The Five Week Plan

The Five Week Plan

David was psychologically emasculated by his ex-wife. His friend Maggie brings him back to sexual fulfillment using the Five Week Plan.

Doomed Marriage

It had been three months since he left his wife of 17 years for good. A few years before she began accusing him of having affairs with targets of her choosing. It started with her insistence that he was sleeping with one of the women in whatever office he worked in at the time.

David didn't travel on business often but when he returned from his recent trips Peggy met him with a coldness that he didn't have to deal with earlier in their marriage, demanding to know who he had sex with on the trip. And lately she was angry with him for some imagined infidelity almost constantly. Peggy's frequent accusations always led to angry arguments and shouting matches. Their sex life had all but disappeared because her criticism of his performance she destroyed any confidence he had in his sexual performance.

He knew he wasn't having affairs but his wife had created her own reality where he was a philanderer, just like her father had been. The only person he had sex with since their wedding was his wife. But as much as he insisted her accusations were false, she refused to believe him. And every time he denied it, she added a new 'lie' to her mental list of his offenses. It got so bad that he had left her twice before, but her pleading and tears brought him back.

He probably could have learned to live with her attacks, except for the fact that he was working his way out of several years of suicidal depression and did not have the emotional strength to continue accepting her very negative opinion of him. It came to a head one night when she claimed that on her drive home she saw his car speeding past her on the freeway hurrying home from an imagined tryst. He had returned home from work over an hour earlier when she stormed in the door and started yelling at him, demanding to know who he had been with. After the shouting match he found himself in his room with his grandfather's Smith & Wesson 38 caliber revolver in his hand, ready to put it to his head and end it all. He came close, but his rational mind took control and led him to the only other action that would remove him from the toxic relationship - leave the marriage for good.

The next day he returned home after his wife left for work and packed his essentials including the pistol into boxes, put them in the back of his SUV, and drove to a weekly rental hotel.

He spent the first night alone analyzing what this choice would mean to his life. He made plenty of money so living apart was something he could afford indefinitely. He wife had moved out of their bedroom months before, so lack of sex wasn't an issue - he would continue taking care of his needs himself as he had done since his wife started denying him. But he still feared that she would overcome his resistance once again and guilt him into returning home. To counter that he decided they needed to get a divorce; to make it a complete break.

The next day he asked around and found a male lawyer who specialized in handling the husband side of divorces. Within a week the lawyer had Peggy served with the legal documents. Her first response was to use the pleading and crying approach that had worked before, but he had 'been there done that' and told her that he had made his decision. Six months later the divorce decree was issued and he was free of the problem physically... but not emotionally.

He didn't realize it at the time, but the separation and divorce from his wife left some deep emotional scars. They had begun as a couple when they were both in high school and had been together ever since. A relationship like that can't be ended without pain. His friends told him to start seeing other women, but the idea of an evening out with a woman, any woman, led to bouts of crying, and the thought of going to bed with one of them wasn't a thought he allowed his mind to consider.

But his newfound independence opened a door that wasn't available before - he could work as late as he wanted to without worrying about the consequences waiting for him at home. He had always enjoyed his job as a research scientist, but his wife had a way of making him feel guilty for loving his job more than her, at least from her point of view. Now he was free to bury himself in his work for hours on end.

A New Life Begins

I didn't talk about my marital problems with my colleagues for fear it would get back to my wife and cause me even more grief. Even after the divorce only a few of my closest friends knew about it. But of course, nothing is secret from the office rumor mill. Fortunately our office had no unattached women so I didn't have to fend off any cougars. But at times I wished I had a woman friend to discuss what I was going through. Women understand emotional pain.

A few weeks after the divorce I was assigned a new project to work on. It was a super-secret government project that required the research staff to be locked in a classified laboratory whenever they were working. The staff included only me and one other scientist - Dr. Margaret Monaghan - Maggie. I didn't know her well before I started working with her because she spent most of her time in isolation. But after a few days of working together we were well acquainted.

