The Other Woman

 The Other Woman 

By Jane Scoggins 

They were standing by the kitchen sink washing up the dishes after their evening meal. Lisa stacking the dishwasher and rinsing their glasses before cleaning the sink. Chris drying the glasses and wiping the table. A routine they had enjoyed companionably for years. The children were staying overnight with her Mum and they had the evening together to look forward to. Lisa was happy until he cleared his throat and out of the blue said quietly.

“I’ve met someone else”

  Of course she thought she had misheard him, so turned to him with her hands dripping with soap suds and said quite simply.

  “What did you just say?”

  “I’ve met someone else” he said again looking her in the eye.

  She didn’t know how she didn't fall down dead with shock and disbelief when the reality of what he was saying hit her. Standing stock still by the sink as he expanded on the brief cruel, hard hitting statement. His voice was gentle but every word cut like a knife. He eventually managed to persuade her to sit at the table with him. After silent shock came floods of tears and then came anger and distress. Not towards him, whom she had loved since she was eighteen, and thought he had loved her back all these years, but HER who must have schemed and cajoled to take him away.  She must be some sort of wicked temptress; someone from his office of course. Where else would he meet another woman? He was a home loving man who loved his wife and kids to the moon and back he had led her to believe. Their relationship had always been solid and they had never had any doubts about each other. They did everything together and she could hardly remember an occasion of a cross word. They were settled as a family in a nice house, they had two lovely daughters and a Disney holiday planned. How could this all have fallen apart in an instant without her having any clue? She thought of the children. It would break their hearts. She realised now that it had been Chris who had suggested they spend a night at Grandma's. He had engineered this evening to be alone with her so he could break the devastating news. With no resolution to be had from more talking Lisa eventually took herself off to bed and cried herself to sleep. Chris slept separately in the girls room. In the morning nothing had changed, it was all still the same nightmare as last night. Puffy-eyed and exhausted Lisa didn't know what to do. She wanted to fight back but didn't know how. They struggled through the morning together, agreeing that he would wait till their daughters were back from Grandma’s and then explain that Daddy had to go on a working trip while they worked out the details of a possible separation. Although Chris had refused to tell her the name of the woman Lisa quite quickly worked out who it must be. She thought she would confront her and tell her to back off from ruining her life and that of her children. If that didn’t work she would appeal to her conscience and plead with her to give him back and find a single man. If that didn't work she would have to think of something more drastic. She was not going to give up easily on the man she loved. When her mother offered to have the children on a Friday night after school Lisa took the train to the city and waited for the attractive woman she knew to be her rival to come out of the office at 6pm. She had renamed her Jolene like in Dolly Parton’s song. She was joined by another woman and they made their way to a nearby wine bar. Lisa followed pulling her scarf over her head. It would be tricky to confront her there so she would bide her time. They were laughing and Lisa felt anger and hate. It was dimly lit in the wine bar and Jolene and her friend were near the bar at the back of the room. Lisa went to the Ladies room to consider her next move. Putting her hand in her bag for her comb she felt the packet of pills she had been taking to get her through the nights. They knocked her out for hours and blocked out her unhappiness. If only that woman knew what she had done to her. Going to the bar she ordered a glass of white wine. The room was busy already with local office workers and gradually more men and women began spilling in through the door laughing and chatting, looking forward to the start of the weekend. Lisa saw their joy but felt none for herself. Although Jolene was clearly in her sights Lisa still did not have the courage to approach her, so she finished her glass of wine and watched. She wanted to do something that would have an impact. That woman needed to experience her anger and distress. And then she had an idea. She accidentally but on purpose knocked into Jolene as she walked behind her and spilled her drink as she was about to take a sip. Lisa insisted on getting her another drink, inwardly smiling with a feeling of malice as Jolene tried to dry the contents of her wine glass from her skirt and silk blouse with a tissue. After buying another glass of wine for her enemy Lisa left the bar with a feeling of great satisfaction.

 

   Two days later Chris was in contact asking for forgiveness. The affair had not lasted. In fact, it had never started, and he had been staying with his mother. She had urged him to put things right with Lisa. He was distressed and asked her if she would have him back. The woman had been someone who worked in the sandwich bar where he bought his lunch. Under pressure at work, she had been so kind to him and he had been grateful for her support. A mutual attraction had developed. They had been meeting after work for a drink. He had totally misunderstood his feelings. Lisa and Chris met the following day. Upset by their short period of separation Lisa wanted reconciliation. She thought about her trip to the wine bar and how she had got the identification of her rival completely wrong. She felt horribly guilty about what she had done there. She asked Chris to come home and flushed the rest of the tranquillisers down the toilet.

 

 Lisa listened with shock when Chris told her what had happened to a female friend and colleague at the office. She had had a terrible accident outside a wine bar near their office. Apparently, she had somehow toppled from the pavement onto the road, hitting her head on the curb, and was badly injured by a passing vehicle. She was in a coma, maybe with brain damage. A friend who had been with her at the time had said she had become drowsy while in the wine bar and had gone outside for air. It had been shocking news for Chris. But even more so for Lisa. She had got it all so terribly wrong. That poor innocent woman. Lisa knew she would never be able to erase from her memory the events and consequences of that evening.

 

Copyright Jane Scoggins