Retreat From Reality

All characters are over 18 years of age.

Tony sat on her balcony and cried. It wasn't a hysterical type of cry with screaming and hollering. It was a quiet sob she finally allowed herself to release. For two days she'd held in all of her emotion in the hopes of keeping some type of structure for her son. However, today proved too difficult for the strong willed woman and while her son slept in his crib, Tony allowed the tears to flow down her face.

Just as her emotional levies were about to crumble Tony heard the alarm beep as her front door opened. She knew it could only be him. Only he had timing like this. It was typical of Kenny to rob her of any relief she sought. Despite having slightly swollen eyes and a runny nose from her tears, Tony tried her best to clean up her face not wanting Kenny to know he had upset her. She didn't want to give him the satisfaction of knowing how much he hurt her; how much power he had over her emotions.

"Babe?" Kenny called out as he walked into the entryway.

The hairs on the back of Tony's neck stood tall when he called her that. She couldn't believe he had the nerve to call her something affectionate as "Babe" after all he had put her through. She went from sad and crying to mad in a flash.

"Hey? Didn't you hear me calling you?" Kenny asked approaching the balcony just as Tony wiped her last tear.

"No," Tony replied not looking at him. Instead she stared off the balcony wishing she was anywhere but there.

"Is this how it's going to be?"

Tony ignored him relying on her anger to get through this moment without caving in. Tony always swore her biggest mistake ever was having sex with Kenny. Their first night together and subsequent love making thereafter had Tony hooked. Kenny had always been able to make up for whatever bad thing he'd done by seducing her into bed. She gathered her courage and attempted to be as strong as she could be. She had to fight the urge to fall into his arms despite how tempting it was to do otherwise.

"I don't want it to be like this between us," Kenny stated, putting his hand on her shoulder.

"It's not up to you how things are between us anymore," Tony said, shrugging his hand off her shoulder.

"What is wrong with you?" Kenny grabbed Tony by her shoulders as she tried to walk past him back into the house.

"What is right with you!" she shot back staring into his eyes. "Take your hands off me!" She broke eye contact and pulled away from him.

"Tony!" Kenny shouted.

"Do not wake up KJ!" Tony half whispered, walking back towards Kenny but not close enough for him to grab her again, even though he tried. "Why don't you just pack your things and leave? Just leave us alone! Don't you think you've done enough damage?"

"You're going to let something little like this destroy our marriage?"

"Little? Something little? Did you really mean to say that?" Tony asked dumbfounded.

"It's not mine so yes Tony it is something little. Why are you going to let that come between us?" Kenny asked.

Tony started to raise her voice then remembered KJ sleeping in the next room. "I didn't let anything happen, you did! You did the fucking! You did the cheating! Now you have another kid! I was not present for any of those things so none of this is on me Kenny."

She tried her best to choke back the tears, determined not to let Kenny see her cry. It made her so angry to see Kenny think so little of her and their marriage as to call this catastrophe 'something little'. Just looking at Kenny made Tony's heart break into a million pieces. The mere sound of his voice, the scent of his cologne, and the way he kept reaching out for her, all made her sick to her stomach. She wanted all the hurt to just stop. Having him around was only a reminder of the pain.

"Please Kenny, I'm begging you. Just leave. I don't have it in me to fight with you today," Tony tried to brush her bangs out her eyes. She was so frustrated with everything around her.

"You don't even want my side of the story? What I want doesn't even matter?"

"I can't believe your selfish, egotistical ass has the nerve to lecture me on your wants and needs," Tony said, walking into their master bedroom and to the closet.

"What are you doing?"

"I'm packing your things. You have until I'm done to state your case if that's what you want. We can do this in complete silence too, I know that's my preference," Tony stated flatly, pulling out a suitcase from the closet.

"OK, I fucked up. But I know the kid isn't mine! I only did it that one time!" Kenny exclaimed.

Kenny's comment caused Tony to stop cold. "Only did it the one time?" Tony threw a pair of socks at Kenny who dodged it, which only infuriated Tony more. She lifted the suitcase as if she were going to throw that at him next but changed her mind. Resorting to his juvenile behavior wouldn't the right thing to do, but it would definitely make her feel better.

