Not My Type (13 page)

Joe heard her crying through the door
and hurried back in, putting his arms around her and glaring at the
doctor. She put her hands up defensively. "I didn't do anything.
You are the one who brought her in here with cervical bruising and
vaginal tearing."

He looked so abashed, the doctor
relented. "She told me about your...alternative lifestyle
choices...and then started crying. She said something about
problems in your relationship, though if these are the kinds of
games you two are playing, you might want to consider couples
therapy." Joe just nodded. The doctor prescribed some painkillers
and left, shaking her head.

Elk Crossing wasn't big enough to have
its own hospital, so Joe had driven them to the next town over,
forty miles away in Seton Harbor. They'd ridden to the hospital in
silence, and the return trip was no different. By the time they
returned from the hospital, it was three o'clock in the morning and
they were too exhausted to have "the talk" Joe had mentioned. They
both undressed silently, Elsa's body in somewhat better shape after
some Tylenol and an otherwise clean bill of health. Her mind
remained mired in turmoil.

They lay in bed facing opposite
directions, their bodies seperated by more than just space on the
mattress. Elsa's tired body screamed for the solace of sleep but
her mind just wouldn't shut off. She finally succumbed to sleep
right around the time the sun peeked out over the ocean's
horizon.

Joe, for his part, never made it to
sleep. Once he heard Elsa's breathing even out, he slid silently
from beneath the sheets and wandered into the kitchen. Spike
followed him, stopping to gaze up curiously as he stopped and gazed
around at the gleaming appliances lined up like soldiers on the
countertops. He wanted things to go back to the way they had been,
where he and Elsa were crazy about each other and everything else
besides Spike was secondary. He glanced down at the little bat
eared creature by his feet, then stooped to pick him up. He carried
the dog through the darkened living room and sat with him on the
couch, petting him methodically, his mind a million miles
away.

Finally, it was time for him to get to
the gym. He was relieved he wouldn't have to talk to Elsa this
morning, and then felt guilty for his relief. He knew they would
have to discuss where to go from here. He'd hurt her. In anger.
Such an act digusted him, and he couldn't imagine she would feel
any other way. So, like a coward, he slipped from the house and
rolled the Land Rover down the driveway before firing it up. He
couldn't bear to see the revulsion in her eyes when she awoke and
remembered what he'd done. Her cries in the hospital room, which
had brought him running to her side, haunted him all the way to
work. He threw himself into his workout and cranked up the music
blasting from his earbuds, hoping to hurt himself as he'd hurt her,
to get some measure of revenge on her behalf.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Elsa awoke much later and suffered a
feeling of disorientation, not knowing what day and time it was for
long moments. The events of last evening finally kicked in and she
was flooded with despair. Joe's side of the bed was empty. She went
to go see if he was home.

In the living room, Spike lay curled
up in his doggie bed by her side of the couch. He lifted his head
when she entered the room, and ran to her, wriggling in delight
that she was finally awake. She let him out into the back yard and
continued searching for Joe, but he wasn't home. He hadn't left her
a note, either. The clock said it was one p.m., but the kitchen was
in pristine condition, so he hadn't come home for lunch. She
sighed. He must hate her for being so weak.

She went about the routine of the day,
trying to pick up the thread of her blog and cookbook tasks, but it
was no use. She finally closed her laptop and got ready to go to
the restaraunt. She waited and waited for Joe to come home, and
considered calling him, but then got good and angry. Screw it! She
depended on him for too much. She'd get to the restaraunt by
herself. She called a cab, the only taxi service in town, and paid
an exorbitent amount for a ride that lasted less than five
minutes.

Once at work, she went through the
motions, fielding concerned looks and comments from Annette and
Jessica and managing not to burn everything on the menu. When the
long evening finally came to a close, Joe was still nowhere to be
found. Elsa's pride still wouldn't let her call him; instead, she
broke down and called Claire. She hated to put her friend in the
middle of their problems, but she saw no alternative. She could
have walked home, of course, but she was weary, sore, confused,
hurt, angry...she just wanted to get to bed. And, she realized, she
hadn't eaten anything all day. Fortunately, the shakes and nausea
were held at bay by a slice of cheese and handful of peanuts from
the bar while she waited for Claire to fetch her.

Claire hugged her but didn't ask any
questions, which told Elsa she had some idea that things were not
okay between her and Joe. The short ride to their house was silent
but Claire followed her into the darkened house. Spike was frantic;
he hadn't been let outside all day, she realized, and it was with a
bark of relief that he jetted outside to the back yard when she
opened the sliding doors.

Finally, Claire could keep quiet no
longer. "Else, you want to talk about it?"

The concern in her friend's voice
broke her. She began sobbing the whole story, Claire leading her to
the couch and rubbing her back while she cried and told her what
had happened. "Then, he left this morning and hasn't been back
since. He hasn't even called or text me or anything!"

"Did you call or text him to find out
what's going on?"

"No! If he doesn't want to talk to me,
I'm not going to force myself on him."

Claire sighed at the stubbornness of
her two friends. Jordan had called her at work earlier to report
Joe nearly killing himself on the treadmill and answering questions
with one word answers. He asked her if she'd heard from Elsa. "No,
but I'm guessing it's just a matter of time if something's up with
Joe." The pair of them agreed to try and run interference but not
interfere, if possible. Jordan had called her again a few hours
later to tell her Joe was sacked out on the couch in his office and
didn't seem to intend to go home. Then he told her about the rumors
going around that Joe had nearly killed some photographer who had
hit on Elsa.

"Damn! That hot temper of his rearing
its ugly head sounds just like Joe. Did anyone call the cops on
him, this time?"

