You Know What You Did by K. T. Nguyen

Author:K. T. Nguyen [Nguyen, K. T.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Penguin Publishing Group
Published: 2024-04-16T00:00:00+00:00

HONG KONG, 2002

Six months ago, Annie could count the number of times she’d flown on one hand. Now, she and Duncan had visited dozens of countries on what he’d dubbed the “Annie Meet World Tour.”

She’d had misgivings about such a long trip, but he had an answer for everything. The cost—he’d pay all expenses from his trust fund. Her job—gallery assistant jobs were a dime a dozen and she’d easily find another. His career—he was fresh off his stint in Kabul and due for a vacation. The Morningside Heights studio they’d shared since she graduated from RISD and he from Columbia’s journalism graduate program—it was too small and cramped anyway. And most concerning to her, her mom—they’d arranged to have money wired back to her each month. And besides, she’d been doing better lately, working part-time again.

Annie had felt lost during the fourteen months Duncan was embedded in Afghanistan. Together, they had explored New York, dined out, and swum in his social circles. Alone, she ventured no farther than the 1 train to her job at the gallery and back. She had no incentive to propel her outside, no friends of her own. Having showered after work, the idea of stepping outside onto the urine-soaked streets disgusted her. When he returned, Duncan was shocked to find her looking wan, depressed, and nearly unrecognizable. Her hands were covered in tiny blisters from overwashing.

He’d always run somewhat dispassionate. This Annie attributed to his staid upbringing. But Kabul exacerbated this trait to the extent that he seemed callous at times. His approach to Annie’s condition was entirely pragmatic—a problem to be solved. The “Annie Meet World Tour” was his solution. It was also his way of trying to shake off the violent memories that followed him from Kabul.

At times, she was alarmed by the intensity of his planning wherein he detailed out their agenda in fifteen-minute increments. However, she convinced herself the trip would be good for them as their relationship had been suffering. Upon his return, there had been no grand romantic reunion. They’d had sex once, an impersonal fumble that lasted less than two minutes. Duncan was checked out.

Annie blamed herself for the lack of intimacy—her depression and anxiety. Traveling outside her comfort zone was the least she could do. So, despite her reservations, she went along with her boyfriend’s tightly orchestrated schedule. She quit her job, got a passport, and packed her only piece of luggage, a dingy nylon duffel bag.

The trip was, indeed, good for her. She drank in the splendor of the Louvre, wiggled her toes in the pristine sand of hidden Mediterranean beaches, and took in the majesty of the Alps by rail and all the myriad wonders she’d only seen flattened in the pages of library books. Like a tonic, it injected her with renewed vibrancy and served as a much-needed distraction from her anxieties.

Though they traveled together, Duncan remained emotionally distant. By day, they’d sightsee. Conversation was superficial. He made it clear he wasn’t ready to discuss his time in Kabul, and Annie wasn’t the sort to push him into anything.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.