Our conversations started with the usual impersonal questions; what university did you attend, where did you grow up, where does your spouse work (a sneaky way to ask if I was married) and picking each other's brains on dozens of technical subjects. After the first couple of months, our relationship settled into more relaxed everyday topics.

I purposely avoided telling her about my former marriage and divorce because I didn't want her to feel sorry for me, but I shouldn't have worried. Like me her feelings took a back seat to rational reasoning. But one day when we were working on a new experiment set up she casually asked, "I heard that you recently got divorced."

I answered "Yup."

When I didn't elaborate she followed it up with "Was it contentious?"

"No, not really. We both knew it was over by that time."

When I didn't add any details she asked, "How long were you two married?"

"Counting the last three years of high school we were a couple for, let's see... 22 years."

"So, you were the classic high school sweethearts who got married as soon as you graduated?"

"Not really. We weren't married immediately. We waited until I got my undergraduate degree, then we were married.... and we waited until then before we had real sex."

"Wow, that must have been hard not to give in to your passions."

"Well, we fooled around a lot - all the way to third base - frequently."

"Boy, I can remember those days with my husband and me. We didn't hold out that long though. I wish we had. The marriage only lasted three years before he was cheating on me."

"What did you do, Maggie?"

"I wouldn't stand for being treated like that, so I filed for divorce.'

"Did the divorce take a while?"

"No, because right after he was served with the papers he came over and beat the shit outta me, - her voice got soft - "and then he raped me. The judge didn't take too kindly to that. He was still in jail when the divorce was finalized."

"It sounds like your divorce was a lot more exciting than mine."

"I was hospitalized for two weeks. No excitement in that."

I didn't know how to reply to that, so I shut my mouth. The two of us worked in silence for the rest of the afternoon.

That night as I lay in bed I thought about my divorce and how terrible it must have been for Maggi. I felt tears in my eyes, but I quickly shut those feelings down. I should have paid attention because those feelings were my mind telling me that I hadn't even begun to process my buried emotions.

The friendship between Maggie and me grew closer as we chatted while we worked. One day she asked me if I did my own cooking.

"Yeah, I heat up a can of soup now and then, but mostly I eat carry out from drive-up fast-food places with an occasional visit to the local Golden Corral."

"Yuk. How do you eat that junk? That's about the unhealthiest diet I can think of."

"It's mostly about keeping things simple. I haven't had the motivation to do much since the divorce. I guess I'm a little depressed."

Maggie paused for a bit, then asked, "When is the last time you had a home-cooked meal?"

"My wife quit cooking for me the last six months of our marriage, so it's been quite a while."

Another pause. "If I made you a nutritious dinner and brought it to your place some evening would that be alright? I have some good casserole recipes."

"No, I wouldn't want you to go to all that trouble, but thanks for the offer."

"It's no trouble. I would be making it for my own supper so all it will take is throwing in extra ingredients."

I took a few minutes to think it over. I didn't want to complicate my life with a relationship at this point. On the other hand, she was easy to talk with and had helped me deal with cutting myself loose from my wife. But part of me, mostly the depressed part, wanted me to stay a loner as I sorted through my memories and emotions. There is a certain comfort in being alone and depressed.

"Again, thanks for the offer, Maggie, but I think I'll pass. I'm just not much fun to be around right now."

"Let me be the judge of that, David. If you are worried that I'm looking for a new man in my life you can forget that. We're just friends, that's all. And I hope you will trust me enough to let me help you deal with what's troubling you."

"I'm not troubled. Why would you think that?"

"Because I've been through a divorce, and I know the pain you are feeling... or trying cover up. I'm coming over with a casserole Saturday evening whether or not you want me to. You can choose to lock the door or let me in."

"Did anyone ever tell you how stubborn you are?"

# # #

Maggie had just taken the casserole out of David's microwave after reheating it when there was a knock at David's door. He walked over and peeked through the small lens in the door.

"Aw shit!" he exclaimed.

Magi looked up and asked who was at the door.

