Generation Conversations
Simple solutions for all
Here's a short one with a little twist. At the very end, are some tips and encouragement for all the newer authors. Apologies in advance to Sbrooks103x and Harryin VA for being my examples. SB probably won't mind. Harry, I just made you kinda famous. Kinda.
Relax; it's just a story, people.
May 2018, a resort in the Bahamas
It's funny just how quickly a great vacation can turn into the shittiest vacation ever. When you're far from home, so many more things can go wrong - and not just wrong, but really wrong. Ironically, the thing that went horribly wrong in the Bahamas, in the merry month of May of two-thousand-and-fucking-eighteen, was something we'd brought there with us.
My wife, Leah, had booked the getaway in January. At first, I'd questioned why in May when our fifteenth anniversary was at the end of June. She'd said it was the best deal, and we could make our money go much further at the all-inclusive resort she'd found. She'd left it a little vague, but I'd decided to let it go. Leah and I - that's John Thompson, for the record - had been having more than a few marital problems, and I'd figured that taking a vacation might help. I'd also figured that giving my wife the third degree about it in advance might defeat that purpose.
For thirteen years, I would have said we had a very good marriage, although not perfect. Leah and I had both agreed before marrying that we didn't want any children. Looking back, at least one rug rat would have stifled the boredom. Still, she'd never complained.
In the two years prior to our trip, Leah had changed gradually. There had been the little digs, and the cold shoulder on occasion as well. Recently, she'd decided that she wasn't going to make dinner as often, saying she was tired of it. Some of the changes had raised red flags for me. That, in turn, had made me consider a life without Leah, and begin to explore what I really wanted out of my life and my future. Still, I'd been committed to my wife for a long time, and I loved her, so I'd resolved to fix our problems. Despite the changes in her demeanor, I supposed I'd assumed the same of her. She had gone ahead and planned a vacation for us, after all.
Then, near the end of February, Leah had informed me there'd been a change of plans. Leah's family had always been an odd. Her mom and dad were fine, as far as I was concerned, but some of the other characters, were, well, strange.
Leah's sister, Margaret, and her husband, Reginald, had one child. Her name was Amber. Reg was a strange sort of fellow, but Reg's brother, Gerald, was another story. Gerald was a giant of a man, both in stature and in liveliness. He was a self-made multi-millionaire, but never a snob about it. Family was everything to Gerald. He was at every holiday party, including OUR family holiday parties. I really couldn't find anything not to like about the man. I had always wondered if he was invited due to his money, though. I'd not wanted to consider Leah and the others as being that shallow - grubbing for money off the old guy. He was rather old, too, relatively speaking. Gerald was the oldest of seven siblings, while Reginald was the youngest.
When Amber had left for college, Marge and Reg had decided to move to Europe - Germany, to be precise. That had left Gerald without any real ties to Leah and me, so we'd seen him less often starting about four years ago.
Imagine my surprise then, when Leah had informed me that Amber and Gerald were coming along on our anniversary vacation. I'd about lost my mind. Leah had patiently explained that Gerald had an inoperable brain tumor, and, at seventy-eight, he'd had less than a year to live. Amber had been asked to tag along to keep Gerald occupied while Leah and I enjoyed our time together.
I'd begrudgingly given in again. What could I have said, that wouldn't have made me look stupid and callous? I'd asked several times about our itinerary and the room arrangements, and Leah had simply told me that all was taken care of. Gerald had gotten a suite for himself and Amber, and they would have their own thing going on. Gerald had only wanted to cross the Bahamas off his bucket list, and being around family members that he loved, was a bonus. That had provided at least some relief. I'd started to get an uneasy feeling in April when I'd walked into a room where Leah had been a phone conversation with Amber, and she'd quickly stopped talking and abruptly ended the call. Even in the best of circumstances, that would make a man curious. Our marriage, like I said, had not been at its best.
May came, and we went. I had to give my wife credit; everything went smoothly, and the only thing I had to worry about was packing my own stuff into my luggage. Leah even took care of organizing our passports and other key documents.
The first three days were indeed very enjoyable. Leah and I went parasailing and diving. We made love three nights straight, and I almost forgot Gerald and Amber were there. Almost.
The next two days, Leah asked - no, basically told me that she made plans with Amber and 'big Jerry,' as we all called him. When I started questioning her, she told me to stop whining, and to go take in an activity of interest for myself. That spoke volumes, since her first inclination wasn't to invite me to join them. I wondered why she would want to make plans to get away from me, considering how wonderful our first few days had been. As I was pondering that strange twist, Amber came strolling into our hotel room.
"Hey John," she said with enthusiasm. "What are you up to?"
"What?" I replied with a question of my own. "What are you talking about, and how did you get into our room?"
"Geez!" she scowled in reply, "what's the matter with you? I was just trying to make conversation."
"Sorry," I said more evenly. "Where's Leah?"
Amber sighed, her shoulders slumping slightly. I picked up on her quickly-changing mood. She ignored my question and asked if she could use our bathroom, then went straight there, not waiting for a reply. Something was really off. I wasn't looking forward to her return.
When Amber came out of the restroom, she asked, "Can I have a glass of wine?"
"Are you going to tell me where my wife is, Amber?
"Can I please have a glass of wine?" she repeated, ignoring my question and placing her hands on her hips. "And get one for yourself, John."
I just shook my head and went to the fridge. The mini bar was the only thing that wasn't free at this place, so I'd taken the opportunity earlier in the day to walk to a local market.
"Here," I said, handing her the glass. She could sense my discomfort and anger building. I sensed the same in her. I had no idea why she would be angry, or uncomfortable.
"John," Amber said stoically, squaring her shoulders and standing up a little straighter, "Leah won't be coming back to the room tonight." She left it there.
I raised my eyebrow, staring her in the eye. Now, there's plenty of things that I am, but stupid isn't one of them. I had toyed with the idea that possibly Leah had seen or met someone, and that was why she wanted to suddenly have her two days alone. Now it seemed that this mystery fucker had likely propositioned her, and she'd decided to throw away our entire fifteen-year relationship.
"Aren't you going to ask me something, Uncle?" Amber asked, surprised by my lack of urgency.
"Who is he?" I finally did ask. "When did she meet him?"
