Jealousy Prompt: garble, private, breathe, joy, wild

*** The rules of this writing exercise are simple. Take the list of words and write a short story within the guidelines of the situation. In this case, jealousy is the situation and the following words are on the list.***

I don't know why I was suddenly stuck on John. I left him a couple of months ago. It was a huge relief until I heard about the new girl. "You are the only one, " he had frequently said to me, "that can bring this much joy into my life." The first time it was corny and sweet. I had laughed and then kissed him. After that, whenever he said it, I wanted to retch into the nearest wastebasket. But the thought of him saying it to someone else made me wild with jealousy. I had to know if there really was another girl or if this was some master plan to win me back. So I came up with my own plan.

"So, what did you hear?" Linda, my best friend asked me when I approached the bar.

"Garble." I responded. My frustration was palpable. I had been so careful calculating my plan. I thought I had it all figured out! Come to find out, I didn't. I forgot to take into consideration that the water would be running and other men would probably be at the urinal after the game. John and his buddy would not be in there alone. Sneaking into the only private stall in the men's room left me feeling dirty and disillusioned.

Linda pat me on the back. "Breathe." she said. When I looked at her, she removed her hand and ordered me a stiff drink instead.