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He pulled up to the house in the 1950's neighborhood that was not mid-century at all. The driveway was busted, and she always had her piece of shit car to the side so he could use the main entrance. He was getting tired of her - tired of this, but he wasn't sure how to let go of it yet. He was hoping that she would.
He paused, got his Zyn's - sighed, steeled himself and got out of his car to face the fawning needy clinger. She pretended to be asleep - or resting her eyes as she put it - on the sofa. He tapped the glass like he had for five months and three weeks, and she leapt up to open the door.
"You made it!" Her face was wary but nakedly needy and wanting something from him. He vaguely thought he shouldn't have come, but she had been so fragile on that drunken call to him. "Will I ever see you again?" He had softened his voice, "I think so".
Later, she pressed him on it. They were both off for two weeks for the Christmas holidays. He wasn't in the mood to see her anymore than the usual. She was getting way too heavy, and he'd see her when he'd see her.
anyhoo, he walked in the door, passing the candle he had given her from his shoot in Detroit. It was a gag with his face on a Saint's candle. The kind you get in the grocery store section with a heart-pierced virgin. He saw the baseball he had given her and the book displayed. Whatever. He sat heavily on the chair. He used to sit beside her on the sofa, but those days were gone. He put his hand over his eyes and closed them.
She offered him a drink immediately. "Beer or Tequila"
"I don't know. I'm so tired, and I'm hungover. I need to get on track."
She smiled. "Tequila then."
She was pretty beautiful for a slightly overweight mid-fifties woman. He'd be fucking her later. It wasn't the only reason he came, but it was the only reason he'd claim.
She was hungry. He was hungover. He had had loads of tequila hunting with his boys last night.
"Do you mind if I go ahead and call the car? Unless if you're hungover and not drinking, you could drive."
They never drove her piece of shit car with the "We're All in This Together" bumper sticker. She joked that the only time she'd get him in that car was if she was driving him to the hospital. He was kind of a snob, but she found him so charming. It was obvious. He kind of liked the adoration, but it also annoyed him.
They had had a fight of sorts in Highlands when he had gone to her family's Christmas celebration. She had woken up and said "you didn't have sex with me this morning, and I like you more than you like me." He couldn't say anything but "I can't help it. I'll go get us coffees."
Back at the ranch, she called the car while he kept his eyes closed and she prattled on while he drank half of his drink.
They went to a different bar. For once, it wasn't in the boring claustrophobic downtown. He was fine with it, "We'll just come back here and watch a movie."
She loved that idea.
At the bar, they ordered food. He watched the game. She touched his leg. He was so bored.
Once back at her place, she started suggesting movies from her stupid Criterion channel. He looked at his phone and didn't really respond. Finally he said, "Do you want to just watch Superman? my kids won't watch it with me."
She was agreeable as always. "Sure."
The movie kept cutting out. It was annoying. He had cast it from his phone and blamed her shitty internet. whatever. "I'm going to fall asleep in a bit. You won't be able to get the movie back if it goes out again."
That's what happened, and he woke up later on the white sofa. He sighed and lumbered off to bed. He snorted a bit when he saw that she had already aligned his pillow fort - lined the pillows in the middle. She's the one who named it the pillow fort. He crashed into bed.
He felt her touch him, but ignored it. Too tired. He hoped she wasn't going to silently cry again.
The next morning, he woke up. Checked his phone. Waited to get a boner and reached for her grabbing her hips. She had such soft skin and a great shape. She put her book away after he started caressing her more. He reached for her boob and she was right next to his body. He tried for the ass, but didn't seem to work, so he guided her like a dancer to get on top of him. They never spoke. He was a talker in real life, but not in the bedroom.
He came.
She leaped up and got into action. She had this thing where she loved trying to make biscuits. They usually sucked. She brought him coffee in and water.
"Are you trying to get me out of bed?" She answered, "no I'm trying to keep you in bed."
He heard her messing about in the kitchen, and got up in about ten minutes. He wasn't one to follow suggestions.
"What are you doing in here?"
He sat in the same chair he'd sat in the night before wondering if it would be rude to just leave now. She brought in two quiches, "they're from Aldis'. I didn't want to tell you in case you decided not to come, but Macon Bagels is closed for the holidays." She made a private joke, he slightly smiled. She claimed he liked Aldi's. "I've never been to Aldi's" he countered. "Oh, it's just like Trader Joes - that's what you said."
The quiche sucked. She had put these cherry tomatoes on it, and he picked his off. The biscuits were edible but not very good. "I told you I liked the last ones. Why didn't you make them like that?" She replied, "Oh I ran out of white lily flower. Besides, I tried something new this time. The old lady's video you sent me used crisco, so I waited until you took a bite to tell you. They're very flakey aren't they."
He had crumbs all over his sweatpants. "They're too crumbly."
They chatted he guessed. She wrote in her stupid green journal. God knows what prattle. AT 10:25, he decided it was OK to leave. She packed him a to-go thing but it wasn't the same bag they'd used for 19 weeks. "You don't really want to keep doing the bag thing do you."
He looked at her sort of and said "I don't really care. whatever you want."
He was listening to his podcast, half way back to Athens when he got the text on his Hyundai screen. It was from her: "I wanted to be exclusive, and I want to be included in your life. I can't be a placeholder."
It was over.
He kept driving then headed to the bar for his cheeseburger when he got home.
He was relieved she had done it.
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