For the Dream of 5 Years: Chapter Thirty-Six: Ribs and Beer

"Hey Steve, are you busy tonight?" Dave asked, pacing around in the living room with the phone on the loudspeaker. "What, you wanna invite me to a date?" Steve joked. "Come by my house after work, there are ribs that I want to roast, and I can't finish them," he said, forcing a laugh to acknowledge Steve's joke. Dave went to the meat market and bought 5 Kg of goat ribs, wine, in case the Doc needed some, and other foods. He drove to the supermarket and purchased a small charcoal grill because they did not own one. He wanted to engage in something fun with Doc, and watching football was out of the question. He put two wooden seats on the balcony and set his grill right by the end of the terrace. He got some fruits and started eating them while watching the sunset. "Hey, man. Where is everybody? I thought we were having a party. You've never called me to your house when nobody was sick, let alone to have food?" Said Steve after getting into the house. "Yoh! I sent her away," Dave said. He was surprised how he managed to say this that soon. He wanted to say this after they had roasted and eaten the ribs, after they had laughed at his jokes about the mortgage that belonged to his wife, after they had taken the wine and gotten drunk if at all he would take it this time. He said it even before the Doc made it to the living room. "Why?" Steve asked, laughing. "Why are you laughing, man?" Dave asked. "Where are the girls?" Steve jokingly asked, moving past Dave, who was still standing in the hallway and searching into the living room. "Please, is there anything serious to you?" Asked Dave, following him into the living room. "Yes, my patients. But my friends, nah! My friends are supposed to lighten my already dark life. Please don't add stress to my life with your problems. If I gave you my problems, depression would cripple you. I hope I came here to laugh. I rarely laugh at my house," said Steve, laughing so hard they cracked up until tears swelled in their eyes. Steve knew how to lighten the mood, and Dave was already laughing so hard that his knees became weak. "What kind of life are you living, Doc? It was the mortgage; now you are looking for chances to laugh because you rarely laugh at home," he said, laughing and reaching for the remote. He switched the TV on, and they started chatting casually. Dave told him about the recent events with Michelle. "I sent the children home today. They went with Lisa; she is good with them," he said. "Who is Lisa?" Steve asked. "She is the nanny," Dave responded. "How is Lisa?" Steve asked. "What do you mean? I said she is good with the children," replied Dave. "You know what I mean. Is she good with you? Is she beautiful?" Asked Steve, sipping his passion juice. "Are you serious right now? I am not like that. Such things are the reason my wife is away. I can't try it again," he said, crossing his legs and leaning back on his couch, directly opposite Steve's. "You said your wife had a young driver, right?" Steve Asked. "Yes, she doesn't like driving at night, it was past midnight, so I figured out she hired a driver," said Dave. "If I were your wife, I could have left your stupid ass many years ago; it seems you are thick. A driver that she hugged when you sent her back?" Asked Steve, laughing. "I didn't see well. I'm not sure whether it was a hug or a ... I don't know," Dave said, scratching his head. "You didn't see well, or you don't want to admit she is having an affair with a younger and much more energetic man?" Asked Steve, leaning forward to study Dave's facial expression. "Why are we not having the lights on? Are you saving on power, or that's Michelle's job to switch them on?" Asked Steve, struggling to read Dave's facial expression with the TV light. "Oh, sorry. I have been confused; I don't know how to live without her," he said as he walked to switch the lights on. "So, what are you planning to do? You sent her right back into the arms of that hunk. Is it not the same thing that happened when she went home and you returned with Shanice? Funny how painful it is when the tables are turned," said Steve. "I don't know what to do. I can't report her missing. She is not missing. I sent her away. I just don't know where she is; if I knew, I could have gone to bring her back home," he said, looking thoughtful. "You know how you can trace her. Why don't you reach out to her friend, Stacy?" Steve asked. "I don't have her contacts," he said. "You can check out from her social media platforms. You could also reach out to her via her girlfriend," he said. "What do you mean? Is Stacy a lesbian?" He asked, puzzled by this new information. "She is. There's nothing I don't know that happens in this town. I would even know where your wife is if I wanted. After the drama with Shanice and the Jeep gift, she somehow became a topic of interest. Some blogger