𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐜𝐤𝐞𝐫 𝐓𝐡𝐚𝐧 𝐖𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐫

𝐒𝐢𝐱 | 𝐒𝐮𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐯𝐢𝐬𝐨𝐫

𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝒂𝒓𝒐𝒎𝒂  of sega wat, the mouth-watering combination of spices, onions and beef in a fiery stew, seeped through the cracks of Evelyn's bedroom door. If she wasn't so angry, maybe she would have smiled and thanked her mother for preparing the dish on her way inside. But she couldn't bring herself to fake the gratitude. There was irony in the meal once being her childhood favorite, both because of the flavors and the way her family would lightheartedly tease her for scarfing it down through her tongue burning and her eyes watering at the spiciness. Her conversation with Jackie after the blocking rehearsals earlier in the day easily reminded her of why she started to hate the stew: the fateful day she had prepared a batch large enough to share with Jackie only for Vivian to walk in on the middle of their meal.

A lifetime would pass before she would forget the moment. Forever tattooed in her mind was the way Jackie had immediately discarded her, how his demeanor had switched as he rose from his seat to greet the woman at the door. It only lasted for a second, but the instant that he pulled Vivian close to press a kiss to her lips lived and replayed in her head, filling her to the brim with emotion.

Evelyn was envious. That much was decided after Vivian had departed after an incredibly awkward and brief conversation. But more than anything, she was in awe. Perfectly framed by the doorway of his office, Jackie and Vivian created a picturesque couple as they stood in a partial embrace, his eyes trained on hers and his arm partially embracing her tiny frame. While Evelyn had kissed Jackie a number of times, she knew they never looked like that on the outside. She knew that she would never paint that picture.

Jackie had to console her for hours after Vivian left. He told her over and over that he wasn't in love with the woman, but how could she believe that? Vivian was the epitome of what every man described their dream woman to be.

Vivian was dainty and svelte, appearing even more so when pressed up against Jackie's tall and muscular form. She had silky hair with hardly a loose curl freed from her sleek hairstyles if not to frame her face. Her wardrobe, when she wasn't in her scrubs, exuded elegance and wealth, some of the pieces only afforded by and available to the likes of her white, general surgeon of a father. Her skin was fair enough to be likened to vanilla cream. Together, Vivian and Jackie were what Evelyn thought only existed in movies: simply two attractive and well-established people starting a life together. A pair of childhood friends that would grow together after growing up and have children then raise them in an environment much kinder than the one she knew.

But he didn't love her, he had said.

Evelyn snorted into her glass of Appleton rum and rolled her eyes. She was supposed to be studying to fill the time that would have been wasted playing popstar for Michael's silly little charity drive, but she couldn't get her mind off of Vivian, and the absence of her father meant she had unrestricted access to alcohol.

Almost as smooth as the rum went down, thanks to her prematurely established drinking habits, was the melody of Stevie Wonder's I Don't Know Why sounding from her record player. She had long since abandoned her revisions to aimlessly swirl the rum around in its glass, scribble over her notes, and hum along to the song until it faded out then into another run underneath the needle.