Lurking...

“You’re late!” said Nadia as she went on to give Rene a hug.

“I’m never late, everyone else is simply early.” She replied mockingly.

“Early? It’s my bloody house! If only I had a dime each time you arrived late,” Nadia exclaimed sarcastically.

“Oh, you cheapo! oooooh…This place looks stunning!”

The place looked marvelous, a stark opposite of what it had been a few months back. Subtle was certainly not what it was, as color seemed to hit at Rene from every direction. The entire apartment was a zingy combination of turquoise, orange, red, yellow, and a few other shades. A weird-looking, two-foot wooden sculpture, greeted her in the corridor. If an angry dwarf underwent taxidermy, that was what it would look like. Indoor potted plants marked every adjacent wall in the house. A generously stacked bookshelf now adorned the wall, where once hung way too many pictures - wedding, baby shower, travel tales, family, you name it. Not to mention the lavish chandelier. Nadia had certainly outdone herself this time.

Rene remarked as she looked around, “Seems like somebody has been redecorating.”

“Well, there isn’t much to do, you know, with Zack in boarding school…”

“Oh yeah! How is he? Does he like it?” Rene enquired, almost embarrassed that she forgot the ‘being kicked out of school’ ordeal.

“He was upset for quite some time, was kinda acting up, violently too. But now, with his counseling sessions and stuff, he seems to be settling in.”

“That’s good, isn’t it?”

“Dude, it’s great! From the time he’s back for summer break, all he wants is waffles; Nutella waffles, banana waffles, whipped cream, maple syrup... he seems almost normal …like before.” Nadia replied beaming with a sigh of relief.

“Hahaha… he’s always been a sweet fellow. Where’s he though?”

“I parcelled him off with Dave,” said Nadia as she uncorked a bottle of red wine and hand her a glass, “He’s at my in-laws for the weekend. Didn’t I tell you it is Simone’s first birthday tomorrow?”

“Oh yeah, you did.” Rene recollected as she took a sip, “but it’s weird that you sent him, you know since he’ll be going back in less than a month.”

“It’s the only way I could keep his father from visiting his whore in my absence.”

“Hey! I told you don’t talk like that. It’s very unlike you.”

“Unlike me? Really?” Nadia shrieked in disbelief, “What else should I call her? Home-wrecker? Slut?”

“Calm down Nad! You down wan’na ruin our weekend with your blood pressure going through the roof.” Rene said as she sat her down.

“You started it!” pouring herself another glass, “How have you been?”

“Just okay, work keeps me busy. I’m tired of people’s sympathy talks though.” Rene shrugged.

“Dude, your husband died. What do you expect people to do? Anyways, I’m sorry I couldn’t be there babe. It’s just that Zack..”

“Nad, I know…Did I ask why you didn’t show up? It’s okay.” She reassured her.

“Still, I’m sorry.”

“Why? I’m not.” Rene blurted looking straight at her, “You of all the people should know!”

“Don’t say such things, Rene.” Nadia said as she slowly reached for her hand, “I agree he was a ‘lil kinky in the bedroom but… but some men are like that…”

“A ‘lil kinky? Don’t even get me started.” she said sounding both blunt and sour.

“Hey, at least your husband came home and fucked you, unlike mine, who was letting his load off in a 20- something bouncy slut.”

“Oh really? That’s supposed to make me feel better?”

The room fell silent. Rene noticed a portrait in the study. It sent a shiver down her spine as she glanced at it. The blackish grotesque colors groping the face of the women, the lifeless brown eyes made her stomach turn. It made her think of those dreadful nights with Vic. The fear that gripped her every day, as she walked up those flights of stairs. Of how she dragged herself, so afraid to be in the same room as him. All the time that she’d spent fretting the next torment he’ll inflict on her.

