© Ayr/Gray
She’s put out the snacks and brought his beer, chilled, in his special glass (one of them). More beers are in the fridge; she has a pie ready to warm for half-time – steak and kidney – his preferred.
Pre-match build up: pundits pontificate; re-runs, highlights, triumphs and near misses. There is success and then there is shame. Which will it be today? National Pride is at stake, for this is the World Cup.
As she sits, small and submissive on the far end of the couch, she plays a different commentary in her head. Missed penalties, own goals, bad decisions by the ref. The repercussions: cuts and bruises (hers); failure on the field reflected in domestic disappointment.
Predictions are favourable. The odds of a positive outcome are weighed in favour. She weighs up her own odds: win or draw 20 per cent, lose 50 per cent (the chances of a beating).
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Posted for The Unicorn Challenge, a magical challenge hosted by Jenne Gray and C E Ayr, where they provide a photo and we, in turn, provide up to 250 words.
luna's on line 
Unfortunately, statistics prove you’re right.
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Yes, sadly but true.
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Oh! Chris this is so sad and and so true in more cases than we’d like to admit 💜💜💜
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Sadly, I don’t think it will ever change.
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No it heart breaking and so many are trapped and scared ,💜💜
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That’s the real problem – trapped and nowhere to go elsewhere.
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Yes indeed and brow beaten into believing you’d never cope on your own 💜💜
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Heartbreaking, Chris — and not fiction. 😦
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Indeed – dreadful and real.
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Oh my, but no doubt true in so many cases.
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Exactly – too many awful things.
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A very powerful microfiction.
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Thanks for that, Liz.
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You’re welcome, Chris.
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This is a worrying fact – more so because there is no rhyme or reason behind it.
Well expressed, Chris.
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You are right, no real reason. Thanks, Chris.
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This is so sad and moving story Chris. Too many go through this all over the world. 🥲
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Absolutely, Sadje. And as you say, it’s all around the world.
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🥲🥲🥲
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Your understated style really highlights the horror of this woman’s situation, Chris. And every other woman like her. ‘Small and submissive’ sums her up. The sadness and fear are so clear.
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Sadly, there is too much of this, and often it’s hidden.
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You really made this feel like a first hand account. Tragic that this is not so much fiction as a recitation of reality in many relationships!
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Thankfully, I haven’t been there, but of course I have known several women who have been there.
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So much hanging on the outcome of a game. She’s living another game altogether. Powerful story.
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Of course it’s not just about football, but it is a real thing and beyond that.
Thanks, Margaret.
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Wow! Intense story! So good, though. Xo
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Thanks very much, Carol Anne.
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Just another excuse for a bully to vent his frustration at his own inadequacies.
You depict this with your customary expertise, Chris.
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Yep, that’s the way it goes.
Thanks so much, CE.
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Hope she gets out of that relationship… it would be a 100% win if she gets out alive.
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Too true!
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Agree with Jules.
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A masterful story, Chris. I just loved the way you blended the dynamics of the soccer game into the woman’s analysis of her own life. Wow. The emotion in this short piece is intense. I hope she has a win.
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Thanks so much, Diana!
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Yow! *
*a compliment on a spare yet engaging story (with a punch of an ending)
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There are too often punches here, unfortunately…
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Fabulously woven. Wow.
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Thanks so much, Kritika!
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How sad! But, unfortunately true, too. 😢
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I know, it’s dreadful.
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Interesting, Chris. I never watch sport.
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Despite what I wrote, I am a big fan watching football in England, especially Liverpool FC, we watch it on DSTV. Very important!
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She knows the game better than he, as the results she has predicted. Its a shame, and the suffering goes unnoticed for most.
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I know, a terrible thing, and too many women can’t get away from that.
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Stark statistics and dark truths. Wonderfully written, Chris!
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