After years of constant bickering, nagging, and insulting her husband, finally, Jinny was on cloud 9. She couldn’t believe that Jim, her husband, had accepted the promotion in his job. “Why couldn’t he accept the promotion in the first place? Why did he make me behave in a spiteful manner with him?” thought Jenny to herself,“Oh, yes! His lame excuse was that he wouldn’t be able to spend more time with me due to the workload that would come with his new position. Who needs time, when you have money!” A smile came to her beautiful face. Her black eyes sparkled with a ray of hope and greed. Now she could enter any store without worrying about whether their products would fit into her budget.

She remembered the time when she had bought a beautiful empire style red dress. She had been wanting that color in that style of the dress for ages, and now, it was going to be in her wardrobe. Handing over her credit card to the young lady at the counter, she was flying above her body with enthusiasm. She could not wait to flaunt her new, expensive, and devastatingly gorgeous dress to her “spending-their-money-without-thinking” friends. “They would discover a new found respect for me, now. My reputation would change for good. I would no longer feel like a charity case while hanging out with my Steph and Linda.” Jinny murmured under her breath. “Your card has been declined. Do you have another card?” These repugnant words brought Jinny back to the planet earth. She felt as if she had been stripped off her clothes, and everybody could see her standing naked in the middle of Versace store. “No, this can’t be happening. My dream store can’t do this to me. How could Jim do this to me? He handed me the card that couldn’t even buy me a dress! Did he do it on purpose to humiliate me?” she kicked herself on her way back home. That was a long night. Jim was on the receiving end of arguments and insulting remarks while Jinny poured all the humiliation out on him. That night she gave him an ultimatum to either get his act together and accept the high paying job or divorce her. Jim had never loved anybody as much as he loved his wife. He could not bear the thought of living a life without seeing her smiling face. “Yes, there were fights, but which marriage is perfect.” he analyzed the facts in his head. Then, he announced that he is going to accept that promotion. However, Jinny needs to know that she might not be able to see him for days, weeks, or months. “Of course, I’ll miss you, Jim. But, I can’t live like this. I need Versace, Gucci, Fendi, Armani, Aldo, Dolce & Gabbana in my closet. I need to be able to enter any store without the fear of my card being declined.” Jimmy’s eyes brightened as she shared her deepest desire,“If you do this, I’ll be happy, forever!” Jim knew that she would regret her decision, but he knew better to be quiet than to give her another reason to be upset.

“Thank heavens! Jim got a sense to accept that promotion. Now, I can dance with the money.” Jinny was ecstatic while checking the amount in Jim’s bank account. Wearing her old non-branded dress, she went on a shopping spree. Nothing could make her feel sad, today. She wished that Jim could see her in all the expensive outfits that she was going to buy, but he would see her soon enough. He was coming home after three days, and she had to look her best to make him realize that money can buy happiness. She bought a long-sleeved D&G dress, made of red cady and lined in satin. It had a darted bodice, a scoop neckline, and a flared skirt. She tried it on and felt like a princess. “Oh, I look like a classy, rich lady.” She twirled a few times when her personal shopper flashed a pair of laced pumps studded with crystal to try with her dress. It was perfect. She was happy that she asked Steph to send her personal shopper, Stacy, to help her out. She knew that Stacy would share every specifics about her investments with Steph. “How big would Steph’s eyes become when she would hear about the money that she had spent!” Jinny giggled at the image of Steph’s face. She wanted to prove her worth to her rich friends. She hit a few more stores and gave her wardrobe a makeover with Versace, Fendi, D&G, Dior and what not — like she had always wanted.

Satisfied with her shopping, she turned on the tv while sipping her favorite red wine. “Ah, this is how a life is supposed to be.” she said while daydreaming about all the things that she could do with the money that she had now. “The Advertising and Promotions Manager of M&M Advertising Agency has been seen getting cozy with a client’s CEO.” The reporter excitedly shouted into his microphone, and it brought Jenny out of her dreams. “Did he say M&M Advertising Agency? That’s where Jim works. He reports to the Advertising and Promotions Manager. What’s his name: Nick or Rick or Robert?” She began wondering, then suddenly, her eyes widened with shock,“Oh No! He used to report to Nick or Rick or whatever. Now, he has replaced him. That means Jim is the one being cozy to someone other than me.” She quickly dialed Jim’s number, only to hear the voice of his secretary,“He cannot be disturbed right now. He is in a meeting.” Jinny could not believe her ears. Jim had the audacity to ask his assistant to hang up on me. Suddenly, her train of thoughts broke when her doorbell rang. She opened the door to find a young guy carrying an envelope. She couldn’t focus her attention on what he was saying. She signed somewhere and carried the envelope inside.

She had enough drama for one day. So, she turned off the tv and tried to sleep. Her mind wandered to the beautiful memories of her and Jim. “He had loved me with all his heart and now, he is showering someone else with all that love. How dare he!” She sobbed and tried to detest Jim for what he had done. However, her mind chose the liberty to remind her of the beautiful memories she had with Jim. She reminisced how he would appreciate the smallest things that she did for him, make her feel beautiful even she felt like a clown, surprise her with sudden dinner plans and gifts, and hold her hands to make her feel safe. He had always treasured her, even when she was busy making him feel like a complete loser. “I won’t go down without a fight. I would call Jim and ask him to come back to me. I am his wife, and he would give up that tramp the moment I’ll ask him to come back.” She had a confident smile on her face, now. She went down with a plan but then noticed the envelope . She ripped it open to find a divorce letter in it. She could not breathe. She did not know that she had loved Jim so much. These words were enough to shatter her little heart.

She drowned in tears when she felt someone’s hands shaking her. “Wake up, honey! Don’t cry. I would take that promotion,” Jim looked sincerely concerned. “No, I do not want you to go. Don’t divorce me, please. I would die without you,” Jinny burst into tears. “It was a dream, Jinny. Why would I divorce you? You gave me a choice last night, and I am going to accept the promotion,” Jim said in one breath. She remembered that she had fallen asleep after her fight with Jim and she dreamt the whole thing. She said to him, “When I was sleeping, I dreamt that…” and she went on to share her whole dream with him. Finally, she hugged him and whispered,“I do not want you to take that promotion, if it would take you away from me. Forgive me for all the nagging and bickering. I love you.” Jim wiped her tears and playfully, tucked the strands of hair behind her ears. Then, he said,“But, what about your eternal love for D&G, Versace, and Gucci?” With an embarrassed look in her eyes, she muttered,“We’ll just have to make do without those.”

P.S. This was written for Finish the Sentence Friday hosted by Finding Ninee.