Chapter 6: What Role Did Your Friends Play?

Continued from chapter 5:

“Okay, Amy, first question. Did you have your ring on that night, when you fucked that guy who wasn’t me?”

Amy flinches violently at my crude question, tears springing to her eyes. She lowers her gaze, unable to meet my accusing stare as she nods miserably.

“Y-yes, I... I had my wedding ring on,” she admits in a choked whisper, her voice thick with self-loathing.

She fidgets with the hem of my shirt, twisting the fabric in her fingers as she continues haltingly.

“I... I remember looking down at my hand as he... as he touched me, seeing the glint of my ring in the dim light. It made me feel so dirty, so ashamed. Like I was defiling the vows I swore to you.”

She swallows hard, forcing herself to go on even as tears drip onto the tabletop.

“But I didn’t take it off.”

Chapter 6:

She chokes on a sob, fresh tears spilling down her cheeks.

“I was wearing my vows, my promise to you, while I betrayed you in the worst possible way. I’m so ashamed, Ero. So disgusted with myself.”

I nod, disgusted with her too.

“Second question. What role did your friends play, Amy? You know, Denise, Jenna, Bridgette, Maya, and Rose. I'm guessing all six of the 'Sexy Six' were there... That’s what you all call yourselves when you’re having a ladies’ night, yes? The Sexy Six?”

Amy's eyes widen in shock and horror at my question, her mouth falling open in a silent gasp. A chill runs down her spine as she realizes the extent of my knowledge, the fact that I’m aware of the private nickname she and her friends use. She shakes her head frantically, dark blonde hair whipping around her face.

“N-no, no, it wasn’t like that at all!” she protests vehemently, her voice high and strained.

“The girls weren’t there, I swear! It was just me, alone, being weak and stupid.”

She clutches the edge of the table, her knuckles turning white.

“I... I didn’t tell anyone about what happened, not even them. I was too ashamed, too afraid of judgment.”

“Don’t lie, Amy. You were out with your friends that night. I saw it on the credit card statement. Wild Willy’s, the college bar. Very fun, especially on ladies’ night...for college girls. Amy, you’re twenty-seven. You did not go to Wild Willy’s alone. You went with your friends, all five of them, and the Sexy Six had a grand old time, didn’t they?”

Amy's face drains of color, leaving her looking ghostly pale. She stares at me in mute horror, realizing I know far more than she ever imagined. The involvement of her friends, the location, the damning details—it's all laid bare, stripping away any pretense of innocence or naivety.

She slumps in her chair, all the fight draining out of her. Amy covers her face with shaking hands, shoulders heaving with silent sobs.

“I... I can’t deny it anymore,” she chokes out between her fingers.

“Yes, I was with the girls that night. We... we did go to Wild Willy’s for ladies’ night. I got drunk, too drunk, and... and made a terrible mistake.”

She looks up at me, her blue eyes swimming with tears and desperation.

“B-but it wasn’t planned, I swear! We weren’t looking for men, it just... it happened. A stupid, drunken mistake.”

“I realize that, Amy. You keep saying that, and I keep catching you in lies. Next time I catch you in a lie, I’m gone. You can keep half of everything, and good luck with that. You don’t even work.”

“I wonder how long you can make it last without me working. I work my ass off to provide for you, and until last night, it was my absolute joy and privilege to do so... seriously, I truly mean that. I did it because it makes me happy when you are cared for, when you have everything you need, at least... it did.”

I take a deep breath, my frustration boiling just beneath the surface.

“So I need absolutely deadly honesty from you now, Amy. Time to be a big girl, a grown-up. Just the facts. How did the girls react when you, the only married gal in the group except for Rose... and I'm pretty sure her actual husband is gay anyways, were swept away by a handsome stranger while still wearing your wedding ring?”

“Did they protest? Or did they cheer you on, you sexy slut you... while running up an over two grand bar tab on our card... or did you somehow develop superhuman tolerance and consume all those drinks yourself?”

Amy recoils as if slapped by my harsh words, fresh tears spilling down her cheeks. She shrinks back in her chair, making herself small under the weight of my anger and contempt. At my ultimatum, a choked sob escapes her throat, the threat of losing me entirely striking terror into her heart.

She takes a shuddering breath, visibly steeling herself before speaking in a small, broken voice, low and heavy with misery and self-recrimination.

“The girls... they cheered me on,” she admits hoarsely, each word seeming to physically pain her.

“They thought it was exciting, thrilling. Said I deserved to cut loose, to live a little. With our card on the tab, they kept buying me shots, urging me on... They called me a sexy minx, said I deserved a little excitement.”

A choked sob escapes her.

“I… I let them convince me to have ‘just one more drink,’ and then another. I wasn’t thinking straight.”

She hangs her head in shame.

“The bar tab… it was over two thousand dollars?” Amy asks, her voice trembling. “I… I don’t remember exactly how much. Everything’s a blur.”

She looks up at me, her blue eyes pleading.

“I know it’s inexcusable, using our money like that.”

She hangs her head again, unable to meet my gaze.

“I actually couldn’t care less,” I say, my tone laced with sarcasm.

“I have no problem letting my wife go have fun with her friends and spend our money, as long as, you know, she doesn’t fuck other guys while doing it. Seems like a pretty fucking reasonable request, Uh-Mee-Lia.”

Amy flinches at the mocking lilt in my voice as I use her full name, the sting of my words hitting their mark. She nods jerkily, fresh tears spilling down her cheeks at the painful truth in my statement.

“You’re right; it is a perfectly reasonable expectation,” she whispers, her voice thick with anguish.

“One I utterly failed to uphold.”

She takes a deep, shuddering breath, squaring her shoulders as she meets my gaze with red-rimmed eyes. She opens her mouth as if to speak, then closes it again, realizing there are no words that could possibly justify or excuse her behavior. Instead, Amy simply nods, accepting the brutal truth of my assessment.

When she finally finds her voice, it’s thin and frail.

“It was a completely unreasonable and unforgivable thing to do. I… I have no defense, no excuse. I betrayed every vow, every promise I ever made to you.”

A wretched sob tears from her throat.

Amy reaches across the table, hesitant, seeking connection even as she fears rejection.

“I know I have no right to ask this of you, but…”

To be continued in chapter 7...