Warning

I walked into my own apartment, dumping the key in the familiar Christmas tree shaped dish that Lucy had accidentally stolen from Target in California over four years ago. The place felt familiar, happy and warm. There were pieces of the both of us still here, even though I technically wasn’t even living here anymore.

There was the craigslist-purchased couch and loveseat that we got when we first moved here, paying some big hulking guy with a beard and a Steelers jersey to move them into our tiny two bedroom. The Ikea entertainment center and bookshelves we assembled after tears of frustration and a screaming match. And the shelves filled with our shared movies—Lion King, Anchorman, Stepbrothers, Pirates of the Carribean— the movies that we loved and watched at least ten times but still made us laugh so hard that we cried.

I set my bag down on the couch and wandered into the kitchen, grabbing a diet coke from the fridge before wandering into what was my bedroom. A lot of my things were still here because of the proximity of the place to the hospital. I still had several outfits and shoes in the closet and there was a makeup bag underneath the bathroom counter. I swiped a white sweater and a pair of boots and headed into the bathroom, getting dressed as I checked the time on the phone. It was 8:20 and I wasn’t even at Sidney’s house yet—home. I always think of this place as home, this is the place I thought I’d spend my residency. Coming to Pittsburgh, I had sworn off men and relationships for what I thought would be the rest of my life.
I slipped the black, knee high suede boots over my jeans and pulled the sweater over my head before hurriedly applying mascara, lipgloss and blush. It was 8:30 and right on cue, my phone lit up and Sid’s name flashed on the caller ID. I grabbed my bag and keys, flying out the door.

“Hey, I’m walking out of my apartment. I had to change.” I said, locking the door and beginning my decent down the stairs.

“Why didn’t you just change here?” he asked, his question perfectly valid. Why didn’t I change there? But instead, I just shook my head, mentally reminding myself not to overanaylze everything.

“Well, my car is here. I’ll just meet you at their house.” I said lightly, getting into the silver Lexus. He didn’t reply right away, just let out a heavy sigh and I imagined him running his hand through his hair in frustration.
“Are you okay?” I asked, backing out of the parking space. There was another pause and I frowned, driving onto the highway cautiously.

“Yeah, I’m good Violet. I just had a long day. I’ll see you there.” He said and hung up, leaving me baffled. I knew he was tired and exhausted from his season, but he seemed completely different.
---
It didn’t take my long to get to Marc and Lucy’s house and I saw Sidney’s Range Rover already in the driveway. As I parked and walked inside the house, I saw Lucy scrambling inside the kitchen, yelling things in French and English simultaneously. Lucy was a fantastic cook, but she had a way of preparing food that made you wonder whether or not she was on drugs. Nothing made sense together but it was all so good that usually nobody cared.

I took a seat on top of the counter and watched her as she pulled a roast chicken out of the oven. I grinned as she took a double take, finally realizing that I was here.

“You’re creepy.” Was her only comment as she checked on the mashed potatoes, giving them a curious stir before fluttering off to the fridge.

“Whoa, Luce. Is this a normal dinner?” I asked, a little shocked that so far the meal consisted of roast chicken and mashed potatoes. Lucy didn’t reply, but instead took out a glass bowl of pasta salad and blue koolaide. She set them down before pulling out a dish of potato salad.

“Luce..” I said as she looked back at me guiltily.

“I couldn’t decide what I wanted! I’m kind of craving picnic foods, thanksgiving and Italian all at once.”

“Italian? Lucy what else did you make?” There was already a roast chicken, a bowl of potato salad, Caesar salad and pasta salad on the counter and mashed potatoes on the stove. Lucy cautiously proceeded to the top oven and pulled out a lasagna.

“Lucille Verlan.” I said, shaking my head. “Wait- are you pregnant?” I asked, my voice substantially higher.

“Shh, Violet. I am not pregnant and don’t you start on that. Marc is already trying to knock me up. “ she paused and looked at me with her hand on her hip. “I mean, who would have thought babies come right after marriage.”

“Um, every second grader in the country? First comes love, then comes marriage, then comes the ba—“ Lucy pushed me and I almost toppled over on the Caesar salad.

“I figured you’d be in here.” I heard a familiar voice say, breaking up my incessant giggling. I turned around and hopped off the counter immediately, practically running up to him.

