Shame, Shame, Shame

SHAME ON YOU!

"I'm sorry. I wish I had better news. You have the beginnings of Stage 4 breast cancer. You have a good chance, however, of survival. We will need to do surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation. It will be very difficult for both of you, and we need to do the surgery as soon as possible."

Although the news was expected to some degree, no one can quite be prepared to hear the pronouncement. Sheila asked, "What do you mean by surgery? Are you going to take the cancerous part of one of my breasts out?"

"No. If we tried that, I'm afraid we would be back here in less than a year or so to do more surgery. We have found it best that we remove both breasts to ensure we got it all. Even then, there's a chance it may have already spread. In your case, I'm pretty sure that the surgery and other therapy will do the trick."

"It's easy for you to say, 'cut off her breasts.' You don't have breasts! I won't be a woman anymore!" Sheila started crying.

Kurt, her husband spoke up, "Sheila, you will still be a woman: the woman I love and cherish. If it will keep you alive, you need to do it."

The doctor chimed in. "Mrs. Ambrose, your insurance covers breast surgery and plastic surgery. You will get two new breasts that, as far as appearance under clothing, will make you look normal. As far as function, however, you won't be able to breast feed. It will take several progressive surgeries to get the results that I believe you will feel comfortable about. We've done many of these over the years and we've gotten better each time. As far as the new breasts are concerned, many women tell me that either no one noticed or had actually heard comments that her breasts looked better than before."

"Better? How?"

"Well, you can choose the size and shape breasts you want. Most women choose larger breasts and more rounded. But that would be up to you."

"You mean I can have larger breasts if I want. Kurt, wouldn't you like that?"

"I would like anything that keeps you alive and healthy. If you want bigger breasts, go for it."

"All right. When can you do the surgery?"

Sheila's surgery went well. She was in considerable pain, but Kurt, her mother or her sister helped her through. All three took turns performing some of Sheila's household chores. Her school let her have a year sabbatical from teaching.

The reaction to the chemotherapy and radiation was worse than the surgery. It was hard for Sheila to eat or even drink at times. She lost a lot of weight and hair. Vomiting was almost a daily part of her life for what seemed a long time. Kurt provided most of her care. He used up all the vacation and sick leave time he could before applying for the Family Leave program. That meant he kept his job even with the long absence. He turned down a job promotion because it would have kept him away from home while Sheila was still recovering.

It was a year before Sheila felt like she was back to normal. Actually, she felt she was better than normal. In high school she was teased as belonging to the 'Little Bitty Titty Club.' Now she had a 36 C bra size. She was more than confident in her appearance. Sheila had a huge personality change.

Although she had lost a lot of weight, she knew she would gain some of it back. Sheila enrolled herself and Kurt at a gym and they started working out. Healthy weight was gained to the right places. By the time her hair grew back, she was looking good. She asked Kurt, "Did you see how those college boys were looking at me?"

"All the men noticed how good you look. I'm proud of your hard work. I'm most glad that you're healthier now than you ever have been."

"I've never had men look at me that way. It's exciting. Do you think they might be hoping to have sex with me? That would be so cool."

"You want to attract men who want to have sex with you?"

"You know I don't want to have sex with anyone but you, BUTTTT, it makes me feel alive to know that I'm attractive to other men besides you. I've always wondered why someone as handsome was you wanted to marry me. Now I feel like I'm more in your class of looks."

"Sheila, I ALWAYS have thought you were pretty, inside and out. Now the outside part is more glamorous. I'm glad you're happy with it but looks aren't everything."

"Well, looks may not be everything, but I'm going to enjoy showing off my new looks."

"Just be sure not to show too much." Sheila dismissed his concern.

Sheila couldn't wear anything daring when she returned to teaching middle school science. It did not matter. It did not take showing a lot of skin or wearing tight clothes to make middle school boys lust after their female teachers. She could tell the looks she got from the boys were more lingering than before. It actually helped with discipline as the boys did not want to get in trouble with the object of their carnal desires.

It was at outings and parties that Sheila's wardrobe changed the most. She wanted to display her new wares in the front window. Men more than noticed. She got comments which she appreciated. The more risqué the comments, the more she approved, leading to more suggestive comments and the desire to touch her 'new puppies.' When she danced with men, being held close meant rubbing her large breasts against the men. She escalated their lust by rubbing their crotches with her lower body. There were more tents than at a Boy Scout Jamboree.

