While Jenny stocked the frozen foods section at work, Charlie carefully explored her house. Two bedrooms, he noted. As he stuck his head into the other room, he noted the pull-out couch.
Great. He'd kicked Jenny out of her own bed. A simple bookcase and a computer desk completed the room. He sighed as he noticed the Bible, lying on the bed. At least he hadn't driven her away from God, completely.
He knew, from reading her blog, that Jenny didn't attend a church. She had some very strong opinions on the subject. Charlie winced. God would have to work with her, on that. He sure wasn't up to it know.
Why? he wondered. Why had God allowed him to get a migraine? He'd had a plan, dinner out, an apology... Charlie sighed again and leaned against the wall in the hallway, his head pounding so hard he could barely think.
Maybe I needed to beg and crawl he thought. I couldn't have been more pathetic. He firmed his lips in a small smile and checked out the bathroom.
He expected the purple towels and orange bathrobe. Jenny loved bright color in the bathroom. "It wakes me up, Charlie." she'd drawled, leaning against him in bed. The loud colors seemed to throb in his eyes. He turned off the bathroom light and went off the hallway light.
The sink looked fine, with old-fashioned knobs. White porcelain, it was pretty unremarkable except for a small chip near the rim. The counter was some kind of cheap laminate, covered in hair care products and personal items.
Charlie gasped as he opened the shower curtain. The bathtub enclosure looked terrible. White ceramic tiles had fallen off the walls. Some, at the edge of the tub, had been carefully propped up with bottles of shampoo and shower gel. The tub itself looked alright, a fiberglass garden tub, but the faucet dripped into a 5-gallon bucket. Orange, again, he noted.
Charlie gritted his teeth at the thought of his wife bathing in there, every day. Horrendous.
A crushing wave erupted in his temple, warning Charlie he had to take his medication again. He sighed and headed for the kitchen.
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