One of the Boys

Aunt Tanya's Pov

I have been thinking about my plan for a few weeks now. I think I let my emotions get the best of me. I need to make sure he is temporarily

unconscious, so I can run away with all my important belongings. I don't wanna kill him because it's far too risky. I would be interviewed because I am the only prime suspect. Plus, I'm a terrible liar.

Once I spot Scott coming home drunk, I'm gonna use my baseball bat to whack him in the head. Then, he will pass out and I can grab my bags (which will already be packed), so I can flee the house. I'm planning on going to closest homeless shelter. Anything is better than living with my husband, Satan. If I feel safe enough after a little while, I can go to a psychologist to get Scott some help. I honestly don't want it to come down to this, but it does. I want to have a happy marriage with Scott, but that's not happening anytime soon. I need to do what's best for both of us.

(That Night)

I can't sleep. I feel like I should do something else. I don't feel like I'm doing the right thing. I should sit down with him and talk... Except, he won't listen to me. Well, it might be worth a try. With that last nervous thought, I welcomed sleep into my body.

I observed Scott as he walked aimlessly into the kitchen. I was perched on a bar stool in front of the kitchen. I watched carefully as he grabbed a banana from the fruit bowl and started to eat. His eyes weren't bloodshot, nor was he stumbling around. He looked sober, but I was still hesitant.

"Scott, honey? Umm... Can we talk?" I asked shakily.

"Yeah, what? I gotta go soon. I'm going out." Scott insisted.

"Listen, I think we need to discuss your... Umm... Alcohol addiction. Please don't get angry. I think it's time we make some changes. I don't wanna be the victim of your violence anymore. I can't take it." I spat it all out at once.

"You've told me this a million times, Tanya. I know I need help. You've told me many times. You just don't understand, a therapist won't change my life." Scott said.

"Scott, it doesn't have to be like this. I can arrange us an appointment with a therapist, to work out our relationship issues. I miss the old Scott, the one that I met at work. The one that is funny, smart and romantic." I said as a lonely tear slid down my cheek. I really did miss the happiness of our old relationship. I wanted to be happy.

"What if it doesn't work? Alcohol is my happy place. I feel like no one can tell me what to do." Scott said.

"Let's just give it a try, okay?" I took a deep breath and finished my statement. "Don't go out tonight. You need to stay home instead of drinking. We can watch a movie together. Or order pizza. We can do something fun together! Like we used to." I exhaled and my whole body relaxed.

"Fine. That sounds good." Scott agreed.

(2 hours later)

Scott was in the shower and I was sitting on the couch scrolling through the channels on TV. I was starting to feel guilty that I was actually planning to kill my husband. I'm still not sure if the therapist will work. If worse comes to worse, I can just leave until the smoke clears between us, but right now I was fine. I decided to order the pizza now.

After we ate our pizza, Scott and I decided to go to the theatre to see a movie. After some debating, we agreed on seeing The Fault in our Stars since it is a love story. I monitored Scott throughout our trip to the movies. We shyly held hands in theatre at the happy scenes. I smiled for the whole night.

"That was great! Did you enjoy our night, Scott?" I asked him.

"It was amazing, Tanya. Thank you for doing this for me." He said. He kept looking around as we left the theatre and I wondered why he was so distracted.

I was woken up by the sound of bottles being clanked around. Bang. Clank. Bang. What is he doing? I thought to myself as I rolled over to see where Scott was. I got up from the bed and jogged downstairs into the kitchen. The light in the dining room was dimly lit and I peeked into the dining room to see Scott drinking a bottle of wine.

"Scott! What are you doing?" I yelled.

"I'm so sorry, Tanya. I just-just (hiccup) couldn't control my-myself." Scott said as he stuttered and his words slurred.

I slowly sat in the chair beside him and rubbed his back.

"You can't keep doing this to yourself." I said as I reached for the wine bottle. I grabbed it and put it back in the cupboard. "Scott, I love you. I love you a lot, but I don't want you to drink anymore. It's for your own good."

Suddenly, Scott's eyes began to water and his eyes scrunched up in the middle of his forehead.

"I need it! Give it back! TANYA! GIVE IT BACK!" As he got up, he threw his chair across the room. He went into the kitchen and opened the cupboard where I put the wine bottle.

I panicked and screamed at him to stop. From where he was in the kitchen, he turned to face me. His eyes looked like a wild dog and it made me want to bawl. My body started to shake out of fear and anger. I suddenly felt tears stream down my cheeks like a river. I nervously walked over to Scott and spread my arms out as far as possible.

Scott took a few baby steps toward me and I embraced him lovingly. I felt my tears fall onto Scott shirt as I put my head on his shoulder. I could also hear him sniffling. We hugged for a few minutes until I pulled myself back.

"We can't keep doing this. This isn't how love is supposed to work. You have to be there for me and I have to be there for you. We need to work this out because I don't want my husband to be crazier than me anymore." I said with a soft chuckle. "Let's be crazy together." I suggested as I placed a kiss on Scott's cheek.

(2 days later)

"Hi, I'd like to make an appointment with Dr. Cindy." I said to the woman on the phone.

"Ok, we have an open time slot at 5:00 till 5:30 on this Friday. Would that be okay?" The woman on the other end asked.

"Sure. That would be great. I would like to book the appointment with my husband, Scott." I stated. I gave the woman my address and phone number before hanging up. I sighed with relief knowing that I was going to get Scott some help with his addiction.

I was exhausted when I got back from work on Friday. 'Oh shit! The appointment!' I screamed in my brain. I ran upstairs and got changed into a T-shirt and jeans. I called Scott from the living room and grabbed my car keys. We got into the car and started to drive to the therapists office. I fiddled with my hands as Scott drove. I wondered if he was nervous for the appointment. I knew I was super nervous.