MBA – A Glimpse of a Fissure
Ryan was grinning from ear to ear as he set off from the house. He was now a qualified MBA graduate. Something most men of his age and even others regularly aspired to. He loved the perks it offered. Perks reserved for people like him who were willing to go the distance, to take the plunge and partake of something that others were afraid of. They were the ones who lived on the edge he thought wryly. A part of him was a bit apprehensive. This was not something he had wanted to do. But the temptation was too great. The calling was too strong and he wasn’t the only one who would be doing it. There were plenty of others. That much he knew. He saw them on and off, in the strangest places but the looks they exchanged said one thing. They knew that they were special. Different. Something not everyone could be. And somehow this distinguished them as a cut above the rest. Or so they claimed. Ryan wasn’t too sure where he fit in all this. But he had given in. Some took years to actually bother while others started off long before they finished their first. So it was not a big deal anymore. And so what? He told the voice in his head that seemed to be prodding him from time to time. It wasn’t like he was alone. And what was really wrong with it? It was just something that gave him great pleasure. Not joy. But more a thrill. Something that tingled him in all the right places.
These days everyone was advertising the fact and it was no big deal now. Heck it was advertised almost as a sort of moniker to the ones who would not dare. Even the lecturers were laughing. It was fun. It was a game.
He thought wryly about Sandra back home. She had no idea about this but that is how he wanted it to be. She would eventually know of course and so what? She would have to deal with it. He would cross that bridge when he came to it. Perhaps she would want to be one too. He laughed out loud. Sandra was too timid. Too scared of the values drilled into her head from childhood. About playing it safe and being the good girl who didn’t push boundaries. She didn’t even want to consider anything risqué between them so what MBA?
Ryan walked into his home and greeted Sandra with a kiss tinged with saliva and guilt. He walked into the room and went straight for a shower. Sandra smiled and got him his dinner. She had been out all day. She worked in a logistics company and she was now prepping the dinner. Ryan was not a fussy eater though he did enjoy his food and so she was happy to experiment on all the different types of cuisines she read on Facebook and Youtube. Today Sandra was experimenting with some baby octopus she had bought. One had to be very precise in the preparation. She didn’t want it to be too slimy or too dry either. So she followed each step diligently (though a part of her was tempted to veer off the given method) and was now eagerly awaiting the result in the oven.
Ryan was in the shower letting the cold water drip down his back and his legs. He remembered her fingers which ran down his back and up his thighs. The touch of her lips on his and he let himself wander into his experience with her fingers and lips and then grinning to himself, he soaped off the traces of her touch and perfume. There would be more now. Of course he had forgotten the thrill of such encounters till now. When it was awakened in him by his new lease on life. Propelled by his recent qualification.
Sandra pulled out the tray from the oven and gently unveiled the octopus. It was wrapped in foil but somehow though succulent, it lacked a basic flavour which she couldn’t really put her finger on. Was it the salt or the pepper? Perhaps not enough Cayenne. So she drizzled it with some dressing and laid it out on two plates for both of them along with a salad she had tossed. A part of her was kicking herself for not having followed her instinct but she nevertheless felt it was good enough for both of them.
Ryan came dressed in his shorts and a skinny and sat down to eat. There wasn’t much conversation though he did comment (more out of duty than honesty) that the food was good. Sandra beamed and enjoyed the meal with her husband. He rose, washed his plate and headed off to bed. Sandra cleared up and went upstairs about half an hour later to find Ryan already asleep in bed with the light already switched off. Not wanting to disturb him, she used her bedside lamp, got into her night clothes and slid inside the sheets. He was turned towards the wall and she snuggled up against his back. The bed made a sharp crack sound as she moved. There was no response from him though. He must be tired she thought and nodded off to sleep.
*MBA is an abbreviation in current parlance for ‘Married But Available’
