The Weekend Pt. 03

A deep sigh of regret came from his throat as his eyes fell on a photo on top of the nightstand on his side of the bed. It was an 8 X 10 picture set inside of a silver frame. A beautiful, smiling, glamorized Lee and Regina were hugged close in front of a light blue backdrop. They looked at the camera with a future filled with hope as they posed cheek to cheek. Her arms were wrapped around his neck in a loving embrace.

So beautiful they looked. So loving.

He hadn't really looked at this photo in a while. Over the years it had simply become part of the background ambience of the bedroom. But, he'd been noticing many things that he'd overlooked.

He sat down on the bed and picked the frame up for a closer look. Was this what his life had become? Were his bags really packed with essentials in preparation for being away from his wife? She owned nearly a decade of his life. He didn't even know what a day without her would look like.

His mind and his heart told him conflicting stories. His mind told him that this heartache wasn't worth the fight. To fight for a woman who barely loved him was a suicide mission. The fire was gone.

But, his heart told him something different. Littered throughout their history were embers of the two people in that photo. Perhaps it was a smile here and a laugh there, but they were still there. Could it be possible for them to return to that?

Last night, she even wanted to talk. That had to mean something; didn't it?

His packed suitcase told him to go. But that photo questioned everything his mind thought.

He put the picture back on the nightstand and looked down at the floor as he let out a long breath. It was then that they noticed that there was another suitcase in the room. It was partially sticking out from under the bed, like it was hastily pushed there and forgotten about. A brief rewind of his internal recording recognized it as the bag that returned with Regina.

This was her weekend bag.

A detective's curiosity filled him. Answers to questions that he would never ask were probably here for the discovering. A part of him told him to forget about it and leave it be, but it was outvoted by every other fiber in his being.

The bag was hoisted up and tossed onto the bed next to its sister. A moment of mental preparation was taken before it was unzipped and the top thrown back.

What he saw was a typical vacationer's suitcase. There were a couple of sundresses, sandals, shorts, t-shirts, bra's, and panties.

These innocuous items held way more meaning than a normal vacationer, though. They told a lot more than a casual glance would reveal. Each of these things were specifically chosen by his wife, who was planning on going away with another man. It told of her mindset the day before she left and screamed of her intentions.

For one, there were no night clothes. Regina usually wore baggy shorts and a T-shirt to bed. This was probably the unsexiest ensemble known to man, but she was comfortable in it. Lee jokingly called this her "don't even think about it" pajama set.

She'd been wearing that getup for far too long now.

But when she had sex on her mind, she let you know it. Red or black lace covered her sensual parts. Thigh high stockings stretched up her leg. Perfume was dabbed in erotic zones to entice him.

Either that, or she skipped the ceremony and came to bed naked. That worked too.

What was in this bag, as well as what wasn't, spoke a lot. There were no baggy shorts in this bag, but there were sexy, lace bras and a few thongs. And perfume.

Enough said.

The sick feeling that accompanied those discoveries couldn't be matched. There was nothing more that a husband could find that would fill him with more pain than what Lee just uncovered.

Well, fate took that challenge and upped the ante. If only he had stopped looking, things might have turned out differently.

There was a piece of paper that stuck out from the bottom. It looked like someone had randomly scribbled on it. With shaking hands, his fingers grabbed it and pulled it up. The sock that was covering it fell off, and something akin to an atomic bomb went off inside of his stomach.

It was a drawing; an artist's steady hand of immaculate skill. This drawing was almost as good as a picture taken with a camera.

There was a beautiful, smiling Regina posed with another man; Brian, presumably.

Cheek to cheek.

Her arm around his neck, pulling him close.

Lee's eyes fell to the replica of him and Regina on his nightstand. The same exact pose was used in both. The only difference between the drawing in his hand and the photo on the nightstand was the man in Regina's arms.

A realization hit him and changed everything he ever thought he knew. This was more than just a brief affair; it was a replacement. He assumed that this random rendezvous was revenge for his fling with Jennifer, but what if it were something more?

Something inside of Lee broke. Maybe it was his heart, maybe it was his sanity, or maybe it was his love. He didn't know. All he knew was that there was pain; a lot of pain with intensity that couldn't be compared with anything else.

And then...nothing. No anger. No sadness, No regret. Nothing.

He numbly finished packing his bags in silence. His attention was so focused that a tornado could have ripped the house from the foundation and he would have still been folding his socks and neatly placing them in with his underwear.

Once everything was safely stowed, his eyes scanned the room one last time to see if there was anything that was forgotten. With a satisfied nod of his head, he zipped his bag and placed it on the floor standing up.

As if in a daze, he lifted his hand and looked at it as one does a strange bug. His gold wedding band caught the light and flashed with a brilliance that he'd never seen it do before. It was like it was calling out to him, telling him to remember that he was married.

With a twisted face and a grunt, he carefully worked it off his ring finger.