somewhere is following her life like a river follows its course. I am sure about that. It's just a matter of time, and the two of you will be all over the blogs," he said. "I don't want my wife to be embarrassed. I want to bring her home quietly. I swear if any blogger tries that with her, I will be ruthless," he said, agitated and pacing around the room. "Calm down; there is nothing you can do. Those shitheads have a way around getting money from the gossip; there's nothing anyone has done. You jail them, and the next day they are out on bond. They have a strong backing. Anyway, back to wifey and the hot boy," said Steve, following Dave with his eyes as he paced around. He searched for Stacy on the internet using his phone. "Here she is," he said, showing Dave her contacts. "Do you think she has done something with Michelle?" Asked Dave as he copied her contact on his phone. "Man, I told you, don't joke with women. You only pray they treat you well and look after the children correctly. What they do with the other aspects of their life, you leave it to God," he said, laughing. "I don't like this woman. Ever since they became close, Michelle started losing herself," he said, dialling her number. "Hey, this is Dave. Do you know where Michelle is?" He asked when Stacy received his call. "Hey, father of nations! A spear doesn't hurt when a pig is a victim, but when a human is, it hurts!" She yelled over the phone, making Dave move the phone away from his ear to minimize the hurt on his eardrum. "Please, she hasn't been home for the third day now," he pleaded. "What do you mean? She left me a voicemail on Monday, wanting to spend the night at my place," said Stacy, shocked. "I mean, she was here, but I sent her back because she came home late….. almost in the morning," he said. "Who sent you back when you were impregnating Shanice? Double standard much!" She yelled again. "Who qualified you to be a lecturer? Can you talk like a civilized human being?" Dave asked, agitated. "I might know where she is. Meet me at the Blue Valley Mall in the morning," she said and hung up. She immediately tried Michelle's number; still, it was off. She was worried, but hopeful Michelle was alright. "She knows! I can't wait for tomorrow!" Dave said while jumping with excitement. "Is there no food in this house? I thought I was here for ribs. I haven't smelled the aroma yet,” asked Steve, moving to the kitchen. "Oh, I almost forgot. We have ribs in the fridge," he said, trying Michelle's number for the millionth time. "Where are the ribs? I see raw meat here," asked Steve, checking inside the fridge. "Yes, we are roasting that on the balcony," he said, still on his phone. "Why didn't we do that from the moment I came? Could they be ready now? I am starving!" Said Steve, getting the meat out of the fridge. "That was the plan until you showed up, and I started opening up about Michelle," he said, following Steve to the balcony. "You mean the grill is not ready? We better head out and eat something ready. I thought the fire was ready," he asked, dumping the meat on the grill. "Where is the charcoal and the lighter," he asked Dave, who was still on his phone. "What charcoal?" Dave asked. "Have you ever used a grill before?" Asked Steve, laughing. "Okay, so we need charcoal. What else do we need? I can rush to a general shop," he said, realizing his mishap. They left the house in Dave's car, chatting and laughing as they drove to a general shop. They bought charcoal and beer. Dave was not an alcoholic, but he would have a glass tonight. Once they were back, they lit the grill and roasted some of the meat. It was too much meat that Dave decided to freeze most of the raw ribs for another day, probably when Michelle returned. Dave tried a glass of wine; he had had wine before. He tried one bottle of beer; it was not good on the tongue, but Steve said it could help digestion because he had taken too much meat. He took another bottle, and another, and another until he was drunk. He felt sick and vomited. He passed out on the couch, the doctor on the other. Stacy was at the mall at seven sharp in the morning as they had agreed. She ordered coffee and waited for Dave to show up. She called his phone, but he didn't pick up. She tried repeatedly and decided to go to his place and check what had happened. Upon opening the door, there was the stench of vomit all over, and two men were wasted on the couch. She showed herself in and reached for his phone on the table. It did not have a lock pattern or password. She reviewed his calls and saw he had been trying to reach Michelle. She noted the beer bottles that littered the table. She sat on the armrest of the couch that the Doc was lying on and continued to scroll Dave's phone. Perhaps to see whether he was chatting with other girls behind Michelle's back. Satisfied with her snooping, she left the house and drove to Jupiter Garage.