Let it go

She stood there, listening to him. He was shouting at the top of his voice, right in the middle of the road. People were turning around and watching them, no one stopping, but many of them with a smirk on their faces, getting satisfaction of the fact that here is a more screwed up couple than we are.

She had known John for 5 years now. They used to study together in college. Soon they became more than just friends. They used to enjoy each other’s company. He was very intelligent and usually topped the class. She was an average student, but always on the forefront of co-curricular activities. They made a sweet couple.

After college, they joined a small firm. It was campus recruitment and they had celebrated on getting into the same firm. It would help them stay close and gradually, she thought, decide on when they want to settle down. They used to meet for lunch, discuss their bosses, their work, the compliments they received, everything. She didn’t really enjoy the work, but then his company kinda compensated for boring hours in office.

In a couple of months, her performance at work began to fall. If you donot like the work, how can u excel in it. So she decided to join another firm working in the field of her interest. She quit her job. During those few days, where she didn’t have a job, John supported her. But his attitude became a bit patronizing. She tried not to notice it, but it always kept pinching her at the back of her mind.

After running in and out of interviews for a month or so, she got 3 final offers with great pay packages. Of the 3, she chose the one with the most interesting job profile. The pay wasn’t the best of the 3, but then after her experience in the last job, she knew wat she wanted.

Her new job was amazing. It involved long hours, but then the work was so interesting that she never thought bout the continuous hours of intense work. But while, she worked so hard, she always found time to spend with John.

Soon, powered by her motivation to work, great performance, and good people skills, she rose up the corporate ladder fast. She represented her firm in a few television interviews too. It became more and more difficult to find time to spend with John, but she didn’t want to lose something so beautiful. She still found time.

John, in the meanwhile, had stagnated in his job. He hadn’t moved, nor had he tried to advance in his job. Apart from the one single promotion, which the firm had to give him due to the number of years he spent there, he had no achievement to his credit. When he went out on dinner with her, he always insisted that he pay. He could not take it that she pay for him. After all, he thought, he had been the one who saw her through her tough times. Had it not been for him, she would not have survived. So he could not stand the fact that in their circle, in office, he began to be known as the guy who hangs around with Mary Le Anne. What? Mary Le Anne, the pretty high-powered executive of Power Enterprises! Boy, is he lucky.

Every couple fights, but their fights began to get nastier now. He would accuse her of adultery, picking up incidents when someone dropped her home from an official party. She tried her best to not lose her calm, but occasionally her composure too gave way. But she believed that things would work out fine. After all, she thought, love would see them through these hard times. And she loved John.

Time passed, and John grew bitter. He always used to come back home early from office, since there no on really gave him any work. He sat in front of the tv, till she was back, and then picked up a quarrel with her. She started spending more and more time in office, even on weekends, just to avoid another quarrel with John.

That day, they decided to go out for a movie. She had thought, ok, lets start all over again, let me try my best. After all, its John. I love him. After some initial grumping, John agreed. They went out. After the movie, when they were walking out, she met a few colleagues. She introduced them to John. He didn’t want to talk to them. So he went aside for a smoke. While he smoked, she and her colleagues were laughing. He heard his name being mentioned somewhere. He could take it no more. He walked up to her, grabbed her arm, pulled her away, and started shouting at her. He accused her of making fun of him in front of her colleagues. He called her names and accused her of adultery, right there, in the middle of the road, in front of everyone.

She stood there, listening to him, as he shouted. His words just bounced back from her ears. After sometime, when he stopped shouting, somewhat pacified by her silence, she walked up to him, looked him in the eye, and walked away. That same day, she moved out to her friend’s place.

John called many times, but she never picked up the phone. She didn’t want to listen to him. She knew it was her mistake. Her mistake that she was the one who always tried to make up after the quarrel; that she was the one who juggled between office and work to find time for her and John; that she was the one who didn’t know when it was enough and to let go.

She wasn’t going to make the same mistake again. She had decided to let go.