Invisibility Potion

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For the three years I've been invisible, I thought Declan couldn't see me.

So I endured the shame of my nakedness, endured the nights he brought other women home while I could only hide in a corner. After they'd left, he would always tell me, Thea, just wait a little longer. I swear I'll develop the antidote.

I believed him. Until the night of his celebration party. He was drunk, and I heard him tell his friend:

"The antidote? I've had it for ages."

"She'd never guess that in this entire world, I'm the only one who can see her."

Declans new project had won a global award. By the time he came home from the celebration party, it was already late.

Apparently, the party wasn't enough. He brought his friend, Liam, back with him and pulled out a bottle of vintage red wine.

I hid in the corner.

Liam filled both their glasses. "Declan," he asked, "Thea's not around, right?"

Declan loosened his tie, his tone dripping with contempt. "Her? She's so prim and proper. When she knows another man is here, she just hides away, all too aware of her own nudity."

I froze. I couldn't believe those words had come from his mouth. He was the one who had told me he didn't want me standing naked in front of another man.

Liam lowered his voice. "It's been three years, man. You can't keep her invisible forever. When are you planning on..."

Declan cut him off. "What's the rush? I made her invisible precisely because I didn't want to be tied down by marriage so soon. I'll give her the antidote when I've had my fun. I'm going to marry her, eventually."

Antidote?

My heart seized. An icy dread exploded through my soul, shattering everything.

"She's so gullible and sweet," Declan continued, his words slurring slightly. "She believes every word I say. I told her no one could see or hear her, so now she communicates with me by writing everything down."

"She'd never guess that in this entire world, I'm the only one who can see her."

"Sometimes, when I don't feel like dealing with her, I just pretend I can't see what she's written. You have no idea how desperate she gets."

"And you know what? Watching her cry, completely bare... it's far more interesting than my research."

Liam took a sharp breath, then let out a low whistle. "Damn, man. That's cold."

"Seriously. The way you guided her into drinking the invisibility serum... and she still thinks it was an accident, probably still blames herself for it! She's so easy to fool. But it's been three years. Hasn't she suspected anything?"

Declan's eyes were hazy with alcohol. "Suspected? Not a chance. I used to just fool around outside. Now I bring women home, and after they leave, I just have to spin some sweet little lies and she actually thinks it's all her fault."

"Having her watch while I'm in bed with someone else... it's a hell of a thrill."

The two of them looked at each other and burst into laughter.

These words, every last one, were like daggers plunging into my phantom heart.

I hadn't drunk the serum by accident.

And he could see me the entire time.

Of course. Why hadn't I realized it? Declan was a celebrated genius. He had created the serum. If he wanted to, he could easily see through its effects.

He said he would develop the antidote as soon as possible. But I had waited for three years, never knowing he held my freedom in his hands all along. My pain, my guilt, my shame... to him, it was all just a game, the antics of a clown he was manipulating.

The air grew heavy with silence.

Not long after Liam left, the doorbell rang. A moment later, a woman's saccharine voice floated into the room. "Dr. Archer, why'd you call me over so late?"

"You were looking forward to it, weren't you?"

Declan didn't waste any more words. Within three minutes, the sounds of panting and moaning filled the bedroom. This was the twelfth woman he had brought home in the last two months. Tonight's was a minor actress named Jennie, who had been blacklisted after offending someone important.

I walked into the room and stood by the bed.

Declan's gaze shot directly to where I stood, a look of cruel amusement in his eyes.

The woman beneath him pouted. "Dr. Archer, you're distracted again!"

He didn't speak, just moved with more force. But his eyes found me again.

Countless times in the past, I had felt his eyes on me, a fleeting sensation I always dismissed as a delusion, an illusion born from my own suffering. Or maybe, I had foolishly thought, it was proof of our deep connection, of our love.

It was none of those things.

He was enjoying the show.

It was disgusting.

I don't know how much time passed before the movement on the bed finally ceased.

Jennie purred, "Dr. Archer, it's the middle of the night. Can't I just stay here tonight?"

Declan never let them stay. Once he was satisfied, he would kick them out. "Get out."

"Do you have to be so cruel? It's not like there's a lady of the house here..."

"Don't make me say it again."

