"The Perfect Date " by Jada H.

     Saturday, June 5th, 2015: Daniel and Evelyn’s wedding date. It had been 5 years since they had been married, but they had known each other for what seemed like forever. They were high school sweethearts, all 4 years. Daniel made dinner reservations at the fanciest, most extravagant restaurant in town, with a beautiful view of the beach and all the shining stars in the sky. Evelyn had brought a gift that her husband had been wanting for quite a while, and couldn’t wait to see the expression on his face when he opened the gift. They sat on the outside patio, amplifying the picturesque view.  Everything was going to be perfect.
     After they had eaten, it was time to exchange their gifts. Daniel first handed his wife the card, and decided to express how he was feeling.
     “We’ve been together for so long, and yet, I still can’t help but smile and blush, like a middle school boy, every time I see. You push. You encourage me. You believe in me, more than I believe in myself. We mess around like teenagers, and you constantly keep me laughing, I’m so grateful to hav-...”
     Before he could even finish his sentence, he was interrupted by this loud, indistinct noises coming from the front of the restaurant.
     *BOOM BOOM BOOM*
      “EVERYBODY, PUT YOUR HANDS!”
      Daniel and Evelyn immediately looked at each other in confusion. They could only hear some of
what the intruders were saying, but couldn’t see them. As they sat in confusion, they could only help but think, “What in the world was going on? Is someone robbing the restaurant? Is it a murder? Are we going to die?”
      As she sat glued to her chair, she thought to herself, “Are we going to die tonight? We have children waiting for us at home. What if they never see us again?”
     “What are we going to do?”, asked Evelyn.
     “Let’s hop the fence, and get the heck outta here!”
      But, it was too late. They heard the footsteps coming closer and closer, and knew they wouldn’t have time. Daniel ran over to his wife, forced her under the table with him, and wrapped her in his arms, trying to use his body as a shield to protect his wife for whatever was coming. He always said he would give his life for her, without a doubt, and thought this was going to be that moment. Their heart beats that always seemed to sync, were now out of rhythm as fear filled their entire body.
     “PUT YOUR HANDS UP! Evelyn Baker, you are under arrest!”, a squad of policemen shouted as they busted open the door and flipped over the table they were hiding under. They pried his hands off of her, ripped Evelyn out of his hands, and put her in handcuffs.
     “I’m going to fight for you, baby. I’m not going to let them take you away from me, forever!”, Daniel cried out as tears streamed down his face and his blood and anger boiled like lava erupting out of a volcano. And that’s exactly what he did. He hired the best lawyers and attorneys. He visited her every single day in jail. Daniel did everything he could to get her out of there. He didn’t understand why she was even in there in the first place. His wife was completely innocent...so he thought.
The hardest part was explaining it all to their kids. “Will she be able to make it to my game tonight?    When is mommy coming home? Will we ever see her again?”, they asked. Daniel tried his best to answer their questions in a way that they would understand the situation, without totally breaking their

hearts. Each time he visited her, Evelyn made him promise to always be there for the kids and to love them unconditionally. He ensured to keep those promises every single day.
     One day, the police called Daniel in for questioning. They asked a million questions: What is your relation to her? What is her occupation? What does she do in her spare time?. Question after question, Daniel couldn't take it anymore. Anger, frustration, and confusion swirled inside of him, and he finally exploded saying, “My beautiful, loving wife is NOT a criminal! Just leave us alone please, and let her go home”, with tears once again streaming down his face. Yet, as he lifted his head up, they showed him a multitude of different pictures with a woman with a weapon in her hands, seconds before a crime was committed. As he looked closer, he realized that the woman looked exactly like his wife. The same wavy hair, same dreamy, hazel eyes, and same clothing style. Sitting there completely perplexed, he thought to himself, “How could this be? Evelyn is a surgeon, and works long hours, sometimes not coming home for 2 days straight. Yeah she works crazy hours, but could she really have murdered people during that time??? 18 PEOPLE???? Nah, my wife could never do that.”
     However, after the investigation showed that the DNA was a match, and she was convicted of first degree murder and sentenced to life in prison, he started to have second thoughts: All the proof is there....but, could she really have done all that? He started to visit Evelyn less and less, and eventually stopped completely. He stopped talking about her, and the kids stopped asking about her.    Slowly, but surely...he fell out of love with her. He forced himself to. She was never going to get out of prison. He forced himself to move on.
     Years and years passed, and Evelyn became resentful. She hated prison. She hated the people there. She hated the world. She missed her family. She felt that she was innocent. One day, the police came into her cell, and said, “Evelyn Baker... you are free to go.”, and walked away.
The officers explained that there had been a mix up. Evelyn was adopted, and didn’t know her biological family. Apparently, she had a twin sister, but they were split up at birth. Evelyn was adopted into a loving family, while Eva, her sister, was put in foster care for most of her life. After she aged out of foster care, Eva had to try and survive on her own. Completely envious of her sister, Eva tracked Evelyn down and copied almost everything she did. Eva brought the same car, same clothes, and later framed her for a horrendous crime. Evelyn turned red as a cherry, and couldn’t even get a word out. She missed her kids’ graduations and weddings, the birth of her grandkids, and lost the love of her life. She lost her career. She lost everything. And it was all for nothing?!?!?!?
     But she couldn’t just let it all go. After a few days, she went back to what used to be her and Daniel’s house. Ready to proclaim her love and to be joyfully accepted, she excitedly knocked on the door.  After what seemed like forever, Daniel opened. Yet, her excitement quickly faded as another woman walked up: his new wife...her replacement.
     Every holiday, Evelyn would drive up to the house, and would watch them from afar. There they were, looking like a perfect family. There she was, taking on Evelyn's role. There she was, hugging ​her kids. She sat there, wishing things would go back to the way they were, but she knew that wasn’t going to happen. She hated her ​replacement.​ She hated the world. She hated everything.