"Well gold star for Kenny! You were able to restrain yourself and only sleep with her one time! You only fucked her once so you deserve the husband of the year award right? Fuck this and fuck you Kenny! You're out of here!"

Kenny tried cleaning up his statement a little. "What did you want to hear? I told you, I'd take care of all of this. Making me move out isn't even necessary."

"You slept with another woman Kenny. Not only did you cheat on me, you did it when I was carrying your son! Oh, but I keep forgetting – it's something little," she said as sarcastically as she possibly could.

"I said I fucked up. I admit that I was wrong. What else do you want from me?"

"Is that some sort of apology? If that's the best you can do you can keep it because I don't want a fake ass apology like that. You didn't just fuck up! You fucked me and your son. You ruined our marriage and our family all for a piece of ass. You can have that piece of ass and that girl and that baby because I don't want you. I can't trust you. I have no idea how many other times you've stepped out on me. You put our whole family in danger. You could have brought any type of disease home to me since you want to dip your dick into anything willing. So saying you fucked up doesn't begin to touch what you've done nor does it serve as an apology." Tony was stuffing boxers, socks and t-shirts into the suitcase in any way they would fit.

Kenny walked over to Tony and in his best sweet talking voice said, "Please don't act like this baby. You know I love you and our son."

"Get back Kenny! Stay away from me. You're trying to trick me into forgiving you and it won't work. You didn't just forget to pick me up or leave dirty dishes in the sink. You cheated on me. You broke my heart don't you see that?"

"Yes, I see how much I've hurt you. Please don't cry."

Tony was so upset she never even felt the tears fall from her eyes down her cheeks. She didn't realize she was crying until she put her hand to her face and felt the wetness.

"Dammit!" Tony cried out and fell to the floor.

Kenny bent down and knelt beside her. He tried his best to hold her but Tony fought him. Again, her pain turned to anger and she fought hard to keep her anger, to stand her ground. Tony punched wildly at Kenny, not necessarily trying to hurt him or push him off her, but as an automatic defense mechanism. Of course in her heart she wanted to snuggle in his arms and forget all that had happened. But the pain from all he'd done to her rose above her wants and instead she fought him. Wrestling on the ground Kenny grabbed both of her arms and wrapped his legs around hers to keep her wild punches and kicks from actually landing on him.

"Stop girl!" Kenny tried to restrain Tony without hurting her.

"Why?" Tony cried out. "Why?"

"I love you T," Kenny professed.

"You love me so much you cheated on me? You think you know what love is but you don't have a clue. You take love for granted. You use love as a pawn in your game to get what you want. You don't know what love truly is. Love is me giving my life to you. It is me giving my mind and my body to you. Instead, you threw all that away. And for what? How could you hurt me like this? I would have died for you Kenny."

It was her last statement that caused Kenny to release the wrestling hold he had on Tony. He couldn't respond because he didn't have a valid explanation for his actions. Holding her, trying to force her to see that he meant no harm, wasn't going to help the situation.

"I'm not leaving Tony. You think I don't love you but I do, love my son too and I don't think I could survive without the two of you."

Tony doubled over in pain. Her stomach ached from the disappointment she had in Kenny and herself. When she told Kenny that she would have died for him that was just the surface. There was no limit to the things she'd do for Kenny. To provide for her man she had done things she was not proud of but she did them regardless in the name of love. She'd gone to hell and back for him and had long since proved her allegiance to him. It literally ate at her to believe that he had such little regard for her loyalty for him.

"Are you ok?" Kenny asked as he walked into their bathroom.

"Just leave me alone," Tony managed to get out as she tried to breath through the pain.

She winced in pain, shutting her eyes tight. A few deep breaths and moments of massaging her stomach and she regained her composure. Tony opened her eyes and leaned back against the bed ready to confront Kenny but he had left the room. She walked into the living room where she found him sitting on the couch waiting for her.

Instead of walking to him, she headed for the kitchen and pretended to straighten up the room. She came across the papers. The court papers which had started spiraling her life out of control. Tony found it amazing how a six page document could turn a person's world upside down and inside out. It had been addressed to Kenny but since he wasn't at home when the document server knocked on the door, Tony just opened it never imagining for an instant what the contents held. The child support order called for Kenny to pay back child support on a female child born two months after KJ. To Tony it seemed as though the papers kept calling her to look at them. To relive the pain by seeing in print what he had done to her family and her life.

