Persistent Ch 02 Alternative End

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Note:

This is a completely different alternative version of Chapter 2, which finalizes the story in this post.

If you liked the original Chapter 2 which is ongoing, you may not like this one.

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It was Sunday night, Paul jumped from the couch when Linda entered home. He greeted her and kissed her.

"If you're not very tired, I booked a place at a new restaurant. Or, we can cancel it and order something." She was finally back in his arms and he felt complete again.

Linda hugged him while he was talking. Paul couldn't be happier, she missed him as much as he did.

"I'm very tired, I couldn't sleep on the plane and I ate whatever they brought. Can I go to bed early tonight? I have to be at the office by 7:00 tomorrow."

"Sure, I'll cancel it then. I'll be home this week; I have to finish some paper I have to submit. Do you want me to come to bed with you or are you too tired?"

"I'm too tired and I don't want to drag you to bed just to sleep this early." She kissed him and went to the bathroom.

Paul thought that the worst week of their marriage was finally over for him. He was concerned, jealous and time to time, suspicious when she didn't call or missed his calls. He knew she wasn't comfortable there and it was normal that she sounded exhausted or cold on the phone the entire week she was away. Especially the last three days, she was almost never available but he knew they had a very busy schedule in those days.

She always complained when they got a chance to talk. Linda wasn't a person who would complain about work but she told him that these were loss of time for her, mostly irrelevant or unnecessary meetings. She was mostly worried about her work at the office, which was waiting for her on their return. She had to catch up after she returned.

He went back to the couch to finish the movie he started to watch.

In the morning, Linda was already gone when he woke up. He hated writing papers with deadlines but working home was making that easier. He spent that week almost alone because Linda always came home late at night and left home early, promising to make it up for him within a few weeks.

He already missed her and they didn't have sex since she left for that business trip, so this was frustrating for him. He wanted his wife and he was home all the time but she wasn't there. He thought about waking up early to catch her before she left, hoping that they could do a morning quickie. Unfortunately, she told him she needed every minute she could sleep.

She was finally at home on Sunday. During the breakfast he asked her about her week and the trip. This was the first time they could talk.

"It's like I haven't been seeing you for two weeks. How was the vacation and how's work going on at the office?"

"Nothing interesting, you already know about the meetings during the vacation and I'm trying to delegate some of the work to my team these days, otherwise I will never be able to finish them. How was your two weeks? You never told me about that."

"I was busy as well but nothing interesting on my side too. How about other issues?"

"What issues?"

"You know, did he disturb you?"

"Nick? No, he didn't."

"What? He stopped coming on to you when you were there?"

Linda hesitated for a second and rephrased her answer "I mean, nothing more than the usual."

Paul sensed something odd but it wasn't clear. He just felt that she wasn't very comfortable about this subject, not as she was before. Then it occurred to him that it could be because of what he said before she left. He knew he was going to be in trouble when she returned. He thought that it would be better if he apologized before she mentioned.

"About how I acted before you left or when you were there; I'm sorry. I care so much about you; it makes me unstable." He was sincere, Linda was out of this world and time to time he was feeling insecure because everyone would and did want her.

Linda remembered that, she remembered his words when Paul mentioned that night. She didn't know how to answer and just said "Oh, thank you. That was bothering me."

This was not what he expected. She could have made a joke about it if she didn't care about it anymore. She could give him a cold eye and made sure he understood that it was a favor from her, not making a big deal out of this subject. But that answer?

When he was trying to figure out what this was about, her phone rang. She answered and stood up, made a sour face and said "Now? OK. I'll be there in half an hour."

She turned to Paul and kissed him on the head saying "I have to go, there's some new urgent matter. Sorry for that. They've sent a car for me."

He kept sitting on his chair, looking at the table when she changed her clothes and left after shouting "Bye!"

He felt alone and unhappy. He felt as if there was something changing in his life, without thinking about it.