After the first night Sheila had shown off the new her, she exclaimed to Kurt when they got home, "Wasn't that great! Men other than you thought I was sexy!

Kurt hated to criticize Sheila. She suffered greatly but had beaten death. She deserved some celebration of life. He kept things bottled up until he could take it no more. Before the party at the Barnes home, Kurt firmly asked her to tone down her flirting. Sheila poo-pooed his concerns as foolish jealousy. She said he should be proud that other men found her attractive. She was just having fun enjoying the attention of men she had not gotten before.

That night the kissing, rubbing, and groping was the worst yet. He was especially upset when one of the men appeared to have his hand under her skirt and was close, if not touching, between her legs. She seemed to offer no resistance. Kurt went over and the hand was quickly withdrawn. The men appeared amused at Kurt rather than feeling guilty for groping his wife.

"Sheila, I would like for us to go now."

"Why? I'm having a good time. Go mingle with the others." She turned away to pay more attention to the circle of men she was entertaining with bawdy jokes.

In a more determined voice, Kurt said, "Sheila, I would like for us to go now."

"Well, I don't care what you would like. You are my husband, but not my master. I am here to have fun, so I'm not going now." Again, she turned away.

"Good-bye Shelia."

It was almost 2:00 am when Kurt received a phone call. "Kurt, where are you? I need a ride home."

"I told you I wanted to leave. I'm already in bed. Get one of your many admirers to take you home. I'm going back to bed." He hung up.

Sheila was mad. None of her male friends were sober enough to take her home. The wives of the men were not interested in doing her any favors after she dominated the attention of their husbands all night. She took a taxi home.

The house was dark. She staggered up the porch steps and fumbled with the keys before she found the right one. "Bastard could have left a light on." Sheila opened the door. She made no effort to be quiet. "I hope I wake him up." She smiled momentarily. After throwing her purse and her wrap on the living room couch, she went upstairs, clutching to the handrail all the way.

Her heels clopped down the laminated wood floor hallway to the master bedroom. The door swung open and thumped against the door stop on the wall. She turned the light on only to be disappointed that Kurt was not in the bed. Her deliberate noisiness had been for vain. "Let him sleep in the guestroom. The bed in there sucks." Only the outer layer of her clothing came off before she fell into bed, instantly sleeping.

It was almost noon on Saturday before Sheila awoke. When she saw the clock, she wondered why Kurt had allowed her to sleep that late. She sniffed the air and did not detect the smell of coffee and breakfast that Kurt usually fixed on Saturday and Sunday mornings. Sheila figured Kurt was waiting until she awoke. She did need the extra sleep.

Putting on her robe, Sheila again had to use the handrails to descend the stairs. Once in the kitchen, she quickly saw that no coffee had been made, much less breakfast. Luckily, they had a Keurig besides the regular coffee pot. The pod of coffee wasn't Sheila's favorite, but it was quick, and she needed the caffeine as soon as possible. She put a Pop Tart in the toaster, a quickie meal usually reserved for running late days.

After the makeshift breakfast, Sheila looked out into the garage and saw only her car there. Kurt must have gone out for breakfast to continue his pouting from last night. "Now I'll have two beds to make up. He'll pay for this snit fit."

Sheila went upstairs to the guest bedroom. She was surprised to see the bed was made. In fact, it did not look like it had been slept in at all. "Where the hell is he?" She called his cell phone.

"Hello, Sheila." No terms of endearment.

"Hello, shit-head. Where the hell are you? You told me that you were going to bed when I called last night."

"No, I said I was 'in bed.' I didn't say I was in a bed at our house. I wasn't sure if you were going to bring home one of your boyfriends, so I left for a motel."

"Damn it Kurt, you know I was just flirting. Well, get your ass back here. We need to talk."

"We're talking now. I don't see why I need to come back there."

"You are being childish and ridiculous. What are you so upset about?"

"I got sick and tired of you kissing, being groped by, and having your pussy played with in front of all those men."

"Good grief, is that's all that's bothering you? We were just having a good time. The men were friendly, and I was going along with it. Nothing so bad happened for you to get so pissy about. At least THEY were pleased with how I look now."