"What are you reading?" Kenny asked, snapping Tony back to reality.

"No-nothing," she stammered, trying to figure out what was real and what was in her head.

"Why are you reading that? I thought we had discussed that."

"Nothing was discussed Kenny," Tony rolled her eyes at him and stuffed the papers into the junk drawer.

"Look, I've apologized for what I've done," Kenny started.

"You call that an..." The ringing phone stopped Tony from telling Kenny that she thought his apology had been nothing more than a sorry excuse of an apology.

Aggravated, Tony answered the telephone. "Hello?"

"Mrs. Fisher?"

"I am for now," Tony answered, glaring at Kenny. "How can I help you?"

"This is Tina from Great Escapes Travel Company," Tina paused allowing Tony a moment to remember.

"Oh yes, I had completely forgotten," Tony replied.

"Well, your travel arrangements have been finalized and your credit card has been billed the final installment. You're free to pick up your tickets anytime. I hope you enjoy Puerto Vallarta and hope you choose Great Escapes for all of your travel needs.

"Yes, thank you," Tony said hanging up the phone. She had completely forgotten she had planned an anniversary get away for her and Kenny.

Kenny and Tony never had an official honeymoon and Tony had always wanted to visit Mexico. Tony had earned a nice hefty bonus at work and hadn't told Kenny about it. Instead she planned their great anniversary vacation and now she couldn't use it. She looked over at Kenny sitting on the couch and contemplated telling him about the vacation.

She came to her senses quickly, realizing that she would never want to take her adulterous husband for a romantic vacation. If she couldn't stand to be near him at home she definitely didn't want to be stuck in another country with him. She decided she wasn't going to mention this to him at all. Instead she walked gingerly back to the bedroom, and emptied the suitcase she had filled with Kenny's belongings.

"What are you doing? Now you're going to move out?" Kenny asked, following her through the house.

Disgusted with having to explain her actions, Tony said, "Please, this is my house. I'm not moving!"

She began searching for her swimsuit. She had bought two suits just for this trip. One was a string bikini with red, blue, green and yellow polka dots. The second was a sleek blue one piece that had the sides cut out and had a nice deep v-cut front. She bought that one especially for Kenny knowing he loved the way she looked in his favorite color. She quickly stuffed both suits into the suitcase trying not to give any hints to her destination.

"Then what are you doing? Where are you going Tony? I'm tired of playing these games with you."

"Kenny, I'm not playing any games with you. I'm going on a trip for a while, hence the reason I'm packing," she said, pointing to the small pile of clothes she'd accumulated on the bed.

"Where are you going?"

"Away Kenny."

Mocking her, Kenny asked, "Away where Tony?"

"More mundane questions," she thought to herself. Then she replied, "Far away from you Kenny."

"You're just going to leave me and KJ?"

Without interrupting her packing and not daring to stop and look at Kenny she simply replied, "Nope."

"Answer me girl!" Kenny grabbed Tony by both arms and faced her to him. "Look at me and tell me what's going on."

Tony took a deep breath attempting to remain as calm as possible. "I don't owe you any explanation Kenny." She avoided looking him directly in the eyes.

"You're not taking my son away from me," Kenny said, tightening his hold on Tony.

Squirming out of his grip and stepping back to put space between them, Tony backed away. "You don't have the right anymore to tell me what I am or what I am not going to do." Emphasizing each word Tony continued on. "My son is staying at my mother's house. I will be on vacation. I'm going away. I need to be as far away from you and all of your bullshit as possible. After all you've put me through you, I've earned a vacation."

"Do what you want Tony." Kenny stomped out of the bedroom.

Relief flowed through Tony's body. She closed her eyes and leaned against her stuffed suitcase, reminding herself that she only had to get through the night. Tomorrow she'd be on a plane to Puerto Vallarta. Ironically, despite all the drama she had been through, Tony began to feel excited. She had something to look forward to and that was a pleasant change from the constant dread that seemed to follow her at home. While her initial plans were for her to share this vacation with Kenny, she eagerly anticipated traveling and vacationing alone.

