Three is a crowd: David faces prospect of losing Diane 

(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.

DIANE

My blood was boiling, my mind racing, and my heart bleeding, as I drove away from my parents’ home; my father’s criticism had been harsh, and while my mother had not been quite as vocal, I could see the disappointment in her eyes and hear it in her tone when she spoke.

However, while their words stung, what hurt the most was that deep down I knew they were right; David had just taken me away for a beautiful weekend, and now on our very first day back in the real world, things were already falling apart – and since the children were at my parents, I could not even blame them for my shortcoming.

Apart from my feelings of failure and guilt, a small voice at the back of my mind constantly whispered that if I did not get my act together, I would be giving David an excuse to go back to that whore, and after all I had been through to reel David back in, that was one of the most terrifying thoughts of them all.

However, rather than let the fear consume and break me, I used it to feed my determination to do better, and began mentally planning the following day’s schedule.

Both emotionally and physically exhausted, my mind pre-occupied with regaining control of my life, I absent-mindedly changed lanes without checking my rearview or side mirror, and the next thing I knew, there was the deafeningly loud blare of a truck’s horn and then I was flung forward as my car was rammed from the rear.

The sound of my back wind screen exploding in a shower of glass, and metal screeching and crumpling was the last thing I remember before the world went dark.

JULIE

Once I heard water running in the bathroom as Sandra gave Junior his bath, and was certain she was out of hearing range, I once again tried to call Kenneth, and once again the phone rang continuously with no response.

I was just about to give up and hang up, when there was finally a click, and then Kenneth’s voice: “Hello,” an obvious tinge of irritation in his tone.

“Thank God you’ve answered; I’ve been trying to reach you for days,” I gushed, my own tone a mixture of relief and accusation.

“You mean since Saturday, that’s two days ago,” he corrected me dryly.
“Well it probably feels longer since you haven’t been answering my calls!”
“I’ve been busy, and besides, there was really nothing to say,” he answered coldly, his tone tired and defeated. This was worse than I thought; I had known Kenneth was hurt, but he had never been this cold or distant towards me before, and suddenly the fear I had had that I was losing him, was all too real.

“Maybe not for you, but I have a lot to say; you left before I could explain….”
“There’s nothing to explain; like you said, you’re sleeping with two men, and I’m not ready to be the third wheel any longer, so there really is nothing more to say,” he repeated.

“Kenneth, please! Just hear me out for five minutes; that’s all I’m asking for, just five minutes,” I pleaded desperately.

He sighed and was silent for a moment before answering: “I’m working the night shift tonight, so I’m at the hospital and can’t talk now, but I’m off tomorrow, so come to the house and we’ll talk then,” he finally conceded grudgingly.

A wave of such relief washed over me, that all I could manage was a breathless “thank you” before he hung up. I was not sure what I would say to him tomorrow, or if it would even change anything, but at least he was willing to talk to me, and for now, that was enough.

DAVID

Diane had called me when she was leaving her parents’ house that evening, and that had been close to an hour ago, so as I got out of the shower, I was expecting her to drive up the driveway any minute.

When a further thirty minutes went by, with no sign of her, I got slightly peeved; after she had left me to come back to an empty house, without so much as the whiff of dinner, one would have thought she would return home in a hurry, but that obviously was not what she was thinking.

I considered calling her to ask just how long it took to get home from her parents house, but remembered how disastrously the last evening she had come home late and I had raised a fuss had gone, so I bit my tongue and decided to wait a bit longer.

After all, I figured that since I knew she was feeling guilty about not being home to receive me on our first day back, she would try to make up for it in other ways, and since I had not gotten any private time with Julie at the apartment, I was hopeful that if I played my cards right, I would at the very least get some physical intimacy that night.

However, when another half hour went by with still no word from her, my patience run out, and I was just about to call her, when my phone rang. I did not recognize the number, but immediately got a bad feeling, and answered the call almost hesitantly: “Hello.”

“Mister Mujuni, this is Doctor Kenneth from Earlwood hospital; I’m afraid your wife has been involved in a car accident and is admitted at the hospital.”

I recognized both the name and the cold voice on the other side, and could not believe what a crazy coincidence it was that I had first met him because of Julie, and now Diane was admitted at the same hospital where he worked!

However, I could not dwell on that because of the news he had just given me; all I could think of was that I had to get to Diane before it was too late.

“I’m on my way,” I announced, and hung up before he could respond.

Two minutes later, I was in my car, tearing out the driveway.

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