Anna's Ruin - A Short Story

Anna had fallen in love with Daniel almost the moment she met him.  They had been introduced by friends at a party and the attraction was immediate.  Anna thought he was gorgeous and after four years together, she loved him more than ever.  He was ‘the one.’  Daniel was the perfect boyfriend; kind, hardworking and a complete gentleman.  He was everything a girl could dream of.  They had agreed not to live together before they were married.   Daniel always wanted to do the ‘right thing’.  She loved his old fashioned values. ‘No wonder he chose to be an accountant,’ Anna would think, ‘he loves to dot those i’s and cross those t’s!’ 

While Anna’s neatly furnished studio apartment was small, she didn’t mind.  She knew she wouldn’t be living there forever.  Soon Daniel would propose and then they could begin their life together; in their own home.  It was as if she was waiting for her real life to begin.

Daniel shared a house nearby with a group of mates and his beloved Jack Russell Terrier, Monty.  The share house had been chosen with Monty in mind.  ‘There has to be room for Monty to run around.  It’s his house too.’ Daniel had raised Monty from a pup and they were inseparable.  Anywhere Daniel went, Monty came too.  Anna knew all too well that life with Daniel was a package deal.  Monty was always going to be part of the equation. 

When Anna turned 30 she was certain that Daniel would ask her to marry him.  She had fantasised for so long about how he would propose.  On bended knee he would tell her how much he loved her and how happy she made him.  He would ask her to marry him in front of all her family and friends and she would fall into his arms.  She could feel the prickle of happy tears every time she imagined the scene. 

The huge birthday party, months in the planning, had come and gone without a proposal, a ring or even a mention of marriage.  Anna was devastated.  Swallowing her disappointment, she maintained her happy disposition with Daniel.  They never discussed it.    She just couldn’t bring herself to talk to Daniel about it.  He had to want to marry her. There was no point in pushing him.

Still, she couldn’t stop thinking about it.  They had been together for four years and they loved each other didn’t they? What was the problem?  Would he ever ask her to marry him or was he happy for them to stay this way forever?

She had seen most of her friends, one by one, get married.  She had been a bridesmaid more times than she cared to remember.  Now the procession of babies had begun.  She tried to be gracious about it, attending baby showers and cooing over newborns but she was quietly becoming envious.  ‘So, you’ll be next!’ her friends would say.  ‘When are you and Daniel going to tie the knot?’ well meaning relatives would ask.  The pressure was coming from every angle, but mostly from within Anna’s own mind.  She didn’t want to rush him but how long was he going to take?

Anna had spent the better part of her twenties building a career at the magazine but being an editorial assistant at ‘Flare’ wasn’t enough anymore.  Sure, she loved the buzz of the fashion industry and working for such a successful magazine but she wasn’t satisfied.  There were great career opportunities ahead but right now she wasn’t thinking about that.  She wanted the house and the husband and the kids and she wanted them now.

It seemed to Anna that after her birthday Daniel had begun to retreat from her.  He started to work longer hours.  He was preoccupied.  The more Anna tried to draw Daniel out, the more she felt he moved back.  His mind was elsewhere. 

Her workmates had shared her disappointment when the birthday proposal had not eventuated.  Why wasn’t Daniel talking about marriage?  It was a hot topic around the water cooler.  ‘He just seems so distant these days.  He works crazy hours and he never takes me out to nice places anymore. I think he’s falling out of love with me.’ she told her friends.  ‘Are you sure he isn’t seeing someone else?’ said one.  ‘Don’t say that! Of course he isn’t Anna, don’t listen to her. Daniel isn’t like that!’ said another.  But Anna began to wonder. 

Daniel had always been so thoughtful and romantic.  For the first few years he would send roses almost every week.  That had stopped.  There were no romantic dinners or surprise weekends away like before.  They barely saw each other during the week with Daniel working late most nights.  By the weekend he was tired.  ‘Maybe he has met someone else.’ she thought and her heart sank.

Anna began to obsess.  Daniel had always been the ideal partner; kind, caring and respectful.  He had never given her any reason to doubt him, ever.  Something had changed though and Anna couldn’t figure out what and why.  She was filled with suspicion.  Whenever she questioned him about all the overtime he would say that he was under pressure at work.  If he wanted to get ahead he simply had to work these hours.  Unconvinced, she started to secretly check his mobile for unfamiliar phone numbers and suspect text messages.  It was driving her crazy.  She despised herself for not trusting him but by now she was completely paranoid.  What was going on?  She had to know.  What had changed?  Anna knew that she couldn’t ask Daniel outright.  It seemed so childish when she thought about trying to discuss her fears with him.

When Daniel called late one Friday afternoon to cancel their plans to see a movie that night she was distraught.  ‘I have to work late, I can’t help it Anna, I’m so sorry.  I promise I’ll make it up to you. I’ll call you tomorrow’ he said.  Anna could tell from his voice that he was uneasy.  She didn’t believe him.  She waited twenty minutes and then called his office.  ‘Hi, it’s Anna here, may I speak to Daniel please?’ she said, attempting to sound bright.  ‘Oh, I’m sorry, I just saw him rush out of here. He said he had to meet someone. You could try his mobile.’ said the receptionist.   She knew it! He had lied to her!  He was seeing someone else!  Her heart was beating wildly.  She instantly felt nauseous.  Suddenly physically helpless, she collapsed onto the couch and began to cry.

