Doug and Laney had the worst timing in the world, even after decades together.
When Laney took a French cooking course, it coincided with Doug undertaking a diet avoiding butter, eggs and bread. There was no feedback, no one to eat her cuisine and no one to cheer her on.
Doug became a bartender and the next day, Laney found Jesus and up and quit drinking.
Doug and Laney were never on the same page. Hell, they weren’t in the same book. And now, stepping over the threshold of 50, there was a new difference, a new wedge.
Having entered perimenopause, Laney was in a phase of wearing kaftans and practicing radical self-acceptance. She was healing her nervous system, tending her gut-biome and, as she joked, ‘white-knuckling the hormone highway.’
‘I’m still optimistic, I’m still ambitious,’ Laney insisted. ‘The only difference is I now must have a fan pointed toward me at all times ‘
Doug, meanwhile, had stepped into the world of looks-maxing. He covered his gray, hit the gym like a fiend, addressed issues with low T and chugged Creatine and protein drinks.
Laney had to admit he looked great but, every once in a while, she caught Doug posing for the mirror. Recently, he’d jokingly asked Laney what she’d think if, through the miracle of cosmetic surgery, he developed a chin cleft.
Laney worried. Could Doug be vain? His gait had certainly changed. It had a prowling quality. Would he cheat on her?
‘I don’t know if we’ll be together tomorrow, ‘ Laney said when asked about her marriage. ‘But we’ve been together a long time.’
‘There’s value in that, ‘ Doug agreed, nodding. ‘Value in both the history and the uncertainty.’
‘Life together has been a rolle-rcoaster,’ Laney mused.
‘It’s never boring, though,’ Doug said, reflexively flexing his biceps. ‘This marriage is what they used to call an E-ticket ride.’
–Sarah Tortibio
See more flash fictiion by Sarah Torribio HERE
