I will keep posting the reader discretion for those who may be sensitive to abusive situations ... however if you read on I think you might see that it's not all about abuse ...
(Peter got to the hospital and stood beside his wife's bed...)
Peter: Jenny, you awake? (Jenny opened her eyes but she wouldn't talk to him) I, um...I'm sorry babe.
Jenny: How many other times are you going to say that?
Peter: I mean it this time; I really mean it. Rachel's dad is taking me to a special place where I intend on getting well. I'm going to quit drinking and I'm going to learn how to be a husband and dad.
Jenny: Peter, I know that you mean well. I also know that you've made this promise before and have never gone through with it. It gets worse every time and I can't take it anymore.
Peter: And you're not going to have to. I'm not comin' out of that place until I'm sober.
Jenny: Do you really mean it?
Peter: Yes; but I need your support.
Jenny: You've always had my support babe; but you've just never noticed. Can I ask you something? Why did you start the heavy drinking?
Peter: Between Lily's death 11 years ago, us going into a financial rut and me dealing with depression my own way it felt like the right thing to do. I never intended for it to get out of control.
Jenny: You sure it's not something else? (Peter looked at her) Peter, we've been together for 16 years and got married right after Allie was born; when are you going to tell me the real truth?
Peter (Sighing as he pulled up a chair to talk to her): What truth?
Jenny: I know about you and Lily; does Mike? (Peter didn't answer her) He doesn't know does he?
Peter: No. I guess I thought that Lil and I could get away with it and that one day she'd walk away from Mike and come running to me. It's not that I didn't love you, Jenn; it's that I was in love with Lily.
Jenny: So you buried yourself into the bottle to avoid telling Mike and me that you and Lily were having an affair?
(Neither of them knew that Mike was standing right outside the door listening)
Peter: No; to avoid the pain inside I guess is the best way to put it. The night she was killed, she was with me. She left the club a little on the drunk side. I told her not to drive home but she kept insisting that she'd make it home okay. She got in the car and that was the last I'd seen her. I woke up that next morning to you telling me that she'd run a stop light and hit the pole.
Mike's Voice: So it wasn't just a hard night at the club for her? She was with you...? (Peter didn't answer him) She called and told me that it was a rough night, she'd had a couple of drinks and was running late because of it. She was with you that entire night instead.
Peter: I'm sorry.
Mike: Sorry aint gonna bring Lily back.
Peter: What are you doing here?
Mike: I dropped your son off at my place and came here to see how Jenny was only to hear my best friend telling his wife that he'd been having an affair with mine? Peter...
Peter: I'm sorry Mike! It just wasn't fair! I loved Lily and you took her out from under me. You married her before I could even talk to her.
Mike: Had you told me how you felt about her...
Peter: You would have still married her.
Mike: How long had you two been seeing each other before her accident?
Peter: Only a couple of months; honest. She was waiting for you to show up and pick her up the one night and I offered to buy her a drink while she waited. It escalated from small talk to a relationship. I told her on that last night we were together that I was going to tell you about she and I and she got mad. She didn't want you to know because she didn't want kicked out. We began to drink and the more we talked, the more she drank. We got into a fight about you and as she left the club, I tried to convince her that she was too drunk to drive. She wouldn't listen to me. She got in the car, drove off and that was it. I wanted to tell you but I couldn't.
Mike: So that's why you became distant from me and why you started the heavy drinking?
Peter: I guess so. The pain was too much to bare. I could have stopped her Mike; but I didn't. I thought that if I told you the truth that you'd hate me.
Mike: So this past year when our kids began to date, that's why things got worse? (Peter gave a small nod)
Peter: Yeah. Your son was only 6 when all this happened and I thought for sure that he'd remember.
Mike: My son knew? (Peter nodded) How?
Peter: Lily would bring him over to preoccupy Allie and we were never discreet. You'd be at your office trying to get you and I some gigs and Jenny would be at work. Since Lily was homeschooling John and Allie hadn't entered school yet, it made it that much easier for us to be together.
Mike: That explains a lot. It explains why in the last two months of her life, she'd be making up excuses as to why she wasn't home yet. (There was silence between the two friends but only for a minute)
Peter: Can you forgive me?
Mike: You've always been like a brother to me so what do you think? (They gave each other a brief hug) Look, the past is the past. I can't bring Lily back and you can't take back all those years of pain you caused your family; but together we can work at bringing the Peter I once knew back to all our lives. (Peter gave a small smile) You go into rehab, I don't wanna see you out of there until you are sober. No more bars, pubs, liquor stores and so forth and when I make our new schedule up there will be no hotels with bars, no clubs involved and nothing that would even tempt you into doing it again.
Peter: I can handle that.
Mike: Good. Jenny, if he doesn't hold up to his end of the deal, I wanna know it. He's to never touch you or your kids again.
Jenny: I'll make sure I let you know. (To Peter) You've got a lot of proving to do, babe; but I've no doubt with a friend like Mike...? You'll be back to the Peter Tork I married. And from now on...? If you've got a secret like that, don't keep it to yourself. (Peter leaned over and gave Jenny a kiss. It was a kiss that she'd missed and that's when she knew he was 100% serious about getting help) I love you.
Peter (Smiling): I love you too Jenny. (To the chief who had been patiently waiting) I'm ready.
Chief James: Okay; let's go Peter! (To Mike as he took a hold of Peter's arm) See you later!
Mike: Yup. Good luck Peter!
Peter: Thanks, Mike! (Chief James took Peter out of the hospital and Mike left behind them so that Jenny could get her rest)
Chapter 3
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