Chapter 8

Chapter 8

Damon stood, dazed and transfixed to the ground as he watched Rose and this stranger, all soaked with sweat and having the time of their lives. As soon as he yelled her name, the man hurriedly got off, picking his pants and running past him outside the room while Rose rolled off the bed casually, picked up her dress and went into the bathroom. Few minutes later, she walked out of the bathroom and walked to her bedside table and pulled the drawer, bringing out a pack of cigarettes and a lighter. She took one and clipped the bottom, lit it and inhaled deeply, releasing a thick puff of smoke.

“Are you gonna keep standing there looking like a dummy?” She asked as she sat on the bed.

Damon looked at her. She didn't look one bit bothered.

“You're going to act like nothing just happened? You're my fiancée, Rose. And you just slept with another man!” Damon said.

Rose blew out another puff of smoke. “Yeah, I just slept with another man. And what's up with that?”

Damon was shocked. What was wrong with this woman?

“Rose!! You are my fiancée!!” he said, stretching the last word out. “My fiancée, that's what you are, or what you're supposed to be. I just caught you sleeping with another man. And you're acting so casual, because I'm calm? Are you out of your mind?”

Rose let out a wry laugh. “No, Damon, I'm not out of my mind, and yes, I slept with another man. I'm very very much aware of my actions and its consequences,” Rose said, nonchalantly.

She picked her pack of cigarettes, her lighter and the ashtray and went out of the room, walking downstairs in gentle strides. Damon followed.

“What's actually wrong with you?? Do you actually realize the gravity of your actions on this relationship?” Damon asked, raising his voice.

“And do you realize the gravity of my inaction on this relationship? Do you??” Rose fired back, her voice pitch high. “You walked in, and saw the door unlocked, yeah? Yes, I did that. I knew you'd find me. And I needed to make you understand and feel the taste of your own medicine. You bring in a woman from God knows where to bear you a child on the basis of surrogacy, not minding how I feel about it and you have the guts to talk to me about my barren condition because of one of your random whores? You think I'm stupid, Damon??”

“Rose!!!”

“Don't you dare, Damon! Don't you dare raise your voice at me, ever,” she yelled. She blew in the cigarette, and exhaled on Damon's face, pointing her cigarette to him. “This is my house, and you don't come here to talk to me like I'm your child or your maid. Do you hear me?”

Damon stood speechless, staring at the angry woman before him in disbelief. He looked on silently as Rose continued to speak.

“I told you, since you think you could do whatever you liked and justify it, I should be allowed to do whatever I liked too. And that I just did, without regrets, man!” Rose said as she squashed the butt of her cigarette on the ashtray on the table. “We can move on from here now, that's if you want to, anyway. Right now, I don't really give a fuck. And if you'd excuse me, I've got somewhere to go, and I need to prepare.”

Damon watched as she walked out of the living room and climbed up the stairs.

***********

“Your grandmother is here to see you, sir,” a female voice said, jolting Damon out of his thoughts.

He looked up at the woman before him and heaved a sigh. “Let her in, of course.”

He got up and walked to the bar and picked up a bottle of VSOP and a glass, and then walked back to his seat. He poured himself a generous quantity and took a sip, reclining in his chair.

The door opened soon enough and an aged woman walked in, held and supported by an orderly.

“Hello, son!” She said, moving to hug him.

“Hello, grandma. What are you doing here?” Damon asked.

“Oh, an old woman can't stop by to see her grandson anymore, is it?” she asked.

“No, Grandma, you know that's not what I meant. Good to see you,” he said, kissing her on the cheeks.

“Yeah, that's more like it,” she said, smiling at him. She nodded to the orderly, who gave a slight bow and left.

“Okay, grandma, what brings you here? I saw you just a few days ago and I promised to see you again this weekend, right?” Damon asked.

“Well, I needed to see you. It was important,” she said, and took off her glasses. She turned to face her grandson. “What about what we've been discussing?”

Damon looked puzzled. “What we discussed? What's that, grandma? Do you need anything?”

“Oh, Damon, stop the pretense already! I told you, you can't have that child without a wife to look after him. You have to get married, and it's not even hard. Rose is there, isn't she?”

she asked.

Damon hissed. “Marriage? I already told you, grandma. Marriage is on hold for now. I'm not interested in marrying anybody, please.”

“But why? I mean, you and Rose are good together. What's the delay for? Besides, I've not seen nor heard from her in a while. Are you both good?”

Damon was exhausted. “Grandma, would you like something to eat or drink? Wine, fruit juice, tea?”

Grandma wasn't moved. “I asked you a question, Damon. What's going on?”

Damon buried his face in his palms. How was he to narrate to his grandmother that the special Rose who she had come to love had had an affair simply because of a quarrel between them?

“We broke up, Grandma. Or rather, we just separated. But I'm done. I'm not going back there?”

“Broke up? Separated? Done?” Grandma asked. “Make me understand, Damon.”

“Grandma, it's what it is. I'm done. And marriage right now isn't on my bucket list, please. So that idea has to be on hold too,” Damon said firmly.

Grandma adjusted herself on her chair. “Until you explain what exactly you mean by these things, I don't understand, and so I don't agree with you. What happened, son?”

Damon exhaled heavily. “She was upset about the surrogacy.”

“And?”

“And she attacked the lady who we hired to be the surrogate mother while I was away.”

“And?”

Damon looked at his grandmother. He knew she wasn't going to give up till she heard everything. He took a sip of his brandy.

“And I confronted her about it.”

“And?”

“And she kept accusing me of cheating on her with the lady and covering it up with surrogacy. It turned out to be a heated argument, and we said some nasty things to each other and she left.”

Grandma looked at him. “You're in the wrong, then.”

“How?”

“I asked you countless times if you informed her about your surrogacy plans, didn't I? You refused to tell her, and she had to find out from someone else. You don't think it's enough to hurt someone?”

“Is that enough reason why she should have an affair with someone else?” Damon looked at his grandmother with scorn.

If Grandma was surprised, she did her best to hide it.

“She slept with someone?” she asked.

“She did, grandma! Not even up to 12 hours after she left my house, she got herself someone to fuck her, obviously to spite me. I went to her house to apologize, and she left the door open and I got in and went upstairs to find another man having sex with my fiancée, grandma.” Damon said, closing his eyes and looking away. “And then she made it clear that she did it to spite me. Can you imagine that, Grandma??”

Grandma reclined in her chair. “Get me a glass of water.”

Damon got up and walked to the kitchen, and soon he returned with a glass of water.

Grandma took the glass from him and took a huge gulp before setting the glass down on the table.

“Now, Damon. Rose was very stupid to have thought that the only way to register her annoyance towards you was doing that, but you're my son, and I won't lie to you. You've got your faults in this.”

Damon shook his head. “Grandma I know I should have told her about the surrogacy plans but you know what would have happened already. She wouldn't give in to it, and I needed a child, a son.”

“Well, a son you have now, but a wife you don't have. You're still very incomplete. You will get yourself a wife who's gonna love you and your son and take care of both of you. How you're going to do that? I don't know. But you will,” Grandma said.

“But Grandma…”

“I said what I said, Damon. You don't have a choice.” Grandma said with a note of finality.

Damon opened his mouth to say something but he stopped as his phone beeped in his pocket. He pulled it out and he read the message.

“What?”