In the bathroom, Joy finished her business, then stared at herself in the mirror as she washed her hands. Posters of Venice decorated the walls, and instrumental Italian music played over the speakers in the ceiling.
As she stared at her reflection, Joy wondered who she was anymore and what she was doing there with Tony. One minute, she was planning her life in New Rochelle, and the next, she was considering leaving everything behind to follow Tony to Florida
Florida.
Florida? She rolled her eyes. But Jaime’s face came to mind. It’s all for Jaime, she said to herself. It’s all for Jaime. She deserves to have a family again. That’s it. She deserves to have both her parents there at her side for her wedding and for her life. Joy straightened out her hair and refreshed her lipstick. Her happiness is what’s most important. And if moving to Florida is what it takes, then so be it. At least, that’s what she kept telling herself. But was it true? Joy closed her eyes, remembering how much she loved her own wedding day. Her dress . . . the church . . . the reception. It all was perfect except her father wasn’t there.
He had passed away when she was ten years old. His absence from her wedding day and her life left a gaping hole that nothing could fill. That feeling of emptiness was something she didn’t want for Jaime. She should have her dad there. Joy used a tissue to dab her lips and tossed it into the trash can. Florida isn’t that bad. Florida’s beautiful. Lovely beaches and towns. Tony’s right. I’m sure there are plenty of flower shops there too. The fact that they were back together was more than enough. It’s meant to be. I need to remember that and do my best to make it work.
As Joy pried open the restroom door, she exhaled, reassured and confident that this was going to work out. She smiled, then headed back to the table. But she froze in place. Tony wasn’t at their table but at the bar, talking to their attractive waitress. Leaning in close to listen to her talk into his ear, Tony laughed at what she said and reached out to touch her hand, caressing it. The young waitress placed her hand on his and giggled.
A rush of anger flowed over Joy as she watched the all-too familiar scene. Her hands formed into fists.
The waitress giggled again as Tony whispered into her ear. Then she wrote something down on a piece of paper and handed it to Tony, who read it and nodded. Joy watched him enter what she suspected was the waitress’s phone number into his phone. When he was finished, the two continued talking until the waitress glanced over his shoulder and stiffened at the sight of Joy watching them.
A frown appeared on her face, and the waitress quickly walked away from Tony, leaving him perplexed. He spun around and spotted Joy staring at him with a look of disgust on her face and her arms crossed.
“Joy?” he said. “Hey, our main course is coming. I was just asking our waitress for another bottle of wine.”
She listened to him for a moment, staring into his smiling eyes and fake grin. A grin that used to weaken her knees but now made her stomach turn.
“What?” He held out his hands. “What’s the matter?” Then he pointed to the place where the waitress had stood. “That? Oh, that was nothing. Come on.” He laughed nervously. “She was flirting with me, that’s all. Let’s finish our dinner and then FaceTime with Jaime again, okay?”
Joy turned on her heel, grabbed her purse off the back of the chair, then headed for the door.
“Joy, wait.” Tony followed after her. “Don’t make a scene.”
But she ignored him and headed out the door and turned toward a bridge in the distance.
“Joy, wait. Don’t do this. Don’t ruin our wonderful time tonight. Everything was perfect. Tell me more about your flower shop idea. Joy, please.”
But she kept walking, fuming with each step.
“Please don’t ruin our time in Venice. Come on. Stop and talk with me. Don’t do this,” Tony begged. “We were having a wonderful time.”
Joy stopped at the bridge and glanced down at the lights reflected in the water, thinking about what she had seen and what Tony had said.
“Look, I know you’re upset, but let me explain.” He stood by her, panting. “The waitress asked me a question. That’s all. She asked me something so I—”
“Stop.” Joy closed her eyes, squeezing them shut tightly, hoping that when she reopened them, she’d find this was all a nightmare. “Just stop.”
“Please, let me . . . I can see you’re upset.” He shook his head. “Now our night is ruined.”
“I’m not upset, Tony.” Joy stood mesmerized by the water below. She slowly opened her eyes, reconciled to the fact that it wasn’t a nightmare, but everything was real. Very real.
“Wait, you’re not upset?” He squinted.
“No, I’m not,” Joy said coolly, then faced him, making sure to meet his eyes. “I’m not upset. I’m awake, Tony.”
He rolled his eyes.
“For the first time in a long time, I feel awake.” Joy headed further onto the bridge. “Wide awake.”
“I . . . I don’t understand.” Tony followed her. “You’re not upset?”
Joy shook her head. “I know I’m supposed to be angry, but I’m not.” She stared unblinking into his eyes. “Am I disgusted? Yes.”
He flinched.
“Do I want to hit you? Yes.”
A passing man looked at Joy when she said that. Tony gave him an awkward grin.
“But believe it or not, I’m not angry.” Joy chuckled. “I’m awake. Wide awake. I now see you for who you really are. Others saw it, but not me. I remained asleep to the fact that you haven’t changed.”
Tony tossed up his hands. “Joy, look, I can explain everything if you would just—”
“And I now know you will never change, Tony.” She ran her hands along the wrought iron railing of the bridge. “You, Tony, will never change. And like that old saying goes, when someone shows you who they really are, believe them.” She walked off down the other side of the bridge.
But Tony grabbed her arm. “Joy, don’t do this. Don’t ruin what we have. Don’t just throw away all that we experienced here in Venice. Think of Jaime.”
She stared at his fingers wrapped around her bare arm.
He slowly released her.
“I am thinking of her, Tony. What we experienced here in Venice? It was just an illusion, Tony. I see that now.” Joy shoved his hand away. “I didn’t ruin anything. You did. As usual, you ruined everything.”
As she walked off, Joy could feel the weight of his stare on her body. The pull of it was strong, but she could be stronger. She knew she had it in her to keep walking and sever that power he had over her forever.
