best’s WINNING ENTRY
Carol was upset and angry, of that there was no doubt. She had spent all day having to listen to her work colleagues discuss their Valentine’s plans, smiling through her annoyance that Richard seemed to have forgotten what day it was. Not only that, but he had texted her to say he would be late home. When they first met, he was quite romantic, but 10 years of marriage and two children later, she just felt taken for granted. She sometimes wondered whether she should have stayed with the charming Mark, who had made her feel so special.
As she was leaving work, her handsome boss, Tony, had flirted with her, suggesting that they should meet for a drink that evening. When she reminded him that they were both married, he had given her a soulful look and confided that he and his wife led separate lives. She had turned him down, but was secretly flattered by his interest.
At home, all was quiet. Her parents had picked up the children from school and were having them for a sleepover, giving her and Richard a night to themselves. Not that they would be making any use of it, she thought morosely. She could feel a headache starting so kicked off her shoes and lay down on the sofa for a quick nap. Perhaps when she woke, if Richard wasn’t home, she would meet Tony after all.
She was woken by the tinkling of a child’s laughter. She blearily opened her eyes, wondering if somehow the children were home. Coming into focus she saw a naked cherub hovering mid-air and casually hefting a miniature bow and arrow in his chubby fists. She shook her head, hoping the bizarre vision would disappear, but that just made him chuckle even louder.
‘I am the ghost of Valentine’s past,’ he trilled. ‘Prepare to revisit your youth.’
He grabbed her hand and before she knew it, she was sucked through a swirling vortex to her past.
They landed with a bump in Mark’s flat. Her younger self and Mark were sitting snuggled up on the sofa. She sighed as she saw how tenderly he was stroking her hair. He had always made her feel desirable. She tuned into their conversation and realised that they were discussing her best friend’s 18th birthday party. She was desperate to go, but Mark didn’t want her to.
‘Carol, I love you so much,’ he murmured, ‘and just want to be with you. You obviously don’t love me as much if you want to go out without me.’
She started to protest weakly, but he silenced her by covering her mouth with his, gently at first, and then with increasing passion until she gave in, as she always did. Watching them now, she remembered how he had cut her off from her all friends and even tried to stop her spending time with her family. But she had just seen it as a sign of how much he loved her. When she somehow found the strength to
