Note: WOW, what a long update. It's been weeks, hasn't it? The holidays really put me behind. And I feel like this chapter is a bit of a filler, kind of not worth the time it took. Or is it... This chapter spun the story in a direction that I really hadn't planned, but I think it's going to be a good one. Anywho, I'm gonna try to get another chapter up after this one soon. And it'll be about the BS day! Ha-ha!

Chapter Eight: Fish Withdrawal

I sipped my coffee and looked quizzically at my husband. He'd been sitting by the window sighing all night. It was pathetic, really. He reminded me of a young child who'd just been punished and was now sulking about it.

"You okay?" I asked finally.

"I'm…alright," he said half-heartedly. "Don't worry about me." A fake smile was plastered across his lips. His hands shook a little, as if groping something that wasn't there.

Like a fishing rod.

"It's 6 am, and you haven't slept all night. Are you sure you should go to the BS?" I questioned him, taking another sip of my coffee.

"Ah, the BS. It'll be fine," he replied, waving me away. "Honey, I'm more worried about you. With Jamie there…will you be okay?"

HECK NO.

"Of course!" I lied. What can I say? I owed Ray. I mean, I'd just committed one of the most terrible crimes EVER: telling my husband he can't fish anymore. He deserved something from me. Even if that was complete and absolute torture on my part.

Ray brightened up a little at that.

"Do you think you're getting along with Jamie now?" he asked hopefully.

"Ray, there are miracles, and then there are impossibilities. Your suggestion is the latter."

"Oh," he sighed. "That's too bad."

Silence.

"Well, I'm going to go water the plants," I said finally, leaving the room.

"Okay, honey. You do that," he called behind me.

I closed the door hurriedly. Man, I felt guilty. Since when was Ray so…depressed? I harvested the corn with a frown on my face. Ray hadn't been acting…well, Ray-ish since I banned fish from our home. But I had won! There were no more fish! I should have felt happy. Excited. Joyful. Triumphant, even. But instead, I felt guilty.

Dang it.

I shoved the corn into the bin and finished watering the plants and feeding the animals. Ray was not my problem. If he wanted to act depressed and forlorn, I should give him time for self-pity. He'd get over it eventually. He had to. No one could go through fish withdrawal their whole life.

Or could they?

"No, Harley, you can't cave in!" I willed myself through gritted teeth. "This is no time to suddenly feel sympathetic to Ray. Look at all he's made you go through! You're practically insane! This fish-thing would have sent you off the deep end."

"Wow, she talks to herself, too. What a freak," I heard someone say behind me. Yup, you guessed it.

Jamie.

"Give it a rest," I sighed, wiping my brow. "I'm too tired to deal with you right now."

"I'm just checking that you're coming to the baby shower. Not that you'd skip out on it or anything," he smirked, adjusting his hat.

"Yeah, yeah. I'm coming. But don't think I'm excited about it or anything," I answered. "Ray doesn't really care much about it either."

I enjoyed the expression of surprise on his face, even though it lasted only a moment.

"Well, isn't that odd? I thought our little fisherman was ecstatic about the baby shower," Jamie replied with strained enthusiasm.

"Maybe you should leave my family alone," I growled dangerously.

"Oh, are you upset?" he asked with a shake of his head. "Poor Harley, you have always been over-sensitive…"

"Don't you ever shut up, Jamie?" I retorted. "This really isn't the best time to bug me."

"Why? Are we having…fish problems?" Jamie snickered.

"You've been bothering me since I moved in. Get a new hobby," I spat. "Besides, it's none of your business."

"Anything that makes your life miserable is my business," he grinned. "It's always nice to find new material to work with."

"You're a sicko," I muttered under my breath.

"And you're married to a fish freak!" he laughed joyfully. "Oh, I couldn't have planned a better torture for you myself. Ray is quite a stupid brute, isn't he?"

That did it.

"How dare you talk about my husband that way!" I gasped. "Ray might be annoying and sometimes completely clueless, but he has feelings, too! Ray is more than just a fisherman. He's more than just some homeless wanderer. He's my husband, and he's wonderful just the way he is!"

"Oh really?" Jamie commented, leaning against a tree. "It's just funny…"

"What's funny?" I demanded.

"That you, of all people, would say that." His mocking eyes bored into me, and I felt a sarcastic comment die on my lips. And with a tip of his hat, Jamie left. I felt my throat tighten and my breathing quicken. He had left me completely stunned.

Because for once, Jamie was right.