Dinner Disasters: Zade and Aurora Novel – I saw my husband pecking his assistant in the audience at a hockey game live. “And that peck cam panned to Kelsey sitting right next to you, miraculously. And then you pecked.” “Wasn’t that the night you had to work really late? You told me some clients had come into town unexpectedly.” “Aurora, please. I pushed her away as soon as she pecked me.” “Really?” “Well, replays of that moment –it showed the peck went on five seconds. Doesn’t sound like long, but it’s longer than you think.” “It was nothing.” “Really? If it was nothing, why the lie about working late because of the dinner with clients? Why not just tell me you were going to the game with her?” “Aurora, it was a stupid peck for the peck cam.” “You’ve never pecked her before?” “No!” he did seem horrified, but at this point, his credibility was shot.
I’d had it. I had never done what I did every Christmas for recognition or presents. But an acknowledgement of the day, a quick “thanks, honey” from my husband or a “thanks, Aurora” from any of my in-laws would have been nice. I’d cleaned the house without any help in the days leading up to Christmas; I’d bought and wrapped all the presents not just for my husband but for my husband’s extended family, too. I’d decorated, I’d planned, I’d shopped, I’d cooked and baked…by myself. Not one person offered to help or even asked if I needed help. Watching them all tear into their gifts, loving the thought I’d put into giving them presents they’d appreciate normally warmed my heart. I loved seeing everybody pleased and happily laughing about how perfect their presents were, even if not one person remembered to say thank you to me.
They thanked Zade for them, though, and he always answered no problem — and that was the absolute truth. It was no problem for him because he didn’t do any of the shopping or the gift wrapping. He just got to kick back like a king and accept the accolades from his appreciative family. As always, I hadn’t had even been given one gift to open — not even a pair of fuzzy slippers — but this year, I felt something inside of me break at so clearly being left on the outside. I was the child standing on the sidewalk staring longingly into the toy store. But this year, oh, this year, I was feeling kind of…over it all. Done. On the outside, it seemed like nothing had changed. Unfortunately, something had happened this year that had changed me inside. Normally, I could write off my husband’s behavior as just Zade being caught up in the excitement of seeing his family — the only time of year he got to see all of them at once. He was normally not this thoughtless.
This year, however, I wasn’t having any of it. He’d made sure of that — and he wasn’t even aware of it. Since we’d opened gifts, everyone had been sitting around the fireplace together, laughing, eating the snacks I’d made, while I hustled around in the kitchen. Alone. I carried everything to the table — the table I’d set to make it look festive — and I was ready to make a point. Maybe it wasn’t in the Christmas spirit, but I wasn’t feeling very festive at this point considering all of the accumulated years of being completely overlooked. Considering what had happened this year. The pot had finally boiled over. Quietly, I walked into the living room where the fifteen members of my husband’s family were gathered. “We’re going to go to the table to eat in a different way this year,” I announced cheerfully. “Create a fun, new holiday tradition.” Everyone was looking at me curiously but they nodded. “All right! Ready! You can go take a seat at the table if you wished me a Merry Christmas today.” They exchanged what glances and my husband’s face looked irritated.
“OK, was that too much? We’ll go with something easier,” I said, clapping my hands briskly. “You can go to the table if you helped me get the food ready.” Now they were shifting uneasily. Zade’s face was getting stormy. “Still no takers? How about, go to the table if you got me a gift.” No one moved. Not even my husband, it should be noted. “Go to the table if you helped with the decorations? If you helped clean the house and get the guest rooms ready for family spending the night? No?” They were all silent, all staring at me. “Unfortunately, it looks like I’ll be eating by myself then, since I did everything else on my own. I’m sure you can find some restaurants open somewhere. There are some restaurant menus in the drawer by the refrigerator.” My husband stood up. “Don’t be ridiculous, sweetheart. You can’t be serious.”
“Oh, but I am. And you of all people should have been able to go to the table. But you couldn’t. So you tell me if I’m serious or not.” He just stared at me and I stared right back at him. He blinked first. Somehow sensing the festive holiday mood had ended, thanks to me (if the glares I got were anything to go by), my husband’s relatives left not too long after my meltdown. At least, that’s how I heard them referring to it in hushed whispers as if I was that relative you had to tiptoe around. I didn’t need tiptoeing but was expecting my husband and his family to wish me a Merry Christmas too much to ask for? My husband had to see them out because I was busy enjoying the food I’d made. No wonder they were so put out — I was actually a pretty good cook. Everything had turned out really well, so I was pleased. Once the last of his family walked out, Zade came into the dining room and looked at me, arms crossed over his chest. If he was waiting for me to begin the conversation (hmmm…confrontation?), he’d be waiting a long time because my mouth was full and good manners dictated not talking with food in your mouth. Mmm, stuffing and mashed potatoes.