“Hey, I missed you.” I said, reaching up to put my arms around his neck. Long hours at the hospital combined with his busy schedule didn’t leave with much, and I genuinely did miss him.I was relieved that he pulled me closer, glad that the odd distance I felt over the phone was imagined by me and nothing else.

He pulled me closer before pulling away, pointing to the dish that sat on the stove.“Is that lasagna?” he questioned and I just about died right there. But instead, I gave him a chance to observe the rest of the kitchen.

“Wait, is that a chicken too?” he asked just as Marc walked into the kitchen.

Marc and I took a second to let it all sink in for Sid before nodding and simultaneously chiming “yep.” Lucy’s cooking. Making no sense since 2006.

We all started grabbing platters and bowls, taking them to the big glass dining room table before sitting down. Lucy rose and held a glass of blue koolaide, looking pensive, even though I knew it was mockingly so.

“I just want to say that you guys are the best. That’s all.” Lucy said before we touched glasses and I clapped at her mock toast.

“That was beautiful. You really poured your soul out there.” I said as she sat back down. Lucy nodded, taking a drink.

“I know. I just feel like I can open up to you all and share what’s really deep inside my heart.” She replied, scooping up some potato salad as I went for the lasagna and mashed potatoes.

“I just thought that it was so powerful and it really hit me, you know? I almost cried. It was that deep.” We were now staring at each other and eating, going back and forth without a pause.

“Thanks. I almost cried too because all that beautiful emotion weighed down on me but now I’m free. All that beauty is in the atmosphere now, waiting to affect someone else. “ Marc and Sidney were quietly eating, watching our conversation with some level of amusement. Lucy and I didn’t crack a smile, keeping up the serious banter.

“Too far?” She asked and I shook my head.

“Only a little.” I replied, taking a bite of my food. It was good, so good that I was shocked.

“Luce, this is legit.” I said and she snorted blue koolaide.

“You have a PhD and a M.D and you couldn’t come up with another adjective besides ‘legit’?” she asked, taking a giant scoop of mashed potatoes.

“Nope.”
---

Dinner was followed by an ice cream cake that was made by Baskin Robins, not Lucy Verlan, and dessert was swiftly followed by a movie. We were all teenagers here, neither of us wanting to go home and separate. I worked 80 hour weeks, Sidney and Marc were gone for days at a time and Lucy spent her time buried in books and bug collections. Our jobs were our life but we managed to make room for each other and when we did, we didn’t want to move on.

Marc popped in The Dark Knight and sat on the opposite side of the couch. I buried myself against Sid’s chest under his arm. Lucy took the same position against Marc and our legs were both sprawled out across the middle space in the couch. We had a brief fight over space before I dominated by putting my legs on top of hers. Sidney tried not to laugh but failed.

“Fatty.” Lucy said, defeated.

“So, Violet.” Marc started as the previews rolled through. “I know what Sid’s been up to since I see his stupid face all the time, and I know what Lucy’s been doing since I married her. But you’ve been flying under the radar. What’s new?” He asked and I just shrugged.

“Not much. Cutting people open and stuff. The usual.” I replied before looking back to Marc. “There’s actually a new neurosurgeon, Dr. Neal Hansan. He’s really good. I got to scrub in on a craniotomy. “

“A what?” Marc asked, looking at me for clarification.

“She got to cut open some guy’s head.” Lucy said before I could reply and we all stared at her for a second.

“First of all, I’ve lived with her and do you know what its like to be eating spaghetti and meatballs and have her demonstrate with her food? If your pasta ever needs a bowel replacement, I could probably do it. Second, I like E.R. Sue me. Lets all ease on down the road now.” Lucy replied and I meowed.

“Feisty.” I said and looked over at Marc as he processed the information.

“Oh so how was that surgery, Violet? Was it great…just great? So great. Really great.” He mocked me, a sly grin spread across his face.

“I will kill you and make it look like an accident.” I said with a smile and he frowned at me.

“Why are you so mean?”

“Why are you two so strange?” Lucy quipped back lightly and Sidney laughed.

“That’s a loaded question, Luce.” He said and she nodded in agreement.

“Violet has problems with using her words.” Marc replied and I kicked him, a gentle kick, but a kick nonetheless.

“You’re so weird.” Lucy said as the TV screen finally turned dark. “But if everyone doesn’t shut up right now, I will hurt you. I know places in the forest that I can bury you at and nobody would look twice.”

And with that, we all fell into silence. Nobody wanted to tempt Lucy. Not when she had a suspicious shovel collection in the garage.