The Wife

The tired man came home from a hard day at work, he got out of his car before

the wave of sadness could trap him in the drivers seat. He couldn’t help but get

angry at himself for not just taking the car and driving off. His mind raced at the

possibility and joy of this but he was getting old, he had past the age where he

could walk away and start again. He had dug his pathway through life and was now

stuck within the walls he had allowed to be built around him, destined to follow

them where ever they may lead.


Once he reached the front door he took a breath of air, he turned the handle on

the door and forced a smile onto his face so as he walked through the door he

looked happy when he was far from it. His wife was standing in the kitchen talking

on the phone, he loved her so much and the sight of her lifted his heart but also

dropped his soul.


“Hi Honey I’m home” he said happily as he tried to maintain the illusion he was

fronting. His wife turned and looked at him, she had a smile on her face but as

soon as she saw him her smile vanished into a sneer and her eyes turned cold,

she gave him this cold stare for a moment before turning away and continuing to

talk on the phone with a pleasant happy voice. He felt his illusion shatter and could

only watch as his smile fell to the ground, he pictured himself standing on the

dying smile as he staggered into the lounge and collapsed on the couch where he

sat staring into space wishing he could make his life better, his mind asking

himself what had he done wrong but he didn’t know.


When he had first met her she was so pretty and had the sweetest voice he

had ever heard. He thought they had the type of love that would last forever. He had

envisioned them both sitting together in there eighties with the same loving glow

that they had 10 years ago but now he only saw a cold empty future.


His wife walked into the lounge chatting kindly on the phone. The man watched

as she moved and laughed, he remembered the times he had made her laugh

through the years and the way he could get her to cry tears of laughter just by

uttering a few well placed words. Now nothing he said made her laugh, everything

he said would only anger her and she would get that expression on her face of pure

disgust, but she would laugh at anything other people said even if it wasn’t funny.

He quickly forced a smile back onto his face as his wife put the phone down even

though he knew there wasn’t any point. He watched as her smile fell, her sparkling

eyes lost their color and her movements lost their happy free look, she glared at

him with that coldness that he hated so much.

“Didn’t you see me on the phone? Don’t you know not to talk to people when they

are on the phone you rude little man!” she yelled with such an intense coldness

that stabbed into his heart.

“I’m sorry dear, I was happy to see you and I didn’t realize you were on the phone”

the man put his sweetest face on hoping that his sweet remark might spark the

same in her. He had thought that if he was happy and positive around her then

maybe she would reflect some of that back to him but this had never worked.


He remembered how it felt to hear her sweet voice as she spoke to him, he

remembered the way she would talk about her day and he’d listen to her not caring

when she was only talking about uninteresting things because he loved her voice

and that alone made every word she said seem so exciting, but now she only used

her nasty voice on him.

“Don’t give me that crap and why are you late? Did your bum job hold you up? You

should have got a better job when you could but you’re too old now, too old and

useless.” Her words bit into his pride and he couldn’t help but think she purposely

wanted to hurt him.


He had spent countless sleepless nights searching for an answer to why she

had changed from such a loving person to what she is now. He had never done her

wrong, he had never been unfaithful, he had never done anything to hurt her and

given her the best he could but now she seemed to hate him.

“We’ve been invited to dinner with Sally, her husbands and some of their friends.”

The wife continued as she moved around the room straightening things as she

spoke. “I told them you wouldn’t be able to make and it would just be me. I don’t

want them to meet a slob like you and why is it that you’ve been home for only five

minutes and I’m already tidying after you?” she asked without expecting a answer.

“But dear I haven’t done anything-“he tried to tell her that but she cut in getting the

words she wanted from him.

“Exactly, you don’t do anything. The only reason I put up with you is for the kids. It

would break their hearts for me to leave you but if it wasn’t for them I’d be gone

quicker then you could blink. I’d have the life I want, the life I deserve rather then

being trapped with you. It was all part of your plan wasn’t it, get me pregnant so I

couldn’t leave you that would be just the thing you’d do.” Her words poured out with

a bitter anger but the man knew not to argue because that would only encourage

her and give her more examples of how horrible he was.


She seemed to love arguing with him, everything he’d say she’d disagree with

so he didn’t talk much with her, he figured what’s the point when she would

automatically disagree with him. He tried to block out her yelling and tried to think

that deep inside her she still loved him, he refused to think their children which had

all grown up and moved out of home where anything but a blessings but soon her

yelling was getting too much so the man decided to retreat.

“I’m sorry dear let me make you a cup of tea.” He offered

“Yes I do want a cup of tea and make it at least somewhat drinkable this time.”

She replied as she moved to the other side of the room to avoid getting close to

him as he passed.


He went into the kitchen and began making the hot drinks, he loved having a

cup of tea once he got home and he let his mind wander back to the old times

when his wife would have one waiting for him when he got home as well as a hello

kiss.


He sighed and finished making the tea but then he pulled a tiny bottle of liquid

out of his pocket. He stood there staring at the two cups of tea, one was his cup

and the other one was his wife’s cup which had flower patterns spread around it.

This is it he thought to himself, the time to make the decision of where his life will

go from here. He had enough money to retire comfortably but he didn’t want to live

alone, he loved his wife and didn’t want to leave her but he knew that he couldn’t let

his life continue this way, he couldn’t allow himself to continue to dwell in the

darkness that consumed him, he could no longer constantly excuse himself to go

to the toilet just so he could cry some of the pain away.


But he didn’t know if he could go through with the plan he had made, he didn’t

know if he could do what he had set out to do. He knew he had been smart enough

and the liquid would be completely untraceable, he also knew that the only thing

that held him back was his morals, his beliefs of right and wrong which were so

damaged now, he knew he wasn’t the person he wanted to be, the torment from his

wife had eroded the qualities that he once had within himself that he was so proud

of. He asked himself yes or no, yes or no.

“What the hell is taking you so long is it to much for you to handle? Do you need

some help making a simple cup of tea, even you can’t be that useless!” came the

cold harsh voice from the lounge, the man looked up, blinked slowly and poured the

liquid into his wife’s tea as a tear slowly crept down his cheek.


Later that day his wife suffered a major stroke, her left side was permanently

paralyzed and she would need care for the rest of her life. The doctors put it down

to her age and didn’t look too much into the cause. As time past she was released

from hospital and was taken home to the loving arms of her husband. The

harshness she had towards her husband was gone because she was now

completely reliant on him. He quit his job to look after her and done everything he

could for her. Sometimes guilt spread through his mind at the thought of what he’d

done but he just told himself that she was happier now and so was he. She did

seem happier but he knew that this wasn’t pure happiness, it was because she

needed him and she could no longer treat him like dirt because no one else would

look after her.