Dean stared at the letter Rory had sent him from Europe and squirmed guiltily. He had planned to leave the letter out so Lindsey could 'accidentally' find it, which would start a giant fight, which would lead to her stomping out in a rage. But that would be cowardly, Dean thought.
How did I get into the mess? Dean thought. He had been very wrong to marry Lindsey while still in love with Rory, and even more wrong to tell Rory the marriage was over to overcome her objections to sleeping with a married man.
But the breakdown of their marriage hadn't been entirely his fault, Dean thought. Just what the hell did Lindsey do all day, anyway? She didn't work, didn't go to school, and she sure the hell wasn't practicing her cooking skills. Then to top it off, Lindsey had publically bitched him out about the amount of time he spent working to buy her all the things she wanted. Yeah, Lindsey had cooked him a roast once. Big deal that hardly compared to him working two jobs to support them both. Some partnership!
Why the hell did she marry me? He thought angrily. You have to hand it to her, Dean thought. Only eighteen and she hooked herself a wallet. No years of studying or working an entry-level job for Princess Lindsey. Nope, just sit back and let some chump work himself to death to support her in style.
Not for the first time, Dean wondered why his parents had encouraged their son to drop out of college in his freshman year to get married to a girl he'd only dated for a few months. What the hell were they thinking? Dean thought. Do they think I like working two menial jobs to survive? Do they think it's fun being exhausted all the time? Aren't parents supposed to want their kids to be happy? I'm too young for this. I should be figuring out what I want to do with my life, not living like some middle-aged man.
He looked at the letter again, feeling a spurt of anger towards Rory. When will I ever learn? He thought. I meant it when I said my marriage was over, and then she runs off to Europe the next day without even a phone call. She was just between boyfriends and miffed that I moved on. I didn't chase her, she chased me. She doesn't really care about me and never did.
Dean could have kicked himself. I knew better than that. Look at the way she strung me along for a year, lying to my face about her feelings for Jess. Rory didn't have the guts to just end it. No, she maneuvered me into being the one to break up with her so I was the bad guy, and she could be the injured party. Rory wasn't 'torn between us', she loved having two guys fight over her. She just used me to feed her ego, Dean realized. Man o man, I really know how to pick them, Dean thought ruefully. I think I should just stay single for a while.
But back to Lindsey, Dean thought. I won't do take the coward's way out, I'll tell her straight out tonight that the marriage isn't working. Tomorrow I'll find a lawyer and get this farce of a marriage annulled. Then I'll talk to the admissions office and re-enroll in school. Maybe I can get financial aid. Everyone will be mad at me, but so what, I have to do what's best for me.
He ripped the letter into tiny pieces and threw it in the trash.
Fin
