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Tabitha always knew a lot about fruits.
She could give a random fact about whatever fruit you asked her for, be it about mangoes or apples. It was sometimes a popular fact, sometimes an obscure fact too. It didn't matter much to her because it was fun to talk about it. Especially if it was her husband that was listening.
"What are you doing?" Wren said as he sat up from the couch, spotting Tabitha near the kitchen counter beside a bowl of fruits. She replied, "Would you like to guess?" with a soft giggle. This raised his curiosity as he stood up carefully, making as little noise as possible. He did the same while walking up behind her, a mischievous smile across his face.
Tabitha made a noise in surprise as she felt arms around her waist; the sound of her lover's gentle laughter reaching her ears. She immediately calmed down, her worries going away quickly. "I'm not giving you one then."
Wren was a bit confused before noticing the slices of oranges in front of them. They were neatly placed in a small plate, the oranges' color brightly looking back at him. "I'm sorry, tabby cat. Will you forgive me?"
Tabitha smiled, adoring the way that he apologised with a term of endearment. Wren noticed this and smiled too, "I'll take that as a yes."
"Not yet! You'll have to hear a fact first."
He hummed an 'okay', willing to listen to her anyway. "Did you know that clementines are a type of mandarin orange?"
He slightly shook his head. "That's not all! Clementia is the name of a Roman goddess, the goddess of forgiveness." She said happily, her hands continuing to peel the oranges. "If you share a clementine with someone, it's almost like you're seeking for forgiveness."
He suddenly had an idea. He lifted his hand to get one slice from the bowl and held it close to Tabitha, "It's not a clementine, but will you forgive me?"
She was quiet for a moment, her hands holding an orange that was neatly peeled with half of its skin. After a while, she had a fond smile. She took the slice of orange and ate it. "I knew you'd do that." Tabitha playfully said. Wren chuckled, cherishing just how sweet his wife was.
If only oranges tasted the same.
He opened his eyes, first noticing the knife on the table, then the orange. It looked like it had been roughly peeled, bits of its skin scattered around it. Wren sighed, leaning forward to grab the orange. Thoughts ran in his head, how oranges never tasted the same again and how much he wishes he could share this one last time with Tabitha.
It sat in the palm of his hand, staring back at him.
Maybe if he learned to peel oranges, he could forgive himself too.