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2024-10-29 19:42:56As he shut the door to the gate, Christopher took in a deep breath. He was late, and he had no idea what the reception would be like. Living with his family-in-law was humiliating for anybody, but with personalities like the ones in the family, there was sure to be even more humiliation.
Opening the door, he walked in, immediately facing criticism from Laura's family for his late arrival. Jim and Melody, her older brother and mother, both harped on him immediately, expressing their frustration at his inability to arrive back home on time.
“Do you see the time?” asked Jim, pointing at the clock, “Where have you been all day? Are you trying to intentionally make the family starve?”
Joining in on the bandwagon, Melody accused him of neglect, poking at his chest. “You think you are better than this, huh? You think you are now too good to cook for us? Do you think you are too good for this family? Because newsflash, you are not.”
Pulling her hand gently away from his chest, Christopher frowned in concern and tried to get his mother-in-law to settle down. “I'm sorry, Melody. You need to calm down."
Walking in from one of the rooms, Laura notices his presence and asks him if he is okay. “Are you okay Christopher? Because right now I'm not sure. First at work and now here?”
“I'm okay Laura,” he smiled.
“You had better be,” she said, and before he could say anything, he stormed away to their bedroom and stormed away.Leaving her family in the living room and following her into the room, he meets her sitting on the bed. When he walked in, she frowned, eyes filled with tears.
“Are you okay?” she asked, thinking about all of the events of the day. “Today at work there was a lot, and I know about the ultimatum issued to you by Atis, and I tried to talk him out of it, but things just went haywire.”
“I-”
Getting increasingly enraged, Laura continued to speak. ‘'So there is a situation at work, and not only did you refuse to tell me, but he gave you two different impossible cases, the McIntyre case or getting 100 sales in 24 hours. You know it's impossible. I know it's impossible. Yet you did not point that out. Are you okay?”
“That's actually what I wanted to talk to you about. I think it's best if I-”
Interrupting again, she looked at him. “Are you really going to humiliate me by taking the job offer? Are you really going to place me in a position of humiliation by accepting the offer being extended by Rivera?”“No, I-” he tried.
“Does our relationship mean so little to you? Are you actually going to betray our relationship? Are you so willing to let our relationship fall apart? You know who Rivera is, you know what he is capable of, and all the things he has done to me in the time we have known him. Please do not fail me,” she pleaded.“You know how hard I worked for my promotion and the life I currently have, and I was clear enough about the fact that I never wanted to be out in a position to lose all that I had built by helping you into the company. I begged you. I asked you to make sure that I would not regret my decision to help you, and I encouraged you. I asked you to be careful and even gave you tips, and than I have given anyone else. And now you are opening me up to this from him. Did I make a mistake?”
Features softening, Christopher realized how serious the entire situation is, finally accepting how his shortcomings had affected their relationship. Placing a hand into hers, he tried to smooth her nerves to no avail.
"Fine. It's okay if you want my hands off your body. That's perfectly okay. I know how you feel about Rivera, and I have known that for the longest time. I love you more than life itself, and I love the life I have built with you. I would never do anything to jeopardize it, and I need you to know that. I have this under control, and I know you put a lot at stake to get me that job.
The ultimatum issued by Atis will not be a way in for Rivera, and you can rest assured that I value our relationship more than I value anything else, and I will not do anything to jeopardize it. I have this under control.”
Hearing that, Laura began to sob, and feeling pathetic, Christopher began to rub his hand in slow circles, unable to listen to her sobbing. He knew exactly how she felt, and could only begin to imagine the pain that she was in because of him.
He hates nothing more than being the cause of anyone's pain, and even worse, the woman he loved the most in the world. “Babe,” he tried, using his hand to tuck hair away from her face.
“Don't touch me,” she yelled, slapping his hand away. “I'm really sick and tired of you… I'm tired of all of this. You make my chest hurt, and my heart aches from trying. It's getting exhausting. It's tired. I'm tired.
I know my parents never made it easy for you, but right now I am tired of trying. If this challenge or ultimatum doesn't work out, then we need to do as my parents sat and get divorced. I love you, and you mean the world to me, but I don't think we would be compatible anymore if this fails.”
Getting up and walking out, she left him in the room with his thoughts, and he put his head between his hands and groaned.
Losing his business had been a painful experience for them both, mostly because they had both invested all of their money into the business. Getting the job had been so difficult, but she had pulled all of the strings she had to make sure that he had gotten the job, and he had worked hard to prove himself while working at it, every day.
He knew it had put a strain on their relationship, and that she got criticized for any of his failings, but he had no idea that it had affected the relationship so strongly that she was now considering divorce.
In the living room, Laura put her head into her palms and though about her husband, the man she loved the most in the world. Now they were about to drift apart because she was going to take the advice that her parents had given to her and get divorced if things did not work out at work for her husband.
She was hopeful that things somehow worked themselves out without her losing her mind, because she felt like that was what was happening. She loved him, and suggesting the divorce had felt like she was speaking with a hammer down her throat, but it had to be considered, because they were no longer working out like they used to. Maybe it was time for them to let go.
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Walking into the living room where Laura sat, Christopher shook his head, refusing her request. “No.” The sound of the word alone made Laura raise her he'd up and roll her eyes in anger. In the last three years, Christopher had never uttered a word in the negative to her, and now that the topic of divorce had come up, he was now strongly opinionated. It had happened before–whenever her parents mentioned to him that they should get divorced, he would become adamant, and tonight was no exception. Getting up and pushing past him to go into the room, Laura tried to keep the scenes as privately as possible. “Look, Laura. I love you. I love you so much that I cannot imagine a future without you. You can't tell me that we add going to get divorced, because I disagree. I do not want to get a divorce, and without my input, you are not getting divorced from me. Look, Laura, I know that I have asked you many times to trust me,” he said, careful not to get too close to her for fear of spook
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Alone on the bed with his thoughts, Christopher began to think about the dinner that was coming up between his wife and Rivera. From the drop in he had gotten at his desk, he knew that Rivers had ulterior motives to seduce his wife. There was the possibility that he was lying, or just bluffing, but knowing Rivera, the intent was very present. With a sigh of irritation, at Rivera, at himself, and the entire situation, he got up and opened the door, walking into the dining area with a wide smile on his face. The rest of the family was gathered at the table, and as he walked in, they all went silent, turning to look at him. The tension was palpable enough to cut through with a knife, and he took his seat beside Laura, still smiling. As dishes were passed and everyone took on the amount of food they could finish, Christopher noted that he was getting a number of furtive stares. Thinking nothing of it, he ignored, and began to eat. The regular conversation of everyone asking how the ot
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