I sat alone in the living room of my house and reflected on what had just happened.
My wife Claire and our daughter Courtney had just had a huge fight. I had no idea how the argument had started, but it had ended with Courtney running from the room in tears. Then Claire had said that she was getting 'one of my migraines' and that she was going to take a sleeping pill and go to bed.
Situation normal.
In fact, during the last couple of weeks, this had become a regular occurrence.
Claire really had tried to be tolerant of Courtney's attitude during this time. She had said that she realised that our daughter was under a lot of pressure at school, as her finals were only a few weeks away. I had agreed with Claire that that probably was the problem, but I had my doubts. In my considerable experience with women, this sort of behaviour is usually caused by one thing -- lack of sex.
In Courtney's case this theory made sense. She had dated boys casually since she was seventeen, but at her eighteenth birthday party she had spent most of the evening with a boy from her school called Josh, and they had started dating regularly. Then one Sunday morning a couple of weeks later, she had appeared late for breakfast, and in an unusual mood. It was a combination of happiness and guilt, and it was a mood that I well recognised. I knew immediately from her behaviour that she had had sex for the first time the previous night.
I didn't share this information with Claire; well, mothers always worry, don't they? Myself, I wasn't too worried. I knew that Courtney was on the Pill, and I knew that young women have sexual needs, and so it was just a matter of time before 'it' happened.
The next few weeks were a time of pure bliss in our household. Courtney was obviously getting laid regularly, and she was continually in a good mood, chattering happily to us or singing to herself. Her happiness was infectious, and it also put Claire in a good mood. Relatively good, that is.
I should explain what I mean by that. For the previous few years Claire has had little interest in sex, and usually the most that I could coax out of her was about once every two weeks. I finally gave up trying for anything more than this, and so I resorted to magazines and videos to fill the void in my life. But still, life was pleasant enough in our household.
Then suddenly everything changed. Courtney broke up with Josh. I had overheard her talking to one of her girlfriends on the phone, and apparently she had found out that Josh had been cheating on her. I had tried to comfort Courtney without actually letting on that I knew what had happened, but she was inconsolable. That's when the fights with Claire had started. And of course that meant an end to my peaceful life.
Something had to be done, and so I decided to go and talk to Courtney. I walked upstairs and knocked gently on her door. "Can I come in, Sweetie?" I asked.
"Yes, Daddy," Courtney replied.
I went into the room, and Courtly was lying on her bed. Her eyes were red and puffy from crying. I sat on the bed beside her and took her hand. "I know that things are a little rough for you right now, Sweetie," I said, "but you can't go on forever fighting with your mother."
"That bitch!" Courtney exclaimed. "She's always picking on me. I hate her!"
Now Courtney and Claire had never been all that close, but I knew that Claire hadn't actually been 'picking' on her. I rubbed Courtney's arm, and said, "It's not really your mother that you're angry with, it's Josh, isn't it?"
"Yes!" Courtney exclaimed. "Josh is a bastard! I hate him!"