Making Discoveries

When Eric first mentioned where he was taking me for dinner, I laughed and told him not to kid around. He told me he wasn’t kidding, “I know some people,” he replied simply when I asked him how he managed to get a table. Autumn’s was a fairly new place, only been around for a year, but their reputation for amazing food and service had taken them from being just another place to eat to being the place to eat. All you had to do was glance around and you would find famous hockey players and politicians scattered throughout the crowded dining room and in the adjoining bar.

It took us about twenty minutes to make our way to the table in the back that was Eric’s ‘regular’ table according to the maitre d' Eric spoke to when we approached his station when we walked into the restaurant. Eric seemed to know half of the people we passed; he either nodded or stopped to chat with a few of them.

“Thank you,” I smiled at the waiter who held a chair for me.

“Ah, Mr. Fox! Welcome,” the waiter spoke in his native language, Italian. I didn’t understand a word he said, I wouldn’t even attempt to butcher the language by using a translator site on line to attempt to sound like I know it either. The only reason I know what the waiter said was because Eric told me after what most of it was. That is, everything but what he said after I gasped in surprise when he first spoke. I think it was a compliment or something along those lines, just from the smile on his face when he spoke.

The waiter rattled of the special for the night, I listened closely to see if I could figure out what it sounded like but I couldn’t. He was leaving to run for the drinks we ordered, when he paused and seemed kind of hesitant when he spoke again. I understood one word that he said, ‘Pollett’, Mike, Nick and Jordan’s last name. Eric responded to him in Italian. I guess the waiter was satisfied with the answer, he smiled and walked away.

“What was that?” I asked Eric the second the waiter walked away. “Did he say something about Mike?”

“Yes,” Eric picked up the menu. “He asked how Mike was doing.”

“Oh,” I opened my menu as well. “You’ve been here quite a bit I take it? The whole staff seems to know you and if they are asking about Mike, they must know him too.”

He nodded, “We do come here often,” he paused. “Or we did before Mike lost his job, now he doesn’t want to come here.”

I was scanning the menu as he spoke, there were no prices which kind of scared me. “I don’t suppose I would come here much either, if I was him, it must be expensive.”

“It is but why would that matter?”

“Well, it just wouldn’t be on the top of my priority list if I had lost my job and had to work two just to pay the bills.” Eric started to laugh; I mean this deep chuckle that kind of upset me. “This isn’t funny,” I told him.

“Yes it is,” Eric put down his menu. “Anna, Mike doesn’t have to work two jobs to ‘pay the bills’, his only expenses are his cell phone and cab or bus fare when I’m not home. The apartment we live in was mine before we met, the car we share is mine and he’s on my insurance. When we go out for dinner or to a movie, most times, I pay. It’s always been that way.”

“Wait a minute,” I stared at him in disbelief. “You are telling me that…”

“What?” He raised his brow.

“That Mike is a ‘kept’ man?”

Eric laughed, a deep belly laugh this time, which drew some attention from the couple seated the closest to our table. “I don’t like to think of it like that Anna but, yeah, I guess you could say that.”

“Wow,” I leaned back in my chair, totally shocked. “I just always thought...” I shook my head. “I guess it doesn’t matter what I thought, I was wrong.”

“No,” Eric leaned forward. “I’m really curious what you thought.”

“Well,” I felt really silly now for thinking it but… “I guess I always thought that Mike was the more masculine out of the two of you.”

“He is,” Eric said without blinking an eye. “But that doesn’t mean that he makes more money than me or ‘provides’ for me like that. And I have to say Anna; I’m surprised that you, as a woman, would assume that the more masculine one would be the ‘provider’.”

I shrugged, “I guess I don’t really know all that much about you Eric, I’m sorry I assumed that you and Mike were in an equal partnership. I suppose the fact that Jordan said Mike was stressing about his financial picture lead me to believe that it was a blow to the both of you when he lost his job.”

Eric froze.

“What? Did I say something stupid again?”

“No,” he stared at me. “I just don’t understand what’s going on with Mike lately. ‘Stressing about his financial picture’? He knows that I would never let anything bad happen to him! I told him it was ok if he took some time off to go back to school if he wanted or to look for another job like he was doing but he turned me down. He told me he had everything under control.”

“Eric can I give you a little insight into the Pollett family?” He nodded. “In all the time I’ve known them, I’ve come to learn that they are a proud bunch who don’t like to feel that they ‘owe’ anyone.”

“He wouldn’t ‘owe’ me anything Anna, he knows that. We are partners for Christ’s sake! Since when is it wrong to want to take care of the man you love?”

“There’s nothing wrong with it Eric. Unfortunately, when money is involved, things tend to change.” He asked me what I meant, so I told him. “Don’t take this the wrong way but by the sounds of it, Mike really wasn’t contributing anything financially in your relationship. Maybe he didn’t realize that until he lost his job and you didn’t seem too worried about it; it was probably a ‘wake up’ call for him. I know from watching Nick and Jordan, they don’t like depending on anyone else, it makes them really bitchy.”

“So what you are saying is that Mike’s attitude towards me lately is due to resentment because I have a high paying job in advertising?” I nodded, he sighed. “What does he want me to do? Quit my job? If that’s the case, then he’s shit out of luck because I’ve worked my ass off to be where I am today.”

“I don’t think that’s what it is.”

“Then what?”

“I think he wants to know that you need him, that you depend on him for something important.” I shrugged, “Or maybe he’s just being a jerk?” He gave me a small smile. “The truth is Eric, I don’t know why Mike is the way he is, he told me it’s none of my business when I tried to ask him what was going on. That’s why he’s not talking to me.”

Eric groaned as he rubbed his face with both his hands, “I don’t know what to do.”

“Get him to talk,” was all I could offer him for advice. I know, it wasn’t that helpful but what else did I have?