So good. He caved as I moved on to my sweet potato souffle. “What’s going on, Aurora? You just ruined Christmas.” After swallowing that last bite of food, I washed it down with a sip of wine. “I ruined Christmas. You sure about that?” “You just humiliated me.” I pointed my fork at him. “See? That’s a problem. You weren’t humiliated by your own behavior or your family’s. When I was going through the qualifying rounds of what could get you a seat at the table, none of you made the cut. No one even wished me a Merry Christmas or offered to help me in the kitchen today. That should be why you’re embarrassed, that should be why they’re embarrassed. Instead, you’re here telling me that I ruined Christmas and that I humiliated you.” “You should have taken me aside –” “Maybe. Or maybe I just reached my limit with you and your family.” “If you had a problem with me, you should have talked to me about it, Aurora. You could have asked me to help.” “I have to tell you to help me when I’m running around like a wild woman getting ready for your family to come over?”
“They’re your family, too.” “In theory, I suppose. But I counted at least seven presents for you under the tree from your family and not one for me. But back to the main issue: how hard is it to offer to help without being asked? Because honestly? That’s just another thing to put on me — having to nag you to get you to help.” His lips tightened, which coincided with me tightening the noose. “Do you have a present for me, Zade?” “No,” he said quietly. “But we don’t have to exchange gifts just because it’s Christmas. I get you things throughout the year.” “When? When have you bought me anything in the last year?” Since we both knew he hadn’t gotten me anything, I skipped waiting for an answer and motioned toward the tree again. “In addition to all of those presents from your family, there are five gifts for you under the tree from me. Gifts I’ve been buying throughout the year because something caught my eye that reminded me of you or I knew you’d love. Or I remembered something you made an offhand remark about and tracked it down. I think about you all the time, Zade. I think about what would make you happy. I think about what would be meaningful to you.”
He glanced toward the tree, then back at me, and his attitude was much less confrontational. Maybe because he couldn’t refute a thing I’d said, and it was about to get worse. “You don’t give me a thought.” “Aurora –” “I mentioned earlier that you asked me to pick out a gift for your admin. And being either an idiot or a good wife, I asked you what she liked and you said she was a huge hockey fan and would love tickets to see the Tornadoes play. So I got her two tickets in the lower bowl in the middle of the ice and a signed Rig Carson jersey. Did she like the gifts?” Did he know yet? “She did,” he said. “You gave them to her at a really nice lunch you took her to last week. A really nice lunch, based on the credit card receipt.” “Kelsey works hard for me. It’s the least I can do for her once a year.” “No, the least you can do is what you do for me. For her, there appears to be some effort. I was amazed you admitted to that charge on the card.”
“Why wouldn’t I admit to it? I have nothing to hide.” A tad bit defensive, and the noose was almost taut. “I hope she didn’t mind going to a game so close to Christmas, but that was the only day I could get tickets. Since Rig Carson announced it’d be his last season playing, tickets to a Tornadoes game are almost impossible to get. Fortunately, somebody in my department had an in and was able to get me the tickets.” “That was nice of you, Aurora.” “Wasn’t it just? Who did Kelsey take to the game?” “She asked James from Accounting –” “Wasn’t that the night you had to work really late? You told me some clients had come into town unexpectedly.” He was looking concerned now. “But you know what? I went over to Amanda’s that night and we watched the game. Since you had to work late and all given the clients that had come into town.” He had to feel the noose tightening by now. Starting to choke, Zade? “And that peck cam panned to Kelsey…sitting right next to you, miraculously, since you were out with clients. And then you pecked.”
“Aurora, please. I pushed her away as soon as she pecked me.” “Really?” “Yes, I swear it.” “Well, replays of that moment — Amanda was recording it — showed the peck went on five seconds. Doesn’t sound like long, but it’s longer than you think.” “She surprised me.” “You surprised me.” He came toward me. “It was nothing.” “Really? If it was nothing, why the lie about working late because of the dinner with clients? Why not just tell me you were going to the game with her?” “You can be touchy about Kelsey.” “Gee, I wonder why. You didn’t tell me because you knew I would have said no way were you going to a game with her. You already knew I wasn’t happy about your lunch with her at Treasure.” “Aurora, it was a stupid peck for the peck cam.” “You’ve never pecked her before?” “No!” he did seem horrified, but at this point, his credibility was shot.