Big Fat Disaster by Beth Fehlbaum

wife she is.
    “Sonya, history shows us that powerful men often stray. That doesn’t mean they’re bad people; in fact, when Reese and I prayed together last night, he expressed regret at the pain he’s—”
    “How long have you been in town?” Mom sounds incredulous.
    “Just a day or two, I—”
    “Then you
know
he’s having an affair.” Mom’s voice is rising. “You know that he resigned after admitting he’s been using the campaign’s credit card to—”
    “That’s just a misunderstanding. Reese said—”
    “Reese
said
?” Mom laughs bitterly. “Reese
said
? What, exactly, did Reese
say
?”
    “Sonya, you need to calm down. The children are going to hear you, and—”
    “Colby’s the one who discovered the affair! She found a picture of Reese kissing that goddamn slut!”
    I gasp and clap my hand over my mouth. I’ve never even heard my mom say, “
Dang
.” I slide my face to the edge of the wall so that I can see them.
    “Sonya! I am
shocked
to hear you use such language!” Grandma heaves herself out of the chair, tiptoes to the window, and peeks out. “Are you forgetting that reporters are sneaky and vile and will hang you out to dry if you give them the chance? Didn’t what Leah did to Mark’s reputation make any impression on you? Those snakes are probably slithering around on the ground outside, writing down every word you say!”
    Hands on her hips, Grandma leans forward and tries to see if anyone’s skulking about beneath the window ledge. She takes a long look through the window, then, apparently satisfied, tiptoes back to her chair and sighs heavily as she lowers herself onto the seat. She glances my way and I jerk back, thinking I’ve been discovered. But she turns back to Mom and insists, “You need to stand by Reese throughout this! Let them see you by his side, presenting a united front.”
    Mom shrieks, and something shatters.
    Grandma freaks out. “You’re scaring me! Is that what you did to Reese to drive him away? Did you throw dishes at him, too?”
    Mom takes a deep breath in and blows it out. “I didn’t throw that plate
at
you, and,
no
, I never lifted a finger in anger at Reese. But let me tell you what I have done. For the last twenty years, I have been the perfect politician’s wife. I supported Reese without question. I raised his children to respect him as the head of our household. I didn’t speak up when I disagreed with him—or with anybody else, either. I’ve smiled and kept up my looks and done my best to never attract negative attention.
    “And this is the thanks I get: In the last four days, I’ve had to deal with the local news parking itself in my front yard. I’ve—I’ve watched my husband on TV, holding hands with another woman! Besides that, he could be sent to prison! Oh, and let’s not forget that we have to move out, and I have no idea where the children and I will go.”
    Grandma sighs loudly. “Well…I can certainly see what Reese was talking about when he told me that everything always has to be about you.” Her voice cracks. “My poor son. I can’t even imagine what he’s had to put up with all these years. Just from what he told me last night, I—”
    Mom laughs, and she sounds a little crazy. “Oh,
yes
. Reese has had it
so rough
, with a wife and children who adored him and had no idea he was stealing from his campaign to take his mistress to the Four Seasons spa three times since April!”
    Grandma’s voice is so low that I practically have to come out of my hiding place to hear her. “Let me ask you something, Sonya. Now, don’t get more upset; just listen to what I’m saying. Please know that this question comes from a place of caring, because I love you as if you were my flesh-and-blood daughter.”
    Mom murmurs a strangled, “Okay.”
    “What are you doing to get him back?”
    Dead silence…Then, it’s like a bomb of emotions explodes in our kitchen: “Are you kidding me? He hasn’t even bothered to