The next morning, when I got up, the dining table was already set. Toasted bread, lukewarm milk, heart-shaped fried eggs and fruit arranged into flowers, after ten years, he had mastered all my preferences.
Josh pulled out a chair for me. "It's been a while since we've visited grandma. After breakfast, I'll go with you to see her."
My hand paused midair. Grandma had loved her grandson-in-law so much when she was alive. Now that she'd been gone for days, it was fitting for him to pay his respects.
It was also time for me to say goodbye to grandma, three more days and I'd be leaving this place.
As the car drove past Central Avenue, we passed a couple celebrating their wedding.
Seeing their blissful embrace reminded me of my wedding with Josh ten years ago.
Josh had lifted my veil and kissed me gently, treating me with such care and love. He once said, "Natalie, I will love you forever and never change my heart for a lifetime."
Having lost my parents early, I'd always lacked a sense of security. On our wedding night, I leaned against Josh's chest.
I said, "If one day you stop loving me, please tell me. Though I hope our love lasts forever, if that day comes, I'd still wish for us to part peacefully. But if you secretly betray me, Josh, I will never forgive you!"
Back then, Josh had sworn to me, "If I ever betray my wife, Natalie Ambrossia, let me spend the rest of my life seeking but never finding, dying alone!"
Those grand promises had withered into nothing after just ten years. Recalling those beautiful memories, I couldn't stop my eyes from reddening.
"Natalie, what's wrong? Why are you tearing up all of a sudden?" Josh was always observant, noticing even the smallest changes in me.
"Nothing, it's just the wind," I replied.
Josh pressed the switch and the car window slowly rose. In the slanting sunlight, two faint handprints became visible on the glass.
I held up my hand, comparing it to the smaller one outlined on the glass. A sudden realization struck me like needles piercing my skin and nausea churned in my chest.
Josh, noticing my discomfort, pulled over. I pushed the door open and squatted by the roadside, dry heaving.
"Natalie, are you carsick?" he asked with concern. "Here, have a piece of your favorite orange mint candy, it'll help."
The overly sweet yet bitter taste melted in my mouth, doing nothing to ease my discomfort.