Jennie dressed sullenly. As she was leaving, her eyes landed on something and lit up. "Can I have this?"

I followed her gaze. It was a ring. The engagement ring Declan had proposed with three years ago.

The day after he proposed, I drank the invisibility serum.

Declan refused her. "That belongs to my fiance."

Jennie scoffed. "You're so devoted, Dr. Archer. But your fiance has been gone for years. What's the point of keeping the ring? What difference does it make who you give it to?" She moved closer, her hand reaching for his arm.

He shook her off. "Compared to her, you're not even worthy."

Jennie's face flushed with indignation. "At least I wouldn't just leave you without a word and let the whole world laugh at you! I know how to appreciate a great man like you, Dr. Archer. I'm a thousand times better than she ever was!"

Back then, Declan had told me the serum was dangerous. If the world knew of its existence, the consequences would be catastrophic. So, to everyone else, my sudden disappearance made it look like I had abandoned him.

"You have no idea how much I like you, Dr. Archer..." Jennie persisted, climbing onto his lap and reaching for the ring.

Declan shoved her onto the floor.

"Get. Out."

That was his way of saying he never wanted to see her again.

Declan leaned against the headboard and lit a cigarette. He held the ring in his palm.

"Thea, are you here?"

"I told you," he murmured to the empty air, "none of these cheap women could ever compare to you."

"The only person I'll ever marry is you."

In the quiet after, he always made these pledges of loyalty. I used to be so lost in his sweet words that even as he brought home woman after woman, I would blame myself, believing my condition had driven him to this. I truly believed I was the only one he loved.

But now, hearing the cruel truth from his own lips, I finally understood what a masterful performance it had been. He hadn't been driven to anything. This was who he had always been. The affairs had started long ago; he'd only recently become brazen enough to bring them into our home.

"Thea, I love you so much. I miss you."

In the past, I would have burst into tears, professing my own love for him. Now, I just crouched on the floor, watching him with cold, empty eyes.

As the cigarette burned down to its filter, a flicker of panic crossed his face. "Thea, just wait a little longer. I will develop the antidote. I will marry you."

I couldn't stomach his performance any longer. I left the bedroom. He didn't seem to dwell on that flicker of panic. His life continued as usual, day in, day out.

My heart had turned to ash. I began to search for a way to save myself. He wouldn't keep the antidote at home; it had to be at his lab. And besides the antidote, I needed the original research data for the serum. As a young prodigy, Declan had countless inventions to his name. He was meticulous about saving the raw data for all of them, successful or not.

Every day, after he left, I would search his cluttered study.

I had to be careful not to arouse his suspicion, putting everything back exactly where I found it and always listening for his return. The progress was slow.

Hearing a noise from the living room, I quickly left the study. Declan was home earlier than usual. He stumbled, kicking over the trash can. He looked around the room, his brow furrowed. Clothes were scattered on the sofa, clutter littered the floor, and a visible layer of dust coated the coffee table.

"Thea, why haven't you cleaned up these last few days?"

He was still pretending he couldn't see me, calling my name out into the empty space. When I didn't respond, he took out a notepad and pen and placed them on the table.

"Thea, you haven't been on your best behavior today."

"If something's bothering you, write it down for me."

Looking at his smug, knowing face, I finally spoke, my voice a phantom whisper he could hear perfectly well. "It's been three years. Where's the antidote?"

He instinctively started to reply, then caught himself. "What's wrong, Thea? Write it down for me."

A cold laugh escaped me. I wrote the words on the paper.

As soon as he read them, he put on his well-rehearsed apologetic expression. "I know you're anxious. I'm anxious too. But being anxious won't help."

"Invisibility... think about what a monumental, incredible achievement that is in the history of science! You accidentally drank my only sample before I had even perfected the formula."

"That's why the antidote is so difficult, Thea. Please, just wait a little longer, okay? I will keep my promise to you."

Those were the words that had filled me with guilt, that had made me wait, and wait, and wait.

Declan glanced at his watch. "I came home early to tell you that my mentor and a former colleague are coming to stay the night. I need you to cook a few dishes and get the guest room ready."

"And clean this place up. Don't let them think I live in a pigsty."

They'd be laughing at him, not me, I thought.