His hand looked naked. That ring had been a part of him for so long that the light tan line seemed out of place. But he didn't want that thing on his body. It was a lie.

He carefully placed the drawing on his nightstand, right under the photo that it replicated. The shiny ring sat in the middle it.

Then he took one last look at his surroundings before grabbing his bag and lifting it. It felt heavier than it did a moment ago, like it now held more than mere clothes. Maybe it was his new future; he couldn't tell. His mind was blank and he refused to think.

His legs started moving. Then, like a vapor in the wind, he was gone.

___________________________________________________

Regina walked across the parking lot to her car. An array of orange and red painted the sky as the setting sun made its decent below the horizon. The temperature had cooled and left the dusk air tepidly pleasant.

It had been a long day. Patient care is an extremely stressful profession all in its own, but the added tension of trying to avoid Brian made it even more so. The problem she was having was forced denial. The truth is, she liked Brian a lot; too much. He was so sweet, and a breath of fresh air for her. Yes, he had an awful reputation; she was well aware of that. But the Brian that she knew was different than the broken hearted whispers of the rumor mill. This weekend gave her a glimpse of what being with him would look like.

Yet, she loved her husband.

After speaking with Trudy, she realized a lot of the ways that she failed him as a wife after the loss of Cassie. She was so caught up in her own pain that she didn't even take into account what he may have been feeling. That failure is part of the reason that they are in this predicament now.

As she approached her car, she stopped short. No more than 10 feet in front of her, Brian was leaning against her car with his arms folding across his chest. His eyes met hers and a smile spread across his lips.

A part of her was annoyed by his persistent pursuit. The rest of her was more annoyed at the fact that she wasn't as annoyed as she should have been. The confusion of her desire of two men threatened her sanity.

"Why are you on my car?" She said with forced irritation.

He calmly pushed himself off and walked towards her. "What can I say? I missed you. Haven't been able to catch you all day. If I didn't know any better, I'd think that you've been purposely avoiding me."

"I was busy."

"Riiiight." He said as he stopped right in front of her. He looked down at her, but he found it impossible to catch her eye. She was looking everywhere but at him. He reached out and lifted her head with the crook of his finger so that she had no choice but to meet his gaze. When she did look at him, he gave a half smile and said, "You've been awfully busy lately."

She shook her head loose from his hand. "Yeah, well...I have a lot to do." She stammered in a less than convincing voice. Her mind was having difficulties forming coherent thoughts at the moment. His body was giving off a heat that had nothing to do with temperature. His proximity to her made her feel feverish and confused.

"Yeah? Like what?" he challenged with a smirk as he stepped back and looked at her.

Silence fell between them as she struggled for a response. He just stood there with an amused look as he watched her squirm.

But something more was happening to her that he didn't realize. Her emotions were breaking down. This was wrong. Her life was wrong. Everything was just so...wrong.

It wasn't until her eyes started shimmering and a tear started to trail down her face that the smile slowly dissipated from his face. "Gina?" he said in a confused voice.

Hearing him say her name only made things worse. That lone tear turned into sobs. Brian silently chastised himself and pulled her in close for a comforting hug.

"What's going on with you? Talk to me. You've been able to do that before."

She pushed herself from his grip and shook her head. "I can't talk to you, Brian. Don't you get it? Everything's changed between us. You're not the guy that I can come to anymore about problems in my marriage. Now, you are the problem."

He looked at her with insulted curiosity. Then he scoffed with a shake of his head. "Ya know, it's funny. Wives fall into bed with me and tell me all about how their husbands have failed them. They go on and on about how they aren't there for them, or how unfaithful they are. But then, when shit hits the fan and their marriages fall apart, I'm the one they blame. I seduced them into bed when they were vulnerable, and I had my wicked way with them."

"How is that funny?"

"What's funny is the cognitive dissonance of that. I'm to blame for seducing them, their husbands are to blame for taking them for granted; but you know what? They never find fault with themselves! That's what's funny. Fucking hilarious if you ask me."

Incensed anger surged through Regina. Her eyes narrowed, and her lips pursed as her mouth opened to release the fury of her indignance; however, Brian wasn't even close to being done yet. Before she could voice her piece, he leaned in and said, "I'm not your problem, Gina. Your problems with your husband were there long before I entered the picture. But, you wanna know what your problem is now?"

He waited a couple of dramatic seconds and took in her lack of response. What was once on the tip of her tongue had abandoned her and left her open to Brian's analysis. When it was obvious that she was waiting to hear him finish his thought, he said, "Your problem is you know your marriage is over, and you don't want to admit it. You want me, but you feel that it's wrong to actually do something for yourself. That...is your problem."

She didn't know what to feel when she heard that. His words hit her, that was for sure. She just didn't know what target it landed on. Was he on the money, or so far out that he was full of himself? The answer to that question was hazy.

No matter which of those it was, it produced the same emotion: rage.

