"Hey... be careful, it's dangerous,"
I shouted a warning to them, but not a single person listened to me. I was stuck in an impossible position. Reporting it to a teacher meant being bullied mercilessly; not reporting it meant the teachers would tear me apart and my uncle would be called in again. To be honest, I completely froze in that moment, unable to move at all. And then, it happened. The river current grew stronger, rising until it submerged the bridge—and as luck would have it, the prettiest girl in my class, Sarah, was right in the middle of it.
The boy who had been pulling her let go of her hand and ran for the edge, leaving Sarah to fend for herself because he knew the bridge was going under. The other girls were screaming in terror, calling out for her. I could see Sarah standing there, paralyzed by fear, until finally, "crack"—the bridge gave way, sweeping her into the rushing water. Without thinking—not because I wanted to be a hero, but simply because I couldn't let a member of my group get swallowed by the river—I ran and leaped into the water to catch her.
But what could I do? Even though I could swim, Sarah and I were just kids, and the current was overwhelming. I managed to grab her, but we were swept away. Eventually, we hit two rocks sitting close together, and my right arm got wedged right between them. I nearly blacked out from the agonizing pain as the current slammed into me while my arm was pinned, but the silver lining? Sarah and I weren't being swept away anymore. We drifted there in the river for nearly two hours with my arm still stuck. Honestly, by then, the pain had faded; I couldn't feel my arm at all.
Two rangers eventually rescued us and brought us to the shore. I fainted immediately. When I opened my eyes in the hospital, my right arm was gone. According to the doctor, the arm had been crushed and had begun to rot, and the nerves were completely severed. They said it actually could have been saved, but unfortunately, my uncle chose amputation over using my parents' inheritance money to save the limb. The kicker? He made the decision while I was still unconscious. It was beyond cruel. But back then, while I was in the hospital, Sarah visited me constantly. She even stayed the night, even though I knew her parents blamed me. In their minds, I was the one who led her onto the bridge. Great, right? The little bastard who actually dragged her out there threw me under the bus to save his own skin.
What was worse? Almost all our other classmates backed up that jerk's story. He was a bully, but he always got away with everything because his dad was the principal. So? I wasn't a hero. I was a villain who just happened to be unlucky. But at least, from then on, Sarah stayed by my side. We went through college together, and she even ran away from home just to marry me. But Sarah's attitude changed completely a year ago after she went back home to make peace with her family. Being the fool I am, I supported her. So that's the story, and this is how we ended up here—married for three years, from the time I was twenty-two to my current age of twenty-five.
***
The next morning, Vincent woke up. He sat up in bed. "Zzz... zzz." The sound of Sarah snoring beside him filled the room. Vincent noticed she was still wearing the clothes she'd gone out in yesterday. He didn't even know who those clothes belonged to; he knew Sarah didn't own anything as revealing as what she was wearing now.
"Ding." A notification popped up on Sarah's phone sitting next to her. Vincent accidentally caught a glimpse of it. The message read: "Let's go out again tonight, babe. I want to enjoy you one more time." Vincent rubbed his eyes, double-checking to see if he had actually seen that right. He looked at the sender's name.
"Brandon? She's still in touch with Brandon?" Vincent thought to himself as he looked at the sleeping Sarah.
Brandon was a senior back when Vincent and Sarah were in college. He was always chasing Sarah and constantly belittling Vincent for having one arm and being poor. Brandon was the son of a CEO who ran a national restaurant chain; his life was all glamour and a revolving door of partners.
Vincent tried to stay positive. He got out of bed and covered Sarah with a blanket, then left the room while checking his phone, hoping for a job lead even though it had only been a day. He made breakfast for himself and Sarah using his one hand. Even if it was just toast with peanut butter and boiled eggs, to him, it felt fancy enough and was easy to make.
"Huaaaah." Sarah emerged from the bedroom. She saw Vincent sitting at the dining table and immediately looked away, sitting on the sofa to check her phone.
"Are you still talking to Brandon?" Vincent asked.
"What if I am? It's none of your business!" Sarah snapped.