"Just friendly? Oh really. How about answering these questions? Remember I saw you, so you better answer truthfully."

"You better watch your threats with me, buster. But go ahead. Ask away and I'll be honest."

"Did you or did you not kiss other men?"

"Sure, I did. They were just friendly kisses."

"Did you exchange tongues when you kissed them?"

A pause came in the conversation. "Maybe a little. No big deal."

"To you maybe. Not to your husband."

"Did you let men put their hands on your ass and your tits?"

"Some of the guys may have brushed their hands against my breasts and bottom. I wouldn't call that groping."

"Did their hands ever get inside your clothes?"

Again, a pause. "It was just a few seconds. I made them quit."

"I SAW how 'quickly' you made them quit and how soon their hands returned. How about how far did David's hand get? Did his fingers penetrate your vagina?"

"No, I would never allow that. I guess he did briefly brush up against my panty. I wasn't really paying attention."

"I hate to wonder what was occupying your attention that you didn't notice that a man was trying to finger you. As far as I'm concerned, you have betrayed our marriage vows."

"You're making a mountain out of mole hill. The guys all knew we were just playing around. Nothing serious was going on. Lighten up. I was just trying to have some well-deserved partying."

"According to two of the guys who came up to me, they assumed we had an 'open' marriage. That was the only reason they thought I would let you do the things you were doing. They even asked if I would be okay with your having a gangbang because that was what they seemed to think you wanted. Does that sound like they understood your flirtation was harmless?"

"Okay. Geez. So, I let things get a little out of hand. The important thing is that I didn't do anything earth shattering. Damn it, Kurt. Don't you remember? I HAD CANCER. I almost died. I had my boobs cut off. I was sick for months. I had surgery after surgery to get new breasts. When all that was finally over, I had a new body from the weight loss and new, bigger tits from the surgery. I was not a popular girl in high school or college because of what I looked like. Now men like how I look, so I'm making up for lost time. Just let me have fun for a little while and then we can have kids and do the whole family thing."

"Actually, I plan on letting you have all the fun you want. I plan to have you served with a 90 day legal separation with an option to divorce in 60 days after that. During our separation, you can flirt and screw anyone you like. It will take both of us to agree not to divorce at the end of the 60 days."

"You are just jealous of all the attention I'm getting. For all I know you already have a woman on the side. You seem awful anxious to dump me. Well, two can play this game. I bet I can find several of the neighborhood husbands who would like to fuck me. No, make that I WILL find one of our neighbors to fuck. How do you like that? What will happen to your precious reputation when people find out that you've become a cuckhold by your own choice?"

"I'll try to put this in terms you will understand. Sheila, I stood by you through the breast cancer. I will not stand by you through your latest cancer: the cancer of disrespect. Our marriage is in Stage 4 and you don't seem to care. Now that you have made your intentions clear, and since you don't seem to mind that people know you intend to cuckold me, so be it." He hung up.

"Wait. What do you mean by that?" It was no use. She called back immediately, but her call went to voice mail. "You better not do something stupid. Come back home now or you'll be sorry."

Kurt did not come home. Sheila decided to escalate their squabble by inviting David to take her to dinner. They went to Sheila and Kurt's favorite Italian restaurant. She was hoping that the staff would let Kurt know she had come there with a date. The restaurant staff greeted Sheila by name and asked her if she was planning on sitting with her husband. Sheila was surprised Kurt was there and said, "No, but I would like somewhere close to him." That was no problem.

When Sheila and David approached their table, she saw Kurt sitting at another nearby table with an absolutely gorgeous, but somewhat older, woman. They were laughing and seeming to be having a good time. Sheila was ready for a confrontation: "I see my worries about you having an affair were justified. Where did you find her, 'Sluts Are Us?'"

Kurt let out a big sigh. "Sheila, permit me to introduce you to Mrs. Thelma Baxter, my boss' wife."

Sheila was taken aback but only for a minute. "You think you can fool me with that line? So, how much do you charge for your escort services, bitch?"

Mrs. Baxter replied, "$2000 a night. How much do you charge?"

Kurt started laughing loudly. "She got you with that one."

Sheila was getting angrier by the second. "So why is she here without her husband?"

