Dennis came home from work exhausted, so he headed straight for the sofa to lie down.
"What are you doing lounging around?" his wife asked, looking surprised.
"I'm wiped out today, Chloe. I just need to lie here for a bit. If you're starving, go ahead and eat without me."
"Eat?" Chloe's surprise deepened. "We're eating out tonight. Did you seriously forget where we're supposed to be going?"
"Oh, God..." Dennis groaned, remembering what she was talking about. He twisted his face into a mask of misery. "Look, honey, I really don't want to go anywhere tonight. I can't. I just don't have the energy."
"Are you kidding me?" Chloe was so taken aback by his nerve she could hardly breathe. "For your information, the people who invited us aren't just anybody—they're people we need to stay close to. Besides, I've been looking forward to this for a month. I bought a new dress, new shoes, and now you're telling me you 'don't want to go'? Get into your suit and let's move."
"No..." Dennis looked at his wife imploringly. "I can't. I'm tired, and... if I'm being honest, I don't even want to see those people. I don't want to sit at the same table and fake a smile for them."
"And why is that?" Chloe asked, confused again. "They're perfectly normal people. What's gotten into you, darling?"
"I don't know. But every time I see that couple, acting like they're just so full of love for everyone, something inside me just aches. It actually hurts. My soul can't stand that kind of blatant phoniness."
"Why are you even telling me this?" Chloe fixed him with a harsh stare. "What's the point? Are you just trying to ruin my mood?"
"Because! They don't care about anyone but themselves, don't you get it? They don't. They only invited people over so they could show off their expensive remodel."
"So what?" Chloe scoffed. "Who cares? Everyone's a bit of a phony these days. Get up, stop whining."
"Well, not everyone is like that," Dennis protested. "I'm not like that. Even now, just talking about them, I feel this sinking feeling in my gut... a bad premonition."
"Oh, please, a sinking feeling," Chloe sneered. "You'll get some fresh air, clear your head, and you'll feel better in no time."
"I won't. This isn't about my head or my lungs. It's my soul, Chloe. You have to listen to it."
"Get up, I said! What is wrong with you?" Chloe tried to pull Dennis up by force, but it was no use. "You carry that soul of yours around like some piece of antique luggage. Modern people shouldn't live by their feelings; they should live by their heads. Use your brain. Think about what happens if we don't show up. They'll think we're snubbing them. They won't help us out anymore—and remember, we've borrowed money from them before. A lot of money."
"You borrowed it. I paid it back. Anyway, I'm making good money now; we can do without 'friends' like that."
"That's how things are today. What about tomorrow? What if everything changes? You have to live strategically."
"I don't want to live like that!" Dennis repeated stubbornly. "My soul won't let me."
"The soul again?!" Chloe was practically growling with rage. "Listen, I am getting sick of hearing about your soul! Just stop talking about it!"
"Why?" Dennis stared at his wife with genuine bewilderment. "Doesn't yours ever ache? Don't you ever feel it?"
"No, I don't!"
"But... how is that even possible?"
"I don't know. Anyway, why do I need a soul when I have a body like this?" Chloe suddenly smirked, striking a pose as if she were posing for a magazine cover. "Look at how amazing this dress looks on me. It's stunning, isn't it?"
"What?"
Dennis couldn't believe his ears. What his wife had just said in passing felt like a revelation to him. A horrible, catastrophic revelation.
But Chloe didn't even notice the look of terror in his eyes. She continued to admire her dress, unaware that she had stepped across a line that should never be crossed.
"I'm saying, Dennis, that you didn't even notice what I'm wearing tonight. You don't notice anything! And yet you go on and on about the 'soul.' I'm asking you one last time: are you coming with me, or am I going alone?"
"Go alone..." Dennis whispered, slowly closing his eyes.
Suddenly, her high-pitched, chirpy voice became unbearable to him. God, why didn't I notice how grating her voice is before? he wondered. How have I lived with her all this time?
"Fine then..." Chloe shrugged and hurried into the hallway. "I'll just tell them you're really sick. I'm sure they'll be happy enough just to see me."
And with that, she left, having no idea that a single sentence had just dismantled their marriage.
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