Blemished Love – Episode 7

Blemished Love Episode 7
© Loudest Thoughts 2018
All Rights Reserved.

There laughter could reach every corner of the bar. Those around them couldn’t tell exactly why they were laughing on top of their voices.

‘That reminds me Tom.’ Mike chipped in still with a broad smile on his face. ‘Have you asked your cheating wife about the night at the Seattle Hotel?’

They were almost done consuming half of the beer in the crate. Tom was mute for a few seconds clutching his hands together tightly.

‘Wait dude. Your wife cheated?’ Austin asked turning to Clive and Mike’s direction.

‘That was what happened and it seemed our man here couldn’t handle it but rather decided to force himself on his wife on their wedding night.

‘Wow, too bad but why am I now hearing this.’ Austin asked no one in particular.

Everyone was silent while gulping their beer.

Tom hadn’t said anything about what Clive told him a week to their wedding because he knew Grissel wouldn’t cheat on him. He was so sure about it when she confirmed running in to Clive at a hotel where she was meeting up with Adam for business.

Though Clive’s allegations sounded genuine to him and he trusted his wife especially after she told him about bumping into Clive but then Mike’s call that night after their wedding with the same allegations turned his world upside down.

Tom didn’t want to believe all that Mike told him that night but Grissel gave him no choice when she wouldn’t let him touch her on their wedding night. Her behavior made him furious and suspicious.

He committed a despicable sin and have to leave with it even if it meant pleasing his wife every time she was wrong and he was right. Tom knew that was the only thing left to keep them both going. He realized Grissel wasn’t the only one who needed to forgive him, but he also needed to forgive himself.

He wasn’t a staunch Christian but he knew about forgiveness because Grissel never stopped preaching that in the past which always secured him a free pass when he misbehaved towards her.

Tom wanted that for himself now and had to get it anyway he can because when Grissel held his hands and knelt before him signaling him to do same while they prayed together after their first quarrel, he knew he was safe and want it never to end.

Despite their love and bond, he wasn’t so sure what the future holds for them.

Tom was still in his thought when Austin spoke up.

‘Okay, I get it. She’s my friend doesn’t mean I go about telling her everything we discuss.’ Austin glared.

‘We get it but anything can happen.’ Mike said.

‘Oh come off it. I’m not a snitch.’ He yelled.

‘That’s enough guys.’ Tom finally said.

‘Sorry,’ Austin replied.

‘Clive, I’m sure you were mistaken. I asked my wife about Aubrey and she seems to have no idea about Aubrey.’

‘And who is Aubrey?’ Clive asked surprised.

‘Mike?’ Tom called out to him with a glare.

‘Wait, I never mentioned Aubrey.’ Clive quickly clarified.

‘What is going on with you two?’ Tom asked confused.

‘Mike probably got the name wrong. The receptionist after some bribing told me he registered under the name Andre.’

‘Sorry man, I didn’t get it right then.’ Mike apologized.

‘That still doesn’t explain who Andre is.’ Tom asked confusedly.

‘I only saw her at that hotel’s restaurant twice in an awkward manner.’ He was examining their faces while he spoke.

‘But you said she saw you.’ Mike asked.

‘Yeah the first time but each time she happens to be with a different guy and Tom didn’t want to pursue it the first time because Grissel had already told him about her meet up with Adam there the first time we bumped into each other.’

‘And what were you doing spying on Grissel.’ Austin quickly chipped in.

‘I wasn’t spying on anyone. I went there with Tina and I was surprised to see her there a week and a night before her wedding respectively.’ Clive was on the verge of losing his cool.

‘So?’ Austin questioned rudely.

‘What was so important that couldn’t wait till after her wedding?’ Clive muttered annoyingly. ‘Especially meeting a stranger in a hotel a night to your wedding. For Adam I understand he is family but what about Andre.’

Austin sighed. ‘Tall, mid-forties, broad Chest, Half cast and with a dimple even from afar?’

‘Exactly, you saw them too?’ Clive asked happily.

‘I don’t need to see them Clive. Andre is one of her old bosses at the firm.’ Austin explained.

‘You are sure about this?’ Tom asked immediately Austin landed with his speech.

‘Yes very sure but very disappointed in you Tom. Grissel was avoiding me for weeks and I couldn’t figure out where I went wrong.’ Austin muttered painfully while Clive grabbed another bottle.

“I’m sorry.’ Tom gave him an apologetic look.

‘Marriage is about communication, just do that next time instead of listening to Clive and his fairytales.’

Clive hissed.

‘Thank you Austin.’ Tom heaved a sigh of relief and grabbed his next bottle.

‘Clive you need to apologize to Grissel.’ Mike told him.

‘That’s not happening because I knew what I saw that night.’ Clive rubbed in again.

‘What about a week before the wedding. Did you happen to see the same man with her?’ Austin sarcastically asked.

‘Tom already confirmed she was with Adam besides I saw from afar that time so i can’t confirm the incident of that week but I’m sure about the awkwardness the night before the wedding.’

‘Okay, so this is just about the night before their wedding.’ Austin seemed to be defending Grissel too much that night.

‘Sure, it was awkward man. I wouldn’t say what I haven’t seen. Hope you understand that.’

‘That’s okay Clive, we were all not in support of how he treated his wife so I think he should just talk to Grissel to clarify things.’ Mike chipped in.

‘Thanks guys.’ Tom smiled weirdly.

‘Let’s celebrate then.’ Austin cheered while they held their bottles toasting.