She thought about those nights she’d be woken up feeling heavy and uneasy, only to find him sitting butt naked on her chest, trying to shove his manhood inside her. And how he’d pinch her nose if she protested, leaving her gasping for breath. The only thing that was worse than the nights, were the mornings when she examined her body for the spoils of the night. Of how he’d make her breakfast and slyly kiss her goodbye as he left for work. Every single day when she had to put on a fake smile and boast of her marital bliss. Such a normal couple of people would say, such a good husband.

“Another one?” Nadia asked signaling to the bottle, breaking her chain of thought.

“You couldn’t find a darker painting?” she asked passing her glass to her.

“Who does she remind you of?” Nadia giggled sarcastically and as they went towards the kitchen “Ready for dinner?”

“Awww, you cooked for me? Makes me feel so special…”

“Don’t push it. I just thought it would be a kind gesture since…”

“Since what? Victor died? You can say it.” Rene retorted sounding annoyed.

“Okay, okay… don’t sweat it. You look good by the way. I must admit you look way better than I’d expected, you know since it’s just three months.” Nadia said trying to lighten the mood.

“Well, what can I say? Time heals everything maybe.”

“Only if that were true. Some things no amount of time, wine, or gin can heal.” She remarked, thoughtfully staring into space for a brief moment, “Anyways here’s hoping some butter chicken, kebabs, and your favorite custard will do the trick…” Nadia said raising her glass.

“For me or for you?” Rene said as they burst out laughing, clinking their glasses.

“You’ve got the nerve, I must say. By the way, did you hear about Lisa? It seems she’s been promoted to vice president.”

“Oh really? This soon?”

“Rumours are that she’s gonna dump Nel….you didn’t hear it from me okay.”

Nadia went on to ramble about the latest newsfeed while Rene attentively relished the tender meat in the kebabs. She was reminded of how Vic had burnt her hand with the steel spatula when the fried chicken was undercooked. It had cost him his reputation among his friends, or so he said.

“Rene? Hello? Are you even listening to me?”

“What’s bothering you? I mean besides Riya…” Rene confronted her, looking up from her plate.

“What do you mean besides Riya? She’s the only sorrow I have. That bitch has ruined my life! You complain about Vic, but I’d give anything if Dave spared me a second glance. It’s… it’s like…. eating me up on the inside…”

“Is that so? You’d give anything? How about if Dave forces himself on you and fucks you up your behind? Or if he insists on making you wear a collar and treats you like a dog? I got 2 stitches Nad, couldn’t even sit up for 3 days… I had to use a fucking donut pillow for almost a month…. This was last year…. and even after all this… he still, still….”

Rene had now lost her cool and began weeping… Nadia just sat there in disbelief.

“You have no idea who Dave was. That fucking psychopath put on such a perfect drama for all you guys. I couldn’t even get a bloody divorce from that piece of shit…. ‘coz my own, my very own people would vouch for him.”

Rene rubbed her runny nose with her palm, picked her plate, and stormed to the kitchen. Nadia followed, “Hey…” she said gently stroking her back trying to get her to calm down. “Why didn’t you say anything… you know you could’ve told me right?”

“I’m telling you now, right? You’ve got no idea the kind of hell he’d put me through. Plus after his stroke, every single person had developed a soft corner for him.”

“Are you saying that all this began after he came back from the hospital?”

“He’d always been like that, but his weaker left side had only made him more hateful.”

“Even after you did so much for him?”

“Nad, trust me, you’d be better off as a widow…. or even dead, than to live with a man like him. He’d spy on me, follow me around. He had secretly blocked out people from my phone, so I couldn’t reach or communicate with them…. that sick man hit me in the face even for speaking to the neighbor's driver… can you believe it?” she said, as she tried to regain composure.

Nadia was dumbstruck. “He got exactly what he deserved and I couldn’t be more relieved.” Rene declared as the poured herself another glass and sat comfortably on the sofa.

“You never really told me what happened, I mean, how he died,” Nadia asked reluctantly after a long pause.

“Well, no one really knows. It was a Monday and I got home later than usual, by 8 pm. When I walked in, he was lying in a pool of blood. There was a deep wound on the left side of his head. Seemed as though he had fallen and hit his head on the table.”

