Giving Her Credit

Prompt:
Your spouse has left you but forgotten to take his/her credit card. You're not poor so how would you use the card in ways that would really upset your ex?


“He did what?”

“He left me,” Maisie sniffled into the phone. “I came home from work and he was packing a suitcase.”

“But . . . I don’t understand. You and Jonathan . . .” Audrey’s voice lowered. “Was it another woman?”

“No, I could have understood if it was another woman—”

“Another man?”

“No! He said—he said he’d been feeling restless for the past year. He thinks we rushed into marriage and should have done more living or something before we settled down.”

“Rushed into it? You’ve been married for ten years!”

“Well not any longer,” Maisie said, through a fresh wave of tears. “He said he needs time on his own to think things through.”

“Time to have a good time, if you ask me,” Audrey said, angry for her friend’s sake.

“You really think so?”

“I was always all about Jonathan. He never deserved someone as sweet and caring as you, Maisie. And he never gave you enough credit for all you did for him, for just being you.”

Shocked, Maisie was speechless for a moment. “But . . . I thought you liked Jonathan.”

Audrey sighed over the phone. “I put up with him for your sake. You’re my friend, Maisie, and you cared about him.”

“I did,” Maisie sniffled. “I do. Audrey, what am I supposed to do now?”

“If it was me, I’d be getting my mad on and making a list of ways to put the screws to him.”

“Oh, I don’t think I could do that.”

“I know, Maisie,” Audrey said with another sigh. “And that’s part of your problem.”

Audrey offered to come over to keep her company, but Maisie wanted time to herself to wallow in self pity. She couldn’t very well do that with Audrey, especially not considering Audrey’s opinion of Jonathan.

But she didn’t wallow for as long as she thought she would. She wandered through the empty house, thinking of Jonathan and their life together.

They’d met in college and were married before they graduated. Maisie had planned on continuing with post-graduate school but Jonathan got a job offer in a distant city and it was put on the back-burner. Then he decided they needed a house and once again her education was put on hold.

Now that she really thought about it, pretty much everything she wanted that didn’t dovetail with Jonathan’s plans got put off or shunted aside. Like kids. Every time she brought up the idea of kids, he had a different excuse as to why the time wasn’t right.

The more she thought about it, the more she realized Audrey was right. It was all about Jonathan, all the time. Maisie was definitely starting to get her mad on.

Jonathan told her he’d be back at some point to pick up the rest of his things, and would she be a dear and pack his clothes in boxes for him? She packed so neatly for him whenever he had to go on a business trip. She’d pack for him all right, she’d pack real good.

Grabbing several trash bags from the kitchen, she stalked up to the bedroom. Stuffing his expensive suits into the garbage bags, along with shirts, shoes, and ties, gave her a certain grim satisfaction. Especially when she dumped all his remaining bath products – shampoo, aftershave, cologne, skin cream – in the bags with them.

Maisie glanced around the bedroom to make sure she hadn’t missed anything and spotted something on the floor near Jonathan’s night stand. It was his gold card. It must have fallen when he took the phone charger.

A smile blossomed on Maisie’s face. What better way to put the screws to him than to run up his credit bill? And better yet, she could buy stuff he’d never approve of.

Still smiling, Maisie left the bedroom to start making her list.