Zero, Fifty, or One Hundred Pt. 02: Alt. Ending

Author's note: I have never felt any inclination whatsoever to finish another author's story or to rewrite what he or she has written...until now. I am not writing this story as an attempt to improve upon what the original author has written; I am writing this to provide readers with a different spin on an all-too-familiar plot, to have a little bit of fun, and...well, because I have no other stories to write at the moment.

My sincere thanks to the original author, Ahazura, for graciously allowing me to rewrite the second chapter to his story,

*****

Zero, Fifty, or One Hundred.

"Zero, fifty, or one hundred, Sharon? What is it going to be?"

Bob sat, motionless, at the kitchen table holding three fingers in the air. He appeared calm, cool, and collected as he waited for the answer from his wife. She stood before him wearing her favorite black dress, her eyes darting back and forth and her mouth gaped open. Her gorgeous hazel eyes glistened. She looked like a little girl who had just been caught playing "doctor" with the neighbor boy across the street.

"Well?" Bob asked in a low growl, "What's it gonna be?"

Sharon slowly shook her head back and forth as she continued to stare into his eyes, searching for some explanation that would satisfy her. "You want to go meet with him?" she said at last. "Fine. Grab your stuff. Let's go."

She was oddly silent during the entire car ride to the restaurant. He expected her to plead her case, insist her innocence, and desperately attempt to save their marriage. It was almost insulting that she wasn't giving any effort at all. She simply sat there in the passenger seat, staring out the window into the darkness. When they arrived at the restaurant, she headed straight to the bar. Even though she wore high heels, he had to hurry to keep up with her. She led him to a table in the rear of the bar where a man was seated.

He was shorter and heavier than Bob had imagined, and he wore a beard, which he knew was a turn-off for his wife. Out of all the men in the city who would have given anything to be with her, it was a mystery why she had chosen this one. The man smiled warmly and stood to greet her with arms outstretched, but Sharon gently touched his chest and held her hand there for a moment. His smile faded as he noticed she wasn't alone.

"Luke," she said, "this is my husband, Bob. Bob, this is Luke."

Luke smiled and extended his hand, but Bob merely glared at him and puffed out his chest.

"Why don't we all sit down?" Sharon suggested, taking her husband by the arm.

With some hesitation and an expression of confusion, Luke slid into his side of the booth while Bob and Sharon sat at the other side of the table. Sharon glanced down at the table and noticed a glass of wine in front of her. She snatched it from the table and placed it to her lips.

"Wait!" Bob shouted, grabbing her wrist. "You don't know what's in that. He could've put something in there!"

Luke's jaw dropped. "Sharon? I'm sorry, but what is he talking about? What would I have put in your wine?"

"Bob," she said, gently removing his hand from her wrist, "thinks he's saving me from some sort of predator from one of those awful TV dramas he watches." She casually sipped her wine as a waitress approached the table.

"Oh, I'm sorry," the waitress chirped. "I didn't see you come in. What can I get you, sweetie?" She looked at Bob with anticipation, wearing a phony smile.

"I'm good for now," he said. "I don't plan to stay long."

"Sharon," Luke said, "what's going on here? Did I do something wrong?"

"Oh, I'll bet you wish you did, asshat," Bob snarled. "If I hadn't stepped in when I did, I'm sure you would be by now."

Luke gave Sharon a quizzical look, and she merely shook her head and took another sip of wine.

"I know all about you two, asshole," Bob said. "I know about the dirty dancing. I know about the panties. I know about the kiss on the dancefloor. I know about your dirty texts and the hot date with the hotel room you were planning tonight. I know everything."

Luke looked from Bob to Sharon and back. He wore an expression of complete disbelief. Bob had caught the son of a bitch red-handed and there was absolutely nothing he could say to defend himself. Just as Bob was about to deliver another crushing blow, a man approached their table. He was tall, thin, and handsome, and dressed immaculately.

"Oh my god!" he squealed, extending his arms as wide as they would stretch. "Sharon! It's so good to see you, honey!"

Now it was Bob's turn to wear a shocked expression as his wife rose from the table to embrace this stranger as if he were a long-lost friend. The man sat at the table and grinned from ear to ear, flashing teeth that were impossibly white. He then leaned over and gave Luke a kiss on the lips before turning to Bob.

"Bob," Sharon said, "this is Sam. Luke's boyfriend."

Sam extended his hand, but was forced to wait several seconds for Bob to respond. With his lips formed into the shape of an oval, Bob appeared to frozen in time. Not a muscle moved until he managed to lift his arm over the table and shake Sam's hand.

"Sam and Luke have been dating for...how long?" Sharon asked.

"Over two years," Luke said, placing his hand on Sam's knee under the table. They looked at each other and smiled.

"I...I thought..." Bob stammered.

"Yes," she interrupted, "I know. And thank you - so much - for jumping to that conclusion."

Luke and Sam looked at her strangely.

"Oh, you two will find this far more amusing than I did," Sharon said. "You see, my husband has accused me of having an affair...with Luke."

Both men across the table burst into laughter, causing her to break her steely demeanor for a brief moment.

"Well, what about all the nights out dancing?" Bob asked. "The panties? And the kissing?"

"You mean girls night out?" Luke said. "Oh, honey, let me tell you: when your wife needs to let loose, we make sure she lets loose! We drag her out on that dance floor and make her shake everything her momma gave her!" He proceeded to dance in his seat, prompting Sam to join him.

"Including her panties?" Bob asked a little too loudly. The parents of the children at the next table shot him a nasty look.

"Oh, that," Luke said, his face suddenly reddening. "We were just having fun, daring each other to do crazy things. We didn't mean anything by it."

