Trophy Wife

The ballroom was lit up with gold, silver, and bronze-colored women lined up in a straight line in the middle of the room. The gold women were the most valuable; usually, they were courted the most, the silver women were courted, but less than the gold women, and the bronze women were courted the least. If they were courted, it was usually out of desperation. This ceremony took place every year. Across from her were men lined up in a straight line. One of the women, Victoria, the first person in line, looked at the line in front of her, scanning for a potential partner as her golden skin shone against the light. Her pale pink dress complemented her gleaming blue eyes. Meanwhile, the man who was last in line was scanning for a desirable mate until he saw Victoria. He locked his eyes on the prize, and she noticed him. He was sweating, not wanting to make a bad move. Victoria smiled at him; she was charmed by his handsome looks. They stared at each other for a minute and then looked away.

It's been ten years since Henry courted Victoria.

They slept together when the alarm started to beep; Victoria woke up and checked the alarm for the time. The alarm read 3 o'clock, and she got out of bed while her husband slept soundly (meaning he snored loudly), went to the bathroom, and followed her extensive hair and skin care routine. When a girl enters puberty, her skin starts to turn gold. It's her job to maintain that golden skin through self-care routines; if she doesn't, her skin will darken until it's bronze. Her husband came into the bathroom; she noticed him through the reflection. He got behind her, and she turned around. They kissed. After she was done, Henry and Victoria took a shower together and got dressed.

Victoria entered the kitchen first and she got out the ingredients for pancakes. A few minutes later, Henry entered with a newspaper under his arm; he sat at the glass, circle-shaped table and read the news. Victoria started to cook the pancakes; the sweet smell permeated the room.

"Honey, that smells good." He commented, his eyes absorbed in the paper.

"Well, I want the best for my husband," she said, sweetly, as she flipped the pancake. "How many do you want?"

"Two, please."

After she was done, she put some syrup on the pancakes and served them to her husband

"Where's the butter?" He said with a slightly angry voice.

"You didn't tell me." Her body was shaking as her eyes looked at him in fear.

"VICTORIA!" He yelled at her.

"Alright, I'll get the butter." Her scared voice trembled, she ran to the refrigerator, quickly got the butter, cut up a slice, and put it on the pancake.

"Thank you," he said gruffly. He took a bite. Victoria didn't eat breakfast; she needed to keep her worthy and desirable figure, as her husband ate his food, she couldn't help but drool. After he ate, he went to work. While at home she did chores, and prepared dinner. Later, her husband came home, kissed her, and started to eat dinner. She did this every day, and somehow, she never got tired.

During the afternoon, while she was cleaning the bedroom, she was clearing out the drawers, and she found a ring.

Oh, nice surprise for me.She thought, put the ring back into the drawer, and finished organizing the clothes.

Later in the evening, her husband came back home, and they ate dinner. Lately, Henry became very distant from her, but she never noticed it, or minded it. She spoke up.

"How was work?"

"Good."

"Uhh, do you notice anything?"