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Ringo slammed the door shut after standing frozen for a few moments, he could hardly believe what he'd just seen. George, his best friend of many years, and Maureen, his beloved wife, in bed together. As if the insult wasn't strong enough, it was in his own bed. Ringo stomped down the hall, not entirely sure where he was going but just knowing he needed to get away from here. He didn't even hear the door opening behind him, George's bare feet padding across the floorboards to catch up with him.
"Ringo, wait!" George called, he'd thrown on some loose trousers and nothing else.
Ringo kept walking "For what?" He shouted back, he pushed through the back door and hurried out into the garden.
George gripped Ringo's arm and span him around so that they were facing each other "I'm so fucking sorry. I didn't mean for-"
"For me to catch you shagging my wife? That's very considerate of you, George." Ringo spat, he tried to shake George off but he couldn't.
George looked at him for a moment with furrowed brows "Are you drunk?"
Ringo laughed "Thank fuck I am, otherwise this would've been too hard to handle."
"It's not even midday yet, Jesus." George loosened his grip, running the now free hand through his hair.
"Oh, I apologise, I'll do something more socially acceptable like shagging my best mate's wife." Ringo began raising his voice "How's Pattie by the way?"
George sighed "Don't bring her into this..."
"I think I might, actually. She has a right to know all the shit you get up to behind her back." Ringo began walking further into the garden, projecting his voice.
George followed behind him at a distance "It's not like you're innocent in all this Ringo. You've cheated on Maureen-"
"You don't have to remind me." Ringo span around quickly "I don't give a fuck about the cheating, George. I only care because it's you."
George blinked, saying nothing for a while "I'm sorry, Rings..."
"Don't call me that." Ringo felt the tears building "I know me and Maureen have our issues, heaven knows she deserves better than how I've treated her. But you and her?" His voice trailed off, the last thing he wanted right now was to cry.
"I know... " George said simply "I never meant for you to find out."
Ringo scoffed "Then why'd you fuck her in my house? In my bed?"
Tears had started to build in George's eyes too, Ringo wondered who'd be the first to break.
"Cause it's the closest I can get..." George mumbled, he was shivering but Ringo was certain it wasn't just from the cold.
"You're gonna have to speak up." Ringo felt his aggression dimming.
"It's the closest I can get to being with you." George almost yelled, surprising both himself and Ringo.
A silence followed, only the sound of the howling wind through the trees could be heard. The two of them stared at one another, George standing there shirtless with his long hair flowing down onto his bare shoulders and Ringo with this vision blurring and mind numbing.
"We've been over this George. You were the one who said we had to stop." Ringo began tightening his fists, the rage building once more.
"I know, but... It's just so hard." George ran his hand through his hair again, something he always did when he was anxious.
Ringo sighed "You shouldn't have got Maureen involved."
"I do like her, I'm not being completely disingenuous." George explained warily "Does she know... About?"
"About our secret love affair?" Ringo burst into a fit of laughter, the only thing that could stop him from crying "It must've skipped my mind."
George looked at him blankly.
"No, she doesn't know. Nobody knows except us, John and Paul of course." Ringo carried on "Does Pattie know?"
"Of course not." George chuckled "She thinks the world of you Ringo, it'd destroy her."
"But all the other cheating, that's fine is it?" Ringo pulled out a cigarette and lit it, he'd rather have a drink but he wasn't ready to go back into the house just yet.
"Ringo... Neither of us are perfect husbands, we've both betrayed our wives one way or another." George's lips twitched as he watched Ringo smoke "That wasn't what this was about."
"I don't care what it's about, George." Ringo puffed out the smoke "As if hurting me all those years ago wasn't enough, you just had to meddle in my life didn't you? Can't you just let me be happy? I've moved on."
"You're not fucking happy." George said sternly "You're drunk every other day, and when you're not drinking you're snorting something. Look me in the eye and tell me you're happy."
Ringo stared at him dead on "Fine, I'm fucking miserable, George. Is that what you wanted to hear? But my happiness is no longer your concern, that was your decision."
George took a step closer, raising his hand slightly and opening his mouth to speak but Ringo interrupted before he could get a single word out.
"Don't. I don't want to hear it." Ringo felt the tears beginning to burst forth from his eyes "Just get the fuck out of my house."
George pressed his lips together, his eyes sad "Fine..."
Ringo turned his back to George as the tears starting falling in full force, racing down his cheeks with this throat closing up. The sound of George's feet softly moving across the path contrasted with the echoing noise of the heavy door being slammed shut. Ringo slowly lowered himself onto the ground, his legs didn't feel steady enough to support him.
Whether Maureen had been watching the whole thing Ringo didn't know, nor did he really care. Things with George had been strange for a long time, ever since the two of them got married and George decided they had to stop whatever they had going on between them. It pained Ringo just as much as it did all that time ago, but he'd been able to numb it somewhat with drink and drugs. But now even the alcohol wasn't enough to imprison his emotions, they were coming out in full force.
He loved George, it was that simple. Yet he couldn't have him, wouldn't ever have him. Whether the pain would eventually subside was impossible to know, but Ringo knew his love was permanent. If pain and love go hand in hand then so be it, because Ringo was never going to stop loving George. Never.