Too Bad

“We should go out for dinner tonight,” Richard said as he fluffed his brunet hair. He was admiring himself in the huge mirror on the double doors of their closet.

“Have you lost your mind?”

In the mirror, he watched Marjorie pop her head out of the blankets on the bed behind him. Her round face was stern, mint eyes in little slits glaring at him in the mirror. She was clearly not in the mood to be jerked around by his spontaneous games. His mouth smirked at her reflection, but his eyes conveyed the same emotions as hers; annoyance.

“No, I have not lost my mind,” he declared. Was it possible to lose it twice?

Marjorie threw the blankets off of herself and pushed herself up right. It was three in the afternoon and this was the first time she seemed to show any intent of getting out of bed for the day. She scratched at her scalp, tousling her brown hair around. Through the window, the afternoon sun hit it just right and red specks of light grazed her outline. She was pretty like this; Richard assumed any normal person would think. It made him feel proud – like he had a best in show dog.

What use was it if the animal never left the house? Where would the admiration come from then? Himself? He scoffed in his mind.

Marjorie simply stared at him, waiting for him to elaborate. Somewhere inside herself she was completely aware he didn’t say anything more because he was too busy talking to himself subconsciously. He would eventually notice the awkward silence and empty eye contact he’d been giving her in the mirror. At least he had pretty eyes, otherwise it would feel as creepy as it was in actuality. She had become good at ignoring that over their eight years together.

He blinked after a few more seconds. “I just happen to be in the mood for a nice meal that you can’t provide.” His lips curled up into a smile yet again. Marjorie didn’t see what there was in that statement to smile at. She sighed.

“You knew I was a shitty cook when you asked me out. If it was such a deal breaker, you shouldn’t have begged for me back after you cheated on me.” She said without missing a beat. Neither of them would ever let the other forget what they hated about each other. She was pretty sure people spoke to their dogs in a tone kinder than his towards her most days. Who wouldn’t want to bite back?

Finally, he turned his back on his mirror image. Their eyes met and the spark between them felt less romantic and more as if they were two seconds away from combat with a sworn enemy. Richard rolled his shoulders and reached his arms up in the air, stretching like an unbothered cat.

“Oh, man, Dolores made the best pineapple pizza.” He reminisced out loud, staring down at Marjorie with a satisfied grin. She felt small on the bed, gazing back up at him. “We’re leaving at seven. Make sure you wear something nice,” was all he said before leaving the room.