Three is a crowd: David aims to have his cake and eat it too 

(Continued from last issue)

David and Diane have been married for years; then there is Julie, the young secretary whose axis collides with the couple’s in ways none of them saw coming.

JULIE

I had gone back to bed after David left, but when I eventually got up to start the day, it was with a fresh spring in my step.

It had been a while since David had stayed for dinner, but after last night, and his promise this morning, I was pretty confident that he would this evening, and even though the day was only beginning, I began mentally planning the dinner menu, while preparing Junior’s breakfast.

I was just getting done with that when he woke up, and by the time I had given him his bath and breakfast, it was already ten. Putting him in his playpen with a few toys to keep him occupied, I then got started on cleaning the kitchen and the rest of the apartment.

If there were two things I knew David was particular about, it was a clean, well-kept home, and good food, and I was determined to present him with both when he returned. Many might call it ‘old-fashioned’, but I genuinely enjoyed meeting David’s wants and demands in this way; besides, after all he did for me, I did not consider it too much to keep the apartment spotless and serve him a hot meal when he came by in return.

Furthermore, although I did want to return to work, or find a way to earn some money of my own, I knew that catering to David’s demands would always remain my first priority.

Success means different things to different people, and for me, it meant security, a home, love and family, rather than wealth and a fancy job; again, call it ‘old-fashioned’, but I believed the latter two were a man’s measure of success, while the rest were a woman’s and David met the standards for both.

Of course, catering for all your man’s whims and demands, while simultaneously looking after an active, demanding toddler was no simple fete, as I was quickly reminded of, for the time whizzed past, and by the time I put Junior down for his afternoon nap, it was already past two and while the apartment was thankfully clean and tidy, I was exhausted and had not even started on the dinner I had been planning all day.

However, as tired as I was, I was, nonetheless, determined to get it done; so, leaving the bedroom door open a crack so I would hear Junior when he woke up, I took a deep breath and headed for the kitchen.

DIANE

It is funny how you can want something so badly, only to finally get it, and realize you don’t care about it that much after all.

That’s precisely what happened when I received a notification on my phone from the bank that David had transferred fifteen million shillings to my personal account late that morning.

It was not enough for a new car, but it was certainly more than enough for a down payment on one, and after the way David had spoken to me that morning, definitely more than I had expected.

I should have been thrilled; I had won and yet now that I had, the victory felt empty and hollow. All of a sudden, I did not care about the bloody car, I just wanted the man I had married back, and for things to return to the way they used to be before that home wrecker had waltzed into our lives and turned our world inside out.

Although it probably would have offered a great distraction from everything that was going on, I could not bring myself to go into the boutique that morning, and instead spent the day moping around the house, thinking of little else but David and the pitiful state of our marriage.

I had texted him thanking him for the money he had sent, but he had not texted back, and when it approached five when I knew he would be leaving the office with still no word from him, anxious for any form of communication between us, I texted again, this time asking if he was going to be coming home, and then adding ‘the girls have been asking for you’.

That was not true, but I was desperate, and knew that no matter what was going on between him and I, he had always had a soft spot for the girls, and if there was anything that could draw a response out of him, it was them.

They were my last hope, and it worked; a few minutes later, my phone pinged; ‘I’ll be there in half an hour’, his reply read.

I let out a sigh of relief, not realizing that I had been holding my breath until then; he was coming home. It was not much, but it was a start.

DAVID

I had planned to head straight to the apartment after work, but Diane’s message about the girls asking for me had given me pause.

I had transferred the money for the car to her account that morning and was still feeling rather bitter towards her over it; so, she was the last person I wanted to see that evening, but that did not extend to the children.

Although Daniel and my relationship had its challenges, the girls and I had always been very close, and it was not fair to punish them for their mother’s faults; so, I had quickly changed my plans, texting Julie to let her know I would be there later than expected, and then letting Diane know I was on my way.

The new plan was to go to the house, spend time with the children until they went to bed, and then pack a few suits, shirts and personal effects, and head to the apartment for the night.

The short notice about the change in plans was probably not very fair to Julie, who had no doubt slaved away throughout the day, expecting me for dinner, but I knew she would not kick up a fuss over it.

That was yet another thing I loved so much about her, how easy it was to be with her; she was easy to please, quick to forgive, and slow
to anger; in short, Diane’s complete opposite.

However, despite Julie’s accommodating nature, the scramble to rearrange the evening’s plans at the last minute had served as a reminder of just how complex running two households really was, and I knew that going forward, I was going to have to come up with a more concrete and sustainable plan of how to meet not just the financial, but also the emotional needs of both as well.

margaretwamanga@yahoo.com