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31_days2016-08-18 10:14 pm
insaneladybug.livejournal.com) wrote in 31_days2016-08-18 10:14 pm
[August 18th] [The Wild Wild West] It's Over, Isn't It
Title: It's Over, Isn't It
Day/Theme: August 18th - "I was as hollow and empty as the spaces between stars."
Series: The Wild Wild West (specifically, The Poisonous Posey episode)
Character/Pairing: Snakes Tolliver/Chita McCarthy (she's an OC; he's in my icon)
Rating: K+/PG
By Lucky_Ladybug
Even knowing everything I did, one of the hardest decisions I've ever had to make was deciding to end my marriage to Chita. It didn't have much to do with having been raised in a Catholic orphanage; I just personally hated to concede defeat and let go of somebody I thought cared about me. But I knew there was no going on after I found out about the men. I think Chita really knew it too; that's probably really why she was so angry when she was found out.
I was worried about the property settlement problems too. I sure didn't want Chita to get any of what I'd been building up, not when that was all she'd ever wanted anyway. And judging from what she'd told me, she had plenty of other poor saps she could fall back on.
I knew that Chita was probably worried about her reputation. A big messy divorce could really screw things over for both of us, really, especially in that day and age. So I spent the rest of the night thinking and finally hit on something that I thought would work the best for both of us, under the circumstances.
Everything was quiet when I ventured out of the guest room. The cook should have been fixing breakfast, and maybe she was, but things sounded silent as the grave. I wondered if Chita had run out on me again. That really wasn't how I wanted to spend a day that was already going to be extremely difficult.
I knocked on the master bedroom door. At first there was nothing, but then I heard, "Come in."
I went in and found Chita standing by the window in her black nightgown, the one with feathery cuffs and collar. She wasn't facing me; she was just staring out with her arms folded on her chest.
I closed the door and leaned against it, holding the knob in my hands. "We need to discuss what we're gonna do."
She shrugged. "What do you wanna do?"
I wasn't sure if her sullen attitude was good or bad, considering last night's explosion. "I want out."
"I figured that much."
I left the door and walked across the room to her. "If this goes public, it could sour things pretty fast for both of us, but probably especially you. I'm sure you don't want that."
I could almost feel her sneer. "So?"
"So I have an alternate proposal. I'm close enough to one of the judges in town that I could get him to keep everything hush-hush. I'm willing to do that if you agree to break things off and clear out with everything you've conned out of me over the past year. I'll give you enough money to get started somewhere else. Do that and leave me alone and I won't stand in your way for whatever you wanna do next."
Finally she turned to face me. "And if I say No?"
"Then we're gonna have a completely public divorce, with all the hoopla and bad press and everything else that goes with it." I spoke completely calmly and looked her right in the face.
She scowled. "That'd ruin Jeremy as well as me."
"I'm sure you don't care about Jeremy," I retorted. "Especially since as you told me yourself, he's not the only one. And frankly, I don't care about Jeremy either, not after what he and you were doing right here in this room."
"I only care because if he's ruined, he's no use to me anymore," Chita replied quite frankly.
"You know what? The two of you deserve each other," I said in disgust. "You can go to him with my compliments if you agree to my terms."
Chita considered it for a long moment before she replied. "Okay."
That was it. No apology, no more explanation, nothing. By then I wasn't sure I even wanted to hear any more.
I got things squared with the judge that day and everything was ended very quiet-like. By evening Chita was moving out. I saw her come down the stairs with her big suitcases and the butler following with a trunk of clothes.
"Well," I said, knowing that was the last of her stuff, "this is it."
"Yeah." Chita headed for the front door. "See you."
I hope not, I said to myself. Aloud I said, "Good luck."
"Sure." And she was gone.
I stood there for a long moment. Suddenly, just like that, everything was different. I guess I should have felt relieved, and later on I did, but right then I just felt hollow and alone.
Day/Theme: August 18th - "I was as hollow and empty as the spaces between stars."
Series: The Wild Wild West (specifically, The Poisonous Posey episode)
Character/Pairing: Snakes Tolliver/Chita McCarthy (she's an OC; he's in my icon)
Rating: K+/PG
Even knowing everything I did, one of the hardest decisions I've ever had to make was deciding to end my marriage to Chita. It didn't have much to do with having been raised in a Catholic orphanage; I just personally hated to concede defeat and let go of somebody I thought cared about me. But I knew there was no going on after I found out about the men. I think Chita really knew it too; that's probably really why she was so angry when she was found out.
I was worried about the property settlement problems too. I sure didn't want Chita to get any of what I'd been building up, not when that was all she'd ever wanted anyway. And judging from what she'd told me, she had plenty of other poor saps she could fall back on.
I knew that Chita was probably worried about her reputation. A big messy divorce could really screw things over for both of us, really, especially in that day and age. So I spent the rest of the night thinking and finally hit on something that I thought would work the best for both of us, under the circumstances.
Everything was quiet when I ventured out of the guest room. The cook should have been fixing breakfast, and maybe she was, but things sounded silent as the grave. I wondered if Chita had run out on me again. That really wasn't how I wanted to spend a day that was already going to be extremely difficult.
I knocked on the master bedroom door. At first there was nothing, but then I heard, "Come in."
I went in and found Chita standing by the window in her black nightgown, the one with feathery cuffs and collar. She wasn't facing me; she was just staring out with her arms folded on her chest.
I closed the door and leaned against it, holding the knob in my hands. "We need to discuss what we're gonna do."
She shrugged. "What do you wanna do?"
I wasn't sure if her sullen attitude was good or bad, considering last night's explosion. "I want out."
"I figured that much."
I left the door and walked across the room to her. "If this goes public, it could sour things pretty fast for both of us, but probably especially you. I'm sure you don't want that."
I could almost feel her sneer. "So?"
"So I have an alternate proposal. I'm close enough to one of the judges in town that I could get him to keep everything hush-hush. I'm willing to do that if you agree to break things off and clear out with everything you've conned out of me over the past year. I'll give you enough money to get started somewhere else. Do that and leave me alone and I won't stand in your way for whatever you wanna do next."
Finally she turned to face me. "And if I say No?"
"Then we're gonna have a completely public divorce, with all the hoopla and bad press and everything else that goes with it." I spoke completely calmly and looked her right in the face.
She scowled. "That'd ruin Jeremy as well as me."
"I'm sure you don't care about Jeremy," I retorted. "Especially since as you told me yourself, he's not the only one. And frankly, I don't care about Jeremy either, not after what he and you were doing right here in this room."
"I only care because if he's ruined, he's no use to me anymore," Chita replied quite frankly.
"You know what? The two of you deserve each other," I said in disgust. "You can go to him with my compliments if you agree to my terms."
Chita considered it for a long moment before she replied. "Okay."
That was it. No apology, no more explanation, nothing. By then I wasn't sure I even wanted to hear any more.
I got things squared with the judge that day and everything was ended very quiet-like. By evening Chita was moving out. I saw her come down the stairs with her big suitcases and the butler following with a trunk of clothes.
"Well," I said, knowing that was the last of her stuff, "this is it."
"Yeah." Chita headed for the front door. "See you."
I hope not, I said to myself. Aloud I said, "Good luck."
"Sure." And she was gone.
I stood there for a long moment. Suddenly, just like that, everything was different. I guess I should have felt relieved, and later on I did, but right then I just felt hollow and alone.