Austin happens to be the only level headed one among them.

___

Grissel wiped her face with a fresh neatly folded paper towel and dumped it in the bin. She carried the bowl of vegetables and salad accompaniments to the dinning.

Melisa who was munching on a packet of biscuit she found in her bag after calling her aunty to inform her she might not come home that night felt her sister in law’s shadow falling on her.

‘What do you want now?’ She asked calmly this time around.

‘Dinner is ready and before you turn it down, remember you are in my house so it’s either you eat or get out before you starve yourself.’

Grissel didn’t know where all that courage from earlier and now came from.

‘I’m not hungry?’

‘Suit yourself, I just have to chew this sausage all by myself.’ She muttered and walked away.

Melisa who was backing her turned around to be sure she heard her right when she mentioned sausage but Grissel was already gone. She looked up and saw her seated at the dinning and decided to join her.

Grissel seated at the table alone kept trying Tom’s number. She hanged up for the sixth time and hissed when Melisa spoke up.

‘Was that Tom again?’ She asked pulling up a chair to sit.

Grissel nodded and tried once more without luck. Melisa could sense the frustration in her voice when she hiss and the worry written all over her face.

Melisa doesn’t know why her speech earlier had that much effect on her so she decided to join her sister in law at the table.

She picked a plate and dished out the spaghetti and sausage sauce. Then added the vegetables to it while Grissel focused on her own food which she barely touched.

‘Maybe he’s out with his friends, don’t you have their numbers.’ Melisa asked obviously worried too because Tom even as an adult back then with Julia always did call to inform them when he was running late.

She smiled and tapped her forehead as if Melisa just reminded her of something though on a normal day they both would have been at each other’s throat.

Grissel dialed Austin’s number and after the second ring there was finally an answer.

‘Is my husband there Austin?’ She asked.

‘This is your husband.’ Tom let out a heavy sigh.

Austin realizing Grissel was the one calling passed the phone to Tom earlier.

‘Tom it’s late and what happened to dinner?’ She called out.

‘OMG, forgive me Grissel. I forgot to tell you I planned on drinking with the guys tonight since it’s a Friday.’ He explained while the other guys looked on.

‘Alright, drive safely.’ She replied and was about to hang up when Tom asked her about dinner.

‘Did you manage to get dinner without me?’

‘Yes but would you mind fried egg in place of meat. We had sausage sauce this evening and I’m too tired to get that done this late.’

‘It’s okay, I will have the sausage sauce.’

‘Are you sure becau…?’

‘Grissel, it’s fine and do you think you can wait up for me?’

‘You know I’m an early bird but I will try. Just wake me up in case I slept off.’

‘Thank you.’

‘Lisa is around too.’ She said and quickly hanged up before he could ask her to drive her out of his house.

She knew Tom that well.

Melisa just shook her head and focused on her food in front of her while Grissel left to the kitchen with her plate due to loss of appetite.

Grissel picked up her plate of food.

‘You can eat all that and I have more in the kitchen in case you are not satisfied.’ Grissel knew Melisa loves food especially when its sausage sauce unlike her brother who loves fried chicken Melisa prefers anything made with sausage.

And earlier she had to choose between her husband’s favorite and her sister in law’s favorite. She smiled to herself watching Melisa eat with so much delight and then smacked her cheeks happily.

Melisa avoided her gaze and tried not to smile even though it came flashing her face.

‘I made the right choice.’ Grissel whispered silently and walked away briskly without another word as Melisa looked on.

‘Is she always this accepting?’ Melisa asked herself while chewing on the sausage.

She shook her head and focused on her food happily. ‘The fewer the merrier.’

Grissel’s footsteps back from the kitchen few minutes after drew her attention to her walking woozily upstairs. Melisa felt a cold wave run through her body. She remembered her mom was always that way even when their Dad didn’t treat her right sometimes after she had spent her whole time in the kitchen cooking his meals. Though she was that young, she had some memories locked up.

‘Is Tom not treating Grissel right or it’s the other way round. No, it’s definitely Tom because Grissel definitely would have screamed her head off when she called him earlier.’ She whispered to herself yet again.

Melisa scooped half spoon of spaghetti into her mouth and munched on it while reaching out for more vegetables from the service bowl. She had forgotten to use the fork instead of spoon.

She shook her head continuously.

‘She’s not that bad as I was led to believe.’ Melisa thought aloud.

Melisa barely spent up to an hour together in the same room with Grissel in the past. Grissel always made it a point to avoid her when she visited Tom when they were dating.

She picked up her phone dropping the spoon she was using earlier and combed through the files she had on it and hit the delete button.

‘Maybe she had good reasons for marrying my brother the way she did and a second look at her this evening confirms why aunty love her that much.’ She whispered to herself.

*****

‘Guys let’s call it a night.’ Tom declared and everyone agreed.

They had earlier called the driver who would drop Tom home while Mike’s driver followed in order to get the guy driving Tom as well to his house after he had dropped him.

Grissel came back after about ten minutes and Melisa was done eating because she had cleared the table and washed up the plates. She dished out Tom’s food and kept it in the microwave.

Melisa who was glued to the Tv turned down the volume when Grissel came out of the kitchen to the hall.

‘The bed is already made and I left a night wear, change of clothes and towel on the bed. I’m an early bird so just call me if you need anything.’ She announced and walked away quietly.

Melisa turned the volume up when she realized Grissel had left.

To be continued

 

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