Myra answered her phone, unprepared for the loud voice on the other end.
"That fucking bastard. Do you know what he did? Do you have any idea what he did to me? I was going to a party after work and told him to meet me, so I could show off my husband, and the asshole told me he was working late and couldn't be there. What the fuck? And then I found out he DIDN'T work late. He went over to Steve's house and had pizza with beer while they watched some stupid game. The Fucking bastard stood me up for a stupid fucking GAME!"
"Gina, easy girl. My ears are still ringing from not getting the phone at arm's length soon enough. Back down a bit and start over." Myra wanted to hear what her friend had to say, but she wanted her hearing to survive the explanation.
A deep breath was heard from the phone. "Ok," Gina started, "the beginning. Shit I'm pissed. I'm standing here shaking. All right. Three weeks ago, about a dozen of us from the office decided we'd meet for dinner after work and invite our spouses along so people could meet the guys or girls we were always talking and hearing about. I told Alex about it right away and he said it seemed like a good idea. Not real excited, you know, but he acknowledged it."
There was a long pause. "Go on," Myra encouraged.
"Well, the day of the big meet and eat, I called him in the early afternoon to remind him to meet me and to give him the address. He said he couldn't make it, he had just been told after lunch that there was a big project and he had to get it done before he left. I wasn't happy, but if work needs you, what do you do? I know he won't risk losing his job over a dinner."
Myra broke in. "He could have tried."
"He said he did," Gina answered. "I got home near 8 and he didn't get home until close to 10. The poor guy said he was wiped out and went right to bed. Yeah, I thought it was poor guy. He didn't want me smelling the fucking beer on his breath. On Saturday I called Rikki and told her and she laughed. She fucking laughed! 'Didn't you know the guys were watching the game that night,' she asked. Oh, I was hot. I confronted him and he finally admitted the guys had decided to watch the game and he didn't want to meet my co-workers anyway. Damn! He lied to me, left me the only person at the dinner without their spouse, and he fucking lied to me over a fucking game!"
"Have you made up?" Myra asked calmly.
"What?" Myra moved the phone away again. "Are you crazy? I'm not making up to that son of a bitch after what he did to me. But we ended up yelling at each other so much I have a splitting headache and he drove off to wherever he runs when he doesn't want to apologize."
Myra thought for a moment. "Headache?"
"Splitting. I'm going to hang up and drop a half bottle of Tennessee into a glass," Gina answered.
"I have another idea. Remember when I took that massage course as an elective? I'd be happy to give you a good body rub and if you still have a headache, well, I have Kentucky, if you'll settle for that."
Gina was quiet for a moment before saying, "I guess I can settle for Kentucky. In a large glass please."
"Hey girl, only if the headache is still there," Myra answered. "I think I'm pretty good with my hands."
Gina at last laughed a little. "Oh, do you? Well, as much as he's pissed me off, Alex is pretty good, too. I guess I'll have to see if you're as good as him."
Myra smiled. "Oh, I love a challenge. If he's better than me, you can pour me the other half of the bottle. Half hour enough time to get here?"
"Shit, make it 20 minutes."
Myra took a deep breath. She actually hated being challenged and was only able to go ahead with it because Gina was her best friend and she felt safe enough with the other woman to risk losing. They had met in third grade when they stood side by side in line. They were both ok at math and reading, hated science, and enjoyed splashing in puddles, despite adults telling them little girls didn't splash. Or maybe it was because adults said that.
Unfortunately, Gina had stayed cute girl all the way, with an active streak that attracted the boys, while Myra had retreated to books and snacks. Her hair was still long in her first years of high school, and one day she tried putting two buns on her head. One of the boys laughed at her and said pretty girls had hourglass shapes, but she looked like his grandmother's alarm clock. The next day the blond hair was bobbed. Badly. Her mother was not happy she had cut it herself.
Pausing to look at herself in a mirror, Myra wondered exactly why she had such trouble getting guys to look at her. Maybe it was the round face, the short hair, or the fact that her belly rolls were bigger than her breasts. One person had always just accepted her as she was, and that was Gina. This massage had to be good. She had never gotten a job because the instructor of that massage class, while giving her an A, told her the long hours would be hard on her legs with all the extra weight, and, just being honest, she would have a hard time keeping steady clients while she was so large. Myra had told Gina and cried, and Gina held her friend for an hour, comforting her.