Second Chances

Pain is temporary

Alanna arrives at her house. She drops her bag on the porch floor. She leaves the keys on the door. She walks inside her house, grabs the vase next to her door and slams it against the wall. She turned the radio on and put the volume to the maximum so no one could hear her cry. She cried and screamed uncontrollably. She grabbed a stool and smashed the television with it, then she threw it against a wall. The stool made a big hole in the wall. She opened a wine bottle and drank straight from it. Alanna screamed and cried some more. Then she plunges to the floor exhausted. She screams on top of her lungs. Mary walked into Alanna’s house. She is shocked to see the state of the house. Mary calls Alanna. Alanna didn’t answer. Mary walks in and finds Alanna on the floor crying. Mary was surprised to find her in such a state. She thought Alanna didn’t care after she left without speaking to anybody. Mary was there to shout at her for leaving her brother in such a bad state. She helped Alanna sit on a chair and told her, “I believed Jack when he said that he didn’t know that he was still married. Come on, he was planning to marry you.” Alanna laughed and drank some more wine, “I wanted to marry him! What kind of woman wants to marry an already married man?” Mary takes the bottle and Alanna grabs her arm. Alanna got close to her face and told her, “I should have known better. He was too good to be true. They were all right, I’m just a maneater.” Alanna started to cry loudly again. Mary sat next to her and had a drink, then said to Alanna, “You are not a man-eater and my brother is not a liar. Susan played us all, and now she is going to walk away with Jack's house. The house that Jack built with our dad.”

Alanna dries her tears and grabs the bottle. She took a sip and said, “life stinks, but we have to keep living, right?” Alanna stood up and began to clean her house. Mary looked at her puzzled. Alanna saw her staring and explained, “I just needed to blow up some steam, now I’m ready for what's next.” Mary stood up and told Alanna that Jack was arrested for breaking Steven’s jaw for helping Susan trick him into thinking that he was divorced, and how they are planning to use their relationship as a cause for divorce. She is taking everything he loves, starting with you.”

Alanna wanted to run to Jack, but she knew it was wrong. She went upstairs and changed. She fixed herself and asked Mary to take her to Jack. Mary laughed, looking at Alanna. She couldn’t believe how she switched from a violent crazy woman to a calm professional. Alanna saw her smiling and asked her what she was smiling about. Mary fixed Alanna’s hair behind her ear and told her, “You are just like Jack.” Alanna didn’t know what she was talking about, but she kept walking to her car. She picked up her bag and locked the door.

Mary arranges for Alanna to see Jack. Alanna was taken to a room where she waited for Jack. The door opened and Jacked walked in. Alanna gasped when she saw his face. Jack ran to her and hugged her. He pleads for forgiveness. Alanna caressed his face and said, “What did they do to you, my love?” Jack cried and kissed her hand. Alanna looked at his eyes and cleaned his tears. Then, in a gentle broken voice, she said, “I can’t do this. You know I love you, but you are still married, so we can’t be together.” Jack lets go of her and turns around, “I’m going to fix this.” Alanna pulled him over and kissed him. Then she placed her hand on his face. Tears ran down her face as she said, “I want to believe you.” Alanna looked down and asked for the door to be opened. She walked away, leaving Jack heartbroken.

Alanna thought that losing her husband was the hardest thing she had to endure, but walking away from Jack was as painful. Her legs were weak and she felt lightheaded. She went to Mary and thanked her for helping her see Jack. She then gave her the money to bail him out and left.

The next day, Alanna woke up early like every other day and went to her gym to work out. She saw a shirt that Jack had left there. She sat for an hour staring at the shirt thinking quietly. She remembers Jack taking it off and leaving it there. She sobs as she realizes that it is over. She wouldn’t feel his strong hand around her. She wouldn’t feel his naked body next to her. She won’t wake up next to his beautiful eyes. Shee won’t smell his scent. Who is she going to call when something funny happens or, even worse, who is she going to call when something bad happens? Alanna snaps out of it when her phone rang.

Her son, Tony, was calling her. Alanna pulls herself together and answers the phone. Tony had broken up with his girlfriend and needed a place to stay for a while. Alanna was happy to have him over. Alanna fixed the hole in the wall before Tony arrived. Tony arrived that night with only his guitar and a trash bag of clothes. “Why am I not surprised?” Alanna said, hugging her son. She takes him to the guest room and Tony plunges into bed. He was exhausted. Tony stays in bed for a few days. He only got up to use the bathroom and eat from the refrigerator at night.

Alanna put her feelings aside to be there for her son. Taking care of her son helped her forget about her own pain and helped her carry on with her life.

Jack went to stay with his sister for a while. Jack came back but stayed in a hotel because Susan was staying at his house. Eventually, Jack went back to work. Right after his return, he starts hearing rumors about Alanna already having a new man. Jack tried to ignore the rumors. He thought about going to Alanna’s house to see her, but he was worried about what he was going to find. He stays away from her and restrained himself from calling her. Nevertheless, one night, the urge to see her defeated him. He drove by her house hoping to at least get a glimpse of her. When Jack was passing by Alanna's house, he saw a man with long wavy hair sitting on her porch in his underwear. Jack slows down. He sees Alanna getting home. Jack parks close to Alanna's house and watches how she embraces the almost naked man. Then, with her arm around his waist, they walked inside the house. Jack didn’t recognize Tony, so he let his mind run wild. He was furious. “ Who is that man?” he thought. He couldn’t believe that after all that time that he was hoping to get Alanna back she was moving on. She clearly didn’t love him if she moved on so quickly. Once Alanna’s door closed, Jack drove away fast. He was determined to move on with his life too. He thought about all the people that warned him, but he was too blind to see the truth. Then he thought, "There was a reason why they called her the maneater." Jack decided to start dating again. He didn’t want to look stupid moping around for a woman like that.

