Joe and Sarah

Joe and Sarah

Damn it where was she? He’d been calling her cell phone every 10 minutes for 40 minutes now. He knew she did this shit to him on purpose. She knew how he worried. Why? Why did she insist on playing these mind games with him? She would do something like this and then he’d get his feelings hurt and start saying mean things to her. It happened every time.

Joe hit redial again. He listened to the metallic ring once, twice, three times. Just before the fourth ring, she answered. Her voice sounding breathless.

“Hi! Hi, honey! ” Sarah said.

“Where have you been? I‘ve been calling for almost an hour.”

“I had to stop at the store after work.”

“Where was your cell? Why didn’t you have it on you?.”

‘Oh, I’m sorry. I had plugged it into the car to recharge and forgot it when I went into the store”.

“Sarah, I bought you that cell to keep with you! So I wouldn’t have to go through this shit.” Joe felt himself getting angrier.

“ I just forgot to take it with me, Joe. Gimme a break.”

“Give you a break. Who’s giving me a break? You’re always making me worry like this. What was it this time? Giving head to some guy from work in the parking lot?”

“Joe. Don’t start.” Sarah was trying to drive and talk at the same time with the tiny cell phone caught between her ear and her shoulder. She didn’t like to do this, but she needed to get home. There was always so much to do. She hoped she could avoid another one of his temper tantrums, but it wasn’t looking good. He was already getting nasty.

“Well, what am I supposed to think, Sarah? It’s always these lame excuses when you’re nowhere to be found. Do you think I’m a fool, or what?”

“Please stop it, Joe.” Sarah could feel her anger rising. She bit her tongue to stop the angry retort that was trying to slip out. Yes, sometimes she did think he was a fool. But then she thought she was probably the bigger fool to put up with this. Why did she let him get away with talking to her like that? She wouldn’t have ever let anyone else talk to her in that manner. In fact, she couldn’t remember anyone that had ever tried to be so crass with her. But Joe’s manner was always like this when he was angry. He was nasty and mean. And he always got angry when he didn’t know where she was.

“The Witch is gonna be home any minute. I won’t be able to talk much longer. I wish you’d stop doing this to me. Don’t you understand that I love you and that I need to be able to talk to you. People that love each other want it that way, Sarah. Why can’t you understand that?“

“I understand it, Joe, but I have things to do besides sit on the phone with you hour after hour. It’s not like we can be like other couples and do things together. We can’t be seen in public, so I can’t ask you to come along with me while I do my errands. Why don’t you understand that?”

“You have a cell phone. I got that for you so that whenever possible, we could talk to one another. I need you to be there. I get worried, Sarah. What if something had happened? What if you’d had an accident? What if someone had harmed you? My mind goes crazy when I don’t know where you are. I imagine all kinds of things. I love you so much, and I don’t know what I’d do if something happened to you. Couldn’t you have gone to the drugstore later, instead of during the time we usually talk during your drive home? You couldn‘t have called me before you went into the store?”

His voice was taking on that familiar plaintive whine. Sarah knew that this was a signal that the temper tantrum could be resolved, if she said the right things.
.
She sighed. “Yes, I suppose I could have, but the store is on my way home. I didn‘t think I‘d be inside all that long. The checkout lines were crazy. I’m sorry I made you worry, honey, I really didn’t mean to.”

There was a pause. Then Sarah heard the change in his voice.

“I guess I over reacted. I’m sorry, Love. I really look forward to our talks while you’re driving home from work. And when you didn’t answer your cell, I was afraid. I love you so much and thought of losing you does something to me. I couldn’t live without you, Sarah. My whole world would fall apart.”

Sarah was always amazed at the switch in gears. This was the Joe that she was in love with. The tender, caring, comfortable Joe. That other obsessive, compulsive, nasty Joe was someone she didn’t want to know.

“Baby, you’re not going to lose me. I would never do anything to hurt you, don’t you know that? I love you, Joe. “

“If you could only understand that I‘ve never felt this way before. My life is nothing without you, Sarah. I was just existing before you. “

Sarah parked in the driveway of her house. She closed her eyes and let his words flow over her.

“We’re going to be okay, sweetheart. This is just a period of adjustment. All couples go through it.” Sarah hoped so. Dealing with his mood swings wasn’t easy. Not to mention dealing with the guilt she felt over being involved with a married man. This wasn’t her style.

She had never thought she would be in this predicament. Joe wasn’t the typical married man, though, she told herself. His relationship with The Witch was a farce. They were staying together for the children. Actually, only the one child now. Joe Jr. had moved on to graduate school, and was pretty much on his own, and well aware of his parents sick marriage. Tina was a different story. She was half way through high school, and Joe had told Sarah that he just couldn’t break up the family until she had graduated high school. Tina needed both parents. Even though The Witch was such a poor excuse for a mother, Tina still loved her, and needed her as well as she needed her doting father, who made sure she was cuddled and kissed and spoiled.

“Can you come to our place tonight, babe? The Witch is taking Tina to some school function for mother and daughter. I could probably have most of the evening. We can have dinner brought in. I need to see you.”

“What time would you be able to be there? I have to get this report finished before tomorrow, but if I had maybe an hour, I could finish it up and be with you.”

“I’ll be there by 7:30. Get there as quick as you can.” There was a moments pause. “Sarah? I love you.”

Her breath caught in her throat. “I’ll come as quickly as I can.”