https://pixabay.com/photos/man-portrait-old-elderly-1283235/
Mike sat on the yellow and dark blue sofa brooding deeply. His aged palm held his head under his chin, brushing his greying beard. The gold clock filled the silence with it's soft ticks while the air-conditioner hummed. But Mike's mind had flown to a distant land and he was lost in thoughts. And they were not pleasant thoughts.
Here he was, aged and alone and as miserable as a goat in a slaughter house. At this time in his life, he was supposed to be in control of a flourishing family and having a wonderful life. It had been a few years since he came out of prison. He was without a family, his ex-wives and children wanted nothing to do with him.
It occurred to him he hadn't tasted a bite since morning. He made a cup of coffee, his hand shook so much that about a quarter spilled on the brown mahogany table. He walked wearily to the sofa and sat and took sips while his mind wandered again. He wished Emilia would call him. Emilia was the golden-haired beautiful daughter of his from his third wife. Since the death of her mother she had severed every communication with her dad and gone to live in Australia. The last time they had talked on the phone, tensions were high and the air vibrated with unpleasant emotions.
“Dad, you are the worst thing that happened to our family, the worst dad in the world.” Angry Emilia had said.
Mike wished she hadn't said that last part. Her frustration had mounted to the skies since her mother's death.
“I know, my precious daughter, and I'm sorry for ruining your life. I wish there was a satisfactory way I could atone for my heinous mistakes.”
“Just stay out of our lives,”
she mouthed angrily cutting her father off. She then sighed and hung up. Mike held the phone in his shaky hands for minutes after the call while his shocked eyes gazed tiredly at the gold-blue wall clock.
His mind went back to the time in his life when he still had the chance to amend his ways. His reckless temper had broken his home three different times and made his third wife to become wheelchair bound for which Mike went to prison. When he came out he was nothing but a tired and battered old man.
Mike's mother sat in the principal's office, sweat of frustration crawling down her body. She had been called yet again to answer for the bad behavior of her son. In a few minutes the principal had re-entered his office sat and fixed an unsettling icy gaze on Mrs Jefferson's face.
“This is the third time this month you have been called to answer for the behaviors of your son. I just wish all this would stop. This time even the school is in trouble. The parents of the boy whom he had a fight with are threatening to sue. And they've got enough clout to make serious trouble for us.”
“I'm sorry sir,” Mrs Jefferson kept mumbling in between pauses. “It won't happen again.”
“But it always does. It would just be best for everyone if your son left the school, if you can't put a stop to this.”
Mike's uncontrollable temper was no news, everyone in the neighborhood, the school knew. His temper often drove him into loud angry arguments and sometimes into fights. By the time he was in his teens his mother was almost afraid of cautioning her son because he feared he'd be enraged.
“Tension always makes human relationships fragile,” his mother said one time.
She was on the verge of tears and her fingers lightly gripping the dinning table in misery. Mike was at the table eating and barely listening to his mother.
“You won't be able to build a home my son, in your state. I wish you would change before your attitude takes me to an early grave and destroys your life.”
“It doesn't matter much, mom.” He said disinterestedly. “I have to focus on my dreams for now. I can deal with my temper later on.” Mrs Jefferson gave up the discussion.
https://pixabay.com/photos/male-model-portrait-man-face-7275449/
Mike achieved the success he craved so much. At 27 years of age he was already the most celebrated entrepreneur of the day. His companies brought in hundreds of millions in revenue. But he paid little heed to the bad behavior his mother often warned him was capable of ruining his life.
His first marriage was blissful only for a few months. His new wife, Jessica, thought she had found the man of her dreams at last. Their blissful union only lasted for a few months before the fragile atmosphere of peace and love was broken by an outburst from Mike. Mike got angry at the slightest thing. Then one evening, they had a loud argument which ended in an assault. He was devastated. This was something he had sworn never to do.
4 years into the marriage, Jessica had to seek a divorce, she couldn't contain her husband's quick temper. After the divorce, Mike stayed for about two years before getting married again. But he never did anything serious about his temper. His second marriage started out blissfully before his infamous temper ruined it all. Two of his teenage children had already left home because of that. Mike was adding more straws to the breaking back of the camel that was his life.
Flair his college friend wasn't so surprised when he caught a glimpse of the news in the evening paper. A teardrop escaped Flair's eye onto the paper. He remembered the old days back in college when he and Mike dreamed up fantastic ideas, the time they were on the verge of a breakthrough with Dev-1, a project both had worked on. As partners and close friends, Flair often spoke to Mike about his choleric temperament. Mike countered that by saying he would focus on his dreams first and deal with his temperament later.
Mike's case rocked the entire nation like the winds violently rock an overloaded ship. What his mother and friends had warned him much about had happened. Here he was with three broken homes. His recent encounter with his third wife had put her in the wheelchair for the rest of her life, and he was going to prison. The story of his life was that of the sun which had broken forth brilliantly early morning, only to be swallowed by thick black clouds and desolation lay on the horizon.
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