Moreover, he felt threatened by her presence. How could it be her home, when he lived there? Although he sensed that they knew each other, he had forgotten they were married. When she tried to convince him that she was home, he’d scoff. Calmly at first, he’d order her out of her own home. Without any warning, he’d look up from a magazine or the TV, stare at Elizabeth, and ask her to leave. The nightmare would officially begin after Mitch had made himself comfortable. Then, with a burst of speed, she managed to get back to their apartment a few minutes before he did.Īrriving home, Mitch always gave her the same cheerful greeting: “Hey, honey, how are you?” He had already forgotten their rendezvous. It was herself she barely recognized: the nervous, frazzled woman hiding behind lampposts, following a man who looked so at ease in the world. It always struck her how normal Mitch appeared. She’d cross the street, wait for Mitch to emerge-making sure that he was headed in the right direction-and then hurry home to wait for him. (Both her name and Mitch’s have been changed to protect their privacy.) Once the meal was over, Mitch would invariably give her a wary, skeptical look and say, “Now you’ll go to your place and I’ll go to mine.” Hearing these words, Elizabeth would nod meekly, then duck into the bathroom for a minute before running out. Anyone looking at their table might well have envied them, never suspecting that Elizabeth dreaded these pleasant get-togethers.Įlizabeth, a tall, elegant woman, told me about those evenings in a composed, confiding tone, which only makes her story more uncanny. Elizabeth and Mitch had been friends before becoming romantically involved and bantered back and forth without missing a beat. Mitch was usually there by the time she arrived, swirling his drink and joking with a waiter. Sign up for it here.Įlizabeth often met her husband, Mitch, after work at the same restaurant in Lower Manhattan. In its 2022 fiscal year, the company says it spent 23.3 billion yuan ($3.4 billion) on research and development, equivalent to about a fifth of its revenue.This article was featured in One Story to Read Today, a newsletter in which our editors recommend a single must-read from The Atlantic, Monday through Friday. The company, known in China for its search engine, has shifted its focus in recent years to artificial intelligence, including working on autonomous driving technology and other AI applications. In February, Baidu first mentioned that the internal testing of its Ernie Bot was almost complete. Baidu is among several Chinese firms working on similar chatbots. The Ernie Bot launch comes months after OpenAI’s ChatGPT was first released, demonstrating the AI-chatbot’s ability in answering questions and even writing essays. Hillebrandt Bayou bridge reopens after year of repairs.Downtown landscape mural gets finishing touches after months of work.Family searching for Beaumont woman, who's been missing for two weeks.H-E-B will now offer pet, lawn care, cleaning and handyman services.Police identify remains as missing Beaumont woman.Beaumont woman again listed as official 'missing person'.Texas pig stuns online world with livestock show runway walk.
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