I'm detecting a trend. This one is edited, again by the smartest, lovliest ladies on Lit. And this is not just my opinion. Enjoy.
This is a pretty common theme. MM did it, several others have put their spin on it, Bigguy 33 was the most recent. This is my spin.
*****
"Wait, what did you say?" Dave was in his wife's office. She was the head honcho of the division, the big cheese. Dave, he was a lowly accounts representative, quite a bit down the food chain. he was a little nervous at first when she came on board, but there were several levels of management between them, so it was all good, he thought. Maybe not.
"You're numbers are way down, Mr. Waxman. You were the worst performer of the year in your division. I'm afraid we had no choice. X is waiting outside to escort you to your office to collect your things." X stood for Xavier, one of their two security guards.
The had always called each other Mr. and Ms. in work settings, to keep it more professional. She kept her last name for professional reasons, so she said, but everybody in the office knew they were married. He even had a picture of her on his desk, of her shaking the hand of the Chairman of the Board as she received her promotion.
"That's it? Nine years of loyal service to this company and I'm terminated because my numbers are off? If you had bothered to listen to me, you would know..."
"Please, stop. The decision has been made. Let's not make it any harder than it has to be."
For some reason, that struck him as funny. "Listen, Pink, I mean Ms Patterson, I really..."
She must have hit some button, because all of a sudden three hundred pounds of black muscle was in the room with them. "Xavier, would you please escort Mr. Waxman to his desk to collect his things? Best of luck to you Mr. Waxman, perhaps this will encourage you to try harder at your next position."
X definitely looked embarrassed, but he had his own job to do. Dave looked at him and grinned. "C'mon X. Like the lady said, let's not make it any harder than it has to be."
She was still talking when Dave went out the door. Everyone avoided looking at him, which told him most of them knew beforehand. That definitely didn't improve his mood. He walked slowly, looking those who would glance at him in the eye. They looked away every time, and the women actually blushed. He kept very little in the way of personal items in his office, so it didn't take fifteen minutes to pack one small box. He was walking out when X spoke.
"You forgot this, Mr. Waxman," he said, handing Dave the expensive pen and pencil set she had given him when he made Salesman Of The Year the first time. Dave looked at it for a second and dropped it in the wastebasket with her picture.
"No, I didn't"
X drove Dave home, so he could take the company car back. After several attempts at conversation he got the message and shut up. As Dave got out, X reached over to shake my hand. Dave took it, because it was just his job and he really liked the guy. "Sorry, man. Sorry it happened like that."
Dave grinned, even though he didn't feel like it. "Me, too."
He walked in, looking at the house as if it was the very first time he ever saw it. He realized suddenly there was very little of his presence in the house. It seemed she was minimalizing him at home as well as work. It made him wonder if he had a performance issue at home, and if he'd be canned for not keeping his numbers up.
She came in about seven, late even for her. Dave was watching a baseball game and didn't even look up. "Hi, honey, sorry I'm late. Meetings ran over, you know how the Board loves the sound of their own voices."
He didn't respond, just kept watching the game. She looked at him for a minute before deciding to try a different track. "What's for dinner?"
It had been their practice over the years that whoever got home first made dinner. It had occurred to him as he examined their relationship that she probably hadn't fixed dinner more than a dozen times in the last year, and most of those times were because he was traveling.
"Whatever you decide to fix yourself. I've already eaten."
She just stared for a minute before she opened her mouth and started the worst fight of their marriage. "Surely you're not mad about today. It was a business decision, honey. It had nothing to do with you personally. I still love you just as much."
"For an executive and a fairly intelligent person, I can't help but think in this case you're a fucking moron! And by the way, yes, I am angry. In fact, I'm pissed beyond words. You handled the whole thing very badly. Had I ever gotten an unfavorable review in all the time I'd worked there? Where's the paper trail of warnings, counseling and reprimands? Sure, my numbers were down, but there's a very good reason. One you never bothered to discover. I..."
"Stop begging! I'm sure I did the right thing professionally."
It shocked him so badly that he did stop talking for a minute. She smiled and started to speak, but he exploded. "Fuck you, the Board, and every other asshole in the company! YOU WERE NOT PROFESSIONAL, YOU WERE NOT REASONABLE, AND YOU DAMN SURE WEREN'T INTERESTED IN ANYTHING I HAD TO SAY. Tell me, how much input did Adler have in this?"
She was reeling at his outburst. She actually stuttered for a minute before she got it out. "He's been concerned for months, and was very nervous when he brought me the numbers. You had gone from being one of our top producers to the absolute worst. I had no choice! I had to send the message that no matter who you were, if you didn't produce, you were gone. It was the only way I had to keep the respect of the people under me."
"Once again, a fucking moron. I've been thinking all afternoon, now that I had some free time. When did you stop respecting me as a man and an employee? If you'd had the least bit of love for me, personally, or regard, professionally, you would have handled this completely differently. You could have tried talking to me, give me a heads up, and if it got bad, you could have offered me a chance to resign. Do you have any idea how hard it's going to be for me to find another position? If I can't perform well enough for my wife, someone who is supposed to love me, why would strangers trust me to do a good job? You've fucked me in this town; I'll have a hell of a time landing a job now. It not like I can whip out a glowing review from my old company, now is it? I've said enough. If we continue, we, or rather I, may say some things that can't be taken back. Why don't you get some dinner, and I'll finish watching the game."
She tried one more time. "I never thought you'd take it so badly. It's just business, honey. We'll be fine. And don't worry about a job; I make more than enough to keep us..."
Dave held up his hand. "Please, stop while you're losing. I'd bet you'd love to turn me into a househusband; it would cement your reputation as a tough as nails CEO. I can hear them now. 'Watch out for that one. She's so tough she fired her husband and turned him into a little house bitch. Bet she's the one who's on top when they fuck, if she isn't banging him with a strapon. Wonder if she makes him wear panties around the house?' Well, you can forget that shit. I'll eventually land another position somewhere, even if it's not here. Now please, stop talking."
He'd finally managed to piss her off. "Fine! Sulk! Get angry! It might give you enough motivation to do a good job next time. FYI, honey, your little tantrum put the skids on the extra good loving I had intended to give you tonight. Looks like it'll be you and your fingers if you want any release in the near future."
He shrugged. "Fine. At least they won't fire me if I don't perform as expected."
That one hit her hard. She tried forming words until she finally screamed in frustration and stomped out of the room. He heard her rattling pans in the kitchen, so he assumed she made her dinner. A little while later, he heard her go up the stairs. She came back in the 'absolutely no sex for you tonight' outfit: an old tee shirt and ratty sweatpants. It seemed to upset that he didn't comment. They sat, and he let the silence stretch. Finally she spoke.
"I'm sorry, okay? I wrestled with it a long time before I made the decision. I do love you, and it isn't the end of the world. We can..."
"We can stop talking about it. What's done is done, and you can't unring the bell. I'm going to bed. I need to get up early and put some feelers out, see if I can salvage anything out of the fiasco you turned my life into. Good night."
She floundered for something to say, before settling on "I'll be up in a little while."
He was already asleep when she woke him with her scream. Seems when she changed, she never noticed that his things were gone. He was in the largest guestroom with attached bath, and planned to stay there a while. Soon she was knocking on the door, demanding that he let her in. Dave just turned back over, wondering how mad she'd be when she realized he'd changed the lock on the door and she didn't have a key. Ten minutes later he heard the lock rattle. A few minutes after that he heard a sigh, and then went to sleep.