"It's Peggy my ex-wife. What the hell does she want."

As David opened the door he placed his six-foot four body in the middle of the doorway to keep her from entering. His wife was dressed as if she were going on a date.

"Hi David." She said in a sweet voice. "I collected some mail that came to the house for you, so I wanted to drop it off. I thought maybe we could talk and see where it goes from there."

When Maggie heard this she moved so Peggy could see that David had company. Peggy's eyes at fist got large in surprise, then turned into angry slits.

"What is she doing here?"

"She is a friend from work who brought some supper to me."

"Right. And what else does she plan to give you tonight... You're not living with her, are you?"

Without waiting for an answer, she pushed her way past David and stopped in front of Maggie. "Where did you pick up this slut?" she asked David. "Were you sleeping with her while we were married?... Of course you were, just like you screwed all those other women! You bastard. You fucking bastard!"

Maggie stepped in between the two of them hoping to calm her down. Peggy responded by slapping Maggie across the face.

David grabbed Peggy by the wrist and dragged her out the front door. She tried to kick him in the groin, but David's reflexes were too quick and she missed. He gave her one final push and slammed the door in her face, immediately locking it.

He turned back to Maggie. "Are you hurt?"

"No, just surprised."

David looked at the red splotch on her cheek. "I don't see any blood. I am so sorry you had to see that, Maggie."

"Well, at least now I know what you had to go through before the divorce. She's a real bitch."

"It wasn't always like that. Earlier in the marriage there was a lot of love."

With that thought David began to cry. He turned his back on Maggie. His shoulders shook as he was overcome by his emotions. He hoped it would stop but as the tears got worse, he said, "Maybe you'd better go. I don't want to ruin your evening. It's going to be awhile before this passes."

She turned him around to face her. "Nonsense. You need someone with you to help you get through this. I'm not leaving until you can smile at me."

David turned away from her, trying to hide his crying face from her, but Maggie moved until she was in front of him. She put her hands on his shoulders to try to comfort him but it didn't help, so she stepped up to him and put her arms around him in a hug.

"I know it hurts a lot now, David, but trust me, the pain will lessen with time. It will probably never go away entirely because every now and then someone will say something or you'll see something that brings it back to the surface. But each time it will have less power over you."

She led him over to the couch and sat down beside him, keeping an arm around his shoulders. It took an hour before David could get back to almost normal and give Maggie a smile.

"Come on over to the table, David. I'll heat up supper and we can talk while we eat."

Afterwards, as she got ready to leave, she told him, "There are going to be many more tears shed in the next year or so. I want you to know that I'm here to help. Just call me anytime."

With that she stood on her tip toes, kissed him briefly on the cheek, and walked out to her car.

# # #

The following Monday morning at work David was worried that Maggie would recall his breakdown Saturday evening and try to keep her distance to avoid triggering another crying spell. He couldn't imagine how embarrassed he would be if it happened here in the workplace. The boss would probably have him taken away in a straight jacket if that happened. But he was surprised to find that no one looked at him with sidelong glances, so it was clear that Maggie hadn't told anyone about it. Good. That meant he could trust her not to share their conversations with anyone, but as soon as they were in the lab with the doors locked she took his hands, looked him in the eyes, and asked with sincerity,

"How are you doing David? Did you have any more painful episodes after I left?"

"No, I didn't. And I slept better than I had in a long time."

"That's what happens when you release buried emotions. Something I learned when I was trying to rebuild my life is that you have to turn towards the pain, not away from it. Otherwise it just goes back into hiding for you to deal with later."

David was quiet for a minute or two before he spoke.

"Look, I really need to thank you for getting me through that. I haven't entirely let go of suicide as an option. I might have gone there Saturday if you hadn't been with me. Keeping my feelings bottled up is a defense against that kind of thinking."

Maggie looked at him with alarm. "So you still have suicidal thoughts?"

"Yes, sometimes."

"But why?"

He paused before he answered. "Because it's the only sure way to end the pain."