"No, not like when he found out
Samantha was cheating on him," Jordan answered. That fiasco was
what finally prompted Joe to move to their city in the first place.
Claire was relieved he wasn't in any trouble, but worried about
both of their friends. They talked about what they could do to
help.

Her other line beeped and caller i.d.
told her Elsa was finally reaching out. She let Jordan know she
might be late getting home. "No problem; I'll stay a while longer
then and keep an eye on the big guy." They exchanged 'I love you's'
and hung up.

Now, in Elsa and Joe's darkened living
room, Claire noticed how thin her friend was. It was only eight
months ago that Elsa had been diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes but
she'd made drastic changes that showed in her physique. Claire had
figured there might be problems when Elsa began to lose weight, and
the fiasco with the photographer last night confirmed her worst
fears. While weight loss in Elsa's case was not only healthy but
necessary, Claire wondered what this meant for her relationship
with Joe. She hoped the two of them would be able to overcome new
insecurities. They were good for each other, in many ways, but
definitely had some issues to work through.

Elsa's tears finally slowed, her
breath hitching in her chest now and then. She smiled exhaustedly
at her friend. "Thanks for coming to get me."

"No problem! Let's go get some tea. I
bet this whole thing will blow over in no time."

Elsa wasn't so sure. She had omitted
nothing when she told Claire about their latest fight, including
the sex that earned her a trip to the E.R. If Claire was surprised
her friends were so kinky, she didn't show it. She made them tea
silently, just listening and being supportive. "I just don't know
what to do. What if he breaks up with me?" Elsa's eyes welled with
tears again at the thought.

"Elsa, I've known Joe longer than I've
known you but I love you both equally, you know that right?" Elsa
nodded, feeling lucky to have a friend like Claire. "Well, let me
tell you, I've never known a more stubborn pair of people in my
life! That the two of you might butt heads once in a while is to be
expected. Here's what I think, if you want my opinion: Joe has
always been insecure about women wanting him for his body only. You
have always been insecure, at least since I've known you, about
your weight. The two of you have enough baggage between you to
travel around the world twice. But you also have a great passion
for each other, and a deep bond that some people can only dream of.
And I don't think a couple of bruises, or bruised egos, is gonna
change that."

Silvery tears traced down Elsa's
cheeks again at her friend's words. "Love you, Claire," was all she
could get out.

Claire hugged her again. "Love you
too, Else. You want me to stay with you until Joe calls or comes
home?"

Elsa shook her head. "No, I'll be ok.
I think he and I need to have our talk. It's probably best if
you're not here for the clash of the titans."

"Whatever you say, but don't forget to
tell me what happens!" The two young women hugged again, and Claire
left. Elsa put on her pajamas and let Spike back in the house. She
spent a couple of hours petting the little dog, he nestled happily
on her lap while they snuggled on the couch. Elsa put the
television on, some show about an old guy living in the woods; she
didn't pay attention, just needed the background noise to soothe
the turmoil of her thoughts.

Finally, at about midnight, Elsa came
to the conclusion that Joe wasn't coming home. She considered
texting him, but couldn't think of anything that didn't sound
bitchy. She was angry he hadn't come home, true, but mostly she was
worried about their relationship. She couldn't lose Joe. He was the
best thing that had ever happened to her.

Elsa went to bed, taking the dog with
her and letting him sleep on Joe's side. It wasn't the same, of
course, but at least she didn't have to listen to the lonely sound
of her own breathing all night.

Chapter Fourteen: Joe's
Mistake

Joe awoke with the sun on the wrong
side of his face. He was disoriented for long moments, then
remembered the last few days in a whirlwind of emotions, mainly
guilt. He recalled the feeling of his fists connecting with that
smug photographer's teeth, and the sensation of Elsa's fragile
bones beneath him on the bed. He groaned and covered his eyes with
his hands, recalling the trip to the hospital and the sounds of her
crying in the echoing examination room. The doctor's accusing eyes
followed him to the gym restroom, ghostly reminders in his mind's
eye of his abuse of the one thing that was most important to him in
all the world.

What must she be thinking
of me
? he wondered. Not only did he bruise
and bloody her in an act that was supposed to be loving, he never
bothered to come home last night.
What the
fuck is wrong with me?
he asked his image
in the mirror, not for the first time and certainly not the last.
Joe knew he was lucky the photographer hadn't pressed charges. The
douchebag his ex had been cheating on him with had no qualms about
pressing charges. He shook his head to clear his mind of thoughts
that dwelled on the mistakes of his past, and tried to focus on the
mistakes of the present. How was he going to fix this? Could he
salvage his relationship with Elsa? There had to be something he
could do to prove to her how much he loved her, that he would
never, ever lose control again.

The gym was quiet as he padded back to
his office, noting that someone, probably Jordan, had covered him
with a thin blanket conjured up from God knew where. He folded it
and draped it across the back of the couch. He headed off to the
shower, where he kept a fresh set of workout clothes in his locker
and a change of street clothes. He planned to get in a good work
out, though his muscles were sore from the punishment he inflicted
on himself yesterday. Excerise always helped clear his mind,
however, and he knew even a light routine would help him get
himself pulled together so he could deal with things. In the locker
room, he changed swiftly and unlocked the front doors so early
morning customers could get to it. Though it was early spring, and
still dark at six a.m., Joe expected a few early risers. He got to
work, spending a good half hour on the elliptical and not noticing
when the gym filled up slowly with patrons.

It wasn't until he pulled his earbuds
out and looked around that he saw all the people, including Jordan
eyeing him from the front desk. He was talking to a tall brunette,
her athletic body showing long hours spent working on its every
curve. She was too thin for Joe's taste but her eyes lit up when
Jordan pointed over at Joe. She walked to him and introduced
herself.