Weeks passed like that. After their life settled down, it became a bit different from what it was. She was coming home late at least two or three days a week and she was mostly working on weekends as well. They could only have sex on Friday or Saturday nights but never both of them. He thought that it was probably better than the average of most marriages but it was definitely a step down, considering their previous life. The sex was the same as before, they weren't passionate before and it was still nice and warm.

She was working for her career and Paul had to work for his. This was a good opportunity for him to speed things up in his life. He admired her dedication, seeing how she was doing her best to reach her goals. He could see her efforts and sacrifices. He knew that she didn't like to dress like business women but she even was being careful about that too. She was wearing skirts, nylons, heels and shirts to work. And she looked hot in those clothes. That made it even harder for him to settle for a once-a-week sex.

One day he was around and decided to visit her in her office, to take her out to lunch. It wasn't like he wanted to surprise her but he didn't want to call her and impose himself on her if she was busy. When he was at her floor, the 7th floor, he walked to her office and stood in front of her secretary's desk with a kind smile on his face. This was the first time he came to her place.

"Hi, I'm Paul, Linda's husband. Is she in her office by any chance?"

The young girl was startled and got excited. Paul thought that she was a new employee and smiled again to comfort her.

She said "I, I was away, let me check please." She called her office but she didn't answer.

"She's not answering, she probably is on the fifth floor, the communication office with the international news coordination center. They are very busy these days.

Paul thanked her and walked to the elevators. While waiting for the elevators, he was looking around and he saw that the secretary was talking on the phone; she looked like she was agitated and timid.

Then Paul's phone rang, it was Linda.

"Hey, Paul. My secretary reached me, why didn't you call? Where are you at the moment?"

"Hi, I'm at your floor but don't feel yourself obliged, I just checked if you were free for lunch. If not, don't worry."

"Why don't we meet at the entrance of the building? I'll finish my work and find you there."

"OK, don't hurry, I have time."

"Bye."

The elevator reached to his floor and he entered. When the door was closing, he saw that the secretary was looking at him and was still talking on the phone.

He felt strange and he felt like he created a disturbance there. He didn't feel he was welcome in this place.

While thinking, he accidentally pressed on the 7th floor button again, instead of the lobby. The door opened and he saw that the secretary wasn't in her place. He kept his hand on the sensors and looked around, then she came out of Linda's office, followed by a guy. He removed his hand from the sensor and when the door was closing again, he saw Linda at her office door. Nobody saw Paul.

First, he thought that it wasn't normal for a secretary to expect a manager to answer every call and assume that she wasn't in the office immediately. Then he remembered his thoughts about her being a novice employee. Perhaps he wasn't feeling comfortable in this place and that was the reason he was constantly thinking that something was wrong.

Anyway, she was in her office and she was in a meeting. That explained it all; not answering the phone, not inviting him when she called etc.

When they met downstairs, they walked to a close restaurant to have lunch. He said "I saw you at your office, were you in a meeting? I hope I didn't interrupt anything" sincerely.

"Of course not, I didn't see you?" She didn't look as comfortable as her words. Or, Paul was in an agitated mood and everything was making him think like that. He still didn't have a chance to get together with his wife, to feel safe and get back to normal. It still felt as if she was away.

"I accidentally pressed on the wrong button; I saw you when the door was closing."

They had a short lunch and she was on the phone for the most of it.

He didn't think about that day much and he didn't try to find a reason why he felt uneasy about his visit. But he knew that he didn't want to visit her there again.

A few more weeks passed like that and that was a lousy summer for Paul. They had to cancel their vacation because Linda couldn't find an idle week.

He got busy before the start of the autumn semester and this time he was at the university all the time. That week, Linda told him that there was going to be a company cocktail as a farewell to summer, where everyone was going to attend with their families. She wasn't very enthusiastic about such things and she didn't look like she was this time as well but she told him that she had to attend.

"You have to come with me, sorry. It's important." She said but she didn't look like she wanted him to come. Perhaps she knew he hated such things and was feeling bad forcing him to go there.

He didn't want to leave her alone for something she didn't like so, he accepted. He didn't like such social activities and he didn't have good feelings about her company but he would do anything for Linda.

