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Chapter 4
"What the hell is this?"
Bridget cringed as the covers were ripped away, the morning cold crashing like a wave over her frail body. Bridget barely had time to blink awake before Eric pounced at her again, shoving the bottle in her face. Bridget rubbed her eyes, trying to place the empty pill bottle.
"Bridget what the hell is this?" Eric pressed furiously.
"It's for headaches. I take it when I'm not feeling good." Bridget offered, still trying to wake herself up. Eric was obviously unsatisfied.
"If it's just for headaches why the hell did you have to hide it? Why haven't you told me about it? How come it has to be prescribed by a doctor! Do you even have a prescription for this stuff?" Bridget listened to Eric's rant, wishing that he would just be quiet. It was far too early to be having such a heavy conversation with him.
"It's not like I meant to hide it!" Bridget snapped defensively. Eric scoffed.
"Do you know where I found this Bridget? It was under the stove! Don't tell me you weren't trying to hide it!" Bridget leaned back against the pillows, trying to pull the covers back up. Eric snatched them back away. "Don't try and hide from this Bridget, deal with it!" He demanded, pulling her back up to a sitting position. Bridget sighed.
"What's the big deal? So I was taking some headache medicine! It's not like you'd care if I wasted away!" Bridget said pointedly, crossing her arms across her chest. Eric looked at Bridget as if she had shot him. In some regards, she had. She had underestimated his love for her and that hurt worse than any bullet. Still, he wasn't about to give Bridget the upper hand.
"Did you ever stop to think this isn't about you Bridget?" Eric asked loudly. "Although you try to forget it, we do have a baby in the house and she could have found this bottle before I did! I know you think you're super human or something but Julie would die if she ingested any of this stuff! Can't you think of anyone else beside yourself?" Eric demanded, sounding harsher than he had intended. Bridget seemed relatively unfazed by this though, at least to Eric.
"I do think about you and the baby!" Bridget said in her defense but she couldn't muster the energy to put any feeling into it. When she said that, something changed in Eric's face. He squinted, carefully scanning Bridget as if for the first time.
"Say her name," Eric said so quietly that Bridget thought for sure she had heard wrong.
"What?" She asked, knitting her brow in confusion. Eric remained stonily silent.
"I said, say her name. Say your daughter's name." What is he doing? Bridget thought to herself. Has he gone crazy? Eric stared hard at Bridget, trying to decipher her emotions. They used to be so close, now he didn't even know her. It was as if his life was running in reverse, he had gotten married and was just now meeting his wife for the first time. Eric continued to stare, obviously waiting for an answer. When Bridget just stared at him he sighed. "You can't do it, can you?" Eric asked, an edge rising to his voice. "You can't even look at that beautiful baby and now you won't even say her name? What kind of a mother are you Bridget? Is it because of the 'Marly' part of her name? I told you it might be too hard for you—," Anger coursed through Bridget's body like wildfire. She climbed out of bed, storming over to where Eric was standing.
"Don't question my mothering skills and don't you dare tell me what's too hard for me to handle! You have no clue what I've been through!" Bridget shot back at him. For some reason seeing Bridget like this filled Eric with happiness. Even though they were fighting it provided some relief. He hadn't seen her this fired up about anything since Julie had been born. Does this mean that my Bridget's back? Eric asked himself. Have I finally pulled her out of the mud? Eric was too afraid to let himself hope for anything. He didn't want to be disappointed again. Staring at Bridget though Eric knew things weren't fixed completely—not yet anyway. The passion that had burned behind Bridget's eyes moments earlier seemed to be quickly fading away, evaporating into a dull glow.
"Bridget you're absolutely right about me not knowing what you've been through, because you never talk to me about it. If you would just open up to me for once you would see that—," Eric began but stopped short when Bridget began to shake her head refusal.
"I don't want to talk about anything," Bridget said flatly, falling back into bed. She snuggled under the covers, willing Eric to leave her in peace. Eric stared at his wife for a minute, frustration falling over him.
"Damnit Bridget!" Eric yelled, throwing the empty pill bottle across the room. It hit an old handheld mirror, sending shards of glass flying. Bridget jumped up, startled by the sudden noise. "Why can't you just talk to me! I'm your husband Bridget, not someone you can shut out whenever you feel like! How can I help you if you won't even get your ass out of bed?" Eric's words cut through Bridget like a knife. How could I ever tell him? Bridget asked herself. He would never understand what it was like! He would never realize how much it hurt to grow up without my mom! Why doesn't he just let me be? Bridget wrapped herself in the covers, staying that way until she heard Eric walk out of the room, slamming the door behind him.