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Great Writing - Home > Extended > Let no man put asunder - chapter 3
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Extended Work
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| Let no man put asunder - chapter 3 | |
| By LynB | ||
| 21 November 2006 | ||
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Chapter 3 As they all stood there on the stage, listening to the seemingly never ending cheers and applause, the only thought in Jon’s mind was getting home to his family as soon as possible. It had only been a few days, but it had seemed like weeks. He had not forgotten his conversation with Donna a couple of nights ago, when she had accused him of putting the fans before his own children – that had hurt more than she would ever know. He loved his family more than life itself, but the fans were very dear to him too. Without their devotion, none of them would have been able to live the dream they were living now. It seemed like he was being torn two ways – he should have known by now, that whenever he tried to please everyone, he ended up pleasing no one! “I bet you’re looking forward to going home!” said Mike, as he gratefully shut the dressing room door behind them. “You’ve really missed Donna and the kids, haven’t you?” “Yes, I have!” he said, feeling his eyes fill with tears, as he realised just how much. “I don’t know what I’d do if I hadn’t got them to go home to! When I’m away, it makes me realise just how much I’ve got – if that makes sense!” “Of course it does!” said Mike, secretly thinking how tired he looked. “At least you’ll sleep peacefully tonight, knowing you’re going to see them in the morning! And you and Donna will be able to make up for lost time – if you know what I mean!” “Well” said Jon, with just a faint ghost of a smile “the way I feel at the moment, I’ll be lucky to raise a smile, let alone anything else!” Quite unable to think of an answer to that, Mike picked up his jacket, and, chuckling away to himself, he left the dressing room, and made his way to the hotel. Next morning, the girls were chattering excitedly amongst themselves, as they waited for daddy to come home. It had only been a few days, but, in their short lives, it seemed like an age. As he pulled up on to the drive, he stopped to reflect for a moment – it did not seem right that Eileen was not sitting there on the bench in her front garden, waiting to welcome him home. It was moments like this that hammered home the fact that she was gone. He pulled himself together, and opened his own front door. He slowly opened the living room door, and peeped around it, but he could not see any sign of life – maybe they were in the garden. Suddenly, he heard the back door open, and then Donna and the girls talking. As she walked into the living room, and saw him standing there, she stopped short, and rushed over to him, throwing her arms around his neck. He lifted her up, and spun her round, then, putting her down again, he kissed her slowly and intensely. When she finally managed to come up for air, she cupped his face in her hands, tears beginning to roll down her cheeks. “Do you know” he said, his voice almost a whisper “this may not make much sense, but after a welcome like this, I think I should go away more often!” “Aren’t you going to say hello to your children?” she said, gesturing to the three expectant little faces behind her. “Come here, girls!” he said, holding out his arms. “Who wants a magic cuddle?” “Me!” shouted three voices, in unison. As he sat down on the sofa, Rosie and Clare climbed on to his lap, clinging to him as if they would never let him go. “What about me, daddy?” said Emily, as she sat patiently in her chair, quite unable to climb on to the sofa, something which her sisters took for granted. “Don’t I get a magic cuddle?” He felt tears pricking his eyes, at the stricken look on her face, and extricating himself from Rosie and Clare’s grip, he knelt down in front of her, and took her in his arms. She clung to him, resting her head on his shoulder. “I’ve really missed you, daddy!” she said, her voice shaking. “I’ve been poorly, and I needed a magic cuddle, but you weren’t here to give me one!” “I’m sorry, Emily!” he said, feeling his grip on his self-control begin to loosen. “I’ll give you twice as many to make up for it! How’s that?” “That’ll be excellent, daddy!” she said, lifting her head up, and smiling at him. “I really do love you, you know!” “So do I, daddy!” said Rosie, leaning on the arm of Emily’s wheelchair. “I love you right up to the sky!” “So do I!” piped up Clare, as they tried to outdo each other, something they did on an almost daily basis. He looked helplessly at Donna, quite unable to speak. He felt completely overwhelmed by this sudden outpouring of love, and inexplicably tearful. As she gazed back at him, he did not need to ask her how much she loved him – the look in her eyes told him everything he needed to know. After a wonderful, relaxing day, spent with his family, just talking, watching TV or playing games, he and Donna were, at last, alone. Placing two steaming cups of coffee on the table, Donna sat down next to him, leaning her head on his shoulder. “Glad to be home?” she said, gently trailing her hand down his face. “Yes” he said, almost as if answering her was too much effort. “I’m glad to be home!” “You could try to sound a little more enthusiastic!” she joked, playfully slapping his leg. “Come on, give us a kiss!” “Stop it!” he snapped, pushing her hand away, shocking her to the core. She looked at him intently – this was most unlike him. She could not help noticing how tired he looked – there were dark shadows under his eyes, and, instead of the usual twinkle, they looked dull and lifeless. He looked pale and listless, and as if he was about to burst into tears. “Come on, love!” she said, taking his hand. “This isn’t like you! Normally you can’t keep your hands off me! Are you sick, or something?” “Yes!” he yelled, ignoring her request to keep his voice down. “I’m sick of you! You’re like a stuck record! Don’t you ever stop talking?! You’re doing my head in! For Christ’s sake – shut up! Just shut up!!” “Jon! What the hell has got into you?” she said, her voice shaking, tears pricking her eyes – he had never told her to shut up before. “Why are you behaving like this? I thought you were looking forward to coming home!” “I was!” he said, his eyes bright with anger. “but instead of peace and quiet, all I get is verbal GBH! It never stops! You just go on and on! You’re doing my head in! What do I have to do to get a bit of peace in my own home?” “If you’re going to be like this” said Donna, tears beginning to pour down her face. “I wish you’d never bothered coming home!” With that, she stormed up the stairs, and got ready for bed. He joined her considerably later. As he lay next to her in the bed, she moved away from his outstretched hand, leaving him totally at a loss. She was still shocked by his totally out of character outburst, and needed time to take it in. He had never spoken to her like this, in all the years they had known each other. Next morning, they were all seated at the breakfast table, but he had still not appeared. Donna put it down to the fact that he was tired, and decided to leave him be for now. If he caught up on his sleep, maybe he would be in a better temper when he came down – at least, she hoped so. She thought her fears were unfounded when he finally came down – he seemed a lot more cheerful than he had been the previous night, but maybe that was just a front for the children’s sake. She was busy making herself some breakfast, when David suddenly began to cry. Sighing, she stopped what she was doing, and attached him to her breast. He sucked contentedly for a few minutes, then turned his head away, beginning to cry again. She reached for the packet of rusks in the cupboard behind her, and placed one in a bowl. As she searched in the fridge for a bottle of expressed milk to mix with it, his cries grew louder and more frustrated. The girls all looked at each other, and jokingly put their fingers in their ears. What happened next shocked each and every one of them to the core. “For God’s sake! Shut him up! Just shut him up, can’t you?!!” Jon slammed his fists down on the worktop, his raised voice shaking the air like a thunderstorm. Donna and the girls stared at him in horror, as David continued to cry, bewildered and terrified. For once, Donna was speechless. She continued to stare at Jon, as his anger evaporated almost as quickly as it had started, and he suddenly crumbled in front of them. He covered his face with his hands, as his whole body shook with harsh, shuddering sobs. He turned to look at his wife, tears still flooding down his face. “Oh, Jesus, Donna!” he sobbed, as his arms reached out to her. “What the hell is happening to me?”
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