Noelle said, “A friend lost her passport and asked me how to get a new one.”
Shawn hurried forward and held her tightly. “You scared the hell out of me. I thought you were leaving the country without me.”
Noelle turned away from him and retched again. She could smell the sickly sweetness on him, mingling with a woman’s perfume.
He rubbed her back with a pained expression. “What did they feed you? I already told them to be careful because your stomach’s been acting up lately… I’m going to fire them right now!”
She shoved him away with all her strength. “You can fire whoever you want to fire, but don’t use me as an excuse for your actions!”
Her sudden anger left him bewildered. “Are you mad at me, Elle? Is it because I’ve been too busy with work to spend time with you? I’ll postpone all the work I have tomorrow so I can be with you. How does that sound?”
She almost wanted to laugh at how ridiculous the situation was. “You’ll only be with me?”
“Yes, I will.”
She took a deep breath and slowly exhaled. “I hope you can keep your word.”
That night, it poured. Noelle kept puking since returning home. Shawn wanted to get close to her, but she told him to stay away. “Don’t come near me. The smell on you only makes me more nauseous.”
He sniffed his sleeve. “Maybe you don’t like the smell of my cologne. I’ll wear a different one next time.”
“You should know very well that it’s not about the cologne, Shawn!” she snapped.
“Alright, alright. Don’t be mad. I’ll stop wearing cologne from now on, okay?”
Noelle washed her face and stared at her reflection in the mirror. She also saw Shawn waiting anxiously for her outside the bathroom, a glass of warm water in his hand.
She still couldn’t understand. How could he act like he loved her when he reeked of sickly sweetness and Jessica’s perfume? How could he betray their relationship like it meant nothing to him when he seemed like he cared for her so much?
Was he trying to prove that the senior executives were right? That it was fine for men to fool around with other women as long as their wives weren’t aware?
Well, he’d read her wrongly. She wasn’t that naive and easily fooled, nor would she give up on her principles for him. Since his love was no longer pure and whole, she didn’t want any part of it.
The following morning, Shawn brought Noelle to the hospital. After a series of tests, the doctor came to a conclusion. “This appears to be emotional gastroenteritis.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Shawn asked.
“It means the patient has recently experienced significant emotional distress that has substantially impacted her, resulting in gastrointestinal dysfunction and vomiting.”
Shawn asked Noelle, “Have you run into any problems lately, Elle? Tell me what’s bothering you. Maybe I can help you resolve them.”
She turned away from him, avoiding his affection and intimacy. “You can’t.”
“Why don’t you tell me first? There are few things in this world that I can’t resolve.”
He was right. This truly was an issue that only he could handle. For a split second, Noelle wanted to ask him who he would save first if she and Jessica were to fall into the water at the same time.
