Before the mask slipped
George and Bella continued to heal from their just-concluded surgery. Everything about Julia's relationship with James was now out in the open, there was no longer any secret to keep, nor was there a reason to.
"At what point did this relationship begin? Because I was shocked when I saw you guys kissing at the hospital," George said to Julia.
Behind his skepticism about the relationship was genuine happiness. He was happy that she was delighted in the relationship.
The relationship between Julia and James continued to blossom. They went on a few more dates. They went to the museum, attended seminars together, got kicked out of a cinema for laughing too loudly, went car racing, and even went sightseeing. They had so much fun in each other's company.
Julia was having the best time, and James made sure she did. These were lovely memories Julia never thought she would have to hold on to, when the tough times finally arrived.
During her stay in India, Julia helped a lot of foreigners with information about surgeries, visa processes and even what to expect before, during and after their surgeries. In the process, she made an Indian friend called Zara.
Zara was a single mom to a teenage daughter. Her husband passed away some years back, so Zara continued to raise her daughter on her own. She noticed how helpful Julia was to patients and that was what led to their friendship.
Julia just wanted to help people, but Zara encouraged her to do so while still charging a small fee for her time and effort. It seemed like a good idea, so Julia accepted. Zara helped her get a permit and Julia started charging a tiny fee for her services.
In no time, she started making some money while still caring for her recovering siblings, not forgetting her loving relationship with James. At this point, Julia was living her best life.
Everything seemed right in her life for the first time in a long time. She had it all. She came up with a routine. She would help her siblings in the morning. Then she would go out to the hospital to meet with clients to give them the necessary information they needed.
On her way back, she would go grocery shopping so she could prepare dinner once she got home. This was not an easy task, but since she was a hardworking lady, it was a piece of cake for her.
As she started helping people, she began to find out about more places and more people. Her network expanded. Her need for James reduced greatly. James didn't like this, he wanted to be in her life all the time. He saw this whole thing as her, going through unnecessary stress and pressure.
He equated his importance in her life to the quality of attention she gave him so this became a thing of concern for him.
"You don't have to do all this you know, you'll ware yourself out," he told her on one occasion.
"You know I like to help people and I found a way to do it while making a small income. I like doing it and I see no problem here," she replied, reassuring him that nothing could go wrong.
She spent time with him but not as much as she used to. She often got calls from clients in the middle of conversations with James or even ask to leave a conversation, to go meet with a client periodically.
"Can you change this outfit? I don't like it, its too exposed," he told her on one occasion.
"But I like it, I don't think there's anything wrong with it," she responded.
She went out with the outfit anyway but he got upset that she didn't listen to him.
James was happy that she found something to do, but he wasn't happy about how it impacted their relationship and the overall attention he got from her. Since convincing her to stop didn't work, he then offered to join in so as to help her out.
Sometimes, it is good to decline assistance, especially if it is not really needed. Julia accepted his offer to help out. Though it seemed reasonable at the initial stages, this was the beginning of her problems with James.
James used his long-standing information and knowledge about the city to help Julia. He did almost 60% of the work, mostly the ones that required physical activities. It even got to a point where Julia was referring her clients to him.
He told her not to worry, that he would handle everything. Little did she know that he was taking over her business. His true intention was to care for her so she wouldn't need to do anything.
Though his intention was good, the damage to Julia's life, self-esteem and general well-being was severe. James' idea of true happiness was far too different from Julia's. For James, Julia will be happy if he took care of her and all her responsibilities, without her having to lift a finger.
For Julia on the other hand, happiness lies in the freedom to express oneself and do whatever makes one happy as long as they're not hurting anyone or doing anything illegal in the process.
James thought what made him happy would make Julia happy. Julia felt everyone would decide what makes them truly happy. James didn't set out to hurt Julia, he just didn't take note of the things that truly made her happy.
Hidden in his quest to provide for her, was the fear of being looked at as a man who couldn't do enough to provide, so much that his spouse had to take on a job, to support him in providing.
"The clients are so happy with me. I gave them answers to their questions and took them to places they didn't know existed," James said to Julia, subtly boasting but truly feeling happy for his accomplishments so far.
"Isn't that what you wanted from the beginning?" Julia said, sounding a little angry.
"Why would you say such a thing? Am doing this for us," he responded.
"No you're not, you're doing it for yourself. You've taken all my clients …"
"You gave me those clients," James cut in.
"I thought you would be happy am making progress," he continued.
"While you were making progress, I was loosing my business. Now I have nothing," Julia said, in a very sad tone.
"Don't worry, I will take care of you," James said to her.
He reassured her of his commitment to making sure she has all she needed. By this time, George and Bella's surgery wounds had healed greatly.
It was time to start planning on how to travel back. The hospital had started the process of clearing them for travelling. This became a challenge to James and Julia's growing relationship.