She sat on her patio and sipped on a cup of coffee, much like every morning. The only difference was her husband's new gardener - Lucas - was out in the yard, trimming the hedges. Lucas was a young man, hardly 17, but he was good with his hands and he knew how to clean the place up. This was quite an impressive feat in the light of her husband's large estate.
Her husband made it big in the Stock Market a few years ago and has simply lived off the profits ever since. Of course, with the kind of money he was bringing in, he changed some. He wasn't quite as fun as he once was. He was rather concerned with keeping tabs on his money. To be honest, he seemed to do little outside of counting the money he was organizing into various funds.
"I have a need."
Lucas was paid well by her husband, too. With the money he was making, he could to go to college and beyond. He would tell them all the time about his desires of becoming a physician. How cute. She was more interested in what he could do for her. This is why she had skipped out on playing tennis today. She had other plans in mind.
"I have a desire."
She walked up to Lucas. "Would you like to take a break and come get a drink?" Lucas wiped is brow, rose from the crouch he was in, and followed her into the house and into the kitchen. This was too easy. She had him in a matter of minutes. Only when the sounds of wheels on gravel came in through the bedroom window did she think about what to do when her husband came home.
"Quick! Go back to the yard! I'll stall my husband." She ran down the stairs and into the foyer, just as her husband was walking in. "Hello, honey! What are you doing home so soon?" He shrugged his shoulders, clearly weary of a long day of staring at papers and numbers. She helped him out of his suit jacket and walked him into the living room. "You must be worn out. Let me make you a drink."
About this time, a thump came from above her husband's head. Lucas was making too much noise upstairs. Her husband got up and went to investigate. "No, honey! Don't go up there! It's not like - it's not what you - Lucas came on to me! He forced me into it!" Her husband turned to her, his face red, and then turned back to the stairs where Lucas was now standing, holding his pants up by his hands and only one arm through a shirt sleeve.
"I have a hunger."
Lucas was immediately fired. After yelling at him and literally throwing him out of the house, he huffed up the stairs and not a word came out of him for several hours. She got off scot free. It was sad to see Lucas go, and so young, but there would be other men she would come across. Not to worry. Blaming the whole thing on him was ingenious of her, she knew. Her husband was easy to work over.
Eventually, she walked up to the bedroom herself and walked in on her husband packing a suitcase. Was this really happening? No! It couldn't! What would she do? Where would she go? Then, she noticed the clothes were his. "Where are you going?" He did not respond. "Honey, what are you doing?" He said nothing. She sat on the bed, and watched him work for what felt like hours. Once he was all packed, he grabbed his suitcase, walked down the stairs and out the door - out of the house and her life forever. He left her the house and a lot of what came with that. She simply had to work a small job to make a little extra cash. Soon, she was even able to afford another gardener.
"I have a hunger."
Author's Note:
I took this story from The Wax Crocodile of Egyptian mythology. I wanted to do something a bit more modern with it and I didn't want there to be a physical crocodile present, so the crocodile become represented by the woman's sexual desire. The two "wrongdoers" of the story are devoured by these metaphorical jaws. Lucas is sent away and loses his chance at school and a better future, and while not much happens to the woman, she ultimately loses who she was before the story takes place, consumed by this desire. Since it was from her perspective, I couldn't show who she was before, so that's why I added the "I have a hunger" bit. Plus, it adds a little poetic feel to the story. Also, I really liked having only her being the one to talk. It seems like no one else's words were important to her, just as she and her husband are not named, because Lucas as a physical entity is all that matters to her, physically.
Also, never do a Google Image Search of simply the word "Lust". Friendly advice.
Great, story! I love the detail and how it was told from her perspective. The author's note was very helpful in understanding how you came up with your ideas, and it came together really nicely! I like how you left the husband unnamed and how you chose to portray her character. I think the same emotions and feelings came across even with different characters and a different situation. Nice job!
ReplyDeleteWell this was a very interesting story. Lustful is definitely the word I would use to describe the woman and the tone of the story. I liked how you told a familiar story of the wife cheating on her husband with the gardener, but you told it in an unfamiliar way with such an emphasis on feelings. Once I read the author's note, I could really understand where you were headed with the story. Nicely done.
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