freakin' lap dog.... Shit."
Chapter 7
For two solid months, Junior was bedridden. Stuck in bed with nothing much to do but think, he devised a plan to get even with his beautiful captor.
Since Noi was obsessed with knowing his every movement, then he'd make it a point to be right at her heels, twenty-four seven. The best of friendships and blood relations can be broken asunder when familiarity breeds hostility. Benjamin Franklin said it best, "Guests, like fish, begin to smell after three days." Junior couldn't wait to see how she liked it when the shoe was on the other foot.
However, the thing Junior hadn't counted on was that Noi reveled in the attention. When she went to the kitchen, he followed her. When she exercised, Junior was right there with a towel to soak up her sweat. When she went grocery shopping, he was right by her side, holding her hand, and looking at the ground like a shy child. All of the stares from other people didn't seem to bother her in the least.
Realizing that his plan wasn't working, Junior decided to turn up the heat. That night when he had to pee at three in the morning, he woke Noi up and asked her to come to the bathroom with him. To his horror, she not only agreed, but also congratulated him for being such a 'good husband', and then said that he should always ask for her to accompany him to the bathroom.
While lying in bed later that night with Noi's head on his chest, her arms around his waist, and one of her legs wrapped over his legs, he came to an awful, sobering conclusion. He had taken a bad situation and made it much, much worse.
The next morning as Noi fried some egg whites, while happily singing a Thai song, Junior looked longingly into the living room. If he was to get up from his seat at the kitchen table and walk over to the couch to watch television without his wife's permission, she might beat the living daylights out of him. Not so long ago, he had the relative freedom to wander around the condo on his own. But now, thanks to his stupid plan to get on Noi's nerves, he had lost what tiny amount of independence that he had once possessed.
A few days later Noi received a phone call from her old boss, Prince Abdul. Junior couldn't help but eavesdrop on the conversation since he was massaging Noi's feet at the time. Abdul had arranged for Noi's sister to talk with her via web cam after Abdul discussed some business with his brother, Prince Nalaheb, on Thursday of the following week.
Noi watched as Junior kept kneading her feet for a few moments after the call ended. She then said, "Did you hear about my sister calling next Thursday?"
"Yes," answered Junior as he dutifully kept massaging.
"I'll have to go down to Club Swish.... Do you want to come along?"
Well aware, that her question could be a trap, Junior said, "I want to do whatever makes you happy."
Noi slipped her feet out of Junior's hands and pulled him close to her. She looked deep into his eyes and said, "That is a very bad place. There are whores in every nook and cranny of the place. I don't want you defiled.... You have been turning into a better man since I had to beat you."
"... You can leave me here. I promise I won't do anything that would make you mad. Honest!"
"Maybe, I should call and cancel. Tell Prince Abdul that I can't go down there on Thursday."
Taking Noi's hands in his own, Junior said, "You need to talk with your sister... our sister. It’s been a long time since you last spoke to her. She needs you."
"Yes, but you need me, too. And you've been so good lately that it would break my heart if I had to punish you again."
Junior involuntarily winced at the thought of another beating, and responded, "You won't have to. I learned my lesson. I'll just sit on the couch and watch sports until you return."
"But you'd be so lonely without me here. I'm only thinking about your well-being."
Junior opened his mouth to say something then thought better of it. Everything he did only seemed to make
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