"I mean it! I'll kill myself! I'll do it if you leave me!"
I pressed the sharp point of the letter opener between my breasts. I could feel the cold point of the steel blade through my sweater.
She stared at me in horror. She knew I meant it. I glanced down at my wrists, and her gaze followed mine. The scars were healed, but still visible. Yes, she knew that I meant it.
"No, honey, don't do it!" she pleaded. "I won't leave. I won't leave you. Not right now. Not today. Please put down the blade, okay?"
I felt the carved ivory of the handle of the letter opener in my hand, cold and smooth and tactile. It had been my grandmother's. I always kept it sharp. It felt clammy in my hand, slick with my sweat. Slowly, I took it from my breast and dropped it to the living room floor.
She rushed forward and wrapped her arms around me, and pulled my head to her chest, comforting me. I pressed my face into her breasts, and sobbed.
"It's okay, honey. It's okay. I'll stay. I'll stay for awhile. I love you, you know." She patted the back of my head.
"But you said you were leaving me. You said you were leaving! I can't live without you. I can't. I won't!" I sobbed, dampening her blouse with my tears.
She patted my hair and pulled me close. "I'll stay the night. We'll discuss it in the morning. You'll feel better then."
I pulled my face from her bosom. "But you'll still leave? I'll kill myself as soon as you walk out the door, I swear I will!"
"Now, darling, you have to promise me that you won't do anything like that. Promise me, okay?" Her eyes searched mine, looking for confirmation, looking for a promise.
"No!" I screamed, pulling back from her. "I won't promise. I won't!" I started to look around on the floor for the letter opener. I won't face the world without her!
She pulled me back into her embrace, and kissed me on the mouth. I love her kisses. As her tongue parted my lips, I felt myself melt into her embrace, just as I always do. My will was meaningless. She is my everything. Soon my arms were around her, and hers were around me, her hands on my ass, kneading it the way I love. I reached up and stroked her face. She leaned in and kissed the tears from my cheek. I forgot all about the letter opener, forgot about spilling my blood all over the floor of the apartment.
"Let's go to bed," she whispered into my ear. "I know what will make you feel better." She took my hand and led me to the bedroom.
As we walked down the hallway to the bedroom, I suddenly thought back to the first time we had made love, many years ago. How we had first met. We had been standing at a bus stop together, in the pouring rain, and I had forgotten my wallet. I had been looking through my purse furiously, swearing.
"Do you need a dollar?" she had asked me, a stranger. "You don't want to walk in this downpour."
"Thank you, thank you!" I had said, grateful for her offer. "I'll pay you back, I promise."
"Oh, it's just a dollar. Don't worry about it!" she laughed.
But the next day, I waited at the bus stop to pay her back. I always keep my promises. She was touched. We went out for coffee. We talked, we laughed, we touched. Then we went to her place and made love like crazed teenagers. "You're crazy!" she had said. "It's just a dollar!"