He had a new suit he never got the chance to wear, so he wore it over his slim-fit shirt. When he saw Linda, dressed in a sexy dress, nylons, high heels and make-up, he worried that his outfit was a bit sporty.

When they were in the large garden of a very expensive looking villa, Paul asked "Whose is that place? Company owners?"

Linda said "Huh? Nick's." timidly.

Paul's face turned red "Nick? That Nick? What are we doing here Linda?"

"Lower your voice, he's the general manager and I'm one of the senior managers. This is part of my work. Do you think I'm happy to be here now?"

Paul didn't answer and walked to one of the corners to get drinks for both of them. Linda introduced him to her employees, some other managers. Then Steve came near them.

"Hi Steve, this is Paul, my husband. Paul, this is Steve, he's the manager of marketing department."

"Hi." said Paul. Steve had a quick smirk and replied "Hi, nice to meet you finally."

"Finally?" Paul looked at Linda, seeing her blush a bit.

"Yes, I mentioned about you a few times."

"That and we were curious about the lucky guy." said Steve.

Since Paul knew how toxic the company was, he didn't see that as a compliment.

"Yeah, that's me." he said, without smiling and looked around, ignoring him.

Then Nick and Emma approached to them. Paul was looking at the orchestra at that moment and got startled when he looked at Nick while hearing Linda say "Emma, Nick, this is my husband, Paul. Paul this is Emma and this is..."

Paul interrupted her saying "Nick, yeah I heard about you." coldly. He didn't even care that his wife Emma was there and he considered making him sorry for chasing his wife.

Nick said "Yep, that's me. I hope Linda doesn't call me Nick the dick as most people does."

Linda's nervous laughter stopped Paul converting this assist into points. He stood silent until they left, studying this couple. He looked too comfortable, as if he wasn't the one chasing Linda for years. He was talking to her as if they were too close. And he remembered that this guy was the one leaving her office that day. She never mentioned that, were they normal co-workers after all the nonsense?

But what made Paul uncomfortable was Emma's expressions. She wasn't talking to Linda, just staring at both Linda and Paul. She had a faint smile on her face, as if she was enjoying this moment. Linda was acting too kind to her and she was listening to her as if she was also Linda's boss.

He felt the same insecure feeling, as he did in her office.

There was something wrong. Linda never humored someone like that and she was constantly smiling and being nice to both of them. He wanted to punch that guy but he bit his lips instead.

After they left, other people came to talk to Linda. He went to the bathroom in the house but he couldn't see Linda when he returned. He walked in the garden calmly but she wasn't around. He saw that Steve guy, he thought of asking him but he didn't want to.

Then he saw that Emma and walked towards that direction to ask her.

"Hi, err, Emma. Have you seen my wife?" trying to act friendly.

She looked at him coldly, paused for a few seconds and said "Your wife, you say." she looked at him a few seconds and added "I don't think so."

Her behavior, the way she talked disturbed him but he managed to say "OK, thank you."

She didn't even wait for him to speak and turned her back to continue her conversation with other people.

He hated these people. He hated this place and he wanted to leave as soon as possible. He called Linda. She didn't answer.

When he was walking in the garden, he saw her leaving the house. She called him back.

"Where are you? I've been looking for you."

"In the house? Why didn't you answer your phone?" He was feeling paranoid this time. Everything was making him nervous and suspicious.

"I didn't hear it and yes, I couldn't find you and I went to the restroom to check."

He hung up the phone and walked to her. He grabbed her hand and said "We're going."

"What's happening? What's wrong?"

"If I stay a few more minutes, I won't be able to contain myself anymore and you will regret it. Those fucking people!"

Right then, Nick appeared at the door, the one Linda walked out. He approached them licking his fingers. "Is everything OK? Are you enjoying the party? If you can call it that? Did you taste those peachy desserts? You could eat your..."

Linda interrupted him "Paul is very tired and he has work early tomorrow, so we have to leave."

Paul was looking at him without talking.

