Echoes of ear-shattering shouts and heart-stopping screams reverberated to every corner of the house. There was an intermittent shattering of glass.

“God, when will this end!” I mumbled as I drifted off into deep prayer. Presently, Mother and dearest Father were in a heated argument over infidelity. Mother had a rendezvous with a man she met at the grocery store. When Father had unearthed evidence, it was the last straw. He does not deserve it, same goes for me.

Moments later, silence filled the air. You could hear a pin drop amidst the silence. I decided to pluck up my courage and crept anxiously towards the living room. Fragments of broken glass were strewn all over the floor, cushions were everywhere. The photo frame that held my only family photo was shattered like a china doll. It was a spitting-image of a war-torn rubble!

In the midst, Mother and Father sat in different corners, like new kids to a playground. They were silent, as though waiting for the other to make a move. Father tried reading a book but his eyes would not oblige, frequently catching a glimpse at Mother while she was in seventh heaven, still dreaming about him. My anger for him was indescribable, for breaking up my once perfect family. Mother did not have a tint of guilt on her, and she was one to wear her heart on her sleeves.

I remember that fateful day, where Father first perceived the fling; his reaction was cool as cucumber. Maybe he had anticipated it. When I questioned him, he muttered, “Kids do not understand these things.” I know everything crystal-clear. Why do adults have the impression kids are innocent beings ignorant of things? We know, but being inferior, we are useless.

As nightfall approached, they lay in bed. Not a word mentioned, not even a sign. They were physically close, yet sexually far and spiritually miles apart. Countless years of unforgettable memories down the drain due to a slipup, there was no changing the past. Time passed so slowly that I would look forward to the next tick.

What has happened to the parents I used to know and love? I had never foreseen this outcome. I could not tolerate being an onlooker to the turmoil anymore, I had to break out of my shell of ignorance and give them a piece of my mind. With butterflies in my stomach, I ran to the door, and shrieked “Why?”

Sounding hoarse from all the anxiety, I cleared my throat. “Why is it that you both cannot be as one?” Tears welled up in my eyes as I ran into my room and that was the last time I saw Mother and Father together.

Their love was gone, gone with the blink of an eye.