“And who the hell did they hire t o create the website and advertisement poster? It looks as if a teenager made it.”
Mayer sighed. “Damn it, Bauer. Can’t you let your negativity aside for a change? I’m growing sick of it. I’m quite sure we generated enough buzz to attract his attention.”
“How much time are you going to give it?” he asked, handing her the cup of steaming tea.
“Until he arrives. You know damn well he will.”
And that was exactly the issue with Mayer. Sure, she was a bit older and a tad more seasoned than him, but it wasn’t her age or her experience that set her apart. It was her aura. That bold sovereignty which made him question his own beliefs.
Because as he observed her, scanning the area while sipping tea, he knew it too. He might as well have set fire to those twenty bucks instead of betting on their plan failing.
He was about to open his mouth and tell her so, when his phone buzzed within his pocket. It was Tina, calling for the fourth time that evening.
Mayer gave him a sideways glance. “You’re still running around with this brick of a phone? You could at least buy yourself a smartphone if you stopped losing bets left and right, you know.”
Olaf shot her a get-out-of-here look as he answered the call.
“Tina?”
“Where are you?” Her voice was high-pitched, the words firing out like bullets from a machine gun. “I’ve called you so many times already. Why do you even bother carrying that thing with you if you’re not going to check it?”
“Slow down,” Olaf said. “Is everything okay?”
“Nothing is okay, and you promised me you’ll stop by. When are you coming?”
Mayer raised three fingers. Tina was talking so loudly, that Mayer could hear every word they exchanged.
“We need at least three more hours here.”
“I’m feeling really bad tonight. Can you please come sooner than that? Please, please, please.”
And that was exactly the issue with Tina. No matter how hard he tried, whatever words he chose, a period of tranquility would invariably turn into a thunderstorm. There were words that he would have to bear. Insults. Threats. Months after their separation, Olaf remained her occasional punching bag, enduring her emotional blows.
“Have you been taking your medication in the past few days?” he asked.
There was silence on the other end of the line.
“Tina?”
“I hate this shit!” She shouted so loudly that he moved the phone away from his ear. “These things make me numb. They suck my energy, leaving me unable to do anything meaningful. I can’t create anymore. Is this who you wanted me to be? A numb puppet?”
“I wanted you to be yourself. But without your meds, it’s not really you who’s behind the steering wheel, and we both know that.”
“I hate you!” she screamed. “I hate you so much!”
Normally, he would have told her that he loved her, but he found that the words wouldn’t come out of his mouth. There was a limit to every pain, a line he had vowed to himself to never cross again.
“I’ll hurt myself,” Tina said, her voice now lower, less hysterical. “I’ll hurt myself tonight, and it’s going to be your fault.”
She hung up before he had a chance to answer.
The words, the insults, the threats.
Slipping his phone back into his pocket, he massaged his temples from a headache that had come to stay for good.
“Problems at home?” Mayer asked.
“That’s one way to put it.”
She shrugged. “There are plenty of good reasons why I’ve never been married.”
“So, what you’re suggesting is that this sort of logical thinking is possible?”
“What I’m suggesting is that you should consider going back to your woman. She sounded like she’s in a terrible state.”
She did sound that way, but Tina’s state was nothing new to Olaf.
Tina had been acting like this ever since he had met her. Her state would occasionally get different labels, depending on the current therapist or Tina’s own mood. After starting and abruptly ending around a dozen therapies, she had eventually refused any professional help.
Their relationship had suffered too. Recognizing Tina’s need for mental support, Olaf had decided to stay and help her. A conscious decision he hadn’t regretted. But when everything spiraled out of control, with Tina subjecting him to verbal and physical attacks practically every day, there was no alternative for him than to walk away. He still recalled that one occasion where she had screamed at him, threatening to leave him for someone else, someone who could understand her, someone better. Shattering half of their tableware, she had declared that she would end their marriage for good.
Tina thrived on drama, while Olaf wanted none of that.
“She’ll be fine,” he said. “Besides, you mentioned that our guy’s going to show up any minute, didn’t you?”
“Your call, Bauer. Just don’t tell me I didn’t warn you later.”
A surge of anxiety washed over him at her words. His gut feeling told him to rush to Tina, hold her into his arms and console her, but his mind had reached its limit. He had been down this road before, had played this role countless times.
