A Mad Ass Woman

He doesn't listen to me, I guess bad communications make love die and I don't want that.

"Honey am off to the supermarket."

Martin came out of the restroom and wrapped his arm around my waist. "Am sorry for the way I spoke to you yesterday."

"I forgive you, am sorry too."

I was caught in a tight embrace, his breath fanning over my neck, it's quite romantic."

When I left the house, I ran into a neighbour. After we exchanged pleasantries, she began to utter words I didn't find funny.

"I overheard you and your husband shouting at the top of your lungs when I came back from work, yesterday was just the first day of your marriage if am correct and you're already fighting, I wonder if this marriage will work."

"Woman mind your business." I sighed and walked away.

Her words changed my mood.

When I came back from the supermarket, I wanted to feel good and telling my husband about it will just make me feel good.

"You look upset, is there anything bothering you?" I asked.

Ever since we've dated, Martin has never shared his problems with me, instead, he thinks about his problem, mulling it over to find a solution or he would watch football or disengage his mind from his problem.

"Speak to me." I sounded like a caring wife.

"I can solve my problem myself, please I need some time alone, I suggest you should go to the living room and watch something."

I turned to head to the living room, but then I had to look at him.

"Vanessa is your wife now, I deserve to know what is bothering you, if you could just talk about all your problems, I will feel like a wife. You make me feel like a receptacle where you can just empty your sperm, I am your wife. I feel like your just ignoring me, I expect you to open up to me." Then I yelled in pain, "Open up to me Martin."

He stood up in anger, almost attempting a slap. "Don't you dare raise your voice to me again?"

"And if I do what will you do, hit me huh. I guess hitting me will make you feel like a man." I paused, taking a deep breath. "I feel hurt when you ignore me. I expect you to be open, responsive and loving, you forget I have problems too, you don't even listen when I talk. You have no idea how distant you become when you're thinking of solving your problem, you don't recognise how withdrawing into your thinking may affect me, I just feel neglected and unimportant."

"That's ridiculous. Of course, you are important. Just that a man handles his problems himself or he can talk to his fellow man, you're a woman."

"Am your wife, but since you don't want to talk about your problems to me, then I won't talk about mine to you."

"You women just talk a lot. I hate listening to your problems."

"You don't even listen, perhaps just five per cent when I need your undivided attention."

"I didn't know I'll get married to a nagging wife, so you were just pretending while we were dating, now we're married it is one issue to the next. Today is about a "problem", who knows what you will come up with tomorrow and the next and the days of our marriage. Well, I thank God that I'll be done hearing about your past problems, future problems, potential problems, even problems that have no solutions."

"Can you listen to yourself? I talk about my problems so I can just feel better and I would appreciate it if you would just listen."

"You talk to me about your problems because you're holding me responsible. The more problems, the more I feel blamed. Perhaps I give you advice on your problems, I offer solutions to your problems but you just continue talking about more problems but yet you don't feel better, and I feel my solutions have been rejected, and I feel unappreciated."

"I only want you to listen to me, you hate it when I offer you help but you offer me solutions to my problems that I hate too, I've never held you responsible for my problems, don't you get it? I need quality attention. I am not a nagging wife, I just want to put things straight but if you feel attacked, then you begin to defend yourself. I need you to understand my feelings and let me move on to talk about more problems."

"Your problems frustrate me, why are we even having this discussion in the first place, I asked you to leave my room."

"So it's wrong for me to express my worries, disappointments, and frustrations to you?"

"Yes, it's frustrating. You just keep talking and listening to you is very difficult."

I angrily slammed the door behind me and walked to the living room.

We spent the rest of the honeymoon not talking to each other.