Nadia continued to listen attentively.

“I’d left for office at around 7.30 in the morning. He was alright then. I texted him once I got to work, as he always insisted. He replied at about 8.10 a.m. Then, I called him at lunch, twice, and when he didn’t answer, I figured that he’d call me back later. After that, I got busy right until 7.15 when I left from work. So the police assumed that he fell in the time frame between 9 a.m to 12.30 p.m and may have died at around 4 p.m. I rushed him to the hospital immediately, but he was declared dead on arrival.”

Nadia sat there, deep in thought and then asked, “It’s weird, isn’t it? That he didn’t call for help or anything…”

“Actually, the doctor said that anyone else should’ve gained consciousness in a while and called for help, but it seems that the meds he was on, the thinners, kept his blood from coagulating. So he basically died from excessive blood loss.”

They then sat in silence for a while.

“You know what Zack told me yesterday?

“Tell me,” Rene replied to sound interested.

“He asked me if Dave and I were getting a ‘divorce’”

“Divorce?…but how? How on Earth… rather why…why does he think so?”

“Can you blame him? He came home early one day, as his tutor was unwell and he caught them in action.”

“WHAT! What the…” Rene was shocked.

“Yea… my 10-year-old now knows what sex is! Right here in my own kitchen.” She said as she pointed out, “When he told me, the only thing that kept me from burning the place down, is the fact that I pay half the mortgage for it.”

“Shit man…”

“You think that’s bad? Once my babysitter caught them, here, on the floor.” Nadia sighed sorrowfully, “My boy is now facing the brunt of all this and he certainly doesn’t deserve all that he’s going through.”

“He’s just a little boy with big feelings…and even bigger questions, Nad.”

“Is that so? Try saying that to his school Principal. He got expelled at nine, Rene, NINE. He should be playing, running around with his friends and not be worried about keeping his parents together,” Nadia regretted, “You know he was never a violent child. All his tantrums began after this episode, and now, now my poor boy is in therapy.”

Rene yelled in disbelief, “Why the fuck can’t they go to another place to do their dirty work?”

“Isn’t that the first thing those bastards should’ve thought about? Anyways, since the time I’ve confronted him, he takes his business someplace else and in that too, I’m the loser… ‘coz I’m the one who gets zero action.”

“So, you’re saying that…you haven’t..” Rene was puzzled.

“Not in one and a half years….” She announced dramatically, almost sounding pompous, “Wait actually plus two, so twenty months to be precise…my life is a mess, Rene. Your friend is a loser.”

“Oh Nad, don’t say that I’m so sorry…” she said nervously, not knowing what else to say.

By now, they were at the end of the third bottle and time seemed to be moving exceptionally slow.

“You know Rene? You telling me about….you know… the sex and stuff actually turned me on…”

“You’re grosse, and you’re drunk! No more for you…”

“Sherioushly…” Nadia slurred... “the sitter telling me about them doing it… ish like the mosht action I’ve got in ages.”

“Aww… come here” Rene hugged her.

Nadia buried her head in her chest and began to sob…

“Why? Why me? Why you? we’re good people, aren’t we? why…” she bawled.

A few minutes later she calmed down and continued to lay her head on Rene’s chest.

Rene was stroking Nadia’s hair and rubbing her back trying to make her feel better. “It doesn’t have to end like this you know Nad. Life doesn’t have to be so. I’m sure…” Before she could finish, Nadia had raised her head and kissed her gently on the lips. She then looked Rene in the eyes. Rene on the other hand, sat there puzzled, while Nadia moved in and kissed her even deeper.

Something inside Rene churned and she couldn’t withdraw herself from Nadia’s arms. She kissed her back. Nadia then, gently unbuttoned her shirt while kissing her on the neck. This was so wrong, yet so very satisfying. Suddenly Nadia stopped, sat up and looked at Rene. Their eyes met for a bit, as if she were asking Rene’s consent.

