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"Come on," she said to him, smiling. "It should be a good time."

He squirmed away from the hand she had placed on his shoulder. "I'd rather stay home tonight."

She sighed in frustration. She had been wheedling him all day to come with her to the theatre. He hadn't been out of the house in several days, and getting him out would do him a world of good. Besides, some of her friends would be there and she wanted to introduce him to them. Maybe this time his reaction to them would not end badly. Maybe this time he would actually enjoy himself. Hopefully, this hadn't been wishful thinking on her part so far.

But if he was refusing to take that step, even with her help, there was nothing she could do.

"Why would you rather stay home?" she asked, knowing the answer.

"I told you," he said. "I don't like plays. I don't want to go." He sat on the couch, his arms crossed and his brows furrowed. He wasn't budging on his answer, she knew. Her eyes flickered on the wall clock hanging above his head.

"Well, if I don't leave soon, I won't get a seat," she said, a bitter sting in her voice. "If you want a snack, I went to the store today and got your favorite crackers."

Without saying anything more to him, she walked into the bathroom. Still irritated, she fixed her hair and makeup. Looking in the mirror, she attempted to calm her frustration before leaving the room.

When she came out of the bathroom, he was still sitting on the couch. However, he looked a little different than before. He had changed into a nice pair of slacks and a clean solid shirt. His hair had been brushed back out of his face as well.

He stood up and glanced at her expectantly, a light twinkling in his eyes. "We should go, or we're going to be late," he said. Coming from anyone else, that could have been taken as mocking her last statement, but he was sincere.

Pleasantly surprised, she embraced him before grabbing the keys. "Let's go, then!"

–

When they got to the theatre, the seats were starting to fill up fast. Molly quickly took a couple of seats near front and center before they were taken.

"When does the play start?" he asked her, a tone of impatience in his voice.

She checked her cell phone. "In twenty minutes."

"Twenty minutes?" he whined. "We could have come a little later. Now I have nothing to do until then."

She gave him a glare. "Well, you'll just have to wait, won't you? Now shh."

An awkward silence fell between them for a few minutes before she asked, "What made you decide to come?"

He shrugged. "I figured that it would make you happy," he said, the lopsided smile she had grown familiar with showing on his face. She was about to ask him why he thought so, but she stopped herself. Jacob was a quiet man, and she knew he wouldn't answer that question. In his mind, agreeing to go to the play would make her happy, and he liked to see her happy. By now, she had come to realize that his mindset differed from hers.

Jacob leaned over to her. "Why did you want to go to this, again?"

"I told you already, I have some friends from work who are working the sound stage. I'd like to introduce you to them after the show."

"Oh." He said nothing more until the curtain rose and the play began.

The play was wonderful—it was a rendition of "Wicked," and Molly truly enjoyed it. She was so enthralled by the event that she did not notice how uncomfortable Jacob was.

After the play was over, the theater was noisy as people got out of their seats and talked while doing so. Molly led Jacob through the din of noise to the entrance to the stage, grinning as she spotted her friends.

"Great show, great show!" she congratulated them. They nodded and she began chatting with them, making small talk. She had forgotten all about Jacob until one of them said, "Hey, who is Mr. Dark and Handsome with you there?"

She chuckled a bit and held his hand. "This is Jacob, my husband. Jacob, say hi to Ellen and Tracy, my buddies from work."

He stared at them, eyes glazed, until she touched his shoulder, nodding at him. "Hi," was all he said in response, not seeming to notice them at all.

Molly's friends gave her some funny looks, but she tried to brush it off. After they had been chatting for a while, Ellen said, "Hey, why don't we hit one of the bars tonight to celebrate opening night?"

She was opening her mouth to say yes when Jacob cut her off. "No thank you, we're going home now," he said bluntly, and taking her hand, led her back to the car.

Once in the car, she banged on the dashboard in a rage. "Seriously, Jacob?! You had no right to do that!"

"I went to the play, Molly. I wasn't planning on going to the bar, so I wasn't going to go. And I didn't want you to go because you know I can't drive, and I don't want to see you coming in the door smashed at one am anyway," he said.

"Right. Well, I can make my own decisions, you know," she snapped back.

"I know you can, but you should think about my desires once in a while!"

"Excuse me? I think about your desires every day, Jacob! Do you know how many dates with friends I have canceled or postponed to spend time with you? Do you??" she demanded.

"Is that so? Go ahead, spend more time with them than with me! I am your husband, you know!" he shouted, his face dangerously close to hers.

"Get out of my face," she grimaced, starting the car and pulling out of the parking lot.

The rest of the fifteen minute ride was spend in tense silence. Jacob kept glaring at her, poison and resentment in his eyes. Molly ignored it, keeping her eyes on the road.

Shortly after returning home, they were getting ready for bed. Molly was still not talking to him. Jacob, shirtless at this point, laid on the bed with his hands behind his head. The tension between them was still high as she changed into her pajamas.

"I'm sorry about earlier," he said.

"What are you sorry for?"

"Just everything that happened, I guess. I didn't mean anything I said."

She laid down next to him. "I don't know what to say, honestly. These kinds of things have happened before," she said, sighing.

"...I know..."

"It'll be alright, we'll talk about it tomorrow, okay?" She reached over to the warm glow of the lamp and turned it off.

"Okay," he murmured. She hugged him and kissed him good-night before turning on her side. It was times like these a small part of her regretted marrying him. And yet, she loved him very much and wouldn't give him up for the world. Their passion was unmatched.

This was just taking some time getting used to.