Affairs of the heart

Affairs of the Heart

As she slipped on her new slinky black dress, her body tingled in anticipation of the night that lay ahead, she applied her make-up carefully and sprayed her favourite perfume all over her smooth neck. She took another sip of her vodka before applying the finishing touches ' her pearl ear-rings which Steven had given her last Christmas. Things were false between the two of them back then too. She couldn't quite remember what had gone wrong between them. Perhaps it was the long hours Steven had began spending at work, or the lack of attention he spent on her in the bedroom. Whatever it was, desperation had forced her into the arms of another, that fateful night.

It had all started at her sister Ann's house last year when Gavin had flirted openly with her at the dinner table. All the way through the meal Sue had felt her face flush every time Gavin made a suggestive comment. It appeared that Steven and Ann hadn't noticed, which allowed Sue to believe it was all in her imagination, until she offered to clear the table. As she entered the kitchen, Sue bent over the sink and hadn't heard Gavin creeping up to her from behind to press himself hard against her whispering 'I want you Sue'. Sue was disgusted at her brother-in-laws behaviour, excused herself quickly and headed back towards the others.

A few weeks later Sue bumped into Gavin at the checkout of her local supermarket. It was apparent that they were both uncomfortable with the atmosphere, but Gavin managed to break the ice and persuaded Sue to join him for a coffee to explain and apologise. Sue agreed reluctantly, and in the coffee house she began to soften as she listened to his explanation. Gavin indicated that he and Ann were going through a difficult time and had been trying for a baby for almost two years now with no success and assured her that it was the pressure he and Ann were under, combined with his feelings of inadequacy, that made him seek attention from Sue that night. She found herself confiding in Gavin about her own marriage and how far apart she and Steven had become. A few hours had past, and both Sue and Gavin had began to feel more at ease with each other and slightly relieved for being able to confide in another, they agreed to meet up again to talk more. Gavin requested they keep their meeting quiet for the moment as not to upset Ann any further. Sue agreed, with slight reluctance of going behind her sisters back.

A few weeks later Sue picked up the phone to hear Gavin's voice, desperate and distressed, begging Sue to come over. Hurriedly she drove to their house where Gavin answered the door. His defined features were crumpled in anguish as he poured out his heart, telling Sue that he and Ann had a terrible argument and she had gone to a conference for a few days and wont take his calls making him feel very isolated. Gavin cried on Sue's shoulder for the whole evening about how strained things were between him and Ann. Sue found herself sympathising as she poured both of them another drink. Four bottles of wine later, Sue began opening up more about her own marriage problems and how little attention Steven was paying her. Gavin looked up from his glass, reached out and cupped Sue's face gently in his hands and replied "I don't understand how anyone could push such a beautiful and kind person like you away Sue and his face moved closer. Before she could resist, her lips were pressed firmly and passionately against his and her hands grasping for his body to be brought closer to hers. The months of frustration releasing themselves as their bodies entwined.

The next morning, however, Sue's head began to clear and she felt disgusted with herself. She quickly dressed, and sneaked out the back door.

As she opened the front door to her house, she noticed a note on the table saying 'Had to attend a meeting in Leeds tonight, wont be back until Sunday, Steven'. Sue hadn't even thought what to say to Steven about her whereabouts that night so this was met with a huge relief.

And that was where everything had gone wrong! The fateful night Sue had given into temptation. As time passed Sue became more and more depressed and began drinking more heavily. The arguments with Steven increased and her guilt kept eating away at her insides. Each time her sister phoned Sue would fob her off.

It was the phone call that she answered a few hours earlier that had driven her to this - Ann on line, crying out in pain as she told her sister that the baby she and Gavin had longed for so much, had slipped through their fingers ' she'd lost it before it had the chance to grow. This drove Sue to the event about to occur. Sue put the finishing touches to her lipstick, she picked up the bottle of pills and poured the rest of the bottle into her hand. With a final swig of vodka she swallowed the contents, stood up, walked across to her bed and lay down to rest!

Steven looked down at his wife, hooked up to various monitors, drips, with tubes coming out of her nose and felt nothing but a mixture of pity and disgust at her most recent act. He turned to the person standing by his side and watched as she slowly bent over Sue and kissed her gently on the cheek. He then reached for her hand which he clasped tenderly in his and turned to leave. "Goodbye sis. I'm sorry for everything Ann whispered as she left the hospital with Steven.
The End