***

Tony drove down the highway with her stereo blasting as she headed for the airport. She'd left her home earlier than necessary, which allowed her ample time to get her son to her mother's and to take a leisurely drive into the airport. It was very early Saturday morning and as she drove with the windows rolled down, she let her body sink into the reclined driver's seat and enjoyed the breeze. She pulled into the long term parking section of the airport singing along with the CD she had playing.

Tony eyed a perfect place to park not too far from the entrance and proceeded to pull into it. Just as she turned her wheels to park, another car came squealing around the corner from the opposite direction and bullied its way into the spot. Under normal conditions, Tony would have blown her top, furious with anger. However, today was a very different day; a new day for Tony. Instead of succumbing to an argument that would inevitably ruin her good day, she smiled at the car and searched for another spot.

Tony pulled her luggage behind her and walked into the airport towards check-in when a voice called out from behind her, "I'm sorry for taking your spot." Without missing a beat she strode into the building replying, "I'm sure you're not."

She never stopped moving towards the ticket counter. Tony was determined not to let anything or anyone stop her from reaching her destination. This vacation was a refuge from the horrific reality that she was leaving behind. Nothing was going to prevent her from receiving this one opportunity at a little bit of happiness. Her son was safe at her mother's house where she didn't have to worry and from this point on, until she returned, it was going to be all about Tony Fisher.

Nestled in her seat, Tony began to relax and get comfortable. She fully intended to sleep the entire plane ride to Puerto Vallarta. Just as the last passengers were boarding and Tony was sure she'd have the entire row of seats to herself, a familiar voice emerged.

"Its fate isn't it?" The voice of the man from the parking garage spoke.

"I couldn't possibly be this unlucky," Tony mumbled, shaking her head.

"I think we started off on the wrong foot." The stranger stuck his arm under Tony's nose in an attempt to shake her hand. "My name is Alex and you are?"

Left with no option, Tony looked up and shook his hand. "I'm Tony. Nice to meet you Mr. Likes-To-Take-Parking-Spaces."

"Nice. Not only is she beautiful, she's a smart ass to boot," he observed. "As I tried to tell you before, I didn't mean to take your parking space. I was pulling out my airline ticket and getting ready as I was parking. I never noticed you there until it was too late. You pulled off down the aisle so quick I couldn't do anything but park there. Then when I tried to apologize you gave me the hand!"

"Well, that certainly does say something about your driving skills, doesn't it," Tony said, moving her belongings from the middle seat.

"No, please don't move your stuff. My seat is the aisle seat; feel free to leave your stuff there. I don't think anybody will be sitting between us. At least I hope not." Alex winked at her and took his assigned seat.

Alex and Tony talked the entire flight, only pausing for food and drinks. Tony had two glasses of wine and a gin and tonic. The mixture of alcohol and altitude had her intoxicated only half way to their destination. As they talked, Tony found out Alex lived one town over from KJ and herself. He was an executive chef at an upscale restaurant Tony had been dying to visit. Kenny claimed only bourgeois blacks went there and didn't want to go.

She also learned that Alex was married too, with two boys of his own. His wife did something with corporate law and was more married to her job than to Alex. He'd booked this trip on his own to get away and to try to make heads or tails of his future with his wife. Tony filled Alex in on her own situation with Kenny and her reasons for escaping for the week. By the time they landed, they seemed as if they were more like old friends than the arch enemies they could have been. Alex's hotel was near Tony's so they shared a taxi.

"Please tell me you'll have dinner with me tonight," Alex said, carrying her bag into the hotel.

"I don't know if we should, you know..." Tony trailed off.

"You don't know if we should do dinner? What's dinner between two friends?" Alex asked as they reached the front desk.

Despite not knowing a single soul other than Alex in this foreign country, Tony looked around to see if anybody she'd recognize was watching. She whispered. "What if somebody sees?"

"Honestly Tony, who do you know here except me? But if it will make you feel better why not have dinner with me in my suite? Before you turn me down, my suite has a separate dining area. You wouldn't even see my bed."