The Wreck

We had split up and mended our splits so many times I had lost count. She lied, she manipulated, she scammed, and she melted my heart. Every, single, time!

This time she wasn't going to get away with it. She was living five hours away and claimed she missed me. I thought it quite odd that she showed up at my job, knowing I worked six to ten p.m. dressed to the nines as a surprise for me. It wasn't as if I could just walk away from my cash register to go with her.

It didn't take long for the truth to reveal itself as she accidentally slipped and let me know she had been to dinner with an ex.

Of course, I was upset, but what could I do?

"Well, you could take off work and come spend a few hours with me before I have to leave." This was her resolution to me being upset. Of course, that wasn't a possibility, so there I fumed for the rest of the night on my register. I felt bad for the poor souls who entered my line as my mood was not in a good place.

When I finally did make it home, I saw the mark on her neck and realized she didn't waste any time finding something to do for those few hours.

I tried hard to keep calm but the smirk on her face let me know she really didn't care what I thought about how she spent her evening. Then she threw the gut punch. The whole night had been previously planned and she really drove in to spend the evening with the ex. She just came to my job to taunt me.

"Get out!" I yelled not caring that it was late, and she had a four-hour drive home. She wasn't going to put one inch of her body on my bed after it had been in someone else's bed all evening.

"Gladly," she spat in my direction as she slammed the door behind her.

I laid down but sleep evaded me. Tossing and turning I told myself over and over that I hated this woman, I never wanted to see her again and no matter what, when she came smoozing up to me, I would not take her back.... again.

At some point I must have dozed off because I was awakened by the sound of my phone. I reached over and through swollen eyes I read...IF SHE DIES IT'S YOUR FAULT!

I sit straight up in the bed realizing the message had come from my girlfriend's mom. My hands furiously text back asking what the hell she was talking about. The next hour is one of the most horrific hours I have ever lived.

Back and forth messages about a car wreck. She had been too tired to drive. Why did I let her leave in the middle of the night?

She had called her mom and told her about our fight, but of course forgot to mention the fact that she had spent the evening with her ex and not me. I begged her mom to call me and talk to me in person, but all I got was she had to leave the line open in case the doctor called. They had to get the jaws of steal to get her out of the car and life flight her in a helicopter. Now she was in emergency surgery and the doctors said it didn't look good.

I woke up my kids ready to jump in the car to go to her. Her mom warned me if I showed up there would be security waiting. My heart was busting wide open. This is not what I wanted. I fell to my knees and prayed to God to save her. I loved her with all of my being even though she didn't deserve it.

The next day I had a conference in a city two hours from where she was hospitalized. Although the conference was paid for and I could not get a refund for a last-minute cancellation, I decided to go to her.

I drove all the way to the city her mom told me she was in before I realized I never asked the name of the hospital. Finding a coffee shop, I pulled over and started calling every hospital in town. None of them had any patients with her name. I then went online and looked for police reports. An accident that bad would surely have been in the news somewhere.

Finally, I broke down and called her mom. She seemed happy to hear my voice and asked how I was. I was confused and asked how Melanie was. "She is fine I guess." Was the answer I received.

"Fine?" I asked. "What about the surgery?"

"Surgery?" Now I could hear the confusion in mom's voice. I went into the whole wreck questions and heard nothing but silence on the other end of the line.

Finally, her mom spoke.

"Tara, Melony got home last night but she had Justine with her. I was going to bed, and they said they were going out for a while. I guess they took my phone and, well, you know the rest."

I couldn't believe what I was hearing. Not only did she bring her ex home with her, but they also used her mom's phone to scam me. I could just see it, them laughing it up as they made the story bigger and bigger. Melony wrapping her arm around Justine making her feel like she was the only girl in the world, and I was just some dumb bitch.

In that moment I had never hated anyone so much in my entire life. Mom apologized to me even though it wasn't her fault. I set in my car shaking trying to control my anger. I was going to have to call my kids to tell them the truth. They were at home waiting on my call, praying hard for a good outcome.

How, how could anyone be so vicious? I knew the answer, I had dealt with this woman for three years. Although this had by far been her biggest lie, it wasn't the first or even the fiftieth. This is what she did.

I could even go as far as saying this was who she was. I was the one who needed this lesson. I needed an ending, and this was it. Melanie may not have died in a car wreck that night, but that wreck killed any hopes of us ever getting back together. And it was a death that needed to happen once and for all.