Dead Plate Oneshots How Could You?

Removed the note cuz I have a proof reader now but was still getting a lot of dms from people wanting to volunteer

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Manon walked down the busy street, her arms laden with bags filled with the kids’ school supplies and a few groceries for dinner. The city was loud, but she had grown used to the constant hum of it over the years, a backdrop to the chaos of their lives. Her mind, however, wasn’t focused on the world outside. It was entirely preoccupied with the gnawing uncertainty that had been festering in her gut for months now.

She wasn’t blind to the changes in her marriage. Rody had become more distant, irritable, distracted even when he was at home. He’d started working more hours, spending longer nights at the bakery where he was the manager. It wasn’t just that he was busy; Manon knew what that was like. They both worked hard to keep their family together. But it was more than that. He seemed… absent, like his mind was elsewhere, even when he was right there next to her.

The kids felt it too. Their youngest, Juliette, had asked her the other night why Daddy wasn’t home for dinner anymore. Manon had smiled and reassured her, saying something about Daddy working hard for them, but even she didn’t believe her own words.

She gripped the bags tighter as she neared the small bakery where Rody worked. The scent of freshly baked bread and pastries wafted out onto the street, mixing with the autumn chill. It was a scent that once made her heart flutter with pride and love for the man she married. Now, it only served as a reminder of how far away he felt.

Manon’s decision to visit was a spur-of-the-moment thing. A small surprise, an attempt to bridge the growing gap between them. She’d left work early, hoping to catch him during a lull, maybe have a coffee together, talk about the kids, about them. She wanted to make things better, to fix whatever had gone wrong. After all, wasn’t that what she was supposed to do? Work hard, try harder, even when it felt like she was the only one trying?

She paused outside the bakery, hesitating for just a moment before pushing the door open. A bell above her head jingled softly, and she stepped inside. The warm air hit her face, the inviting atmosphere so different from the cold tension that had been brewing at home.

“Hello?” she called, her voice quiet but hopeful. There were a few customers milling about, but no sign of Rody.

“He’s in the back,” one of the employees said, a young girl with a tired smile, wiping her hands on her apron. “Office door’s closed, but he should be in.”

Manon smiled back, murmuring a quick thank you before making her way to the back. Her heels clicked softly on the tiled floor, a rhythmic sound that echoed in the mostly empty bakery. Her heart beat faster with each step. She wasn’t sure why she felt so nervous. Maybe it was the thought of confronting him, of having a real conversation after so many nights of half-hearted exchanges. Maybe she was just scared of what she might hear.

As she reached the hallway leading to the office, she slowed down. The door to his office was slightly ajar, a sliver of light spilling into the dim corridor. Manon’s brow furrowed in confusion. She was about to knock when she heard a sound that stopped her in her tracks.

Rody’s voice.

But it wasn’t the usual tone she’d grown used to over the years. It was low, intimate. A voice she hadn’t heard him use with her in far too long.

Then she heard another voice—softer, breathy, and unmistakably familiar.

Vincent. The Bakery’s Baker.

Manon’s heart pounded in her chest as she stepped closer to the door, her breath catching in her throat. She peered through the gap, her hands trembling as she pressed them against the frame.

Her blood ran cold.

Rody was standing behind Vincent, his hands gripping the man’s hips, pressing him against the desk in the middle of the office. Vincent’s face was flushed, his back arching against Rody’s touch, his breaths coming in short, ragged gasps. Their clothes were still mostly on—Rody’s shirt unbuttoned, Vincent’s apron discarded on the floor—but the intimacy between them was unmistakable.

Rody’s hands moved over Vincent’s body with a familiarity, a tenderness that Manon hadn’t felt in months. His lips grazed Vincent’s neck, murmuring something she couldn’t hear, but the way Vincent’s head tilted back in response made her stomach churn with the weight of it all.

Her breath caught in her throat, the shock of what she was seeing freezing her in place. It felt like time had slowed down, the scene before her playing out in slow motion. Rody’s hands moved down Vincent’s back, fingers dipping below the waistband of his pants, and she watched as Vincent’s body responded, his quiet moan muffled against his arm resting on the desk.

