I’m detecting a trend. This post is once again edited by some of the smartest and loveliest women in literature. These are not just my opinions. Enjoy.
This is a very common topic. MM did it, many others have contributed to it, Bigguy33 is the latest. This is my round up.
*****
“Wait, what did you say?” Dave was in his wife’s office. She’s the head of this department and a big personality. Dave, he’s an account rep low down in the food chain. He was a little nervous at first when she joined, but there were several levels of management between them, so everything was good, he thought. Maybe not.
“Mr. Waxman, your numbers have dropped significantly. You are the worst performer in your department this year. I’m afraid we have no choice. X is waiting outside to escort you to the office to get your things.” As for Xavier, he was one of two security guards.
At the workplace, they always call each other Mr. and Miss to maintain a more professional attitude. She said she kept her last name for professional reasons, but everyone in the office knew they were married. She even has a photo of them on her desk, showing her shaking hands with the chairman when she was promoted.
“That’s it? I’ve served this company faithfully for nine years and I’m being fired because my number isn’t working? If you’ll bother to listen to me, you’ll find out…”
“Please stop. The decision has been made. Let’s not make this more difficult.”
For some reason, she found this amusing. “Look, Pink, I mean Ms. Patterson, I really…”
He must have pressed a button, because suddenly three hundred pounds of black muscle appeared in the room with them. “Xavier, can you escort Mr. Waxman to his desk to pack up? Good luck, Mr. Waxman, maybe this will encourage you to work harder in your next position.”
X did look embarrassed, but he had a job to do. Dave looked at him and smiled. “Come on, X. Like the lady said, let’s not make this any more difficult.”
She was still talking when Dave walked out the door. Everyone avoided looking at him, which showed that most of them already knew about it. This certainly didn’t improve his mood. He walked slowly, looking at those who were looking at him. The women actually blushed every time they looked away. He kept very few personal belongings in the office, so he packed a small box in less than fifteen minutes. He was on his way out when X spoke.
“You forgot this, Mr. Waxman,” he said, handing Dave an expensive set of pens and pencils that Dave had been given when he was first voted Salesman of the Year. Dave looked at it for a moment, then threw it in the trash along with his photograph.
“No, I didn’t”
X drove Dave home so he could get back in the company car. After a few attempts at conversation, he got the message and went quiet. When Dave got out of the car, X extended his hand to shake hands with me. Dave accepted because it was just his job and he really liked the guy. “Sorry, man. I’m sorry that happened.”
Dave smiled, even though he didn’t like it. “Me too.”
He walked in and looked at the house as if he was seeing it for the first time. He suddenly realized that he was almost absent from home. It seems as if she underestimates him at home and at work. This made him wonder if there was a problem with his performance on the home ground and whether he would be sacked for not maintaining his brilliant form.
She arrived at about seven, late even for herself. Dave was watching the baseball game and didn’t even look up. “Hi honey, sorry I’m late. The meeting is over and you know how much the board loves the sound of your own voice.”
He didn’t respond and continued to watch the game. She watched him for a minute, then decided to try a different track. “What’s for dinner?”
For years, it had been his tradition to get home first and make dinner. As she looked back at their relationship, it occurred to her that she had missed dinner arrangements probably a dozen times in the past year, and most of the time it was because he was traveling.
“You can do whatever you decide. I’ve already eaten.”
He only stared at it for a minute before he opened his mouth and started the worst argument about their marriage. “Of course you won’t be angry today. This is a business decision, dear. It has nothing to do with you personally. I still love you just the same.”
“For a high-level executive in this position and a fairly intelligent person, I can’t help but think you’re an idiot! By the way, yes, I am angry. In fact, I am indescribably angry. You handled the whole matter very poorly without bothering to find out…”
“Stop begging! I’m sure I did the right thing professionally.”
This shocked him so much that he didn’t say anything for a minute. She smiled and started talking, but he burst out. “Fuck you, the board of directors, and the other idiots at the company! You’re unprofessional, you’re unreasonable, and you have no interest in anything I have to say. Tell me, how much did you contribute to Adler being so involved in this matter?”
She was shocked by his anger. She actually stuttered for a minute before saying this. “He’s been worried about this for months, and when he gave me these numbers, he was so nervous. You’ve gone from one of our top producers to the worst. I had no choice! I had to tell you this.” The message: No matter who you are, if you’re not producing, you’re gone, and that’s the only way I can keep people’s respect for me.