"Of course it's my business. You know what kind of guy Brandon is," Vincent replied, his voice rising slightly.
"Hah? You're getting mad? Go find a job first, then you can get mad," Sarah spat back.
"But why are you still contacting him?" Vincent pressed.
"Whatever, I'm bored at home. I want to go out," Sarah answered.
"Fine, but why with him?" Vincent countered.
"You're so annoying. I'm leaving." Sarah stood up, walked back into the room, and slammed the door shut.
Seeing Sarah get angry just for being questioned, Vincent buried his face in his hand. His appetite vanished. He stood up and went to the bathroom to change. Once finished, he left the house without saying goodbye to Sarah, who hadn't come out of the room. As he walked away from their rental, he could hear the neighbors gossiping about him as he passed.
He ignored them, though the things they said stung his heart. He kept walking, hardening his heart and his temper so he wouldn't snap. He checked his phone the whole way, but there were no messages. Suddenly, it rang. It was his uncle.
"Hello, Vincent," his uncle said.
"Hello, Uncle. Rare for you to call me," Vincent said suspiciously.
"Yeah. How are you?" his uncle asked kindly.
"I'm fine. Why are you calling?" Vincent asked, growing even more suspicious because of his uncle's nice tone.
"Well, I'm paying off a car for work, but this month there's a bit of a snag. Plus, your aunt needs money to fix the kitchen. Could I borrow some money? Not much, just this much (he named the amount)," his uncle answered.
"Hah? I don't have that kind of money, Uncle," Vincent replied.
"Please, Vincent. This is the only time I'm asking for your help. You have a car, right? Can't you hock it for a bit? I'll buy it back later," his uncle pushed.
"I sold my car, Uncle. I don't have a vehicle now. Besides, Sarah was the one using it back then. You know I can't drive because of my condition," Vincent replied.
"Then borrow it from your in-laws. Come on, Vincent, help me out," his uncle urged.
"I can't. I can't ask my father-in-law. You know our relationship isn't good because of what happened," Vincent said.
"So you won't help me? You've forgotten that your aunt and I were the ones who raised you," his uncle said, his voice sharpening.
"Why are you being like this? I really can't help right now, Uncle. I'm not lying," Vincent defended himself.
"Fine. From today on, don't use my last name anymore. We're done.... beep... beep... beep," the line went dead.
"Wait, what? Uncle... Uncle!" Vincent shouted.
His uncle had hung up. Vincent's head began to throb. He wanted to help, but he truly couldn't. He stood there dazed, staring at his phone. Suddenly, it rang again. He picked up.
"Uncle?" Vincent asked without looking at the ID.
"Excuse me, is this Mr. Vincent?" a woman's voice asked.
"Yes, it is. Sorry, I thought you were my uncle. Who is this?" Vincent asked, looking at the unfamiliar number.
"Did you apply for a position with us?" she asked.
"Um... I'm not sure, but I applied to everything on the job sites. What's the company name?"
"That's not important. You are our only applicant. After reviewing your CV, we'd like to invite you to start working for us immediately. The salary we're offering is (she named the figure)."
"Hah... really? That's a huge salary. Are you sure you have the right person? I only have one arm, like I wrote in my CV. Is that okay?" Vincent asked, his heart racing.
"It's no mistake and it's not a problem. I'll send you the address and a map. Please arrive tomorrow at 9:00 AM. Thank you, have a great day.... beep... beep."
Vincent was stunned. His grim expression vanished, replaced by a massive, beaming smile.
"I have to get home and tell Sarah," he thought, his heart suddenly feeling like a field of flowers.
He turned around and ran home, feeling on top of the world. But when he arrived in front of the rental, he saw a luxury sedan parked there with only a driver inside. Thinking it was none of his business, he walked to his door. As his hand gripped the handle, he heard the sound of people making out inside.
He threw the door open and burst in. He kicked off his shoes and walked to the living room, which was empty. But then he saw Sarah's clothes scattered on the floor. He listened closely and heard noise coming from his bedroom. He slowly approached the door, his hand trembling as he reached for the handle, swallowing hard to brace himself.