Twisted

Sean sucked some frosting off his finger and moaned.
The moan almost broke my Hoover Dam (Whoa, whoa! Mayday! Someone get me a brick here!) so I wandered up to the kitchen to get some forks and paper towels and room to breathe. When the Dam was repaired, I went back downstairs.
Sean had switched movies from Nightmare On Elm Street to an old black-and-white movie. He kept the sound muted and we took turns making up dialogue for the action on the screen. He slowly worked his way through a hunk of cake.
I couldn't eat.
This was very confusing.
I could always eat. Even when I had the flu I could eat. I'd puke, brush my teeth, and beg mom for apple slices or a sandwich or ice cream. But there I was in front of my mother's cakes (my sainted, blessed mother) and a gorgeous boy, and my stomach had shut down.
I switched the channel to one of the Sunday-afternoon shout-fests with plastic politicians and did play-by-play as if it were a boxing match. Sean laughed. My stomach relaxed as if that one sound, his laughter, was what I'd been secretly hungry for my whole life.

---

When a commercial came on, Sean scootched forward in his seat and tried to stand. As soon as he put pressure on his bandaged foot, he winced and fell back into his chair.
"What's wrong?" I asked. "You're in pain, that's bad. Can I help? Is there anything I can do?" Oh god, shut up right now. "I won't fall on you, I swear."
"Chill, Elise. I just need to go to the bathroom."
"Here," I said, holding out my hand to him. "Let me help you."
I pulled him to his feet. He teetered a moment and clutched my shoulders, me gently holding his arms. His left knee was bent so his foot wouldn't touch the floor. He was six-two. I was five-nine, at the most. There was no way for me to sling an arm over his shoulders.
"Put your arm around my waist and lean," I said.
He did, then he tried to hop, but he stumbled. I quickly put both arms around him to keep him from falling.
"We're not very good at this," he said.
"Nobody is. That's why they invented crutches. Try again."
We gimped together three awkward steps and Sean stopped. "I'm afraid I'll have to put weight on it and the stitches will rip open."
"Then there's only one thing to do." I said. Before he could say another word, I bent down and lifted him onto my back. He was a little heavier than I thought, but it was a good weight, warm and soft.
"You're going to kill yourself!" He gasped.
"I'm Elise, the Merc with the Muscles. Which way, Your Highness?"
He pointed towards the stairs. "Up."
I got stronger with every step, heart pumping steady. This was better than any fantasy I've ever had. His body was muscle-hard, and his skin felt like silk.
“I am your servant, sir.” I smiled. “I vow to carry you everywhere and feed you cake.”
“Keep feeding me cake and you won’t be able to carry me.” He chuckled.
I paused at the top of the stairs. “I’ll always be able to carry you.”
He blinked.
And then the door to the garage slammed open.
Sean’s entire body tensed up. “Kelsey! What are you doing home?”
Kelsey froze in the doorway, trying to make sense of the sight of me, a) in her house, and b) carrying her brother, who was enjoying c) both a and b.
“What the hell are you doing?” she snarled.
“She’s helping me.” Sean said. “Which is more than I can say for you. You can put me down, Elise.”
Your wish is my command. I carefully lowered him to the ground and helped him sit in a kitchen chair.
Kelsey pulled out a bottle of beer from the oversized refrigerator. She took a few swigs and wiped her mouth on her arm. “Mom wants you down to Monoghan’s. She made me come get you.”
“Why?”
The cat came out from other the table and hissed at Kelsey before coming to twist around my ankles. “They have a bunch of crutches. I’m supposed to drive you over there so you can pick. And dipwad here is not invited.”
“I have to go home, anyway.” I said.
“Are you sure?” Sean asked. “You could come with us if you want.”
Kelsey put the bottle on the counter and walked back to the door with a handful of Tic Tacs, “Don’t be such a manwhore, Sean. Elise is leaving.” She smirked and made a sweeping motion with her arm, ushering me outside.
I cross the kitchen in two steps. I put my hand around her throat and lift her off the ground with one arm. I heave her across the room. She slides the length of the counter and lands n the kitchen table. The fruit bowl crashes on her head, and an apple lands in her mouth. Little stars dance in a circle over her and her eyes roll up and…
“Are you okay, Elise?” Sean asked.
“Yeah, I’m fine.” I said. “Um, I’d better go.”
Kelsey stepped aside as I crossed the threshold.
Sean stopped me and said, “See you tomorrow.”
“Huh?”
“School’s starting, remember?” He smiled. “Maybe you could walk me to class.”
Kelsey slammed the door in my face.

---

I walked through the five-car garage, out the open door, past Kelsey’s Mazda, down the driveway, along the sidewalks of the movie-set neighborhood of the Hampton Club and Estates.
”See you tomorrow,” he said.
The lawn sprinkler of the house on the corner was still flinging water. I stood frozen in the cold spray until I was soaked through to my underwear.

---