*****

“Paula!  So what is it?” Arthur demanded.

“Look…both of you…this whole situation is just not right.  …  Arthur…I never wanted to hurt you.  I never wanted to see the look on your face right now.  I swear I didn’t.  I love my family.  I love my children —.”

“Mom, what’s going on here?”  Ashley interrupted walking up seeing the Carlin door wide open.

Spencer walked over to her mom hugging her.  Paula wanted to let all her tears out at her daughter’s gesture.

“Spencer! What the hell are you doing here with her?’

“Dad, Ashley is my girlfriend and she’s not my first either.  And I love her.”  Spencer said purposely hoping to give her mom a break.  However, it unfortunately backfired to focus on Christine.

Arthur turned to Christine, “Christine this is all your fault!  Your family has corrupted my entire family!  You started it back in college and now you are still trying to ruin our lives”

Christine rolled her eyes, “Arthur, when are you going to accept that this has never been about you!”

Arthur heard the voice in his head again…’man up’….’man up’…  He was in front of his sons for goodness sakes.  What is a man who can’t please his own wife?  His anger suddenly became rage.   Arthur lounged for Christine.  The force was so strong it caused them both to fall to the ground.  He put his hands around her neck and began to squeeze.  Every voice in the Carlin house began to scream and shout “Stop it!”  “Let go!”  “Get off of her!”  Glen and Clay used all their strength to pull Arthur off of Christine.  Finally getting him to let go, Paula rushed to Christine’s side as she lay on the floor recovering from the attack.  Paula placed kisses all over her face, “I’m so sorry.  I’m so sorry, baby.  I’m so sorry.”

Suddenly, Paula’s courage came out of nowhere.  “Arthur, are you crazy? Get out right now!  I don’t care where you go but get out!  How could you?! I don’t want to see your face right now!” Paula was screaming at this point letting all of her emotions loose.  Arthur looked back at his family and walked out the front door slamming it shut.  The ‘man up’ voice was gone.  His humiliation had begun.

Ashley bent down with her mother and helped Paula sit her up. “Mom, are you okay? Mom, please talk to me.”

“I’m okay Ashley.  I’m okay.” Christine said rubbing her neck.  Paula and Ashley guided Christine to the couch trying to comfort her.  Everyone gathered around her.  Spencer ran to the kitchen to get something cool for her to drink.

Christine cleared her throat to speak, “Paula, I’m so sorry.  I shouldn’t have come over tonight.  I don’t know what I was thinking.  This was not the right way to do this.”

“Shhh…don’t you worry right now about that.  We’ll talk about that later.  Right now, I just want the person that I love to be okay.”

Christine looked up at Paula with a smile.  She did love her.

*****

Glen pulled Clay aside, “Clay, what the fuck is this?  Are you okay with this? Mom, with a woman.  Spencer, with a girl.  No, Dad had no right to try to choke her, but this is so messed up.  Our family is so messed up now.  We’ve got to get mom and dad back together.”

“I don’t know, man.  This was so intense and obviously has a lot of past behind it,” Clay reasoned.

Glen rolled his eyes, “Don’t be an ass Clay.  Dad and Mom should be together.  Not this lesbian crap.  I mean it’s hard enough knowing that Spencer is gay, but mom too.”

Clay nodded in agreement with the shocking news.  “Well, what do you suppose we do?”

“We’ve got to get her to hate Christine and then Dad can —“

Spencer walked over to them, “What are you two plotting?”

“Nothing, Spence.  Nothing” Glen added.