\u201cNathan\u2019s working while you\u2019re lying here. Get up and make him a proper dinner.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI can\u2019t even stand.\u201d<\/p>\n
Then Patricia took out her phone.<\/p>\n
When she pointed the camera at me, my stomach dropped.<\/p>\n
\u201cPatricia, please don\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSay cheese.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPatricia, don\u2019t. I\u2019m begging you.\u201d<\/p>\n
She lowered the phone with a satisfied little smile.<\/p>\n
\u201cMaybe a little embarrassment will motivate you. Nathan deserves better than this.\u201d<\/p>\n
Then she walked away.<\/p>\n
Moments later, I heard the front door close.<\/p>\n
Ten minutes afterward, my phone buzzed.<\/p>\n
My hands shook as I picked it up.<\/p>\n
There I was.<\/p>\n
My hair was tangled, my eyes swollen, my mouth slightly open as I slept.<\/p>\n
Beneath the picture, Patricia had written in her cheerful public voice:<\/p>\n
***\u2019Good morning to everyone who actually gets up, goes to work, and takes care of their family instead of sleeping until noon like my DIL.\u2019***<\/p>\n
Comments were already appearing.<\/p>\n
Women from her church.<\/p>\n
Members of her book club.<\/p>\n
Former neighbors.<\/p>\n
***\u201dPoor Nathan.\u201d***<\/p>\n
***\u201dKids these days.\u201d***<\/p>\n
***\u201dIn my time, we\u2019d never.\u201d***<\/p>\n
I turned the phone face-down.<\/p>\n
For eight years, I\u2019d tried to convince myself Patricia\u2019s opinion didn\u2019t matter.<\/p>\n
Now she\u2019d handed her judgment of me to hundreds of people.<\/p>\n
I cried until my chest hurt more than the fever.<\/p>\n
When Nathan came home that evening, I handed him my phone without saying anything.<\/p>\n
He read Patricia\u2019s post.<\/p>\n
Then he scrolled through the comments.<\/p>\n
I expected him to grab his keys and drive straight to his mother\u2019s house.<\/p>\n
Instead, he carefully placed my phone down, sat beside me on the bed, and took my hand.<\/p>\n
\u201cDon\u2019t respond, Claire. Not a single word. Please, just trust me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNathan, she\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI know. I know exactly what she did.\u201d<\/p>\n
He kissed my knuckles.<\/p>\n
Something about his expression was different.<\/p>\n
Quiet.<\/p>\n
Controlled.<\/p>\n
Almost unnervingly calm.<\/p>\n
I assumed he wanted me to ignore Patricia and move on.<\/p>\n
I couldn\u2019t have been more wrong.<\/p>\n
By the third night, I was finally improving.<\/p>\n
At two in the morning, I woke and noticed blue light spilling into the hallway.<\/p>\n
I quietly walked toward the kitchen.<\/p>\n
Nathan was sitting at the table with a cold mug beside him.<\/p>\n
On his laptop was an enlarged photograph of Patricia\u2019s porch.<\/p>\n
The mat sagged near the door. A paper bag sat beside it. A dark smear marked the threshold.<\/p>\n
Nathan had written down a time, an address, and four words:<\/p>\n
***Fridge. Cabinets. Laundry. Towels.***<\/p>\n
Each one was underlined twice.<\/p>\n
\u201cNathan?\u201d<\/p>\n
He quickly placed his hand over the notepad.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat are you doing?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThinking.\u201d<\/p>\n
He partially closed the laptop.<\/p>\n
\u201cGo back to bed. I\u2019ll be in soon.\u201d<\/p>\n
There was something unsettlingly calm in his eyes.<\/p>\n
I had no idea he planned to wake me before dawn.<\/p>\n
A hand touched my shoulder in the darkness.<\/p>\n
When I opened my eyes, Nathan was standing beside the bed holding my coat. His keys were already in his other hand.<\/p>\n
\u201cGet dressed, honey. Quiet.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNathan, it\u2019s not even five.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI know. That\u2019s the point.\u201d<\/p>\n
Twenty minutes later, we stopped outside Patricia\u2019s house.<\/p>\n
Her porch light was off. Only a window at the neighboring house glowed faintly.<\/p>\n
\u201cAre we really doing this?\u201d I whispered.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe used our emergency key to walk in on you,\u201d he said. \u201cI still have the one she gave me years ago.\u201d<\/p>\n
Until then, I\u2019d assumed Nathan had brought me there so we could confront her.<\/p>\n
I was wrong.<\/p>\n
He slipped the emergency key into the lock and quietly opened the door.<\/p>\n
I stepped inside behind him.<\/p>\n
And froze.<\/p>\n
The entry table was coated in a soft gray layer of dust.<\/p>\n
Shoes lay overturned near the wall.<\/p>\n
A sour smell drifted from the kitchen, where dishes were stacked higher than the faucet and a dirty towel lay crumpled on the floor.<\/p>\n
For eight years, I\u2019d been trying to meet standards Patricia couldn\u2019t meet herself.<\/p>\n
