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Behind him came Yvette, seething, her face just as furious.
I sat up, rubbed my eyes, and said flatly,
"Raymond, my mom loaded that spending card for me, specifically so I could take care of my health. If you want to treat your family to dinner, pay for it yourself. Using my mother's money isn't right."
Raymond froze for a second, his breathing turning heavy. Then he glanced back at Yvette and lowered his voice.
"Mel, can you stop being difficult? Everyone's waiting. Just do me this one favor."
"We're about to get married anyway. Whatever your mom put on that card is basically mine too. Give me the PIN, quick."
I couldn't help laughing. How had I never noticed how shameless Raymond was?
What was mine was his, and now what belonged to my mother was his too.
Favor?
The first time he brought Yvette into my home and let her help herself to my makeup and jewelry, I should have kicked him straight out the door.
Instead I couldn't bear to throw away five years of feeling, so I gave him all the face he wanted and let some country girl look down her nose at me under my own roof.
I was about to snap back at him when Yvette cut in, her voice snide.
"Melanie, you're just deliberately making things hard for Raymond, aren't you? You want to keep him under your thumb."
"Raymond, I'm only saying this for your own good. You spoil her way too much. She thinks she's a princess? If it were me, I'd give her a good beating. See if she'd dare make faces at your family then."
"You're just too nice. That's why you let a woman walk all over you."
"Yvette's right. Big brother spoiled you too much."
The blood rushed straight to my head. I stared at the darkening look on Raymond's face, unable to believe those words had come out of his mouth.
Before I could say anything, he stepped up to my bedside and stared me down, his face switching in an instant to that old pitiful expression as he muttered fast and low,
"Mel, Yvette's watching. For the sake of five years together, just do me this favor and give me the card."
I looked at him coldly, and all at once felt sick.
Back when he was chasing me, this was exactly how he'd said he liked me, all pitiful, saying he knew his poor family wasn't good enough for me but he couldn't help missing me and had to tell me.
Every day he brought me a five-dollar breakfast, waited downstairs for me every day, using his own quiet pitifulness to build the image of a devoted man.
And when I hesitated, he loudly announced everywhere that he'd never marry anyone but me in this lifetime, manufacturing the fact of us being a couple.
Back then I was soft-natured and couldn't stand the embarrassment, so under everyone's cheering I let the relationship stand.
After we got together he was attentive enough, considerate enough, so fresh out of school I let him wear me down and got engaged to him.
Later, when my hometown was redeveloped and the payout came to eight million, my mom gave me the money and told me to buy a full-floor apartment as my wedding home.
Back then Raymond had begged me in this same pitiful way.
"Melanie, could you add my name to the new place? Marrying you is already marrying up. If I move into your apartment after the wedding, who knows how those snobs at the company will laugh at me."
"I know I didn't pay a cent for the wedding home, and I shouldn't be asking to have my name added. But you don't want people mocking me as a kept man, do you?"
"Babe, it's just a name. The apartment's still yours. You'll always be my queen, all right?"
Before I could answer, Yvette's impatient voice rose behind him.
"Melanie, have you no shame? What gives you the right to hog Raymond's card and not hand it over? If it were me, I'd slap you across the face. See if you'd still act so smug."
"Raymond, why are you wasting words on her? Slap her across the face. See if she'll still be so cocky."
Crack. The clean sound of a slap rang through the cramped attic.
I lost my balance and fell headfirst off the wooden plank bed, my forehead striking hard against the corner of the wall. Sharp pain exploded, blood welling up and sliding slowly down along my brow bone, blurring my vision.
I stared at Raymond in shock. He'd always been vain and desperate to save face, but he'd still been gentle with me, always trying to please me.
Today, he had actually hit me.
The attic went dead silent.
Raymond caught sight of my bleeding forehead, and half his swagger vanished at once. His eyes darted away, flicked toward Yvette, then he stiffened his neck and put on a hard face.
"Give me the card right now. Don't make me slap you again. I've just spoiled you too much and let you call the shots everywhere."
Looking at the veins bulging on the back of his hand, looking at the smug, contemptuous look in Yvette's eyes, I suddenly went calm. I pulled the five-star hotel card out of my bag and tossed it at his feet.
"Raymond, that slap you just gave me, that makes us even."
Raymond's expression faltered. He crouched down quickly, snatched up the card, then turned and pulled Yvette toward the door.
Just as he stepped out, he spun back and came to the bed, his hand quickly brushing my forehead.
"Mel, that was just a slip. Stop making a scene, all right? When I get back, I'll make it up to you, I promise."
Then he stood up just as fast, took Yvette's hand, and strode downstairs.
Listening to the front door slam shut, I gently touched my throbbing forehead, gave a cold laugh, and dialed my best friend.
"Joanna, help me find a lawyer. I want to recover every dollar I spent during this relationship."