Jack began to date and the news got to Alanna. She was devastated. She couldn’t understand how he was able to bounce back so fast. She couldn’t believe he was already parading around town with a different woman while he was still married. That proved to Alanna that he was a cheater and a liar. Heartbroken, Alanna thought that she should start dating again too.

It didn’t take much effort for Alanna to start dating. She started going out with a different guy every week. She put a great amount of effort into trying to move on, but every time she went out with a guy, she couldn’t help comparing them to Jack and, sure enough, none of them stood a chance. Alanna tried to act as if she was interested in moving on, but the truth is that all she did was think about Jack.

On the other hand, Jack was able to find a woman that seemed like a good person. She went to the same church as his mother and had never been married. Jack took her on a few dinner dates. She didn’t talk much when they were together, so Jack thought that she was shy. He didn’t have much in common, but he was determined to make it work because he truly believed that she was a good woman. After a few dates, the woman asked him over to her house. Jack arrived at the lady's house thinking that they were going to have dinner, but the lady had other plans. She opens the door wearing lingerie. Jack was surprised and a little nervous. He barely knew this woman and she was being so forward with him. The last time he had a woman that was so forward turned out to be a maneater, so he apologized and asked if they could take things slowly. The lady agrees but she still invites him in. Jack went inside the house. The lady began to kiss him and Jack kissed her back. Then the lady started to rub him, trying to get him aroused. The strokes and lack of woman interaction got Jack excited. He grabbed her and took her to her room. He laid her on her bed and was unzipping his pants when he looked at her face. He saw a stranger. He didn’t know anything about this woman. Then Jack thought about his first dinner with Alanna. He learned about her principles, her beliefs, her likes, and dislikes, even though they were trying not to share anything personal. However, with this woman, he didn't know anything. He tried to get to know her but all he knew was that she went to the same church as his mother and that she was allergic to peanuts. He couldn’t have meaningless s*x. He wanted to feel what he felt with Alanna again and that woman was clearly not the person to help him feel what he wanted. Jack closed his zipper and apologized. He left the house and never contacted the lady again.

One day, Alanna saw Jack on what appeared to be a date. She couldn’t act like it didn’t bother her anymore. She didn’t want to go home and have Tony see her like that, so she drove far away to another town where no one knew her. She stopped at the first bar she found, with plans to get drunk. The bar was gloomy and there were only a few scary people. She thought that it was the perfect place to drown her sorrows. Alanna asked for a tequila. The bartender asked for the money ahead of service. She smiles and hands him her credit card and she orders him to keep the drinks coming. A woman walks into the bar with black lines running down her face. The woman sat next to Alanna at the bar and asked for a whiskey. Alanna interrupted her, "why whiskey if you can join me with tequila?" Alanna signaled the bartender to serve the lady a tequila. The lady thanked her and began to tell her what had her crying. She told Alanna that she was just coming from finding her husband with another woman. Alanna wrapped her arms around her and told her that she was there for almost the same reason. The lady asked Alanna if her husband cheated too. Alanna cleared her through and began to tell the lady her story. Alanna normally wouldn’t talk about her personal life with strangers, but she was too drunk to care. Alanna told the lady about her late husband and everything about Jack. They continued to drink together, and Alanna told her the whole story. From how she met Jack, to her finding out that he is still married. She cried, telling her about how much she loved him. Then she confesses to the lady that she regrets walking away. After a while, the lady was drunk too.

Then Alanna saw Mary walking into the bar. Alanna pointed at Mary and told the lady that Mary was the sister of the love of her life. The lady’s eyes widened. She looked at Alanna and asked, “Wait, you are the maneater that broke my big brother’s heart?” Mary approached them and grabbed the lady’s hand. She said hi to Alanna and told the lady, “Debby, I have been looking everywhere for you. You can solve your problems by drinking.” Alanna was confused and needed to throw up. She wasn’t thinking clearly, but she figured out that the lady she spent the past few hours drinking with and talking about Jack was actually one of Jack’s sisters. Alanna ran to the bathroom to throw up. Mary followed her and asked if she was OK. Alanna told her that she was staying in a hotel close by. Mary offers to take her, and Alanna refuses the ride. She had the bartender call her a taxi and she checked into the closest hotel. The next day, Alanna woke up with a hangover. She had a drink to make it better and she picked up her car. She barely remembers what she did the night before, but she remembers that she spent the night talking with Jack’s sister and didn’t find out until she saw Mary. She hoped that she didn’t say anything too embarrassing and went home.

When Debby wakes up the next day, she rushes to call Jack. Debby didn’t drink as much as Alanna, so she clearly remembers the night before and everything Alanna told her. Jack answered and before he could say anything Debby blurted, “I met your maneater.” Jack gasped. Then he frowned and asked, “What do you mean?” Debby explained that she had been to a bar and found her drunk. She told Jack everything Alanna told her. Then in a broken voice, she tells Jack, “You were right. She is not a hooker; she loves you as much as you love her. You have a chance to be happy. Don’t waste it.” Jack was surprised to hear his sister talk to him about love right after she had just found her husband with another woman. It seems like his family has horrible luck with love. Mary hadn’t had the courage to come out to her mother, so she couldn’t date women openly. Debby’s husband was cheating and John acted like he was a player just to hide the fact that he couldn't keep a woman.

Jack decided to listen to Debby and get Alanna back. He planned to visit her at work and like old times he would bring her lunch.