The Hand That Bites

By Joshua Lakhamraju

A haunting tale of two women. Angie resents her husband for not fulfilling her materialistic lusts. Charlotte lives hedonistically, only to find her lavish lifestyle threatened by mysterious forces.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Joshua Lakhamraju
• Release date: May 1, 2021
• ISBN: 9798201632830

Joshua Lakhamraju

Joshua Lakhamraju resides in Gwinnett County, GA

Book preview

CHAPTER 1

I still cannot believe that he would still do such a terrible thing as that to me! hissed Angie.

Her friend Martha looked puzzled. What exactly has he done that makes you so angry?

He gave me another set of flowers yesterday. It was the second time in a row that he has done that.

Why are you angry at him for giving you flowers? I thought you always loved flowers.

Of course, I love flowers. But I hate the man who keeps giving them to me on a daily basis.

What is the problem Kirk?

His behavior is getting on my nerves. Over the past few days, he has become more and more nice towards me. He does everything to broadcast it, short of shouting it from the rooftops. He has been bombarding me with flowers, love letters, and texts with heart emojis. He tells me constantly that he loves me and that I am his one true love and that he will love me for all eternity.

Martha could scarcely contain her incredulous chuckling. Angie, I don’t understand. Why would you hate the man who has been showing unconditional love?

Because I get irritated by those gestures. They annoy the hell out of me.

If my husband did that to me, I would appreciate it always.

No you won’t! Not after being married to him for the last few years.

But why do hate him so much? What has he done to earn your fierce and unrelenting hatred? Surely it has more to do than those gestures of love.

You’re right, it is more than just that. I’ll tell you what he has done. He has been a boring loser all his life. He is a fucking introvert who likes to spend his spare time in the house and hardly ever comes outdoors except for shit like grocery shopping or doctor’s appointments. I hate goddamned introverts!! I am extrovert who loves to be outgoing almost all the time. I want to make new friends! I want to go places and see the world. But no, this Kirk wants none of that! He wants to waste his life and mine. I will never forgive that son of bitch for ruing my life!

Angie, dear, it seems to me that you are overreacting.

You would to if your husband was as boring as mine!

No, I wouldn’t. We would solve our problems like adults.

Oh? And just how would you solve your problems?

Well, for one thing, we would discuss our desires and make compromises.

Compromises are for losers. I will not make any compromises. Everything has to be done my way. There will be no compromises, no negotiations, no finding common ground, no middle ground, no seeing eye-to-eye, or any of that fancy rubbish. My way is the only way!

Well, that does not sound like a proper solution.

And just what else would you have in mind?

I would also resort to counselling.

Counselling?! Ugh!! Don’t mention that word, that is what has made this whole thing worse! Over the past week, Kirk has been seeing those people, trying to solve our marriage against my better judgement. And can you believe it, they have told him that he should do more to show his love for me. That is why he has been harassing me with love letters and heart emojis. That is why he keeps following me around and telling me how much he loves and can’t live without me. Those people are the reason that I am more miserable now that ever before. And the worst part is that, when I tell them that I don’t want Kirk to show me more love, they scoff at me and say that I am being ungrateful and that I should reciprocate the love that he shows me rather than being a mean and nasty bitch all the time.

They are correct of course. You ought to express and repay gratitude.

The hell I should! Those rotten therapists have turned Kirk into a stalker. He has taken their advice to the letter and has become more and more unbearable by the day. If I am being an ungrateful, mean and nasty bitch, it is for a good reason. I deserve a lot better than this, and until I get what I want, I will never be grateful for what I have!

What exactly do you mean when you say that you deserve better?

I mean, that I deserve a better husband and a better life. I want a husband who is extroverted and caters to my every whim and desire, not some introverted hermit crab like Kirk who sits on his ass when he is not at work and throws flowers and emojis to me always. I want someone who will get me expensive clothes and jewelry and cars and take me to dinner constantly and travel a lot to far away places like Disneyland or the Bahamas or the Grand Canyon.

Is that all that you want from an ideal husband?

No. That is just the tip of the iceberg. I just want, at the very least, to enjoy the same things that all my other friends enjoy, like cruises and beach houses.  There’s plenty more that I desire in a better husband. But as long as he keeps me happy, I will be more than grateful.

Martha sighed. "Angie, the more I listen to you talk, the less sense you make. You hate Kirk not despite the good things that he has done, but because of them. As far back as we have known each other, you have said nothing good about him. You always pass off his good deeds as something bad. And that has been bothering me for a long time. I have never understood your strange behavior.

"There are women across the world who would lust after a man half as good as Kirk. Many women have died of broken hearts because their husbands never express half the love that Kirk has shown you. The way that you are treating him is shameful. Every woman wants to be loved. But you don’t seem to want love. You only want things like toys and vacations. You may end up getting what you want. But someday, you will realize that there is a vacuum in your heart that no car or jewelry or trip can ever fill. And you will soon suffer a broken heart.

"And it really says something about Kirk that he still loves you despite you