FYI there's a swear in this one!


It was a Thursday evening and both Daniel and Elliott were sat at home. Daniel started tapping his pen on the desk causing Elliott to look up from the book he was reading, one eyebrow raised. Daniel dropped the pen and got up.
“We need to do something.” He announced.
Elliott looked at him sceptically. “What kind of something?”
“Go out somewhere. Not sit around in silence like an old married couple who secretly hate each other.”
“Hey there is nothing wrong with spending a night in.” Elliott said and went back to reading his book.
Daniel sighed before speaking again. “We are going out. I’m moving out in a couple of days and all you have done the last week is sat around moping. It’s pathetic. Hence the need for escaping into the real world.”
“Go where?” Elliott said, putting down his book and pulling himself into a sitting position. He wasn’t too enthusiastic about the prospect of leaving the house. It carried with it the possibility of bumping into people he wasn’t sure he was ready to see.
“Nowhere special, just the local pub or something.” Daniel pleaded. Elliott rolled his eyes. Maybe it would be good for him to break this monotonous cycle of waking up, going to work, coming home and going to bed.
“Ok then, let’s go.” He said.

Half an hour later they were sat in the White Horse pub with strong drinks on the table in front of them.
“So, I bumped into Grace the other day.” Daniel said after taking a swig from his glass.
This news caused Elliott’s stomach to leap into his chest. A million questions he wanted to ask whirred through his mind, but he settled on the least conspicuous one.
“Oh.” He replied. “How is she?”
“Busy.” Daniel hesitated. “I kind of got the feeling she was a bit pissed off that she hadn’t heard from you.”
“She dumped me! What am I supposed to do? Suddenly start bombarding her with text messages and phone calls begging her to take me back?”
He leant back in his chair and stared at his drink. The truth was he had been thinking of calling her but had no idea if she wanted to talk to him. And what would he even say?
“Dude, she dumped you because of how you are with Lorelei. I think she has taken your silence as confirmation that she was right.”
This sentence made his stomach drop right back down again. If that really was what she had been expecting then he had definitely blown it. A week and a half was far too long... wasn’t it? “Ugh, I don’t want to talk about this now. ‘S too depressing.” He mumbled.
“So, what’s the situation with Lorelei and her husband?” Daniel asked a moment later. “You’ve never really said much about them.”
This was a subject that Elliott wasn’t particularly too keen to venture down either. He scowled. “God I hate that man. They argue all the time. He says some really hurtful things to her. It usually goes like this: they have a row, he does something to upset her, she calls me, I go pick her up, she bitches about him for a while before calming down and going back home.”
“Don’t you get annoyed by it? I mean, it doesn’t sound like they get on at all. Why the hell are they still together?”
Elliott shrugged. “Beats me.”
“What’s the guy’s name?” Daniel asked, draining his glass and swirling the ice around in the bottom.
“Sam. Sam Marlow.”
A look of astonishment flashed onto Daniel’s face.
“Do you know him?” Elliott asked.
“Man. Yeah, yeah I know him. You’re not going to believe this.” He replied. Elliott frowned.
“He’s the guy my mum has been seeing.”
His stomach leapt back up. “What?!” He exclaimed.
“Angry looking guy? Bit of a 50s throwback?” Daniel asked.
Elliott rubbed his face with his hands and pulled them back through his hair. “That is just ... brilliant.” He said sarcastically.
“I can’t believe all this time-“ Daniel started to say, but was interrupted.
“How long has your mum been seeing him?” Elliott asked, sitting forwards in his chair, a look of urgency on his face.
“A while. It’s been really off-and-on. They were together a few years ago but then he left her for another woman - who I guess now must be Lorelei – but they reunited a few months back. Are you going to tell her?”
“Of course I’m going to tell her! Wouldn’t you?”
Daniel was quiet for a while. “If it was any other guy then I would confront him and tell him to come clean before I told her. But this is a bit of a, er special case.”
Elliott stood up and began rooting around in his pockets. “Where are you going?” Daniel asked him.
“To call Lorelei.” He said, managing to retrieve his phone.
“Now?!”
“Yes! I can’t let this go on any longer than it has. She deserves to know.” He walked outside and dialled Lorelei’s number, hoping that this would finally put an end to the shambles she referred to as their marriage.


Aw thank you KeiraLou I enjoy yours too, I love the twists you've put into the characters' stories.