Amanda, you need to get out of there. Come stay with me in the city for a while. Get away from Austin and his poison. And remember who you are. Maria, I can’t afford a plane ticket. I can barely afford rent on a studio apartment. I’ll send you a ticket. Just pack a bag and come here. You need distance from this situation before it completely destroys you.
What’s the point? Austin’s one. He got everything he wanted. The perfect wife, the easy pregnancy, and everyone believing I was the problem. I’m just the cautionary tale. Now, the point is that you’re 31 years old and your life is not over. The point is that Austin Adabio is not the final word on your worth as a human being.
The point is that you get to decide what happens next. I don’t know what happens next. I don’t know who I am without Austin. Then come to the city and figure it out. Come here where no one knows Austin’s version of your story and remember what it feels like to be yourself again. After she hung up with Maria, she sat in her empty house and thought about Austin’s baby shower, which was happening in 2 days.
He was expecting her to show up broken and desperate, ready to be humiliated for the entertainment of his friends and family. But Maria was right about one thing. Austin didn’t get to be the final word on her worth. She looked around at the empty rooms that had once been her home, at the folding chair that was now her only furniture, at the suitcase she’d packed with the few possessions Austin had allowed her to keep.
For 3 years, she’d let Austin convince her that her value as a woman depended on her ability to give him children. For 8 years, she’d let him define her worth based on how well she served his needs. For the past 6 months, she’d let him rewrite their history to make her the villain in his redemption story. But sitting in that empty house, something shifted inside her.
Maybe it was rock bottom. Or maybe it was the moment she finally stopped believing Austin’s lies about who she was. She pulled out that baby shower invitation one more time, reading those words, little miracle, in Cynthia’s flowing script. Austin wanted her there as his broken ex-wife. Proof of what happened to women who weren’t good enough to keep him.
But what if she didn’t show up as Austin’s ex-wife at all? What if she showed up as someone completely different? She picked up her phone and called Maria back. Maria, I changed my mind about moving. Really? When do you want me to book your flight? I don’t want to run away from Austin’s baby shower. I want to go.
Amanda, I don’t think that’s a good idea. You heard what Austin said about wanting to humiliate you. I did hear what Austin said, and I’ve decided he’s right about one thing. This baby shower is going to show everyone exactly who we really are. It’s just not going to show what he thinks it’s going to show.
