Something new for Christmas

Beginning of the end

The next morning, I woke up. Jacob was not in bed.

I dragged myself lazily out of the bed. My eyes were puffy from all that crying.

I walked to the kitchen. I saw Jacob making pancakes for Ollie.

I stood in the doorway, looking at them both. Jacob behaving as though he was oblivious of all the events that transpired yesterday.

And Ollie, actually oblivious and innocent, not aware of the storm that is brewing between his parents.

As I watched Ollie talk to his father, I walked quietly, made myself a cup of coffee, and gave him a cheek kiss.

I went back to the sitting room. I need to talk to Jacob. This is not over. I cannot take this. He has to end whatever it is he has with Melinda.

It won't work. It simply won't. I thought to myself…

“I'm dropping him off at school”, Jacob said, as he walked out of the house. Ollie's school is not far from our home.

After about 30 minutes, the door opened, and there Jacob stood, as he made to walk past me. “I need to speak to you”, I said. Jacob walked past, as though he did not hear what I just said. I turned and followed him into the bedroom.

“You have to stop this”, I yelled. Jacob let out some kind of snorty laughter. I repeated, “did you hear what I said?” “You have to end whatsoever contract it is you have with Melinda.

Does she even know you're with her for her money? Or that is a story you have cooked up to justify whatsoever it is you're doing.

Oh no wait, you're trying to guilt trip me and blackmail me into letting you cheat and commit a******y with my boss of all women in LA, Melinda Marvins, my own boss. Why?”

Why Melinda of all women? She's even older than you by five years. Why would you go to her? And Please don't get me started with that Story, that sloppy story of you not Getting a job, and that's why. If only you look harder, if you wait patiently, I am sure you will definitely get one and not one that includes being a gigolo. I screamed.

Jacob just stood there. He turned around and changed. As if I was talking to the same air, he did not utter any other word, not one single word, almost as if he was deaf.

Jacob turned and made his way out of the house. I was becoming frustrated. I then yelled over my voice, “Well, if you can't end it, I will help you”.

He turned, looked at me one more time and walked out of the house. I went upstairs, and drove straight to Melinda's house.

I knew that nobody would be in the office because we had closed for the year.

When I reached there, I pressed on the doorbell. I kept asking myself, “What do you think you are doing doing, Nina? What are you doing?”

While I waited, even I had no idea what I was doing, but I had to do something. I needed to do something.

Then Melinda opened the front door. I stood there looking at her for a split second there. It felt as though my tongue had been tied.

She spoke up first. Nonchalantly said, “What are you doing here?” That was when I got nervous and I asked, “Melinda, why? I trusted you. How could you do this to me?” Melinda hissed and turned to go back in.

“When you are done sulking, you can come in and let's have a discussion like two civilized human beings”, she said as she walked in.

I stood there, then almost as though an invincible force pulled me in. Found myself walking behind her.

When we got to her sitting room, she asked me “coffee or tea?” as if this is a leisure visit and am here to play catch up.

I can't remember myself answering her, but she walked towards me anyway with the two cups, dropped one in front of me and sat with the second one. Like we are two friends leisurely chilling and discussing the weather.

When I opened my mouth to speak again, she interrupted me abruptly saying, “How much?” I was surprised because I did not understand the question. How much what?

I stopped talking and then she asked a second time, “How much do you want as compensation to divorce him?”

Divorce him? I repeated. How much? I asked.

She lifted her eyes from the mug that was in her hand, looked at me with no remorse in her eyes and responded, “yes, how much do you want?” I stammered and blurted, “he, he doesn't even love you”.

He is with you for the paycheck. Don't you get it? She looked unperturbed, “a hundred million?” she interrupted yet again. What?

Eighty million, she continued. At this point my mouth was wide open in total disbelief. “I'm going to keep going lower if you keep wasting my time”. Seventy million. I just sat there.

I looked down at my hands on my laps. I looked up at her. “Sixty million”, Melinda said. As though we are talking about auctioning an old property somewhere. At that moment, it dawned on me. It wasn't about the money.

Neither was it about love, rather it was about betrayal, about greed. And in that moment I made my resolve that I was done. I stood up, dusted my feet in her sitting room and walked out.

I drove home, reflecting on what to do next. As I got home, Jacob was already waiting. Alas, Melinda had called him.