I always imagined our 10th anniversary would be perfect — candlelight, laughter, a meaningful exchange of gifts that showed how far we’d come together. I saved for months to buy my husband the watch he’d always dreamed of, imagining the joy on his face when he opened it. When he handed me a small plastic bottle of perfume in return, my heart quietly sank. It looked cheap, the kind of thing you’d grab at a gas station on impulse. I smiled anyway, trying to hide my disappointment.
It wasn’t about the price — it was the apparent lack of thought I imagined it represented. That night, after he fell asleep, I tucked the perfume away in a drawer and told myself I’d never wear it. I had no idea it would become the most meaningful gift he’d ever give me. Three weeks later, he was gone. No warning, no time to prepare — just a phone call that shattered my world. In the days that followed, I wandered through our home like a ghost.