048. Diamond
The habit of wearing rings on her fingers was lost on Lenore. That's what happens when one is a doctor for most of any given day; it doesn't leave a lot of opportunities to keep such items on for elongated periods of time. So her wedding band and engagement ring always stayed hanging from her neck on a long golden chain.
The proposal was simple, cliche, but heartfelt, and she absolutely glowed when the diamond was slipped on her finger. It seemed silly, acting girlish, showing all of her friends the way it sparkled in the light. It wasn't very big, but that wasn't the point. And after the wedding, she made Joss get her a necklace to put everything on. It was part of her routine every morning, even the days she didn't have to work. Necklace first. Clothes second. Hair and other accessories last. Even as the years went on and things got rockier, it had become force of habit.
Even when the divorce was filed for, it had become such a part of her habit that it was hard to remember not to do it. She wore it to the last day in court when it was decided that she would be left with what amounted to nothing, until the reality sunk in. No home. No family. She took it off for the last time, feeling the light weight of the rings and chain in her hand and somehow resisting the urge to be rid of them once and for all.
She had to get to Iowa somehow, the closest, soonest shuttle going to San Francisco there was on such short notice. The diamond ring might have been a little old by then, but it was still in good enough condition that the man behind the counter was kind enough to give her enough for it to get proper transportation and then some.
The wedding band stayed with her. She didn't know why she held onto it so long, especially given that it never saw the light of day, buried in a foot locker of junk at the Academy, getting more or less the same treatment once she got her post on the Enterprise. Somehow it's just nice knowing it's there, despite it not crossing her mind very often.
The proposal was simple, cliche, but heartfelt, and she absolutely glowed when the diamond was slipped on her finger. It seemed silly, acting girlish, showing all of her friends the way it sparkled in the light. It wasn't very big, but that wasn't the point. And after the wedding, she made Joss get her a necklace to put everything on. It was part of her routine every morning, even the days she didn't have to work. Necklace first. Clothes second. Hair and other accessories last. Even as the years went on and things got rockier, it had become force of habit.
Even when the divorce was filed for, it had become such a part of her habit that it was hard to remember not to do it. She wore it to the last day in court when it was decided that she would be left with what amounted to nothing, until the reality sunk in. No home. No family. She took it off for the last time, feeling the light weight of the rings and chain in her hand and somehow resisting the urge to be rid of them once and for all.
She had to get to Iowa somehow, the closest, soonest shuttle going to San Francisco there was on such short notice. The diamond ring might have been a little old by then, but it was still in good enough condition that the man behind the counter was kind enough to give her enough for it to get proper transportation and then some.
The wedding band stayed with her. She didn't know why she held onto it so long, especially given that it never saw the light of day, buried in a foot locker of junk at the Academy, getting more or less the same treatment once she got her post on the Enterprise. Somehow it's just nice knowing it's there, despite it not crossing her mind very often.