“Another idiot. Now that I have some free time I’ve been thinking about it all afternoon. When did you stop respecting me as a man and an employee? If you have even a little love for me, personally, or outwardly professionally you could try to talk to me and give me hints and if things get bad you could give me a chance to quit my job, do you have any idea if I couldn’t do the same for my wife (who is supposed to love me)? The person) behaves well enough, so why would a stranger believe that I’m going to do a good job, when you’ve screwed me over, absolutely, and I’ve said enough?
He tried again. “I didn’t expect you to feel so bad. It’s just business, dear. We’ll be fine. Don’t worry about work; I make enough money for us…”
Dave raised his hand. “Please, stop when you lose. I’m sure you’d love to turn me into a stay-at-home husband; it would strengthen your reputation as a strong CEO. I can hear his voice now. ‘Be careful with that.’ Well, you can forget about that nonsense, I’ll find another place somewhere else, even if it’s not here.”
He finally managed to annoy her. “Okay! Be annoyed! It might give you enough motivation to do a better job next time. Honey, your short temper is interfering with the extra love I wanted to give you tonight.”
He shrugged. “Well, at least they won’t fire me if I don’t perform as expected.”
The blow hit her hard. She tried to form words, finally she screamed in frustration and stormed out of the room. He heard the clatter of dishes in the kitchen, so he assumed she had already cooked dinner. A little while later he heard her coming up the stairs. She returned in her “definitely no sex tonight” outfit: an old t-shirt and threadbare sweatpants. His lack of comment seemed disturbing. They sat down and they let the silence continue. Finally she spoke.
“I’m sorry, okay? I struggled with this decision for a long time. I love you, and it’s not the end of the world. We can…”
“We can stop talking about this. It’s a thing of the past and you can’t answer the doorbell. I’m going to sleep. I have to get up early and test the waters and see if I can save this mess.” My life became a failure.
She hesitated about what to say and finally decided, “I’ll be up in a minute.”
He had fallen asleep when her screams woke him up. It seemed like when she got changed, he didn’t even realize his things were missing. He stayed in the largest guest room with a bathroom and planned to stay for a long time. Soon, she was banging on the door and demanding that he let her in. Ten minutes later he heard the rattle of the lock. After a few minutes, he heard a sigh and went back to sleep.
……
The next morning, Jane brought the boss his standard coffee and pastries, as well as her own coffee. She has been with him ever since, getting her first promotion, to secretary, and later to personal assistant. Jane loves the way Bev treats her and that she is the only person in the company who can tell her the truth without fear of consequences. Jane pulled up a chair to the table and they began their morning ritual of coffee and private time.
“How are you when you get home?”
His boss sighed. “Not good. Not good at all. I have heard more from him in two hours than in all the years we have been together. Apparently, when he is angry, the truth comes out, and he had very few words. Respecting my management skills, he moved out of the bedroom and changed the lock of the one he went to. Was he that upset?”
Jane looked at her boss with sad eyes. “I warned you, you should leave her some dignity. What you did is really cruel, boss.”
“I have to do this! I’m sending a message to everyone. If your performance is not up to standard, no one is invincible. How does the average soldier react to this?”
“The truth?”
“Always.”
“Well, Bev, this is divisive. Most men and some women think you’re a yelling bitch. There are some people who admire you, but there are very few of them. Surprisingly, there are a lot of people who are updating their resumes saying that a company that fires people without warning is not a company they want to work for and two other sales people said they saw the writing on the wall and doubted he would admit it in a two-week interview.”
Beverly couldn’t believe what she was saying. It wasn’t her idea at all. She thought that if she showed them that no matter who was in the company, they were serious, everyone would work harder. She had no intention of starting an exodus. This could go very bad. Very, very bad. She knew that in a few years she would be expected to run for a board seat and perhaps eventually become president. That could slow down the progress of these plans considerably.
Jane brought her back to reality. “What are you going to do with your husband?”
She waved, still thinking about her work. “I think, give him some time and space. He really loves me and he will come around.”
Jane knew it needed more, but she kept quiet. She had been loyal to Beverly all these years, but if things got worse, if people started leaving, she needed an exit plan. She still worried about her family…
*****
For the next three weeks Dave was extremely unproductive. He stopped going to the gym, stopped eating right, and started getting drunk more often than he was sober. He did nothing around the house and messed up the house at will. Bev tried to be supportive at first, enduring his harsh comments but eventually went silent. She noticed he was spending more time at work. Apparently he feels more comfortable there because she is the queen.
