deliveries exhausted to earn the medical bills, died right there on the highway.

The medical bills and the tuition all landed on her. She had no choice but to drop out and go to work.

I was the one who started an anonymous fundraiser, and I paid her tuition with the money from my own summer job.

After that, my breakfast and my meals always came in two portions.

Every problem I'd worked through, I'd patiently walk her through, again and again.

That's how we ended up at the same college, each other's most solid backup.

I knew how hard it had been for her.

But she also knew how hard it had been for Harrison and me, from that cramped little rental of barely a hundred square feet to now.

And now she'd become the knife cutting into me where it hurt most.

I looked at Edwina, all wronged innocence with her tear-streaked face, and laughed in contempt.

"Even if you and your baby died a thousand times, ten thousand times, I would never forgive you!"

Then I shoved Harrison aside and turned and left.

In the cab, I contacted a lawyer straight away to ask about the divorce.

A few minutes later, all the lawyer sent back was a question mark.

I was still puzzling over it when his next message came through.

Ms. Swanson, there is no marriage between you and Mr. Sullivan at all. There is nothing to divorce.

From what I've found, his only legal spouse is a woman named Edwina Pruitt.

I stared at those two lines, my ears ringing.

The moment I got home, I tore the place apart like a madwoman looking for the marriage certificate, then photographed it and sent it.

Are you sure you didn't check wrong? This is our marriage certificate, his and mine!

The typing indicator kept flickering in the chat window.

Ms. Swanson, the number and the embossed seal on this certificate are both fake... Have you been deceived?

Do you need any other legal assistance?

My fingers trembled as I typed out a line.

Would you mind telling me the date they got their marriage license?

March 23, 2019.

The strength drained out of my fingertips, and the phone slipped and clattered to the floor.

I slumped to the floor, the world spinning around me, everything swelling and shrinking in sickening waves, tears falling before I could stop them.

That day had been our fourth anniversary, mine and Harrison's.

It had also been the day I was five months pregnant, the day the baby's heartbeat stopped and I was forced into an abortion.

I remember how lost I was, calling Harrison over and over, and getting nothing back.

I called Edwina. Her coworker told me she'd been in a rear-end collision on the highway and was unconscious.

When I opened my eyes again, he was sitting by the hospital bed, holding my hand, his eyes red and swollen.

"Fee, I'm sorry. I got back too late."

"There was unrest where I was on the trip. Our partner company moved us to a safe place. I caught the fastest flight I could, but I still couldn't"

His voice broke midway, and his tears struck the back of my hand.

"We'll have another baby. We will."

I threw myself into his arms and sobbed, cursing him under my breath.

"You bastard. Why did it take you so long to come back!"

But deep down all I could think was, thank God he's safe.

What a joke it turned out to be. The two people I loved most, in the very moment I needed them, were busy doing everything they could to betray me.

And I stayed foolishly wrapped up in a fake love and a fake friendship, never knowing a thing.

I took a wrench from the tool room, smashed open the locked drawer, twisted off the bottle cap, and poured the pills into my mouth.

Just as I was about to swallow, my phone rang.

My first thought was Harrison. I meant to confront him before I died.

But the second the call connected, I came fully back to myself.

"Hello, is this Fiona?"

"How long ago did I buy this dump of a house off you? Why the hell haven't you moved out yet?"

"Keep it up and I'll smash the whole place to the ground!"

The word "house" hit me. I spat the pills out and rushed for the old family house.

Dad had handed it to me before he died. He said it was the best thing he could ever leave me in this life.

The moment I reached the door, I saw a fat man kicking at it.

I threw myself at him like I'd lost my mind, and one kick sent me sprawling.

A bone-deep pain shot through my back. I pushed myself up slowly, my voice raw.

"What do you think you're doing? This is my house. Who gave you permission to touch it?!"

"Touch it again and I'm calling the police!"

The fat man let out a cold laugh.

"Call the police? On what grounds?"

"On the grounds that I'm the owner of this house! Fiona!"

I planted myself in the doorway and refused to move an inch.

Another man, the thin one, smacked the fat man on the head.

"You idiot, quit wasting words on her!"

Then he pulled out a document and handed it to me.

"Calling the police really won't do you any good."

"This house was transferred to Ms. Edwina Pruitt half a year ago. It's her personal property now."

"If you keep squatting here and won't move out, we're the ones who should be calling the police."

I snatched the document and looked at the signature on the transferor's line, and a shudder ran through me.

My own name, written in my own hand, sat right there at the top.

I forced down the fear in my chest, took out my phone, and called Harrison. No one answered.

