The Great Pretenders

Deed's Bar was an old dump of a place, rumor had it that it was a horse barn before it was a bar, but it was a popular hangout for the paper mill crew and other working people, both male and female. The joint was jumping that night, mostly paper mill hands, including a man and a woman who worked together. I seem to remember that they were both married to other people at the time, but their spouses were not present. It's a good thing they weren't because neither one of them would have approved of the way those two were carrying on, dancing close and hanging all over each other between dances. It wasn't even closing time yet when they got a six pack to go and left the bar arm in arm, making no secret of it.

I didn't mean to spy on them but, as luck would have it, I was sitting next to the only window in the place. It was a small window, partly obscured by frost, but I couldn't help noticing that they broke contact as soon as they cleared the door. He got into his car and drove south with the six pack, and she got into her car and drove north. No good by kiss, not so much as a hand shake, they just got into their cars and drove away like they didn't even know each other. I doubt that anybody but me observed their departure. The parking lot was full of cars, but all the people were still inside. I don't remember discussing this with anyone, I didn't know the pair all that well, and it was none of my business. Besides, Deed's was like Las Vegas, what happened in Deed's stayed in Deed's.

Although I couldn't prove it, I believed at the time, and I still believe, that those two were deliberately putting on a show. I can only guess at their motivation, and my guess is that they were trying to impress their colleagues for some reason or another. Why would two people, each married to someone else, want their co-workers to think that they were an item when they weren't? It seems that most married people who really are fooling around would be trying to hide it from the public, especially in a small town where word is bound to get back to their spouses sooner or later. Why would somebody want the name when they weren't even playing the game?

"The Good Place" is the kind of show that could easily be wound up in 13 episodes, kind of like a mini series. If it is renewed, I don't know what they would do for an encore. "Northern Exposure" only had a half dozen or so episodes the first season, but then it went on for 110 episodes and it never got old. They sure don't make shows like that anymore.