Chicken Skin – Chapter XIV

Antoine could finally have more liberty from the month of November. In October, he had hired a salesman whom he had had to train before he could let him work with part of his customers.

Among a dozen applicants or so, he had selected a twenty years old young man who admittedly was a beginner, but had a sound schooling. It looked as though he had made the good choice. After fifteen days, the new recruit was already starting to deal with some appointments by himself. He had rapidly got to know Antoine’s firm structure, its products and its methods.

Therefore, Antoine, after a month, was feeling confident enough in his new employee to let him stand by his own feet.

Christine and Antoine had seldom seen each other during the two months that followed August. Antoine had tried to make time about once a week to visit Christine. But, it hadn’t always been possible. They even had spent fifteen days without having been able to share even a single moment alone together. They hardly had bumped into each other when Christine had come to work at Antoine’s firm, and for what’s left, they scarcely had talked on the phone some times.

Christine had finished to arrange their apartment over the course of October. She had started again her lessons at the university by mid-october. As she had been very busy during the two months that lasted Antoine’s unavailability, she hadn’t thought much to her relative solitude and consequently hadn’t suffered much. Of course, after Antoine and she had spent a whole month alone together, the contrast was big. But she had told to herself in order to find some comfort that things would be getting better as soon as Antoine would be properly assisted in his work.

She was mistaken, because the reality, that Christine incidentally wasn’t unaware of, was that Antoine had not only one life, but in fact two. It would have required, for both their benefit, that he also have at his disposal forty-eight hours days. Needless to say that it wasn’t the case. Inevitably this circumstance would have consequences that Christine, before anyone else, would have to suffer from.

Indeed, Antoine’s wife, whose patience was far less big than Christine’s one, was beginning to give worrying signs of exasperation before her husband’s frequent absences. He was getting up early, coming back late at night. So to speak, she almost didn’t see him except on Saturday or Sunday that Antoine immutably exclusively reserved to his family. Arthur, their son, was demanding even more often his father as he was more frequently absent.

Judith had ended up disappearing for two days long, with Arthur. Antoine hadn’t been able to locate them. He had called his parents-in-law, their friends, in vain. Judith remained nowhere to be found until as he was back home an evening he discovered that she had returned.

After a heated argument, Antoine had had to promise that he would reserve for her and their son two evenings each week. He had done this sacrifice with a heavy heart, aware that he was irremediably reducing the weekly time he had thought he would be able to spend with Christine.

Christine, as for her, was still at a low level of demand. She was busying herself and waiting patiently.

She had seen Benjamin again at the university. They had gone on just as they were used to, since the previous year, to sit side by side in the lecture-hall. One month spent without seeing Christine had allowed Benjamin to reflect or rather to the wound received to heal. Their relation, a little starchy at the beginning, had gone on just as if there had been no changes in their relation. Their friends were surprised by that constancy when they told them what had happened.

Christine had been relieved by Benjamin’s attitude and by his manifest forgiveness.

At heart, her life was rather pleasant, between her lessons at the university, her apartment and her job in Antoine’s firm.

Just a single cloud still remained on the horizon: the rarity of Antoine’s visit and her solitude due to it.

Christine had decided to remain faithful though. She still was in love with Antoine. She perfectly knew that he wouldn’t think about leaving his wife yet. He had shown, from the very beginning of his relation with Christine, a great attachment to his family, by the by, without concealing her his discord with his wife.

Christine had been disappointed by Antoine because of the promise he had made to Judith, after she had disappeared with their son for two days. As for her, she had had, in the meantime, to try and reassure Antoine, to be the long-suffering and finally helpless witness of his anxiety. She couldn’t understand  that he give way to such patent a blackmail. She told him about her disappointment. He had shown himself sorry and contrite. But, what else could have been done though?

Christine didn’t tell the words that had burnt her lips.