THE MOMENT
"Honey, I get that it's a lot to process...," Madeline was trying to brave through her confession. She and her husband, James, sat on the edge of the bed together for the conversation. "...but, is that really important right now? I just showed you that I'm a dragon and your first instinct is to ask why I went up into the attic last week?"
"You're right... you're right..," James took her hand in his, then, he looked into her loving eyes. "I'm just trying to make sense of everything and it was kind of the first question in my mind, you know? I don't know what dragons do or whatever, so I thought maybe it was some dragon thing you went up there for?"
"Fall's here...," Madeline said. Her voice had a flat edge to it. She found herself using that tone more and more often as their marriage went on. And, it'd only been six months since the wedding. They hadn't even dated a full year before that and as time went on, she was noticing details about him that she overlooked before. "...I arranged the seasonal decorations in the order we're going to use them," she said. "It was your idea to shove them all up there when we moved in."
"So you went through my boxes!?" James sat up straighter to ask the question.
"I went through our boxes that were labeled, 'decorations'," she replied. "I thought this would be a bigger deal; I'm a dragon..," she reminded him of the topic she expected to be discussing."
"Right, a dragon," James nodded. "I'm glad you told me early; but, why now?" he asked. "Why this week?" His eyes glanced out the bedroom and at the attic access in the hall before he focused on her again. Madeline noticed it; but, she didn't know what to say and answered his question instead.
"I was scared to before we were married; and, I almost didn't tell you ever," she said. "But, I got a new job!" she smiled with pride. "It's with a company called Chroma Corp.; and, it's run by dragons! So, now that I have a job I can be more 'myself' I knew you needed to know too. Plus, there's apparently a major work event coming up in December and I want you there with me," she said.
"When did you get a job?" James asked. "We haven't even left the house in a few days." They were both homebodies and James did his work from home too. He preferred to stay close to the house even more than Madeline. It wasn't often they went out, not even on a date.
"Today!" she grinned. "I applied last week online, but I got and accepted an offer today!"
"Last week... when?" James asked. "Actually... uh, hold on. I need to go use the restroom real quick. I'll be right back."
"oh.. kay..," Madeline nodded as James stood. Except, instead of heading to the master bath in their room, he headed toward the door. "Uh, I'll use the guest one in case you need to go too; I might be a bit," he said. That was strange enough on its own; it was stranger still when he closed the bedroom door as he left. James did not know how good Madeline's ears were. She heard the rustle of wood and creaking metal on the other side of the door and she identified it instantly.
"You're kidding...," Madeline sighed and went to check. She opened the bedroom door and there was James halfway up the ladder. "That was obviously a lie...," she said.
"Like you being a normal human?" he didn't hesitate to throw it back at her.
"Alright, what the hell is going on?" she crossed her arms to ask. "I'm trying to have a conversation about this with you; but, you're too distracted by whatever you've got hidden in the attic," she said.
"So you were looking for something!" he said. "Is it your dragon instinct? Can you smell it or what?" he asked.
"No, dummy," she shook her head. "It's just kind of obvious that you're hiding something. I don't know what it is. I don't care what it is. But, I'm thinking maybe we should have dated a little longer...," she said.
"What are you saying...?" James asked.
"I think a break might do us some good," she answered. He didn't answer right away; but, he didn't need to. He nodded and shrugged and just accepted her suggestion. The fact that he wasn't going to try and talk it out hurt Madeline the most. She sighed and spun around to return to the bedroom. But, she had a brief, wonderful moment of hope and surprise.
"Mads, wait...," he said.
"Yes..?" she turned to face him again; but, he was higher up the ladder. And she was face to face with his denim behind.
"I mean, if you're going to leave, wait so I can check something first...," he said as he finished climbing up into the attic. Madeline whirled around and charged into the bedroom toward the closet. She'd prepared for the worst-case scenario and had a bag packed before she revealed herself. And even though it went nothing like she expected, it was still pretty horrible. She grabbed the small luggage and took a few moments to gather some last-minute items that she couldn't pack and walked out of the bedroom again. James was climbing back down from the attic and he stood in front of her with a broad smile.
"Honey, everything's okay. Where are you going?" he asked as he moved closer with open arms. Madeline stepped back from the hug.
"What are you hiding from me up there?" she asked.
"It's my nest egg," he said. "I've got a few dozen gold bars up there. And now that I know they're still there, we're all good."
"What?" Madeline had a few different thoughts competing for processing power. She was vaguely curious where he got it from; but, she was more offended by some of his earlier remarks. And, beyond that, she was completely insulted by his behavior.
"You thought I'd steal from you...?" she asked.
"No, no, of course not," he shook his head. "Not you; but, a dragon might try to hoard it from me, you know?"
"No," Madeline shook her head. "I don't know. I'm not 'a dragon'; I'm your wife," she shoulder-checked him as she shoved past, making sure to bang his shin with her luggage. "But, you won't have to suffer that much longer," she said.
"It's funny," she paused outside the bedroom door to look back at him. "Each dragon is different; I don't even hoard gold...," she shrugged as she turned around again and continued down the hall. "But, I'm sure I'll find something to do with my half."