I tried to believe you but something is wrong
You won't look in my eyes tell me what's going on
****
October 1, 2014
****
"Scout!" Tom said finally pushing the nanny off of him. He was so far gone in the kiss that he hadn;t heard the pitter patter of his daughter' feet coming down the wooden steps. He went to pick up Scout in the doorway. "I thought you were sleeping, bugs," Tom said picking the small girl up and kissing her cheek with the same lips that had just been on Chloe's. Tom's cheeks were burning bright red with guilt.
"I missed mommy," Scout's eyes turned glassy, as tears threatened to spill over. Tom's large quarterbacking hand rested on the back of her head, pulling her into his shoulder. His lips reached to kiss her temple.
"I miss her too," Tom said walking up to the main floor leaving Chloe smirking in his office all alone. "She'll be back in a few days though," Tom said. He placed the small girl on the countertop in the kitchen.
"Daddy?" The girl asked, almost afraid. Tom gulped in fear of her next question. How would he respond if his daughter asked him what he was doing? He wasn't prepared.
"Yes?" Tom asked nervously. He breathed in sharply.
"Can we have ice cream?" Scout asked looking at him with puppy dog eyes. Tom exhaled a sigh of relief.
"Of course we can have ice cream my love," Tom answered thankfully turning towards the freezer to get out the ice cream. He wondered if Scout would ever say anything to him about the kiss, he hoped that she wouldn't. The sweet, innocent, little girl didn't deserve a dad that cheated on her mom. His wife didn't deserve it either.
****
October 5, 2014
Olivia stood in the airport waiting for her ride. The usually punctual Tom was running late. Tom always harped on her to be early for flights and here she stood waiting for him and Scout. She checked her watch. The watch Tom had bought her for Christmas the year before. She spun in a circle before returning her eyes back to the phone in her hand. She was beginning to think Tom forgot about her.
"Mommy!" she heard her darling Scout's voice calling from behind her. She spun to the voice and saw Scout running at her full speed. This was the longest Olivia had ever been away from Scout.
"Baby!" Olivia said crouching down to Scout's height. She held her arms out for Scout to run into. The toddler gladly did. Olivia stood to full height and began covering Scout in pink kisses. "I missed you so much, bugs," Olivia said kissing her daughter's cheek one last time. She looked to Tom now. His eyes were shifty.
"Welcome home," he spoke softly. He put his hand on the small of her back and pulled her in for a quick peck on the lips. His lips felt different. She kissed him again to confirm they tasted different. They did. She shrugged it off though.
"Did you miss me?" Olivia asked. Her eyes begging for him to say yes.
"I miss you always," Tom said guiding her to the car. They reached the parked Range Rover and Tom loaded the suitcase into the back while Olivia buckled Scout. Once they were both in the car, Tom put it into drive. He glanced his wide blue eyes at Olivia and then at Scout in the rear view mirror. "How was New York?"
"It was really good. I got everything done that I needed to and I should be set for a while," Olivia said crossing her left leg over the right. Tom nodded in approval.
"Mommy?" Scout spoke in the same curious voice she had when she asked Tom for ice cream.
"Yes my love?" Olivia turned to her daughter, who was sitting behind Tom. Olivia rested her hand on Scout's tiny foot.
"Where is New York?" Scout asked.
"New York is where we lived in the summer," Olivia answered cheerfully. She was energetic and refreshed. She was ready to save her marriage.
"Did you kiss anyone when you were in New York?" Scout asked tilting her head. Tom's heart sunk. It sunk into his stomach. He blinked slowly. Stunned at the question the two year old asked. They weren't even out of the airport parking lot and se already was bringing it up.
"What- no why would I kiss- Oh my god," Olivia turned back to the front. Hurt shone all over her face. The drooping in her eye lids. The wrinkle in her forehead. The frown on her lips. The tears trickling down her cheeks. The energy she was just full of suddenly disappeared with each word the Scout said. Tom cringed. The car was the last place he had expected this to come out. She looked to Tom with the hurt expression. She was breathing heavily and gasping for air. Gasping for familiarity.
"Did daddy kiss somebody?" Olivia turned back to Scout, her voice shaky with every word she spoke. Tom was there, but he was invisible to Olivia at the moment. Scout nodded slowly. Olivia turned back to face forward and began to sob hysterically. She was shaking. She hadn't imagined it would hurt this bad. She speculated that he was cheating on her, but to actually hear it hurt way more than she ever imagined. Her heart was broken into a million pieces.
"Olivi-"
"Stop the car," Olivia began.
"We are in the middle of the road," Tom protested.
"Stop the car!" Olivia screamed. Tom did as his wife told him. He never heard the mild mannered woman yell like that. Once the car was stopped she went to the back first and grabbed her suitcase. Tom got out behind her and followed her to the back of the car.
"You're making a scene. Can we talk about this at home?" Tom stammered.
"How could you do this to me? How could you cheat on me? How could you?" Olivia sobbed slapping his chest between every question. "I was gone for four days. Four days Tom. And I come back to find out you cheated on me!" Olivia was screaming. She was irate. She crouched down to the ground and sobbed. Tom touched her back to help her up. "Don't you dare touch me! Not with those hands that touched that slut," Olivia said standing on her own, disgust showing on her face. "This life we built together. You're just going to throw that away? Are you going to say anything?" Olivia asked pushing his chest in anger again. Cars were passing them by.
"This isn't just my fault. You haven't exactly been the best wife lately. I ask you a question and you just ignore me. You've given me nothing," Tom argued.
"I've given you nothing? Are you fucking kidding me, Tom? You ask me to move back to Boston, so I do. You ask me for another baby, so I give you one. You say we should hire a nanny, so I let you. I swear to you I'm going to fire that god damn nanny so fast when I get home," Olivia said through gritted teeth. "I know this football season has been tough on you because you have two losses. But you are about to have three more losses. Call a divorce lawyer. I'm done. I hope that slut was worth it because you lost me, Scout, and the baby because of her," Olivia crossed her arms. She wasn't crying anymore. Her eyes were dried out. She wasn't even sad, she was irate, angry, devastated.
Olivia went back to the car and grabbed Scout from it.
"Put her back in the car," Tom said sternly pointing his finger back at the car.
"No, just leave," Olivia argued back.
"How are you going to get home?" Tom said haughtily.
"As far as I'm concerned that's not my home. I stopped calling that my home when you started kissing that whore," Olivia retorted.
"I'm not leaving you," Tom said back.
"Why not? This wouldn't be the first time you left us," Olivia said. She surprised herself with her own tears. The clouds had overtaken the sun's spot in the sky and she could see Tom's face clearly now. He'd been crying. His face was filled with the stains of tears. Usually Olivia would be sad at the sight of seeing her husband cry, but not this time. This time she was almost happy that he had been crying. Olivia was envious that his voice hadn't cracked when he cried.
"Whatever Olivia," Tom said walking back to the car. "I'll call you later."
"Don't bother! You lost your right to call me when your lips met hers" She yelled as the Range Rover sped off. "Just me and you Scout," Olivia kissed her daughter's forehead. Scout looked up at Olivia with wide eyes. Her mother's face was red with anger and black with running makeup. Scout leaned her head on her mother's shoulder to show she cared.
"Hello? Could you come get me?" The shaky woman's voice said.
What do you think? Is it over? 😢