"Daring, huh?" Bob said. "Well, what dares did you have to perform, then?"

"That would be the kiss you mentioned," Sharon calmly explained. "And I believe that was your dare, wasn't it, Sam?"

"Guilty as charged!" Sam said, holding a hand in the air. He exchanged a high-five across the table with Sharon.

"Don't worry," Luke said, raising his palm, "I didn't enjoy it. Not that she isn't a good kisser, but she really isn't my type."

At that, Luke and Sam erupted into laughter once again. Their waitress approached, and the two boyfriends ordered their meals. Pinned into the corner, Bob reluctantly ordered as well. He remained silent as the three friends reminisced and planned their next night out on the town. At the end of the evening, Bob thanked both Luke and Sam for an enlightening evening.

"It was so nice to meet you!" Luke gushed, shaking Bob's hand. "Even though I'm pretty sure you wanted to punch my lights out earlier!"

"That's Bob," Sharon said with a smirk, patting him on the shoulder. "A real tough guy."

"Well," Sam said, "any time you want to let this pretty lady run loose on the town, we will gladly take you up on it. You really are such a good guy for letting her out of the house!"

"Umm, excuse me," Sharon interrupted, "but I'm a grown-ass woman. I don't need him to 'let' me go out once in a while and have some fun. Maybe if he weren't so busy all the time, he could have joined us."

"Oh my god!" Luke squealed. "That would be SO much fun! Oh, the things we could dare him to do..."

"You are a bad boy," Sharon scolded.

"Don't you know it, pretty lady," Luke responded, kissing her on the cheek.

To Bob's chagrin, the car ride home wasn't nearly as quiet as the one to the restaurant.

"How dare you?" Sharon said as soon as he closed his car door.

"What?" he protested. "I didn't know. I thought..."

"Yes, I know exactly what you thought. And it's good to know that you think so little of me. Apparently, you think I'm such a brainless bimbo that I would jeopardize our marriage by having an affair with someone - in public! I mean...I can't even explain how insulted I am right now."

"But you lied to me! You told me you were going to girl's night out tonight!"

"Umm, no I didn't," she said. "I never said that. You just assumed that."

"Why didn't you tell me about these guys?"

"I have, but you never listen to me."

"But Vicki told me..."

Sharon laughed sarcastically. "Oh, Vicki!" she said. Her face was bright-red. "You mean the Vicki you had lunch with, alone, the other day? That Vicki?"

"Oh, give me a break, Sharon. It was only lunch."

"If it was only lunch, then why didn't you tell me about it?"

Bob stammered. He looked flustered. "It...it wasn't important. I was meeting her to talk about you!"

"Oh, so it's okay for you to have lunch with a woman, but I can't have dinner with a man?"

"That's different! You know it, Sharon!"

"Oh! And let me tell you about Vicki," she continued. "That woman has been after you for years, and you know that. And don't tell me you're not attracted to her. Her dark, wavy hair and fair complexion. Her pretty face and long legs."

"I...that's ridiculous," he said.

"Be careful," she said, suddenly turning to face him. He looked over at her and her eyes were like fireballs. "Be really careful about how you proceed here."

He pulled into the driveway, and she hopped out of the car before it even reached a complete stop. She hurried inside and he followed slowly behind. By the time he shut and locked the front door, he noticed Sharon was waiting for him, seated at the kitchen table, with a glass of wine in her hand.

"Honey, this has all been a terrible mistake," he said, removing his coat.

"You can say that again," she noted, taking a sip of wine. "You were fully prepared to throw away eight years of marriage - and leave our daughter in a broken home - all because of a misunderstanding."

"I...thought you were going to fuck the guy."

"And you didn't think to ask me about it before throwing a little temper tantrum over your hurt feelings?"

"I did ask you!"

"Oh, yes, you asked me," she noted, "but you never gave me a chance to respond. Instead, you gave me an ultimatum. That's the amount of respect I've earned from you, I guess. I never realized you could be so petty, so jealous, and so insecure. I'm seeing you in a whole new light, and it's not attractive."

"I...I'm sorry, Sharon."

"Do you even know why I go on these girl's nights out? You've been an absentee husband for a long time, Bob. I know you've been working hard, and I've been fully supportive of that, but you have basically abandoned this family and our marriage for nearly a year."

"You don't understand. I have this big project at work. It requires a lot of planning..."

"Yes, but that's not all you've been planning, is it?"

He cocked his head a bit and looked at her strangely.

"I got a little text from Vicki earlier today," she said, taking out her cellphone and tapping it. "She sent me a screen shot of a conversation you had earlier today with her. It seems she's looking to meet you again, only this time for dinner."

"I...I was angry...I..."

"It looks like you two were quite flirty with each other. I told you she's been after you for years. Apparently, she's trying to break us up so that she can have you all to herself."

"Sharon, I—"

She interrupted him by silently pointing a finger toward the ceiling. She sat, motionless, as he stood wobbling in place.

"I'm going to give you three choices," she said, calmly taking another sip of her wine while her finger remained poised above her head. "Choice one: you walk out that door right now and go join your new girlfriend. If you do that, our marriage is over."

She held up another finger.

"Choice two: you sit at the table right now and convince me why I should remain married to someone who clearly thinks so little of me, is so quick to throw away everything we've built together, and who is so jealous and insecure."

"Sharon, I—"

"Choice three!" she shouted, raising another finger. "You call Vicki right now. Put her on the speaker. Tell her you will never see her again."

Bob stood and awkwardly shifted his weight, running his fingers through his sparse hair.

"What's it going to be, Bob?" she asked. "Zero, fifty, or one hundred?"