Hours passed.  Anna lay on the couch, alternating between despair and anger.  Finally, at midnight, she grabbed her car keys, flung her jacket on and slammed the front door behind her.  She was going to drive by Daniel’s house.  She had to know if he was home.  As Anna drove into his street, she turned the headlights off.  The last thing she wanted was to be spotted by a housemate or worse still, Daniel, driving past at this time of night.  As she drew near to the house, she peered through the inky shadows.  There it was, his car, parked in the driveway.  ‘So, he’s home’ she thought.  ‘Maybe she’s there with him now!’  Her heart twisted in anguish. 

Just as she pulled away from the house, something suddenly dashed in front of her car.  Before she could hit the brakes, it bounced off her front bumper and disappeared under the vehicle.  ‘What the hell was that?’ she screamed.  It looked like a small animal, maybe a possum or a cat?  Whatever it was, she knew she couldn’t stop.  There was no way she could let Daniel or his housemates see her there.  Panicking, she accelerated out of the street.  She stole a look in the rear vision mirror.  ‘Oh my God, what have I done?’ she whispered.

Her body was shaking uncontrollably as she drove home.  She jerked the car into the parking space and flew out to check the bumper.  The sizeable dent splashed with blood told Anna that she had definitely hit something and most likely killed it.  ‘This must be rock bottom’ she thought, grasping her head with her hands.  ‘I’ve lost Daniel and now I’ve done this.’  Disgusted with herself, she washed off the blood and staggered back inside.  Despondent and ashamed she crawled into bed.

Anna woke to the phone ringing.  ‘Hi, it’s me. I need to see you.  I’ll come by in half an hour to pick you up, ok?’ said Daniel apprehensively.  ‘Well, this is it’ Anna thought.  ‘He’s going to break up with me.  He’s going to tell me he’s in love with someone else.’  She showered and dressed like someone headed to the gallows.

Daniel arrived looking disheveled.  His eyes were puffy and red.  He looked as if he had been crying.  ‘He feels guilty about what he has to do’ she decided.

‘Let’s go down to the beach’ Daniel suggested.  They drove in silence.  The beach had been their special place.  They would often bring Monty down and spend hours walking, playing and swimming.  There were so many great memories she had of their days at the beach.  Anna wondered why Daniel was spoiling that now, bringing her here to end things.

They parked and Daniel led her along the sand.  Then he stopped.  ‘Let’s sit here.  I need to talk to you.’  Anna sank down into the sand, wishing more than anything that she didn’t have to endure this inevitably heartbreaking speech.

‘I know these past few months I haven’t given you the attention I should.  I’m so sorry. There is a reason’ he said. ‘It’s OK Daniel, I know’ Anna blurted out.  ‘No, please let me finish’ he quickly responded.  ‘You know me. I like to do everything just right.  I’ve been working long hours and not spending money because I’ve been saving to get a deposit together for a house, a home for us.  When I ask you to marry me, I want to offer you everything, not just marriage, but a home and a place for us all, including Monty.’  Anna’s mind was racing. What was he saying?  Daniel continued, ‘Well, I found the perfect place.  Look behind you.’  As she turned, she saw they were sitting directly in front of a gorgeous beach cottage, one she had admired many times before.  It had a ‘for sale’ sign in the yard with a big red ‘sold” sticker across it.  ‘It came on the market a few weeks ago and I’ve had a hell of a time negotiating with the damned real estate agent.  That’s where I was last night.  I had to sign the papers and hand over the deposit.’ 

‘Daniel, that’s, that’s wonderful’ Anna gushed.  She had been crazy thinking he was unfaithful.  Of course he loved her.  Of course he would propose.  She thought how ridiculously she had behaved.  She was instantly, unimaginably happy.  Relief flooded through her.  ‘Thank goodness.  It’s all over now. I can relax and we can get on with our lives. How silly I was!’ she thought.

‘The only trouble is, it’s all ruined now.’ Daniel began to breakdown. ‘Last night someone ran over Monty and left him to die in the street.  It happened right in front of my house, Anna!’  Anna was horrified. ‘I can’t buy this cottage now.  It was going to be a place for Monty.  This beach has too many memories now.  Every time I look out the window I will see him running along the beach, chasing sticks, playing.  I’m sorry Anna, but I just can’t do it now.  It isn’t the right time for us to get married.  I need time to get over Monty.  I just had to explain everything to you.  I’ve seen the agent this morning and withdrawn my offer.’  Then his voice darkened and he looked directly into Anna’s eyes.   ‘I can tell you one thing for sure though. I am going to find the bastard that did this to Monty and when I do, they are going to pay.’ 

Anna knew that she had already paid and she would keep paying for the rest of her life.