Telling the Two Apart
012
Her hair was auburn. It had to be the sunset; it hadn’t ever held any fire in its color before. It hung in her eyes, her smile playful, her lips closing around three-letter words he couldn’t wrap his memory around. He was swimming. Flies buzzed, almost beautiful in this field of sunlit grass.
Everything was beautiful; his heart bursted with it.
Her fingers traced his eyes, fell down to his lips. The grass was never ending, like the rolling hills in Nebraska, scorched by sun and sucking up water from below.
Gerard woke slowly, the sugar of sleep falling from his eyelids. There was a break in the clouds this morning; the sun was not a warm shade of yellow, but it lit the room nonetheless. When the room came into focus, he watched a raindrop roll down the window. Kelly must have opened the curtains. The weather must have gotten warmer. No snow—rain.
His room was warm. He forced himself to sit up, bare feet rubbing back and forth on the soft carpet.
His stomach was still full from the meal, his mirth still satisfied from the laughs of the night before. He could hear Kelly, a generation ahead of the other three in that group, in the kitchen now, clanking together some hot meal he would want to eat to be nice.
She greeted him with the phone. “Nina,” she explained as he took it in one groggy hand. “Sorry; I’ve been blabbering away like an idiot all morning with her. I didn’t want to wake you up when she called.”
Gerard raised his eyebrows and put the phone to his ear, tucking dark hair back. “Hello?”
“Hey,” gushed Nina. “God, your friend Kelly is such a great lady.”
“She really is,” agreed Gerard, rubbing his eyes as he shuffled to the bathroom mirror.
“She thought it would be fun if we had dinner every week or so, like last night, just takeout or something. Since we had a good time. I mean, I had a fantastic time.” He could hear the burst of a smile in her voice.
Like last night. Into the wee hours of the morning her eyes had twinkled, her lips curving and her throat singing with the laughter of newfound friendship. For as thick as she’d hoped her shell wasn’t, Gerard hoped he’d broken through well.
“Dinner would be great. It’s a great way for Mikey to get settled; a routine like that with friends and whatever. God, I just woke up. Sorry.”
“She mentioned you were sleeping. I don’t know why, but I felt like calling you right when I woke up.”
“I had a dream about you, I think,” he said, and she asked what it was about. “I don’t know…every time I try to think of it, it goes away. But I know you were in it.”
“Write it down when you remember.”
“Will do.”
“Have you been to any of the parks around here?” Nina asked.
“Not really. I’ve gone for walks, but, you know…I always end up at a restaurant or a deli, for some reason.” They both laughed.
“Feel like a picnic today?” Nina asked.
“Wow. A picnic?”
Almost apprehensive, Nina said, “Yeah. Ever been on one of those?”
“Not for a long time.”
“It’s noon now. Is two okay with you?”
Gerard scrambled back to his bedroom, pulling the curtains shut and tearing through his dresser drawers. “Yeah, two sounds good. Which park?”
“I guess you probably don’t know of the North Park Village Nature Center. But Kelly can probably tell you where it is.”
“Ahh…okay.” This shirt? No. No, that would make him look like a sissy. “I think Kelly has a picnic basket, but that would mean I’d have to make the food.”
Nina giggled. “Even better,” she said. “That’s the chivalrous thing to do.”
“I—”
“See you at two.” With a laugh, she hung up.
Puzzled, Gerard tossed the phone to his rumpled bed and stared at the sunlight behind the curtains. The one white shirt would have to be good enough for today.
Pulling on his socks and shoes at one p.m. sharp, he smiled to himself. The chivalrous thing to do. He wondered what sort of a relationship called for chivalry over equality in each friend’s role, and could imagine replacing “chivalrous” with “romantic.”
Unless that was perhaps taking it too far too soon.
Everything was beautiful; his heart bursted with it.
Her fingers traced his eyes, fell down to his lips. The grass was never ending, like the rolling hills in Nebraska, scorched by sun and sucking up water from below.
Gerard woke slowly, the sugar of sleep falling from his eyelids. There was a break in the clouds this morning; the sun was not a warm shade of yellow, but it lit the room nonetheless. When the room came into focus, he watched a raindrop roll down the window. Kelly must have opened the curtains. The weather must have gotten warmer. No snow—rain.
His room was warm. He forced himself to sit up, bare feet rubbing back and forth on the soft carpet.
His stomach was still full from the meal, his mirth still satisfied from the laughs of the night before. He could hear Kelly, a generation ahead of the other three in that group, in the kitchen now, clanking together some hot meal he would want to eat to be nice.
She greeted him with the phone. “Nina,” she explained as he took it in one groggy hand. “Sorry; I’ve been blabbering away like an idiot all morning with her. I didn’t want to wake you up when she called.”
Gerard raised his eyebrows and put the phone to his ear, tucking dark hair back. “Hello?”
“Hey,” gushed Nina. “God, your friend Kelly is such a great lady.”
“She really is,” agreed Gerard, rubbing his eyes as he shuffled to the bathroom mirror.
“She thought it would be fun if we had dinner every week or so, like last night, just takeout or something. Since we had a good time. I mean, I had a fantastic time.” He could hear the burst of a smile in her voice.
Like last night. Into the wee hours of the morning her eyes had twinkled, her lips curving and her throat singing with the laughter of newfound friendship. For as thick as she’d hoped her shell wasn’t, Gerard hoped he’d broken through well.
“Dinner would be great. It’s a great way for Mikey to get settled; a routine like that with friends and whatever. God, I just woke up. Sorry.”
“She mentioned you were sleeping. I don’t know why, but I felt like calling you right when I woke up.”
“I had a dream about you, I think,” he said, and she asked what it was about. “I don’t know…every time I try to think of it, it goes away. But I know you were in it.”
“Write it down when you remember.”
“Will do.”
“Have you been to any of the parks around here?” Nina asked.
“Not really. I’ve gone for walks, but, you know…I always end up at a restaurant or a deli, for some reason.” They both laughed.
“Feel like a picnic today?” Nina asked.
“Wow. A picnic?”
Almost apprehensive, Nina said, “Yeah. Ever been on one of those?”
“Not for a long time.”
“It’s noon now. Is two okay with you?”
Gerard scrambled back to his bedroom, pulling the curtains shut and tearing through his dresser drawers. “Yeah, two sounds good. Which park?”
“I guess you probably don’t know of the North Park Village Nature Center. But Kelly can probably tell you where it is.”
“Ahh…okay.” This shirt? No. No, that would make him look like a sissy. “I think Kelly has a picnic basket, but that would mean I’d have to make the food.”
Nina giggled. “Even better,” she said. “That’s the chivalrous thing to do.”
“I—”
“See you at two.” With a laugh, she hung up.
Puzzled, Gerard tossed the phone to his rumpled bed and stared at the sunlight behind the curtains. The one white shirt would have to be good enough for today.
Pulling on his socks and shoes at one p.m. sharp, he smiled to himself. The chivalrous thing to do. He wondered what sort of a relationship called for chivalry over equality in each friend’s role, and could imagine replacing “chivalrous” with “romantic.”
Unless that was perhaps taking it too far too soon.