A male voice from behind her said, "Because I was going to be late, I asked Kurt to pinch hit until I could get here. I see I've missed some of the entertainment."

Sheila looked dumbfounded. "I'm so sorry, Mrs. Baxter. I didn't mean it."

"No problem, dear. I haven't had this much fun in ages."

Sheila sheepishly asked, "Kurt, can I see you alone for a minute?"

"I was just leaving. Have a good evening, folks." Kurt got up and headed for the entrance. Sheila and David followed behind.

Before Sheila could say a word, Kurt proclaimed: "This is not the time or place to expose our disagreement. Go home or wherever you two were planning on spending the night. I will contact you tomorrow night."

Sheila told David to take her home. Once there, Sheila got out of the car. David turned the car off, but Sheila said, "I didn't invite you in."

"Wait, you were the one who asked me to take you out. I should get something for doing what you asked."

"What did you expect?"

"At least a blowjob, I guess."

Sheila thought for a second. "Okay. I'll call your wife. If she says it's okay, we'll do it."

"No. Don't call her. Shit, you're one weird bitch." He left leaving a strip of rubber on the road in front of her house.

Sheila had a few drinks and headed for bed. She was miserable. "How the hell did this all come about? I just wanted to have some fun. I deserve it."

At work the next day, Kurt received a message that Sheila was on the phone for him. He instructed his secretary to remind Sheila that he would call tonight. In spite of Sheila's protest, the call was terminated. The day passed very slowly for Sheila.

Sheila waited at home for the call from Kurt. The phone rang but it was her neighbor, Millie. "Hi, Millie, what can I do for you?"

"You can leave our husbands alone, you bitch."

"Excuse me!"

"Kurt sent us the recording of your plot to seduce one or more of our husbands. The wives of the neighborhood have asked me to convey a declaration of war on you. If you make one move towards any of our husbands, you will regret it. If you think that's an idle threat, make a move and see.

"I can't believe that we had such sympathy for you when you had your surgery and treatment. Most of us brought you food. Some of us spelled Kurt for a while so he could have a break. A couple of our husbands mowed your lawn so Kurt wouldn't have to. We were pleasantly surprised that Kurt spent so much of his time caring for you. None of us think our husbands would have done that much if any one of us had cancer. All of us were jealous of you having such a loving husband who would sacrifice everything for you. Now you're betraying the best man any of us has ever met.

"I would like to say more, but my blood pressure is getting too high. On behalf of the women in the neighborhood: SHAME ON YOU!" Millie hung up.

"Wait. I was bluffing. I wasn't really going to do it." Her pleas were not heard by anyone other than herself.

Sheila didn't have long to digest the call. Her mother called soon after she hung up from talking with Millie. "Hi, Mom. You won't believe what a mess I'm in."

"Sheila, how could you?"

"Good grief! Did Kurt send you a copy of my rant too?"

"He certainly did. I'm glad because I would not have believed it if I hadn't heard it myself. What in the world were you thinking?"

"Mom, I just wanted to have a little fun. I think I deserve it after all I had to put up with the surgery, chemo and radiation."

"You DESERVE it? Oh, my dear Lord. I was so proud of the way you came through the surgery and chemo. But I was even more proud of the way Kurt took care of you. Yes, I helped some, but he was the one who did the most. He never complained even when he was crying."

"Crying? I never saw him cry."

"Why do you think that was? He made sure you never saw him cry because he didn't want to see how caring for you was weighing him down. I remember one night in particular where he and I stayed up all night. He cried the whole time. Many other nights he cried for several hours. He cried because he was still afraid he would lose you. He was afraid the cancer would either still be there or come back. Did you notice how much weight he lost? Not as much as you, but he got below a healthy weight."

"Well, I did think he lost a few pounds."

"It seems there was a lot you didn't notice. Did you notice he was always there to comfort you? Did you notice how many times he lay next to you when you were scared and feeling depressed? Did you notice how he bathed your skinny, scarred, hairless body while he was telling you how beautiful you were? Did you notice that he carried you to the bathroom for months? Did you notice when he fed you, clothed you, and put lipstick on you? Did you notice how he cleaned up all the vomit? Did you notice when he wiped your ass? With all those medications, believe me, there was a lot of mess from the vomit and your runny feces.