Suburban Sins: The New Car

This is going to be a regular series of stories that go inside the homes of “normal” suburban families.

Max Parker loved driving home from work. He considered it his “me” time. While stuck in traffic he would sing along to the music played the First Wave station on his Sirius radio. Every time one of his favorite new wave classics came on he was instantly transported back to a time when he had no responsibility and the world was now wide open with opportunities. Now at 44-years-old open possibilities has become a faded fantasy that’s been replaced with nothing but responsibilities.

Sometimes while stuck in traffic he wondered what would happen to those responsibilities if he passed his exit and kept on driving. For a second he would actually consider doing that and he’d remember how much he loved his family. He’d remember the day he met his wife Leah at his best friend’s wedding 22 years ago. He’d remember the first time he held Jacob, his newborn son 20 years ago. He’d remember the first time he saw Jenna, his eldest daughter 19 years ago. He’d remember becoming the youngest partner at the accounting firm 17 years ago. He’d remember rushing to the hospital from the airport to meet Brooke, his youngest daughter over 15 years ago. He’d remember all the moments that made life great and get off on his exit and drive home.

When Max’s friends talk about him they would probably say that he’s a pillar of the community, that he’s a perfectionist, and he’s a perfect husband. For a man of 44 he keeps in great shape. Every morning before work he goes to the gym and works out for over an hour. He does this for one reason and one reason only, to keep Leah happy. At least that’s what he tells her. The truth is his best friend died of a heart attack ten years back. They had similar lifestyles and diets. Max thought that that could happen to him, to thwart that he dedicated himself to a healthy lifestyle. The results paid off. He now has a body that’s 225ibs of pure muscle and has more energy than most men his age.

As he exited the freeway his phone rang. He looked over and saw that it was his wife. He activated the hands-free calling and said, “Hey babe.”

“Hey,” she said.

“What’s going on?” he asked.

“I forgot tonight was book club night,” she said.

“It’s that time of month again?” he said with a slight laugh.

“That joke wasn’t funny the first hundred times you told it,” she said.

“Jake still finds it hilarious,” he said.

“Jake still finds farting funny,” she said.

“So do I,” he said.

“Obviously Jake didn’t inherit my sense of humor,” she said.

“What do you mean?” he asked. “I’m hilarious.”

“Keep believing that honey,” she said. “There’s leftovers in the fridge.”

“Yummy,” he said. “Last night’s eggplant parm was delicious.”

“Of course it was, I made it,” Leah said laughing. “Oh I need to warn you Brooke is in spoiled bitch mode again.”

“What about this time?” he asked.

“You’ll find out,” she said. “I told her to ask you.”

“Thanks a lot,” he said.

“I’m sick of telling her no all the time, it’s your turn,” she said.

“Okay,” he said.

“I love you,” she said.

“Not as much as I love you,” he said before disconnecting.

He didn’t want to deal with Brooke he thought to himself as he continued driving home. Unlike her older siblings she was definitely a problem child. They were straight A students. She struggled to be a straight C student. They respected the house rules. She would take every opportunity to break them. Her worst aspect was that she expected to get everything she wanted. Usually this would result in a screaming match with her mother. Those fights would usually result in an argument between him and Leah. Most of the time after his wife would say no he would say yes.

This resulted in couple’s therapy. The shrink told him that he wasn’t doing his daughter any favors by continually saying yes. By doing that he was giving her a distorted view of the world. By saying no he would be helping her deal with rejection in a more adult manner. The doctor also chastised Leah for yelling at her. When they tell her no they have to calmly explain their reasons why she can’t what she wants. They both thought that was easier said than done, after all, the doctor never met Brooke.

About ten minutes later he pulled onto his driveway, opened the garage and parked his car.