"Who the fuck do you think you are?" She bellowed as her forehead furrowed. Her tears had dried up and were replaced by fire. "You have the fucking nerve to give me some pop analysis about my marriage. You think you know me? You think you have an idea about what my life is like because you gave me a few orgasms?"

He smirked knowingly. "You see how pissed you are? You wouldn't be that mad if I wasn't right."

An equally cynical smirk found her lips, which threw him off. "Really? I wouldn't be pissed at the audacity that some sanctimonious asshole has at telling me when my marriage should end?" His face lost self-righteous jeer that it had. She shook her head and huffed before finishing, saying, "You need to get over yourself, Brian. Sticking your penis inside of me does not give you hidden insight into what I think. If that were the case, my dildo would be Dr. fucking Phil."

Brian just stood there, looking at her. He was at a loss for words for dual reasons. For one, her sharp tongue lashed him down a peg or two. The second reason was...he was turned on.

He was used to being the one in the driver seat when it came to the fairer sex. Women were easy to steer in the direction that he wanted them to go. A couple of carefully chosen words and a smile were like prodding sticks.

But Regina was different. She couldn't be led. She went where she pleased, even if the direction was an ill chosen one. She wasn't one to be controlled.

And he liked it. Her husband didn't deserve her. He did.

Regina, feeling bad about once again being the battle-ax that constantly cut down the men in her life, shook her head and sighed. In a softer voice, she said, "Look, I don't wanna be a bitch to you. I'm sorry for that. But I have a lot to figure out about my life and my marriage, and I don't need you telling me what to do."

That should have been a clear sign to Brian that backing off was the best option. Most men would have just taken the hint, apologized, and left her alone. She clearly didn't need him in her life messing with her head.

But he wasn't most men.

After she said her piece, he didn't respond right away. She thought that was his silent concession, so she tried to walk past him to get into her car. She let out a sudden yelp when she felt him behind her, pushing her up against the car door by leaning his body into her.

Her hands pressed against the glass of the driver side door to keep her from getting crush. She was almost ready to call out in protest, but her words got caught in her throat when she felt his hands gently swipe her hair away, exposing her neck. The tips of his fingers grazed the sensitive skin right above the collarbone, causing goosebumps to pop up all over her arms.

"Get off me!" She was finally able to say, but the pulsing in her belly caused her words to come out in ragged breaths. He noted the lack of conviction in her voice and ignored her. Instead, he peppered kisses along her neckline.

She opened her mouth once again to call out protests, but her thoughts became jumbled when his lips kissed her right under her ear. The only thing that came out was an exhale.

She knew that she had to stop this; or rather, she knew that she should want to stop. But she couldn't make herself fight him.

His hands trailed down her shoulders as his body pressed even harder up against her. They fell from her when they reached her elbows, only to cup her ass a second later. Her fingers scratched at the window that her body was trapped on as her lips opened and let out a moan.

The scrub bottoms and cotton panties that she wore were two thin layers of material. They were hardly suitable for shielding the now sensitive skin of her bare butt from the heat of his touch.

"I want you." He breathed lustfully into her ear. "And you want me. You know it, and I know it. So, go home. Try to fix your marriage. But when you're finally able to admit that I'm right, I'll be here. Just don't make me wait to long."

With that, the weight of his body disappeared, leaving her breathing heavily and against her car with tingling thighs.

________________________________________________________________

Regina walked into her dark house and noted how quiet it was. No TV, no sounds of cooking; not even the hum of the AC.

This was becoming an eerie norm.

She made her way down the narrow hallway towards her bedroom expecting to find the tell-tale light under the guest bedroom door. Instead, she only found the same the darkness that blanketed the rest of the house.

A quick peek inside showed that the bed hadn't even been sat in since this morning when she and Lee left for work. It was perfectly made with the military precision that Lee was known for. That was one of his signature trademarks; attention to detail. It was why he was always so successful at whatever he set his mind to do.

It was also one of the reasons why she loved him.

With a sigh, she closed the door and made her way into the master bedroom. Her mind roamed with wonderment at where could possibly be. Work never ran this late. He was probably out with Daryl, drinking himself sloppy at that god-awful bar that they went to.

That bar. That fucking bar. The place that he met that tramp he impregnated.

That sent a shockingly horrendous thought through her head. What if he was with her? What if they were together, right now?

He'd better not be with her!

She angrily picked up her cell phone and found his contact. By the time she pressed it and put the phone up to her ear, the voice mail was already picking up. She hung up and tried it again, getting the same result.

His phone was turned off. He was with her!

She didn't know to do with that. She was met with a familiar rage; one that didn't have any place to go. At least, not at this moment.

But when he got home...

She stripped off her work clothes and prepared to in the shower. Her ears remained perked for the sounds of his car pulling into the driveway. It wasn't until she sat down on the bed and cast her eyes to his side that she noticed what was waiting for her on his night stand. Her heart fell when she saw what it was. Her vision became blurred and her hands went to her mouth as sobs rang out from her.

He wasn't coming home.