Departing in Diamonds
Don' you draw the queen of diamonds, boy
She'll beat you if she's able
-- The Eagles, "Desperado"
"Thank God, it's almost over," she thought to herself as she looked out the window with weariness. It was another cold dreary day in the middle of October, and outside it was drizzle without end. It seemed like such a cruel irony that the sun should hide itself at this time of year. Its bright yellow rays would provide such a nice illumination on the trees, whose leaves had transformed into a rich pageant of fleeting golds and rusts. Soon the wind would release them from their mother limbs, and crooked skeletons would remain.
It was the last day of employment as a nanny, with a client she would hardly miss. True, the pay was good, but the job had a high price of its own. The couple had disagreements in plenty, but both of them had one thing in common -- they clearly confused service and servitude, deciding that the former was synonymous with the latter. It wasn't enough that she had to take care of the kids. She also had to help out at Jay's office, listen to Laura vent about Jay's countless shortcomings, and sit in the crossfire of their disintegrating marriage. At first, the drama had some entertainment value, but after time it had lost its luster. At least The War of the Roses had dark humor. This situation was just plain dark.
By contrast, the kids were giddy tonight because they were going over to some friends for sleepovers. She thought to herself that they probably couldn't wait to escape this loveless home. She gathered up some freshly folded laundry to take to the kids' rooms so that they could pack their overnight bags. They would be whisked away by the other parents' SUVs sometime around 7.
Shortly after 6:30, the door to the house opened and shut. It was Jay coming back from work. Laura wouldn't be home for another two or three hours because she was out with friends, seeking retail therapy at one of the many upscale establishments that helped to make the north side that hotbed of congestion that it was today.
Jay barked an obligatory, "I'm home," and headed straight to the living room to pour himself a drink to unwind. He'd never quite gotten used to the role of hands-on-daddy, so the thought of striking up a conversation with the kids about their day was as foreign as foie gras. He turned on the TV to watch some ESPN.
The advent of 7 o'clock brought the arrival of the kid's rides. Jay responded to their good-byes by the third time that they shouted them in the foyer. He didn't even bother to get up to see them off.
Feeling free to finally leave, she made her way to the door. This time, Jay seemed very aware of his surroundings. "Tiffany? Can you come in here?" he called. She responded with a "Yeah, sure!" as she made her way from the front of the house to the living room where Jay was still lounging.
She noticed that there was something different about Jay, but she couldn't quite put her finger on it. Jay swirled the alcohol in his glass as he collected his thoughts. She looked at him awkwardly and beat him to his opening statement saying, "So I guess this is good-bye?"
Jay pulled out of his momentary stupor and said, "Yeah, yeah, I guess it is... Tiffany, you know it's going to be tough to see you go. I'm not sure where those kids would be without you. Being a mother is about the last thing on Laura's mind, and I'm not exactly great dad material, either. You'll be a tough act to follow."
She was surprised by the stream of compliments coming from Jay. Indeed, he was one of the slowest to come up with a grateful word in the day-to-day grind. Her mind scurried quickly to come up with something nice to say in return, "Thanks, Jay, that means a lot to me. It' sure is going to be tough to move on." She thought to herself, "Nice goin', Tiff. You just waded your way into the Bullshit Swamp. You should have just quite while you're ahead."
Jay replied, "I ummm... uhhh... had a little something to give you as a token of my appreciation for all your service." Reaching into a vest pocket on his coat, he got a perplexed look, followed by a facial expression that clearly conveyed a feeling of "Oh, darn!" He looked at her directly and said, "You wouldn't mind coming upstairs with me to go get it, would you?"
She was a little unnerved by this request, but she decided to take him at his word and follow him up to his room. Walking into the room, she admired the beautiful dresser with a mirror, wincing just a bit at the reflection she saw. She was okay with her full figure; so that was hardly a problem.