A car pulled up at the door. Harrison helped Edwina out of it, both of them moving carefully.

I rushed over and flung the document in his face, my chest heaving.

"Harrison, didn't you say no one lived in this house, that it was only for renting out?"

"Then what is this?!"

Harrison glanced at the document, his voice calm.

"Eddie hasn't been sleeping well since she got pregnant. This is the only place she can sleep soundly."

"You frightened her today. Consider this house an apology gift."

"It's sitting empty anyway. Doesn't matter who lives here."

Edwina bit her pale lip and tugged at Harrison.

"Forget it, Harrison. I've already done so many things to wrong Fee. I can't take this house."

Harrison gave her hand a squeeze. When his eyes turned to me, there was no warmth in them at all.

"Fiona, it's just a house. Don't be so eager to fight over things."

Pain throbbed through my head in waves. I clenched my palms and forced the words out.

"Just a house? I'm fighting over it?"

"This is my home. My parents built it brick by brick!"

"If you want to take her inside today, you'll have to do it over my dead body!"

Harrison's brows drew tight, his eyes cold to the bottom.

"Fiona, don't forget, your mother's still at the care facility."

"On the little you make from part-time work, do you really think you can afford it?"

My heart lurched, and my hands at my sides shook without stopping.

A few minutes later, I stepped aside.

I watched their figures disappear through the door, watched it close tight.

I couldn't hold it in any longer. I broke down and wailed.

Over the next few days, I started clearing out my things, piece by piece.

I didn't want to live here anymore, in the place that had once held so much of everything good and now only turned my stomach.

I had just zipped the last piece of clothing into the suitcase when a notification popped up. Edwina had posted something new.

I tapped it open. It was a video compilation.

Harrison had personally sawed down the pear tree in our yard, the one my father planted before he died, and built Edwina a swing out of it.

The solid-wood interior my family had chosen was gone, all of it swapped out for pink.

The flowers and plants my mother used to grow had been pruned into something unrecognizable.

The wine I'd been saving for my baby had been poured out.

Edwina smiled wide into the camera.

Someone who loves you never thinks your requests are unreasonable. They only worry they haven't given you enough.

A few seconds later, a comment appeared under the post.

Fiona, this post is visible only to you. Do you like it?

My fingertips went white where I gripped the phone. I dialed her number.

"Edwina, you are one ungrateful animal."

"My parents were so good to you all those years. Aren't you afraid of what this will bring down on you and that baby in your belly?"

The next second, a startled cry came through the line.

"Ah"

Then Harrison's voice, cold and heavy.

"Fiona, you actually have the nerve to send Eddie horror pictures and call to threaten her!"

"If anything happens to Eddie, I will never let you off!"

I opened my mouth to say I hadn't done anything, and a message from my part-time boss came in.

Fiona, you're fired!

Our shop got hit with malicious returns and locked orders because of you, the homewrecker who broke up someone's marriage. The losses are huge!

We've already been forced to shut down, and I will hold you accountable for the damages!

I opened my laptop and found the shop buried under vicious one-star reviews, some of them with my photo attached.

Tears welled up and blurred everything in front of me.

I pulled up my chat with Harrison and typed out my furious question.

You're going to destroy everything I have, all for Edwina?

But the message went through, and there was no reply.

Just as I was about to go find him and get a straight answer, the care facility called.

"Is this Miss Swanson? Your mother just had a bad shock. She's in serious condition now, we've already gotten her to the hospital. Come quickly!"

My heart dropped. I couldn't afford to fall apart. I ran for the hospital like I'd lost my mind.

But the moment I walked in, the online mob recognized me, the ones who never bothered to learn the truth.

They swarmed me in the lobby, snapping photos, screaming curses.

Some of them even put their hands on me.

My mind started slipping. I sobbed and begged them to move aside.

It only made them worse.

Not until the nurses' station threatened to call the police did they finally, grudgingly, let me go.

I raced to the doors of the emergency room, and all I saw was my mother, covered by a white sheet, being wheeled out.

I crumpled to the floor, crying until my voice gave out, and finally passed out.

When I woke again, it was already evening.

In a daze I finished the paperwork and carried my mother's ashes back to the old house.

I dug through a pile of clutter until I found my father's memorial photo, and I turned the gas up as high as it would go.

Just like when I was little, I lay down between them, and I pressed the lighter.

At that same moment, Harrison was peeling grapes for Edwina, who had just finished her checkup, murmuring softly to the baby in her belly to give its mother less trouble.

The next second, Emmet's call came through.

"Harrison, it's bad! The old house is on fire, and Fee's still inside!"