Then he went through the no-shower phase. After three days, Bev finally had enough. “For God’s sake, Dave, be brave! You’re smelly, full, and already off to a great start. You might like living like a pig, but I don’t. I’m sorry, okay? ?I can handle it better, but like you said, I can’t ring the doorbell.
His face softened. “My love, I miss you before. I miss you in my bed, I miss you in my body. It’s been almost a month, why don’t you come back to me?”
Dave took hold of her fingers and twisted them. “I’m kind of in now. They seem to love me and have never complained about my performance or offered to fire me. Plus, you’re already in a committed relationship.”
She turned white, then red. “You bastard! I have never cheated on you since we got married, not even once. Although I must admit that we didn’t get along well after the news broke, I still got the invitation.”
“We’ll talk about this in a little while. You cheated on me your entire marriage. Not with a man, but with a job. It was always your first time, and you always made it your first priority until we missed it. How come there have been so many anniversaries since friend commitments began and have you noticed how little you see your parents now, or the old friends that were in our family because they never see you anymore?”
Dave saw the pained expression on her face and felt sorry for her for a moment. He calmed down immediately when she slapped him hard, the first time they had touched each other in anger. About thirty minutes later he looked back and the mark was still on her cheek.
“Bastard! Don’t you know I’m doing all this for us so we can retire and enjoy it while we’re both young? That’s why I’m not Miss Comfort, I’ll apologize every time I miss a chance. We agreed not to have children, so don’t put this question on me, yes, there are people who can help me, but I need to be happy, so take a shower, get dressed, shave, and let the woman who loves you take you out to eat.
She paused, breathless with emotion and indignation. He gave her a sad smile. “Sorry, I already had dinner, three burritos and a large order of french fries. I don’t want to be a biological end when it comes to children. However, I loved you so much at the time, so it was an easy choice.
“You’re right, but it’s a shame the partying has to stop. I’ll go upstairs and shower, shave and try to be a real man again. I’ll go to the gym three times a day for now, and then, what else do I need to do? Thanks for the motivational seminar.
She stood there in shock at the words and the fact that she had hit her husband. Bev was smart enough not to follow him even though she was very remorseful and apologized when she came downstairs.
“I’m sorry, but you have no idea how hard this is for me. A business decision shouldn’t ruin such a wonderful marriage. Please, I’m sorry I had to fire you, but it’s for the best. Like I’ve told you many times before, this is only for the benefit of the company and it doesn’t mean I love you any less.”
He sighed. “Look, Bev, I know that in your heart you thought you did the right thing. Firing me was the last straw. Throughout our marriage, I’ve been playing a secondary role in your career, and frankly, I’m done with that.
He paused. “Is it hard for you because you regret how you handled things and hurt me so badly, or is it hard for you because people leave suddenly? When you do that to me, you create a hostile environment. Better to have a working environment than go to the spin doctor.”
Dave sighed quietly. “Bev, I shouldn’t have to do this, but I’m telling you right now, it’s going to get worse. Get ready for what’s going to happen over the next few weeks. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have some serious gym makeup time.”
Beverly was lying in bed, feeling sorry for herself, thinking about the conversation, when suddenly it came to her mind. “I loved you so much,” she said. When she finally fell asleep, she still wondered if he still loved her.
*****
Three days later, Beverly found herself sitting with Jane, pouring her heart out. “I don’t know what to do anymore. Everything I say or try seems to betray me. I’m beginning to understand that he has been harboring these resentments for years but is holding himself back. He hasn’t touched me sexually in almost eight years. During that week I had to buy myself a vibrator to keep myself from squirming otherwise. I couldn’t believe he turned down the job offer I gave him. It was lunch time and most people were out of the office or in the break room.
“Why is he so angry when you’re trying to help him?”
“Well, I have to promise the president there that if he helps me, I’ll take some of our business his way. Things were going great until the last time we sat down and the guy told everything. He was just recruiting. He told Dave that he was giving him the worst area and if he didn’t come up with the numbers soon, he wouldn’t be able to pass probation.
“What did Dave do?”
“He stood up, politely thanked the person who was interviewing him, then turned and walked left and came back here. Immediately after he left the president called me and yelled at me to get out. He then demanded that I continue my commitment to him.
He changed the subject to talking about general business when the receptionist called to say she had a gentleman who wanted to meet Bev but didn’t have an appointment. “He said he only needs five minutes if you want. He said he had something to say.”