\u201cNathan, look at this place.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s worse than I remembered,\u201d he murmured. \u201cKeep going.\u201d<\/p>\n
Then his list came back to me.<\/p>\n
***Fridge. Cabinets. Laundry. Towels.***<\/p>\n
I looked at him.<\/p>\n
He hadn\u2019t brought me there on impulse.<\/p>\n
He had been planning this for days.<\/p>\n
We quietly moved down the hallway.<\/p>\n
At Patricia\u2019s bedroom, Nathan glanced at me and switched on the light.<\/p>\n
It hit her directly in the face.<\/p>\n
She jerked upright, hair sticking straight up on one side, eyes swollen with sleep.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat,\u201d she gasped. \u201cWhat are you doing here?\u201d<\/p>\n
Nathan raised his phone.<\/p>\n
Patricia froze.<\/p>\n
\u201cNathan. Don\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n
He didn\u2019t take a picture.<\/p>\n
He merely kept the phone pointed toward her.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy not?\u201d he asked. \u201cYou thought it was fine when Claire asked you the same thing.\u201d<\/p>\n
Patricia pulled the blanket toward her chin.<\/p>\n
\u201cPut that away.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAlmost five in the morning, Mom. Claire\u2019s already awake, and you\u2019re still lying in bed. Imagine what your Facebook friends would say.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s not funny.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo,\u201d Nathan said. \u201cIt isn\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n
Neither of them moved.<\/p>\n
Then Nathan lowered his phone.<\/p>\n
\u201cNow you understand.\u201d<\/p>\n
Patricia finally looked toward me.<\/p>\n
\u201cClaire, sweetheart\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDon\u2019t,\u201d I said. \u201cYou don\u2019t get to call me sweetheart now.\u201d<\/p>\n
She fell silent.<\/p>\n
My eyes moved toward the hallway behind us.<\/p>\n
The dust.<\/p>\n
The laundry.<\/p>\n
The messy kitchen.<\/p>\n
Suddenly, I understood what Nathan had been preparing.<\/p>\n
\u201cActually,\u201d I said, \u201cI have a better idea.\u201d<\/p>\n
I sat on the edge of Patricia\u2019s dresser.<\/p>\n
\u201cGo back to your post. Tell every woman who called me lazy that I had a 102-degree fever when you took that picture. Tell them you let them laugh at me anyway. Then apologize.\u201d<\/p>\n
Patricia\u2019s face hardened.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m not doing that.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen prove you were right,\u201d I said. \u201cTomorrow at noon, we\u2019ll both go live from our own homes and do the same cleaning tasks. Fridge, cabinets, laundry, towels. Let everyone see who actually practices what she preaches.\u201d<\/p>\n
She stared at me.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd if I say no?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen Nathan and I take pictures of you and this house and post them ourselves. Everyone who laughed at me will finally see the truth.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her jaw tightened.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd if I agree?\u201d<\/p>\n
I glanced toward her kitchen.<\/p>\n
Her eyes narrowed.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat punishment?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019ll find out tomorrow.\u201d<\/p>\n
For the first time, Patricia hesitated.<\/p>\n
I could practically see the decision happening behind her eyes.<\/p>\n
She could admit she\u2019d lied about me.<\/p>\n
Or she could accept the challenge and prove she was every bit as perfect as she\u2019d spent eight years pretending to be.<\/p>\n
Finally, she raised her chin.<\/p>\n
\u201cFine. Noon.\u201d<\/p>\n
I smiled.<\/p>\n
She still didn\u2019t know what losing would cost her.<\/p>\n
The livestream began at noon the following day.<\/p>\n
I moved through my kitchen while Patricia appeared in a small square beside me on the screen.<\/p>\n
\u201cFridge first,\u201d someone commented.<\/p>\n
I opened mine and began wiping the shelves.<\/p>\n
Patricia yanked open her refrigerator.<\/p>\n
A jar rolled out and shattered.<\/p>\n
Her kitchen looked considerably cleaner than it had during our early-morning visit.<\/p>\n
Clearly, Patricia had practiced.<\/p>\n
Her kitchen apparently hadn\u2019t cooperated.<\/p>\n
***\u2019Strong start, Patricia \ud83d\ude02.\u2019***<\/p>\n
She forced a smile.<\/p>\n
\u201cAccidents happen.\u201d<\/p>\n
Then she knocked over a carton of milk.<\/p>\n
It spilled across the shelf and soaked her socks.<\/p>\n
***\u2019Fridge: 2. Patricia: 0.\u2019***<\/p>\n
I glanced at my spotless shelf.<\/p>\n
\u201cShould I give you a minute to catch up?\u201d<\/p>\n
Patricia\u2019s expression answered for her.<\/p>\n
More comments appeared.<\/p>\n