"We can send you with Steve, isn't it a bit early?"

"No, we're leaving." said Paul.

Nick smiled and said "OK, nice to meet you, Paul. See you on Monday, Linda."

Paul sulked until they went home. Linda asked him what happened but he didn't answer. Because he didn't know what happened. But he knew something was wrong, something didn't feel right and it was about Linda.

When they arrived home, Paul got undressed and went to bed without talking.

Linda wasn't talking too.

She felt very unhappy. She knew this was too hard for Paul but she didn't know what to do. She had a secret and she didn't have the courage to tell him. She knew she was distant to him all these months but she had no alternatives. She didn't trust herself to hide her feelings or her secrets. She was trying not to make him suspicious. She didn't want to lose him. Minimum intimacy was the only solutions she could come up with.

In the following days, Paul stayed distant from her and focused on his work. He didn't want to talk to her because he was still processing his thoughts.

Two weeks later, when there was a power surge at the university building, the network went down and they told him that the power generators were malfunctioning as well. He decided to go and work from home.

When he arrived home, he saw Linda's car in the garage.

First, he felt happy that she was home. Then, the paranoid mood he was in made him a bit suspicious. He called her.

"Hi, sweetheart, what's up?" said Linda, answering after too many rings.

"Hi, where are you?"

"Why? Did you come to my office again? I'm out of the office now, I have a meeting in 10 minutes."

"No, good thing I called you before visiting you. Where is that meeting?"

"I'm at the Ministry of Finance, we have some documents to review with them."

It was hard for Paul to talk but he managed. He said "OK, see you" and hung up.

He drove a bit and parked his car after turning the corner. He walked home, carefully and silently entered the house, without knowing what he was going to find. He hoped she left her car there and went to that meeting with others. He wasn't feeling well and he was shaking.

When he was in, he saw her shoes on the floor and he heard her faint voice, probably coming from their bedroom. It was Linda's voice. As if she was moaning or crying. He couldn't be sure. He was worried that something happened to her. Just when he was walking towards the bedroom, he noticed a guy's jacket on the armchair.

His mind went blank.

This had to be the worst moment in his life. First, he thought of going in and beating the hell out of the guy, finishing everything. Then, knowing himself, he feared if he couldn't stop and killed the guy. He didn't want to go to jail for a woman, especially for such a woman.

And that woman. The one. She was the only person he cared about, he couldn't get enough of her and she was so lovely, beautiful. How was he going to live without her? He wanted to cry because this wasn't a moment where his anger or resentment could make him blind. He was going to leave her but he was going to suffer more than her, that was all he knew.

He decided to give himself time before acting, at least to learn more. He knew there was a lot going on in the last months. He preferred to learn it all. Plus, he didn't want to witness what was going on. He didn't even want to think about it, it was too much to bear.

He left the house, went to his car and sat there a few minutes. Then he left his car and found a spot where he could wait and see when they left. He wanted to see who he was but he almost was sure that he was Nick. He couldn't accept the fact that his wife was cheating him, especially with such a lousy bastard. He was physically plain; he had the worst character and he was targeting all women. He changed his mind, it wasn't possible that she was with Nick, it had to be someone else.

He texted her that he was going to go home to work, that there was a power problem at his office.

It didn't take long for Linda's car to move out of the driveway. He saw Nick in the passenger seat. It wasn't possible, how could she? He was going to make her talk and leave her after that. He wanted to learn everything. He didn't deserve that.

At night, he was sitting on the armchair, waiting for her when she arrived.

"Hi sweety, I'm very tired again. How are you?" She acted as if nothing was going on.

"Tired? Because of your meeting?"

"Yes."

"I see. Can you sit for a moment? I haven't seen you for a while and we haven't been talking for days. Let's talk a bit." He was trying to look calm with all his patience.

"I have to wake up..."

"Linda. Please sit." He looked serious and cold, more than he was angry. Linda suddenly panicked. She thought that they left a clue and Paul found it. She had to decide if she was going to come clean or make excuses.

"Are you OK?" while moving towards the couch.