Enough with the delay tactics, Jeremy. I need to move on with my life. Be available at the meeting tomorrow afternoon or we adopt a final decision without you.
Jeremy's heart sank reading the text message on his mobile phone. He sighed and glanced up at his friends chatting and sipping from their bottles of beer. They were having a good time, hanging out, which was what Jeremy needed since his wife asked for a divorce. His friends looked at him. He smiled hesitantly, "okay. Dare."
"Yea! That's what I'm talking about," Jake guffawed and slapped Jeremy on the shoulder. "Make Solace fall in love with you and bring her here to meet the boys next week."
"Wait, what?" Jeremy exclaimed. The others laughed at his momentary confusion.
"No excuses, Jeremy," Jake wagged a finger in his face. "You chose 'dare'. After all, you are getting divorced, huh?" Jake winked at him.
Jeremy shook his head and brought out his wallet. "Alright, guys. Need to go." He dropped some cash on the table and walked out of the bar but not before hearing Jake say, "C'mon, it's still early!"
Jeremy strolled to where he'd parked his car. He stared at his bandaged palm. A little stain of red had spread in the centre of his palm. Solace Quentin had warned him not to strain it or it would start bleeding. He opened the door and sat inside his car.
Solace Quentin was a nurse he met in front of the supermarket the day before where he accidentally injured himself trying to get into his car in frustration. She was parked next to him, saw his bleeding hand, grabbed her small first aid bag and came to his rescue. With a beautiful smile, she cleaned and treated his wound.
He thanked her and they had coffee together. He'd been burdened and depressed because of his wife's demand for a divorce. Solace did not know this at the time. They sat down and talked for hours. It was the best afternoon he'd had in a long while.
Solace made him laugh, momentarily forgetting his injured palm and the emotional pain he was going through. She gave him her number "to call if he ever wanted to talk." They parted ways and he could not stop thinking about her. He met with his friends and when they saw his bandaged hand, he had no choice but to spill the story behind it.
In a game of truth or dare, he'd chosen 'dare' which was a bad idea. He still loved his wife, Teresa. She claimed he'd been absent in their marriage for the past two years. He'd been working hard to make sure his one-of-a-kind PDA communication device would be well received by tech giants, Apple or Intel. It was his life's work and he hoped Teresa would understand. Sadly, she did not.
Jeremy stared at his phone. He had somehow dialled Solace's number and it was ringing.
"Hello?" She had picked up.
"Um, hi. It's Jeremy."
"Hey, Jeremy. Nice to hear from you."
"Um, Solace. Is it alright if I come over?" Jeez, what am I doing? He thought.
"Sure. Come over."
Jeremy drove to Solace's apartment, knocked and she invited him in. Over a delicious plate of spaghetti and meatballs, a bottle of wine, they talked and laughed. Jeremy was happy. He could not take his eyes off her almond eyes and her full lips. Solace smiled when Jeremy did not respond whether he wanted more wine.
"Jeremy, why are you here tonight?" She asked quietly.
He froze at the direct question. He coughed to clear his throat. "Sorry about that. I know I was staring."
"No, no. It's alright. You laugh but your eyes are sad. Something is weighing heavily on your mind. Do you want to talk about it?"
Her voice was soothing, enough to draw out the deepest secret from anyone. How does she do it? He felt like he could tell her anything.
"Jeremy?"
He told her about his divorce, the dare and about how he felt at the moment —torn between his feelings for her and his wife. He was in a confused state emotionally and needed consolation. Maybe that was why he called her.
He curled a strand of her hair on his finger and gently tucked it behind her ear. Solace smiled and stepped back. "Jeremy, clearly, your heart is with Teresa. I'll advise you to go and make things right with her. If you act on your feelings now, we'll hate each other later on. We are better as friends, yes?"
Jeremy stared at Solace. He could be with her now but he would lose everything that mattered to him. He nodded. "Can I hug you at least?" They both laughed and held each other.
Jeremy sighed deeply and buried his face in her lustrous, curly hair. He sniffed in her sweet scent. He held her for a long moment and Solace let him.
"Time to go home to your family, Jeremy," Solace said gently and stepped away from him. He understood.
"Thank you, Solace," he replied and drove home to an empty apartment. Solace need not know that Teresa had moved out with their two children.
At Parker, Wilson & Hartley, the law firm representing his wife, he walked into the conference room and sat opposite his wife. Teresa looked beautiful as she always did. One of the things that endeared her to him was her smile. It was like she had one permanently etched on her face, regardless of the situation. Jeremy wondered how everything went downhill.
"Jeremy, where's your lawyer?" She asked. "You can't keep postponing this meeting."
Jeremy looked at Chad Wilson, one of the partners, seated beside his wife. "Can I have a moment with my wife?"
"Mr Philips, this is your divorce meeting. I'll advise against such…."
"It's okay," Teresa quickly interrupted, staring at Jeremy.
"Are you sure?" Chad Wilson asked Teresa.
"Yes. Please give us a few minutes alone."
"Alright. You have ten." Chad Wilson left the conference room to the couple.
"Jeremy, you don't look good. What happened to your hand?" Teresa gestured at his hand. Jeremy looked at it then at her. She still cared about him.
"I hurt myself. Not important. Tessy, please have a rethink about this. I don't want a divorce."
Teresa sighed, got up and paced around the room. "Jeremy, we've talked about this over and over…"
"I know, Tessy. But it's not what I want. Think of Robert and Jane."
"Don't bring our children into this. Do you have the means to take care of them? Will you be available 24-7 for them?"
"Tessy, I have signed a contract with Intel. Their offer is way better than Apple's. I can take care of you and our children. I know I left the financial burden to you for a while but I'm back on my feet now."
He moved towards her to hold her hand. Teresa stepped back and raised her hand. He grabbed her hands and held them. Teresa pulled but he wouldn't let go.
"Things have changed. I am a changed man and I still love you and our children."
Chad Wilson gazed at the couple in the conference room and hoped the divorce would go on. He needed the money so he strode into the room before the ten minutes was up. "Time's up. Shall we proceed?"
Teresa and Jeremy held hands. "No, Chad," Jeremy replied, smiling. "We are not getting a divorce anymore. This meeting is over."
Photo by: Alexandru Zdrobău from Unsplash, edited with Canva