The mentally ill wife

The days had felt strange ever since that first meeting. The atmosphere, the air, and the suffocating silence that surrounded you whenever you sat alone with that woman left behind a feeling you could not quite explain.

The room itself looked warm, illuminated by the fading sunset through the windows and the soft dim lighting that made everything appear peaceful. It should have been comforting, almost serene, yet something inside you told you otherwise. You felt pressured, uneasy, as though something invisible was watching you from somewhere within the silence.

Her name was Evelyne. She was the daughter of a prestigious family, beautiful, graceful, soft-spoken, and almost impossibly composed. To everyone around her, she seemed like the ideal woman to become part of any respectable family.

Yet there was something about the way she looked at you that never felt quite right. You could not explain it, but whenever her eyes met yours, you felt as though she was looking far deeper than she should.

After the first meeting between your family and Evelyne's family, you returned to your usual routine. Work, colleagues, responsibilities, and the ordinary rhythm of your life continued as if nothing had changed. Except for one thing: whenever you had to meet Evelyne or her family, you felt that same uncomfortable weight settling inside your chest. You could never explain where it came from. It was simply there, waiting for you every time her name appeared on your schedule.

Your meetings with Evelyne were arranged once every two months as part of the process of bringing the two of you closer for the arranged marriage. You were actually grateful that your parents had agreed to give you some distance between each meeting. At first, they had considered your request strange, but eventually they accepted it. Even so, whenever another meeting approached, you never felt as though you were preparing to meet your future wife. It felt more like you were preparing to enter a place whose door you could not see.

The next meeting went almost exactly as expected. Both families sat together, discussing business, family matters, and other topics that barely held your attention.

Everything looked harmonious on the surface, while you and Evelyne remained seated across from one another in uncomfortable silence, almost like complete strangers who had simply been placed at the same table.

Eventually, Evelyne's mother noticed the silence. She gave her daughter a gentle smile before subtly urging her to speak with you. "Darling, try talking to him. You two are going to be married soon."

Evelyne understood the meaning behind that smile. She always did.

She turned toward you and offered the same gentle expression she had been wearing all evening. Her voice was soft and melodic, her movements graceful, and her appearance almost fragile, like something made of crystal. Yet her eyes were different. There was an intensity behind them that did not match the softness of her face.

The following meetings became increasingly uncomfortable. One afternoon, both families deliberately left the two of you alone for the entire day, claiming that it would be a good opportunity for you to become closer without your parents constantly watching.

The moment the door closed behind them, Evelyne rose from her seat and walked toward you. She reached for your right hand and gently held it.

"Now that they're gone, we can actually do something together instead of having another formal meeting," she said with a soft smile. "We don't have to be so formal here. After all... isn't that what strengthens a relationship, husband?"

Before you could answer, she wrapped both hands around your arm and leaned against you, resting her cheek against it as though she had finally found somewhere she wanted to stay. You immediately stiffened, uncomfortable with how quickly she had invaded your personal space.

"You don't have to be so tense," she murmured with a quiet laugh. "Just tell me what you want to talk about."

You glanced toward the kitchen, searching for a harmless excuse to create some distance. "I think I need to rest for a while. I'll get some coffee."

Her grip suddenly tightened. Evelyne's smile remained for another second, but something in her eyes changed.

"You don't have to leave like that. I can make you feel calm if you need me to. You only have to stay here."

She moved slightly closer, her fingers tightening around your arm. "Just stay."

Her eyes remained fixed on yours. "And look at me."

There was something difficult to describe in her expression. It looked almost like fear, but that fear had twisted itself into something much more possessive. She smiled again, softer this time.

"You have beautiful eyes," she whispered. "And such a beautiful face."

She paused for a moment, her gaze never leaving yours. "Everything about you... is something I don't want to lose."

For the first time, you caught a glimpse of something beneath her carefully composed exterior. She was not simply a woman who liked her future husband too much. There was genuine fear hidden beneath that affection, a fear so deep that it had begun transforming into a desperate need to keep you close.

From then on, the pattern became clearer. Every time you met, Evelyne found another reason to stay close to you. She would sit beside you instead of across from you, hold your hand whenever she had the chance, lean against your shoulder, and quietly follow you whenever you moved somewhere else in the house. At first, her requests were small.

"Don't go home so soon. Stay with me a little longer. Don't sit so far away."

But eventually, those small requests began to change.

"Why do you have to leave? Who are you meeting? How long will you be gone? Why can't I come with you?"

The closer your marriage came, the more difficult it became for Evelyne whenever you tried to create even the smallest amount of distance. Her face remained soft, her voice remained calm, and her smile remained almost perfect, but sometimes you caught glimpses of something she tried desperately to hide. Her fingers would tremble. Her breathing would become uneven. Her eyes would lose their usual warmth, as though she were fighting against a thought she could barely control.

---

Then the wedding day arrived.

Everything was beautiful. The venue was magnificent, the decorations were elegant, warm lights filled the room, and the guests arrived with smiles on their faces. Both families looked proud and happy, celebrating not only the marriage between their children but also the strengthening of the relationship between their families.

There was only one thing that occupied your thoughts.

Your wife.

Evelyne barely let go of you throughout the entire ceremony and celebration. Her hand remained wrapped around yours, her smile radiant whenever someone looked in your direction, but her grip felt strangely tight. Possessive. Almost as though she were silently reminding herself that you belonged beside her now and that nothing was supposed to take you away.

---

Three months passed after the wedding, and living with Evelyne only made that strange feeling grow stronger. She always found another reason for you to stay home. She wanted to eat together, watch something together, talk together, or simply sit beside you without doing anything at all. Whenever you wanted to leave, even for a short while, she somehow managed to make you feel as though you were abandoning her.

One evening, you told her that you had been invited to a small party with your coworkers at one of their houses. You had barely finished explaining before her expression changed.

"Don't go."

You looked at her. "I already told you. It's a party with my coworkers."

"I know." She smiled faintly, but the expression did not reach her eyes. "But why?"

"They're my friends."

"I can be your friend too." She stepped closer. "Why do you always want to waste your time with them and with the outside world?"

Her voice began to tremble slightly.

"Why not with me?" She lowered her head for a moment before looking back at you. "Am I boring?"

You remained silent.

Evelyne smiled again, but this time the smile looked fragile. "I've done everything I was supposed to do, haven't I?"

She reached for your hand and held it tightly. "I can do it again. Whatever you need, just tell me."

Her fingers tightened around yours.

"We can spend time together."

Her face looked almost pleading, but her eyes were different. There was something dark hiding behind them, something born from a fear that had slowly become too powerful to control.