Manon’s world crumbled in that moment, the truth crashing down on her with the force of a sledgehammer. This was why Rody had been distant, why he hadn’t come home at night. This was what had been pulling him away from her, from their children, from everything they had built together.

Her hands trembled as she stepped back, bile rising in her throat. The bags slipped from her grip, dropping to the floor with a soft thud, but neither of them seemed to notice. They were too lost in each other, too caught up in whatever had been building between them behind her back.

Tears stung her eyes as she turned and fled, her mind racing, her heart shattering with every step. She stumbled out of the bakery, the sound of her heels loud and frantic on the tile, but it was drowned out by the roar of emotions swirling inside her.

Betrayal. Anger. Confusion.

How long had this been going on? How long had she been trying so hard to fix something that was already broken beyond repair?

The cold air hit her face as she burst onto the street, her breath coming in ragged gasps as she clutched her chest, trying to hold herself together. People passed by, oblivious to the storm raging inside her, to the pieces of her life that had just crumbled at her feet.

Manon stood there, trembling, tears blurring her vision. She had come here hoping to find her husband, to surprise him, to reconnect. Instead, she had found something far worse than she had ever imagined.

What was she supposed to do now?

Her hands shook as she fumbled for her phone, her fingers unsteady as she dialed the only number she could think of in that moment.

It rang once, twice, before the voice on the other end answered.

“Manon?” It was her sister, concern immediately clear in her voice. “What’s wrong?”

Manon couldn’t speak. Her throat felt tight, the words tangled up in the crushing weight of her discovery. She tried to speak, but all that came out was a sob, raw and broken.

Her sister’s voice softened. “Manon, where are you? What happened?”

She looked back at the bakery, her heart heavy with the weight of the truth.

“I—” Her voice cracked, and she couldn’t finish.

“I’ll come get you,” her sister said, voice urgent now. “Just tell me where you are.”

Manon gave her the address, her voice barely above a whisper, and hung up.

She stood there, alone on the sidewalk, the world around her continuing on as if nothing had changed. But for her, everything had.

She didn’t know how long she stood there, her body numb, her mind racing. All she knew was that the life she had thought she was holding together had just shattered into pieces. And now, she had to decide what to do with them.

Manon stood frozen on the sidewalk, staring blankly at the bakery door, the weight of her discovery pressing down on her chest like a boulder. The world around her continued to move, indifferent to the devastation she felt inside. People bustled by, oblivious to the fact that her life had just been torn apart.

Her sister would be here soon, but time seemed to stretch out endlessly, every second dragging painfully. The image of Rody and Vincent kept replaying in her mind, searing itself into her memory. She tried to push it away, but it clung to her, a cruel reminder of everything she had lost.

Her heart ached. This wasn’t just about Rody’s betrayal—though that hurt more than she could put into words—it was the realization that the man she had built her life with, the father of her children, had slipped away from her completely. And she had no idea how long it had been happening.

Had she missed the signs? Could she have done something different to stop this?

Manon swallowed the lump in her throat as she looked down at her shaking hands. Her wedding ring glinted in the fading light of the afternoon, a symbol of the vows they had made to each other so many years ago. Promises that now felt like they meant nothing.

Her thoughts were interrupted by the sound of a car pulling up to the curb. She looked up to see her sister, Delphine, getting out of the car, her face etched with concern as she hurried over to her.

“Manon?” Delphine’s voice was soft but urgent, her hands reaching out to steady her trembling sister. “What happened? Talk to me.”

Manon’s lips parted, but no words came out. She wanted to explain, to tell her sister what she had seen, but the words got caught in her throat, tangled in her emotions. Instead, tears welled up in her eyes again, and she collapsed into Delphine’s arms, her body wracked with silent sobs.

Delphine held her tightly, stroking her hair as she whispered, “It’s okay. I’m here. We’ll get through this, I promise.”

For a long moment, they stood there on the sidewalk, the bustle of the city moving around them like a blur. Manon’s tears soaked into her sister’s coat as she tried to steady herself, but the grief, the anger, the betrayal—they were too much to bear all at once.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity, Manon pulled back, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand. Her voice was hoarse as she tried to speak. “I—I went to surprise him. To talk… to fix things.” She swallowed hard, her breath shaky. “But… he was with Vincent. In his office. I—” Her voice broke again, the words painful to even say.