***\u2019Next task!\u2019***<\/p>\n
***\u2019Top of the fridge!\u2019***<\/p>\n
Patricia reached upward and dragged two fingers across the surface.<\/p>\n
They came back gray.<\/p>\n
***\u2019OMG, SHE FOUND A NEW SPECIES OF DUST.\u2019***<\/p>\n
Her smile vanished.<\/p>\n
Next came the cabinets.<\/p>\n
Patricia opened one too quickly and three plastic containers fell onto the counter.<\/p>\n
***\u2019THE CABINET IS FIGHTING BACK.\u2019***<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, I\u2019d already completed my cabinets and started on the laundry.<\/p>\n
By the time someone suggested folding a fitted sheet, Patricia looked personally betrayed by the internet.<\/p>\n
Then someone asked us to wipe our range hoods.<\/p>\n
Mine took only seconds.<\/p>\n
Patricia scrubbed hers twice, yet the cloth still came away brown with grease.<\/p>\n
I raised my clean cloth and laughed.<\/p>\n
\u201cPatricia, should I pretend I didn\u2019t see that?\u201d<\/p>\n
She didn\u2019t laugh.<\/p>\n
That was when Patricia finally stopped performing.<\/p>\n
Her bright Facebook smile disappeared.<\/p>\n
So did the little speeches about how things were supposed to be done.<\/p>\n
She simply stood there holding the dirty cloth as comments rushed across the screen.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know why everyone\u2019s ganging up on me,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
But she didn\u2019t sound angry anymore.<\/p>\n
I was ready to remind her that public humiliation had been her idea.<\/p>\n
Then I noticed her hand trembling.<\/p>\n
\u201cPatricia,\u201d I said. \u201cForget the comments. Just finish the task.\u201d<\/p>\n
She stared at me through the screen.<\/p>\n
\u201cI can\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat do you mean?\u201d<\/p>\n
Patricia slowly lowered herself onto the kitchen floor.<\/p>\n
\u201cI mean I can\u2019t do any of it, Claire. I never could.\u201d<\/p>\n
The comments suddenly stopped.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou and Nathan have this\u2026 this life. Your house, your jobs, dinner on the table. You make all of it look so easy.\u201d<\/p>\n
She wiped her face.<\/p>\n
\u201cEvery time I came to your house, I looked for something wrong. Dust. Dinner. Laundry. Anything. Because if I could find something you were failing at, I didn\u2019t have to feel so ashamed of what I was failing at here.\u201d<\/p>\n
I stared at her.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou were looking for reasons to judge me?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI was looking for reasons not to judge myself.\u201d<\/p>\n
She looked around her kitchen.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd when I saw you in bed that day\u2026 I finally had something I could use against you. So I did.\u201d<\/p>\n
They had never really been about my home.<\/p>\n
They were about hers.<\/p>\n
I stared at Patricia\u2019s image on the screen.<\/p>\n
Three days earlier, I\u2019d wanted her humiliated.<\/p>\n
Ten minutes earlier, I\u2019d wanted to beat her at her own game.<\/p>\n
Now I\u2019d won.<\/p>\n
And suddenly I didn\u2019t care about winning anymore.<\/p>\n
\u201cNathan,\u201d I said. \u201cEnd the stream.\u201d<\/p>\n
Patricia looked up.<\/p>\n
\u201cClaire\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re done.\u201d<\/p>\n
An hour later, Nathan and I stood outside Patricia\u2019s house again.<\/p>\n
This time, we knocked.<\/p>\n
Nathan quietly removed our emergency key from Patricia\u2019s key ring.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou come over when you\u2019re invited,\u201d he said. \u201cNot before.\u201d<\/p>\n
She nodded.<\/p>\n
She looked smaller somehow.<\/p>\n
Tired.<\/p>\n
Then she lowered her eyes.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m sorry, Claire.\u201d<\/p>\n
I waited.<\/p>\n
Patricia had apologized before\u2014for being \u201ctoo honest,\u201d for \u201churting my feelings,\u201d for things that somehow still became my fault by the end.<\/p>\n
This time, she added nothing.<\/p>\n
\u201cThank you,\u201d I said. \u201cThat\u2019s a start.\u201d<\/p>\n
On the drive home, Nathan reached over and took my hand.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou okay?\u201d<\/p>\n
I thought about Patricia\u2019s little hum and all the years I\u2019d spent trying to avoid hearing it.<\/p>\n
\u201cYeah,\u201d I said. \u201cI\u2019m done trying to impress your mother.\u201d<\/p>\n
Nathan smiled.<\/p>\n
\u201cGood.\u201d<\/p>\n
And for once, that was enough.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
\u201cNathan\u2019s working while you\u2019re lying here. Get up and make him a proper dinner.\u201d \u201cI can\u2019t even stand.\u201d Then Patricia took out her phone. When she pointed the camera at me, my stomach dropped....<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5918","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\n