Father name: Benjamin Marlowe
Mother Name: Amelia Marlowe
My name: Henry Marlowe
All characters are 18 plus.
Since I got back from the war, life hasn't been easy for us. The war messed everything up for us farmers. It has been super tough since it ended. We were working extra hard but still it wasn't enough. Stuff we needed to run the farm costs way too much. In the beginning it was going good due to new house work and new life. We'd play around and joke a lot, which made things exciting. But then, I started feeling like those little kisses and hugs weren't as exciting anymore. It was just too much work. I was always exhausted and in a bad mood. Which also affected mom. Mom was alone for a long time and now that I came back she was enjoying my company. And once again she was lonely even after living with her son.
Maybe it was because we were doing the same thing everyday. She wasn't giving herself to me but I can't expect more than what I was already having from her either. It wasn't easy for her to give me everything I needed and forget that I'm her son. But she was also young and she had her needs which made her even more bored and tipsy. I noticed she was also getting angry over silly things. But I wasn't much home to deal with that so It wasn't an issue for me for a while.
But then, things started to get worse. I noticed she wasn't doing as much around the house as she used to. She was neglecting her chores. That made me even more stressed out because I had to pick up the slack and do extra work to keep our home running.
One day, I couldn't hold it in anymore.
"Why aren't you helping out?" I said, feeling all grumpy.
She didn't take it well. She got mad and started arguing back at me. She said she was tired too and that I should understand her feelings.
But I was too upset and angry to listen. We ended up having a big fight, yelling at each other about who was doing more work and who was to blame for everything going wrong. I was super pissed off that I stormed away from the house.
I made some new friends here. One thing I learned from them was that go to a bar to take care of any kind of problem you're having that you don't want to face.
"Everything alright?" a friend of mine asked. "You don't come here alone and especially at this hour. Your wife alright?"
"Yeap, she's ok. I'm ok," I replied with a huge sigh and took a sip of beer.
"Wife trouble, huh?" he said. "Honeymoon period over then? Haha."
"Yea, I guess something like that," I replied.
"Is it that bad?" he kept poking.
"What do you do when your wife doesn't listen to you?" I asked.
"Is she asking for a new dress again? What is it this time, silk or satin?" he asked.
I was very happy to buy her nice dresses but she was spoiled. Her new friends were the main culprit. They bought new expensive dresses to show off and eventually she asked me to buy her a new one so she can show off too.
"Mom, I've been crunching numbers all afternoon. That dress you want for the barn dance is expensive. We can't just spend money like it grows on trees. We have a farm to run," I said with frustration.
"You never care about anything that makes me happy. It's not just a dress. It's about feeling like a lady for once. Working in your farm makes me sick," she replied.
"This isn't the time to be thinking about dresses. We're struggling as it is. I'm trying to provide for this family and you're talking about a dress that you don't need at all!" I said, raising my voice. "What happened with the last dress that I bought you last month?"
"You always make me feel like I'm asking for the world," she said, her eyes flashing with anger.
That was just a small fight over her dress. But it was easy to take care. I just had to buy her a new dress to make her happy again. This time it was different. She was not listening to me at all. She was doing whatever she liked to do. I had to do something with her disrespectful behavior.
"Nah, if it was over a new dress then I wouldn't be here and spend money on booze," I replied to my friend. "She's neglecting the household work again."
"That sounds bad. Why do you think she's been so bored lately?" he asked.
"Who knows?" I replied. "But it's putting extra strain on me. I'm picking up the slack while she's lost in her own thoughts. Reading romantic novels."
"Hmmm, maybe it's time for a change," he suggested with a playful smirk. "Having kids might give her something new to focus on. They'll certainly keep her busy, and you'll have some extra hands to help out around the farm."
"Alright but I need a faster solution," I replied.
"Something faster, huh? Just curious, have you ever raised your hand on your wife?" he asked.
"What? I would never. I love her. There must be other ways to discipline her without hitting her," I replied. "How can you hit your wife's pretty face? Go to war and show your strength there."
"I didn't say you need to slap her face," he replied. "You're newly wed so I guess you don't know it yet. Maybe your father was also good at hiding this stuff. Were you guys rich before the war? Only rich families could hide this with a big house."
"Stop wasting my time and tell me what to do. I can't work like this. Things will get worse soon. What the fuck is our leaders doing anyway. What's the point of ending war if we still suffer?"
"Alright, you drank too much. I think I should wait until you sober up otherwise it can backfire," he replied.
"Just..." I was angry.
"Now don't hit me. I don't want to beat you while you're drunk," he laughed.
"I can take you even if I get drunk and I'm far from getting drunk," I replied.