When he returned that evening with his guests, the apartment was still a mess.

"Professor Albright, you..." Declan froze at the door, too embarrassed to let them in.

The man behind him, his former colleague, teased, "Declan, it's been a while. Is this how you welcome us?"

The old professor, a man named Albright, just laughed heartily, trying to smooth things over. "Declan has probably just been too busy lately to tidy up."

Declan seized the opportunity, frantically gathering the piles of clothes and clutter from the living room and shoving them all into his bedroom. Then, remembering something, he tiptoed to the kitchen.

Of course, I hadn't cooked. Not only that, but the dishes I had used over the past few days were still piled on the counter, and the fridge was nearly empty.

"Declan, didn't you say you were going to let us sample your cooking?"

Hearing his mentor's question, Declan turned, his eyes locking directly onto mine. I knew what he was asking. He was asking why.

We had started dating in college and moved in together after graduation. He was useless when it came to housework. He'd had his parents to take care of him his whole life, but as he'd said, "If I still live with my parents at my age, having them do everything for me, what would people think?"

I was an orphan with few friends. He was my entire world. So, to allow him to focus completely on his research, I had given up my own promising academic career to take care of him. I had never once disobeyed him. Not even during these three invisible years.

He was asking why I was no longer taking care of him, no longer listening to him. But he had to pretend he couldn't see me. He whispered, "Thea, are you there?"

I just stared back at him, silent.

He was getting agitated. "Thea, what is wrong with you?"

So this is what it felt like, all those times he had pretended not to see me.

"Declan, what are you doing?" His colleague, Ryan, appeared at the kitchen door.

Declan quickly shut the door. "Sorry, I've just been swamped. We don't have much food. Let's go out to eat."

"Go out? Declan, I just got off a long flight. I'm exhausted. And the professor is not young. You were the one who invited us to stay, said you were going to cook. If we'd known, we would have just gotten a hotel! We have a conference early tomorrow, I wanted to get some rest."

Declan's face flushed with embarrassment. He couldn't cook. He didn't even know how to turn on the stove.

"I'm so sorry, it completely slipped my mind. I'll order something in, it'll be quick."

Ryan grumbled but accepted. "Fine, fine. But seriously, eating takeout here is no different from being in a hotel."

Declan showed them to the two guest rooms. They weren't cluttered, but I hadn't cleaned them in days, and they were covered in a thin layer of dust. His guests had to make their own beds.

In the morning, as they were leaving, Ryan was still complaining. Professor Albright didn't say anything, but he looked displeased.

The moment the door closed behind them, Declan slammed it shut. "Thea! Get over here!"

I remained on the sofa.

"What do you think you're doing?! I told you, I haven't made the antidote! What is your damn rush?!"

"Have I mistreated you these past three years?! You're in this state, and I'm still feeding you, still giving you a place to live!"

"All I ask is that you do some housework, cook some meals, and you can't even handle that for a few years?"

"Thea, with this attitude, I'm starting to seriously reconsider whether I want to marry you at all."

I had to admire him. He could say all of that without a trace of shame.

"I have a conference for the next few days. I'll be staying at a hotel. Before I get back, you'd better have this house cleaned up!"

Only that last sentence got a reaction out of me.

The moment he slammed the door and left, I ran to the study. Finally, hidden in the very back of a bookshelf, I found it: the complete data logs for the invisibility serum.

Declan would be at his conference for the next few days, which meant he wouldn't be going to his lab. This was my chance. If I missed it, I didn't know when I'd get another one.

Declan always said it was too dangerous for me to go out while I was invisible.

But I had to take the risk.

Night was safer than day. In the dead of night, I stepped out of the apartment. For the first time in three years.

Even invisible, I was acutely aware of my nakedness. The shame of it made every step an agony.

Thankfully, the lab wasn't far. The passcode was still the same: my birthday. How ironic.

I didn't dare turn on the lights. I found a flashlight and searched the lab in the dim beam.

My guess was right. The antidote was here, hidden away. And just like the serum, it was colorless and odorless. That's why I had drunk the serum so unsuspectingly all those years ago.

I dipped a finger in and touched it to my tongue. I looked down. My body flickered. Once, twice.

It was the antidote. It was real.