Broken vows(completed)

Telling the parents

Some days after their heated argument, Martina totally changed. She would stay out for days and come back only to go out in the next minute. Fred was so worried, he wanted to do something. He needed to do something to save his marriage. So, he called the people he knew could help him.

" Hello, Fred. How are you doing?" Mrs Wilson asked, when she picked the call.

" I am fine, Ma", Fred responded.

" And my daughter and grandson?" she asked, again.

" They are both fine. Erm, Ma, there is something I will like to discuss with you and Da in person. Is there a way I can meet both of you later this afternoon? It's really urgent", Fred said.

" Is something wrong, Fred? Did anything happen at home?" Mrs Wilson asked, feeling a bit nervous.

" Let's meet first. I will tell you whatever it is", Fred said.

" Okay dear. And, yes, you can come by this afternoon. I will inform your father in law about it", Mrs Wilson replied.

" Thank you very much, Ma. I will see you later. Bye", Fred said, and hanged up.

Fred went with Junior to go and see Martina's parents. When they got there, Junior was so excited that he went straight to hug his grandparents. It had been a while since he saw them and seeing them now made him so happy. Junior was taken by one of the maids to go and play in the garden while Fred spoke with his in laws.

" It's nice to see you again, Fred. It's been a while", Mr Wilson said, once they were seated in the living room.

" Yes, Da. It is", Fred smiled.

" So, what brings you here? My wife told me you wanted to speak to us", Mr Wilson asked.

Fred breath in deeply. " I came here today because I wanted you to please help me speak to Martina. Recently, she has changed so much. She now stays out for days and come back home whenever she likes. When I complained about it, it became a huge argument. I asked Linda to speak to her, and everything became worse. I really love her, but, I can't take her behavior anymore".

" How long has this been going on?" Mr Wilson asked.

" About a month now, Da", Fred replied.

" Why didn't you tell us about this earlier?" Mrs Wilson asked, putting her hand on Fred's shoulder. She was sitting next to him.

" I thought I would be able to work things out with her. I never would have imagined that it would go this far. Please, talk to her for me, Ma. It's hurts to know that my marriage is falling apart and I can't do anything about it", Fred placed his hand above Mrs Wilson's on his shoulder.

" We did not raise our child to be this careless. We will talk to her, okay? Because, this nonsense must stop!" Mr Wilson said, authoritatively.

" Thank you, Da. It will be very appreciated", Fred smiled, weakly.

Mr Wilson invited both Fred and Martina to his house, three days later. He wanted to make sure everything was okay between Martina and Fred so that all the arguments will stop. He had to do it as soon as possible. Both Martina and Fred came in different cars, since both of them were coming from work. Junior was left with Linda.

Fred got there before Martina. When she entered the house, Fred was seated next to Mrs Wilson. While Mr Wilson was sitting on a single chair next to them. Martina greeted when she entered and tried to sit on the chair next to Mrs Wilson, Mrs Wilson got up from her seat, and pointed at Martina to come sit near her husband.

Martina pushed further away from Fred when she sat down. Mr Wilson noticed it, but did not say anything.

" I am sure you are wondering why I called you here, especially you, Martina?" He said

" Yes, father. I was surprised when you called. What's wrong, father?" Martina replied.

Mrs Wilson glared at Martina, and shook her head.

Mr Wilson smiled. " You seem to be in a hurry, Martina. So, I will make this brief. Fred was here three days ago. He complained about certain things that's going on between the two of you".

" So, what did my husband come to tell you?" Martina glared at Fred.

" Why don't you tell us, Martina? What is really going on in your marriage?" Mr Wilson asked.

" As far as I know, everything is fine", she replied hurriedly.

" Really? Everything is fine? Then why didn't you greet your husband like you normally do when you meet him here? Why are you sitting far away from him like he has some sort of contagious disease? You can't fool me, Martina", Mr Wilson said.

" We do have problems in our marriage. But, that is nothing new. All marriages have problems", Martina admitted.

" Not when you have refused to do your wifely duties. Since when did you start staying out of your home for days? When did that nonsense start?" Mrs Wilson cut in.

" I needed my peace, mother. Fred no longer gives me the peace I need. He is always complaining about me staying home late. But he has to understand that I have a demanding job that takes my time", Martina said, raising her voice a little.

" That shop you are referring to, is the same one Fred opened for you, my dear, don't forget that. What is wrong with you? When did this kind of disrespect start?" Mrs Wilson angrily replied, getting up from her seat.

Martina frowned and crossed her arms. She was already getting tired of her parents, trying to teach her how to run her life.

" Calm down, dear. Please sit down. Martina, what exactly is going on? Just tell us what the problem is", Mr Wilson said, turning to Martina.

" I get stressed out most of the time and I can't stand the complaints he gives whenever I come home late. So I would rather stay out and work and come back home when I am done", Martina replied, in an annoyed tone.

" When did I really complain about you coming home late, Martina? You don't even listen to me anymore. You don't talk to me. The only time I really got you talking was when I asked Linda to talk to you. Even with that, it ended up in an argument", Fred finally said, after staying quiet throughout the conversation.

" Because I hate it when you get other people into our problems. I hate it so much. And right now, you have done exactly what I hate. What do you even want from me?" Martina said angrily.

" I want you to be there for our family, for our son. Is that too much to ask? What's happening to you? I feel like I don't know you anymore", Fred felt frustrated about the whole situation.

" Maybe it's because I can't continue slaving myself for you anymore so stop using our son as an excuse", Martina countered.

" Enough, Martina! God, all these while I have been trying so hard to remain calm here, yet, you continue to make me angry. How dare you speak to your husband like that? Apologise to him, right this instant!" Mr Wilson ordered.

" I will do no such thing, father. You wanted to know how I feel, right? Now, you have it. I am tired of this marriage. I feel so stuck. I want to be free from him and from this whole mess", Martina shouted back.

Suddenly she felt a hand hit her on her face. It was her mother, Mrs Wilson. Martina was so shocked, she could not speak.

" What is wrong with you? How can you be this disrespectful towards your father? I never raised you to be like this. I am so disappointed at you!" her mother shouted.

" You slapped me, mother. What did I do? Why would you slap me?" Martina said, finally finding her voice.

" I will do it again and again. I can no longer recognise you. My daughter has become a stranger to me", Mrs Wilson lamented.

Martina turned to Fred, who had become shocked at how things were turning out. " I hope you are happy now. Because of you, my mother hit me for the first time. I hope you are finally happy to turn my own parents against me".

Martina got up and walked out, ignoring her father's calls to make her turn back.