Helen was confined in her prison of unwashed dishes, unsorted mail, books, and dirty clothes. She wore the same Winnie-the-pooh nightgown she had slipped on three days ago. The windows were open to let some fresh air ward off the odorous spirits swarming inside, and Helen stared out at the perfectly blue summer sky as she lazily snacked on a cold piece of pizza.

She was unprepared for the knock at the door and was startled by the break in her quiet time. Five more sets of knocking and three rings of the buzzer went by before Helen managed to get out a weak, “I’m coming.”

Climbing out from Castle Apathy, Helen worked her way to the door. She pressed her eye to the peephole, and the familiar red hair made her gasp and stumble back. She turned around and let her weight fall back against the door.

“What do you want?”

There was a brief interlude before the woman responded.

“I know this is unexpected. I’ve been meaning to come by for a long time, but just couldn’t. I… I just want to give you something.”

Helen smiled bitterly, “I don’t want whatever the hell you have. My husband is in the bedroom, and he wants nothing to do with you either.”

“Helen, he—“

She tore open the door, “Bitch! I want you gone, right now!” She screamed at the redhead standing at her doorstep. Helen’s usually beautiful black hair was a bundle of knots and frizzes and her eyes were framed by dark circles.

The redhead’s heart went out to Helen. She could feel the urge to cry swimming up, and as much as she tried to drown the urge, it overwhelmed her. Helen’s anger seemed to subside, at least a little. She now stared out with a purely blank expression whittled onto her face.

“Here,” The redhead reached into her knock-off Louis Vuitton and pulled out a silver and gold watch, “This belongs to you. I thought you should have it.”

Helen stared at the familiar watch awhile before slowly reaching out and taking it. She clasped it in her hand and brought it to her chest.

“You’ll never understand the guilt I live with everyday. Just know that I’m paying for this, if that makes you feel any better. And I’m sorry.” The redhead’s purple mascara bled down her face in messy streaks. She wiped them away with the back of her hand.

“I appreciate it,” Helen said at last, “But my husband is waiting for me. I have to go. He’ll be glad to see this—it’s been missing for awhile now.”

“My God, you’re beautiful,” Leon exclaimed, climbing naked on top of the woman in the bed. He ran a hand through her red curls.

“Just do me already, you stupid man.” She giggled and pulled him close to her, skin against skin.

“I love you.”

“No. You don’t.” She ground her pelvis up into him, “Now stop talking. It’s not like we have all night.”

From the door there issued a series of violent knocks, as if someone was trying to batter it down.

“Leon! I know you’re in there!” The voice was frantic, “I know you’re in there with her! You bastard. You come back to me right now. Leon? Leon!”

“Helen.” The redhead reached out and laid a hand on her shoulder, “I don’t expect you to forgive me. I was… no, I am young and foolish. Just know I never meant to hurt anyone. I know it sounds so cliché…”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about. Now thank you for returning this, but you need to leave.” She turned around and rested a hand on the door, “I have to make lunch for my husband now and clean and do the laundry. I’ve gotten a bit behind.”

“I see.” the young woman’s face was full of regret, “Yes. I’m sure your husband loved…loves you very much. I’ll be going now.”

“Well goodbye then.” Helen stared at the redhead with sad gray eyes that had taken truth prisoner. It could be seen somewhere deep within them—the faintest little sparkle of a woman who had been happy and at the top of the world, and had now fallen overboard, embraced by the violent ocean. She had been lost at sea for quite some time now.

She shut the door, blocking the other woman from view.

“Leon. I have your watch,” She said before she pitched it at the wall. It broke apart and scattered into tiny pieces of silver and gold. It hadn’t worked anyway.

“Helen, wait!”

Leon ran after his wife, and the redhead tried desperately to find her clothes and follow them. Helen stormed from the apartment complex and out into the cold. She ran across the street and turned around as Leon was just emerging from the inside.

“How could you? After everything. What did I do wrong, Leon? What didn’t I give you that that slut did?”

He chased after her, “Honey, just wait and we can talk.”

She didn’t wait, but turned and fled down the staircase, coated in a thin sheet of ice and snow. The last step nearly tripped her, but she was quick to regain her balance.

“Helen!” Leon approached the stairs and then began flying down them. He always skipped every other step. It made things quicker.

Somewhere on the way down he lost his footing. He reached for the railing, but his hand slipped right off it.

By the time Helen had stopped, out of breath, and looked back, Leon had arrived at the bottom of the stairs. Head split open. Bloody. Dead.

The redhead walked to the street and climbed into the truck she had parked illegally at the curb.

She turned to the side and smiled at the man in the passenger seat.

“That was so hard.”

He smiled at her and rested a hand on her bare leg, covered only by a small blue jean miniskirt.

“I know it sounds so selfish to say, but at least you’re with both of us now.” She attempted a weak smile, “Helen looks terrible. It’s my fault, isn’t it? Oh God, I’m going to cry again…”

She rested her hands on her face and looked out the windshield. Out from the cloudless sky, a flurry of snow fell down to the ground.

“I’m going to let you go now. She needs you more than I do. So I’m just going to forget you. I told myself I didn’t love you anyway.”

The man in the passenger seat didn’t answer because he was already gone.

Helen stood at her window and watched it snow. It was so beautiful yet sad.

“I forgive you.” She said, not sure if she was talking to herself, her husband, or that naïve redhead. Or maybe it was to all three.

“Helen.”

The man in the bedroom called to her, and she was quick to answer.

“Yes dear?”

As always, there was no reply, but this time that was okay.