After the Divorce

After the Divorce

“Hello, Mark, thanks for meeting me. I bought you a latte, your favorite, pistachio."

“Thanks. Haven’t been here since our divorce. You’re looking good, Louise. I notice you’ve changed your hair color from brunette to red. Is that because Dylan likes it that way?”

 “Mark, this is about you and me. Me mostly. I wanted to tell you how much it meant to me not making our divorce messy. You could have, I know, and I really appreciate that you didn’t.”

 `“Well, Louise, you didn’t make a big deal about alimony or the house, so that makes us kind of even. The house sold quickly, and I’m glad that’s out of the way. If you haven’t yet, you’ll be getting a check for your share. And for the furniture we sold. I heard that you moved in with Dylan. I’m living in a bachelor pad, I guess you’d call it, in Brentwood.”

“I didn’t know that, but I’m glad I had your cell phone number. I’ve been feeling a little guilty about it all and wanted to let you know that none of it was your fault. You always were a good husband, a good provider, a good man in all respects. Our time together was perfect except for, you know, the one thing.”

“Of course. The one thing. Our sex life which was practically non-existent.”

“I really tried early on."

"Yes, you faked it pretty good. Sorry, that just slipped out." 

I did try. But something was missing. It wasn’t just you. Long before I met you, I had the same feelings, or rather, non-feelings. I never really understood it. Not until I met Dylan. Then I knew.”

“One look at Dylan and that was it, huh?”

“Mark, Dylan was my therapist and taught me a lot about myself.”

“Apparently enough to end our marriage."

“I couldn’t go on deceiving you…and myself. It was better for us both to get on with our lives.”

“You mean me without you and you with Dylan.”

“It wasn’t something I planned on. It just happened. I’m glad now that you and I decided not to have children.”

“That, Louise, was your decision if you recall, not mine.”

“Yes, I know. But if we’d had children, the divorce would have been much tougher on both of us. This way neither of us has to deal with that kind of stress.”

“Does Dylan want to have children? You’re still young enough.”

“It really hasn’t come up in our relationship. And that’s another thing I feel guilty about with you. I know you would have liked to become a father."

”Oh, but I am. At least, I’m going to be."

“What?”

“Oh, yes. A son due in two months. I would show you the ultrasound shots but I know you’re not interested.”

“Two months? We’ve only been divorced for two weeks. You cheated on me?"

“Louise, Why do you sound so angry, and why are you so upset now? You cheated on me, remember?" 

“That’s different.”

“Really? When people have sex with someone not their spouse, that’s cheating no matter which spouse is the culprit.”

“I suppose you’re right. But I was dealing with a special kind of problem.”

“So was I. A wife who didn’t want to have sex with me. Well, Louise, when you cut me off, I sought others to take your place.”

“Others? You mean more than one? How many?”

“I really don’t understand your anger or morbid interest now that we’re no longer married, but to answer your question, maybe a dozen in the last two years.”

 “A dozen? Years? I think that’s reprehensible.”

“That’s a big laugh coming from you now. What the hell did you expect from me? That I should abstain because you wanted to? That is, until you found Dylan who obviously could turn you on better than I could.”

“That’s just not fair.”

“Of course it is. That’s what happened isn’t it? Well, as a normal male with a normal sex drive, I had to compensate for a lack of sex in my own bedroom. You didn’t care for me as a lover, but I found other women who did. And most were women who had the same problem that I did—a spouse who had little interest in keeping them sexually satisfied. We helped each other."

“Why didn’t you leave me if you were so disappointed?”

“That’s a question I asked myself numerous times during the last two years of our marriage. But, you compensated in so many other ways. You were a good companion, an attentive wife. Out of the bedroom, we were an ideal couple, and I guess I loved you despite our problem, at first anyway. My solution was to go elsewhere to find what was missing at home. It wasn’t because I just wanted to play around like some other guys I knew. For me, it was a necessary evil to keep me from hating you instead of loving you as I did.”

“I never knew. You never let on.”

“I really didn’t want to hurt you, believing that you were just the innocent party in our private, domestic drama. I took great pains to be discrete. I felt guilty, too, even though in my mind it was all justified because you apparently thought that our sexless marriage was okay…until Dylan came along. Ironic, isn’t it, that I was the one who suggested you see a shrink.”

“I never suspected a thing. All that time. All those others. I was so naive.”

“We were both naive. I never suspected that you and your therapist were, well, involved beyond your regular appointments. Just punishment for both of us, I guess.”

“But a child…what’s with that?”

“I guess there’s no sense in keeping the secret now that we’re split. For the past year, I’ve been seeing a special person, a wonderful woman who cares for me, wanted to have my child and who I intend to marry.” 

“But how…”

“Look, Louise, that’s my story. I already know yours so there’s nothing left to talk about. I thank you for the latte, and I wish you and Dylan the very best. I really do. I truly hope you and she will be happy. See you around.”

         The End