This time Rene moved in to kiss her. She’d known her for years. She had been her constant, through everything. Nadia then took off Rene’s purple bra and saw the bite mark Victor had left on her shoulder. She so softly ran her fingers on it and then leaped forward and kissed it. By now, Rene had completely given in to the pleasure that had eluded her for years. Nadia sucked at her breasts while she found herself melting, but wanting more. The tender drawing of her breasts was a feeling Rene hadn’t known.

Rene unzipped Nadia’s dress and pulled it off from over her head. She was strangely appealing. So innocent and kind. Long brown hair falling over her shoulders, her perfect collar bones. Rene kissed her passionately as she ran her fingers down to her neck. Nadia had plump bosoms, which she caressed softly. Her dusky skin sparkled in the dim light. Nadia pulled Rene closer, directing her mouth to her breast, urging her. Tears flowed down her cheeks as she sucked on her. On noticing her quiet sobbing, Rene lovingly wiped her tears and smooched her even more intently. Then, placing a pillow behind Nadia’s head, she laid her back gently. Rene saw the C-section scars and the stretch marks her husband had once called ugly, and she kissed them. It was a night that never should’ve happened.

Rene woke up to the sun streaming into the room through the window sill. It was 7.45 a.m. Her heavy head and naked self was proof that ‘it’ had really happened. She carefully got up from the couch and got dressed. Nadia bought her some coffee as she sat at the edge of the couch. Nadia waddled around sheepishly. She was embarrassed.

As she went inside to fix them some breakfast, Rene stood at the balcony taking in the morning sunlight. It had rained all night and the smell of the earth filled her nostrils. Up from the 12th floor, she witnessed tiny people gear themselves for another day in the city. Many did so with glad smiles and warm gestures. Numerous children all decked up found their way to different schools. Rene thought of her school days, precisely the time she’d spent with Nadia.

“What you looking at?”

“It’s something, isn’t it? Something so endearingly optimistic about this city.”

“So much that it angers me. You know…. how the world keeps moving while we’re left behind.”

Without responding, Rene sat on the chair and sipped her coffee. Nadia then sat in front of her and placing her hand on her knee said, “Rene, I’m sorry. I didn’t… I couldn’t ….Please don’t be upset.”

“You don’t need to apologize. It was consensual. Nobody needs to feel guilty.”

“But… but I’m not…”

“I know… I’ve known you long enough to know that you like guys…” Rene reassured her, as she softly brushed her cheek.

“Then why are you being like this? I’m sorry to have led you on…. I can’t lose you … you’re … you’re the only one I have …”

“Relax Nad… it’s not about you. Don’t worry, everything is alright… Now please get me something to eat, I’m famished.” Rene remarked naughtily, as she tickled her at the waist.

“Hehe…” Nadia giggled as she wiped her weepy eyes and headed to the kitchen…“Sunnyside up?” she nodded.

“Poor thing, so sweet yet so naïve.” Rene thought.

Nadia didn’t know that Rene had been planning that day for years and that she had relished the thought of making him suffer. She had put together the slightest detail, she was sure to go unnoticed. Every blow Victor laid on her, every violation of her being, added fuel to her vengeance. With each passing day, she grew fearless of turning her dark desires into reality. She had been administering higher doses of blood thinners to Victor. Then one day, she planted the sticky tape that had caused him to trip. She had moved the table a few inches, just to ensure that he would suffer a gash to his head. As she had waited back at work that day, she counted minutes in anticipation; and when she got home, all she had to do was get the tape out of the doorframe, just before raising a very believable alarm. A little bit of hospital drama and she would walk scot-free. Nadia didn’t know that Rene had made Victor bleed to death.

“Here you go!” Nadia walked in all chirpy.

Rene held her hand firmly, “Ouch! Rene, I’ll drop the tray,”

“Nad, you must leave him.”

“What? You know I can’t,” she revolted reluctantly.

“Nadia, listen to me. You must take charge of your life, before life takes charge of you.”