"Oh my God, David! You've got to make me a promise. Whenever those thoughts appear you must call me immediately. If I had known that Saturday I would have spent the night at your apartment to make sure you didn't do something stupid."

"What if continuing on with the pain is the stupidest thing to do?"

Maggie didn't have an answer to that question. Clearly David's thinking was warped, but how could she straighten it out. She spent the workday thinking, trying to find an answer. Just before quitting time she realized what she had to do. She joined David on the way out the door.

"I'm going to run over to my place to collect some things, then I'm going to move in with you so I can keep an eye on you."

"You are not! This is my apartment and you're not welcome if you're planning to control me. I had plenty of that in my marriage to Peggy and I'll never allow that again."

Maggie didn't argue but said, "Perhaps I worded that wrong. I'm not planning to move in with you. I just want to be on the premises in case you have another breakdown that could push you over the line. Just give me a bedroom and I'll stay as far from you as you wish. If you want distance, you will hardly know I'm here. If you want a friend I can continue in that role. But there is no reason for you to feel controlled."

David thought about that for a bit. "I guess I overreacted Maggie. The way Peggy kept me feeling guilty to control me left me afraid of relationships with women. I know I can trust you not to play with my emotions. I apologize.".

"Apology accepted. I'll be back in less than an hour so clear out a bedroom for me."

David decided that if she showed up with several suitcases he wouldn't let her in because that would signal that she had something more permanent in mind. But he had nothing to worry about. Forty minutes later she appeared at the door with nothing but a small duffle bag.

"That's all you have?"

"It will hold me for a week or so. I'll stop by my place every weekend to do some laundry and get what I need for the next week."

David showed her to the spare bedroom. He had made the bed, dusted, and vacuumed the carpet. Beyond that she was on her own.

She dumped the duffel out on the bed and put her laptop on the desk.

"I presume you have a Wi-Fi internet connection. How do I log on?"

While he was showing her how to connect he took a quick look at the pile of clothes on the bed. Good, he thought. Only simple cotton underwear and pajamas. Nothing she could use to seduce me. That made him more at ease with her presence.

They settled into a comfortable pattern of living together. They took turns fixing meals, grocery shopping, and cleaning. After supper they would either sit on opposite ends of the couch to watch TV or a movie or get on their laptops to browse the internet science sites. Maggie occasionally glanced at David's screen to see what he was looking at. She decided that if she saw him watching porn she would immediately sever their relationship.

But after a month she saw no hint of porn on his screen. That got her wondering what David did for sexual relief. She knew men's libido peaked every week or so until there was some form of orgasmic relief. But she had never heard any sounds coming from his bedroom that suggested he was masturbating. Finally her curiosity got the better of her.

"David can I ask you a question?"

"Sure, what do you want to know."

"It's kind of personal."

"If that's the case I may choose not to answer. So what's the question?"

"Um... ahhh. What do you do for sex, to release your pent-up desire?"

She immediately blushed a bright red and expected to see a similar reaction from him.

When he didn't answer right away she wished she hadn't asked the question. Apparently he didn't want to answer.

"I'm sorry David. That's way too personal. Forget I asked."

"No, no it's a good question. I just need to think back a bit. Let's see, Peggy moved out of our bedroom last January, so that would make it nine months. Nine months since I last made love to a woman. I took care of my own needs for a while, but after the divorce I just sort of lost interest. It was like my sex drive just switched off. I occasionally come in my sleep, but I don't even notice those until they're over, so I get no pleasure out of them. I just have to clean up the mess."

Maggie just stared at him for a minute. With another wave of blushing she said, "I didn't expect that much detail, but thank you for that. So it's been nine months? How do you stand it?"

"Like I said my libido disappeared after I left Peggy. And even before that, when Peggy would occasionally want to make love, there wasn't much to it. She didn't want any foreplay. I just pumped until I came in her. I wondered why she did that, until I realized she was just checking to see if my sperm supply was depleted because I was screwing someone else. I never had any problem filling her up though."