Every time the cashier totals their groceries, Jason’s phone rings right on cue. “Oh, babe, I gotta take this!” And poof — he’s gone, leaving Lauren to pay.
But not this time. She’s got a plan that’ll make Jason wish he’d just swiped his card instead.
My husband, Jason, is hardworking, funny, and remembers our anniversary without phone reminders.
But he has this one habit that’s been driving me absolutely insane.
Every time we go grocery shopping together, my husband Jason suddenly gets a “very important work call” the second we hit checkout.
Like clockwork. It’s almost impressive how consistent it is.
“Oh, babe, I gotta take this,” he says, leaving me alone with a full cart and a hefty total.
The first few times, I barely noticed. Marriage is about give and take, right?
But after the tenth consecutive call coinciding perfectly with checkout time, I started to see the pattern.
“Who was that?” I asked one day after he reappeared precisely when I was pushing our loaded cart toward the car.
“Oh, just work stuff,” he said vaguely.
“Thanks for handling checkout. I’ll get it next time.”
Spoiler alert: He never got it next time.
Last Saturday was the final straw.
We needed to stock up on basically everything: cleaning supplies, food for the week, that fancy coffee he insisted on.
As we approached the checkout, I started counting down in my head. Three… two… one…
RING.
RING.
Jason’s hand flew to his pocket so fast you’d think someone had shocked him.
“Jason…” I started, but he spoke right over me.
“Oh, babe, I gotta take this — it’s work.”
I watched him stroll to the store entrance, nodding along like he was handling some critical business negotiation. Meanwhile, I started unloading our mountain of groceries onto the belt.
The cashier, an older woman with kind eyes, glanced from me to Jason, and gave me the look — you know, the “girl, I see what he’s doing” kind of look.
Was it that obvious? Had she been watching this pathetic routine play out week after week?
My face burned with embarrassment, but that quickly turned to outrage when I saw the $347.92 total.
The cashier gave me a sympathetic smile as she handed me the receipt.
That night, I couldn’t sleep.
The more I thought about Jason’s behavior, the more my irritation turned into determination.
The story doesn’t end here –
it continues on the next page.
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