Delphine’s eyes widened with shock, and her grip on Manon’s shoulders tightened. “Oh, my God. Manon…” She trailed off, clearly at a loss for words. She didn’t ask any more questions. She didn’t need to.

“I don’t know what to do,” Manon whispered, her hands clenching into fists at her sides. “I thought… I thought we could fix things, that we could be a family again. But now…” She couldn’t finish the sentence. The words, like the rest of her life, seemed shattered beyond repair.

Delphine’s face softened with compassion, but there was a glint of anger in her eyes too. “You don’t have to make any decisions right now. Come on, let’s get you home. We’ll figure this out.”

Manon nodded weakly, allowing Delphine to lead her to the car. As she slid into the passenger seat, she glanced back at the bakery one last time. The warm glow of the lights inside mocked her, as if nothing was wrong. As if everything was normal.

But nothing was normal anymore.

As they drove through the city streets, the silence between them was heavy. Delphine kept glancing over at her, worry etched into her features, but Manon couldn’t bring herself to speak. Her mind was still reeling, her heart aching with the weight of everything that had just unraveled.

Home wasn’t far, but it felt like a lifetime before they pulled up to her house. The sight of the front door, the home she had worked so hard to create with Rody, filled her with a new wave of sorrow. She wasn’t sure if she could step inside without falling apart again.

Delphine turned off the engine and looked over at her. “Do you want me to stay with you? Or… should we go somewhere else?”

Manon shook her head, her voice barely a whisper. “No. I need to be here. The kids—” She stopped herself. How was she going to explain this to them? They adored their father. How could she tell them that everything was falling apart?

Delphine nodded, her eyes softening. “Okay. But I’ll stay as long as you need me. Just say the word.”

Manon offered a weak smile, grateful for her sister’s support, even though it did little to ease the pain. “Thank you,” she murmured.

Together, they walked up to the front door. As Manon turned the key in the lock, she felt a cold dread settle in her chest. The kids were still at school, but eventually, they’d come home. And she’d have to put on a brave face, pretend that everything was okay, even though nothing would ever be okay again.

As she stepped inside, the house was quiet, save for the ticking of the clock on the wall. Manon dropped her bags by the door, her eyes scanning the familiar surroundings. The pictures of their family on the walls, the toys scattered across the living room floor—everything looked the same. But to her, it felt foreign, like she was standing in a stranger’s home.

She sank down onto the couch, her hands trembling as she buried her face in them. Her mind raced with questions, each one more painful than the last.

Why had Rody done this? When had it started? And why, after everything they had been through together, hadn’t he come to her, talked to her, tried to fix things?

The sound of footsteps broke through her thoughts, and she looked up to see Delphine standing in front of her, a glass of water in her hands.

“Here,” Delphine said softly, handing her the glass. “Drink. You need to take care of yourself.”

Manon took the glass, her hands shaking as she brought it to her lips. The water did little to soothe the storm inside her, but she drank it anyway, trying to calm herself down. She had to keep it together. For the kids. For herself.

Delphine sat down beside her, her hand resting gently on Manon’s knee. “You don’t have to decide anything right now, okay? Take some time. Figure out what you want.”

Manon nodded, though she wasn’t sure what there was to figure out. Rody had betrayed her in the worst way possible. How could she ever trust him again? How could she ever look at him the same way, knowing what he had done?

Her sister’s voice was soft, but firm. “Whatever you decide, Manon, I’ll be here for you. But don’t forget—you deserve better than this. You deserve someone who loves you completely, without… whatever that was.”

Manon’s heart clenched at her words, tears filling her eyes again. She wanted to believe that. She wanted to believe that she deserved better. But right now, all she could feel was the crushing weight of her broken marriage and the betrayal that had shattered her world.

She leaned into Delphine’s embrace, her tears flowing freely now, and for the first time since walking into that bakery, she let herself cry. Cry for the love she thought she had, for the family she thought they were, and for the future that had just slipped through her fingers.

Manon knew that this was only the beginning of a long, painful road ahead. But as she sat there, wrapped in her sister’s arms, she also knew that she wasn’t alone.

And maybe, just maybe, that was enough to get her through this.