At 3:10 pm...
Right now she's sitting backstage, nervously twisting the hem of her sequined dress, preparing herself to step out onto the stage. She's a singer, only been famous for a year, still careful and wary that one less-than-stellar performance could ruin the reputation that she had so painstakingly built. Tonight she would go drink her favorite brand of red, while kicking back in her huge upholstered sofa, in the condominium that her recent fame had bought her. But for now... it was the stage and her... and the audience that she had to do her best to please.
A purchase of a carton of milk, a slab of butter and a loaf of bread. He pushed his groceries in front of the cashier, and took out his wallet to count out some bills. This was one good thing about living alone -- he didn't have to think too much about what to prepare for his meals. Cornflakes for breakfast, microwaved packaged chicken cutlets at all times of the day, sometimes bread and eggs for supper, like what he would be having for tonight. Of course he knew this was a different way of thinking about things, esp. for a man who had recently left his wife. Others would be griping about the nice home-cooked meals that they missed by now, the ready plates of mashed potatoes with gravy, the vegetable salads and haunches of roast beef steeped in sauce. But he didn't miss her, and he didn't want to miss anything about her. He was happier without her, even with only bread and eggs for supper.
The lake was shimmering when it came up to meet him, a flash of diamonds and then the sound of a huge splash around his ears as he entered the water. It was an amazing day for a swim. Saturday and sunny, there was no school and for a few hours his mother would be busy with her sewing or her afternoon tea, or the daily book-reading she allowed herself as her form of relaxation. She wouldn't be looking for him anytime soon. He frolicked a few minutes more in the water, sometimes submerging himself and swimming down as deep as he could. After a while he swam to shore, gathering up the shirt and pants that he left sitting on the ground beside his bicycle. He sat down on a rock and allowed the air to dry himself, while chewing on a piece of gum that he had brought with him. He stared at the blue sky and relished the smell of woodpine that surrounded him. Tomorrow would be Sunday, and he would have to go to church with his mother and father again. He hated going to mass. But then again, he would be able to see Jenny all pretty with her hair tied up in a ribbon, and slim in her white Sunday blouse and plaid skirt. It was all worth it for that.
She sucked in her breath as the roller coaster twisted up the rails. She knew there was another stomach-churning plunge coming, and she steeled herself for it. And when it came she screamed, she screamed so loud but yet she couldn't hear herself above the whoosh of air around her ears, and the shouts and squeals of the other passengers with her. When those frightening seconds were over, and the coaster twisted yet again to follow the convoluted shape of the tracks, she wondered for the hundredth time what she was doing here, how she had let her cousin talk her into going on this maddening ride. She never liked roller coasters, or any ride that could induce screaming in a person for that matter. She could never figure out why people would want to make their lives miserable by riding one of these things. She had always prided herself on being a sensible person, and thrill rides, she thought, had no sense in them whatsoever. But here she was, screaming fit to spill her guts out, doing the most insensible thing she had ever done in her life, and she found she was enjoying it.
A purchase of a carton of milk, a slab of butter and a loaf of bread. He pushed his groceries in front of the cashier, and took out his wallet to count out some bills. This was one good thing about living alone -- he didn't have to think too much about what to prepare for his meals. Cornflakes for breakfast, microwaved packaged chicken cutlets at all times of the day, sometimes bread and eggs for supper, like what he would be having for tonight. Of course he knew this was a different way of thinking about things, esp. for a man who had recently left his wife. Others would be griping about the nice home-cooked meals that they missed by now, the ready plates of mashed potatoes with gravy, the vegetable salads and haunches of roast beef steeped in sauce. But he didn't miss her, and he didn't want to miss anything about her. He was happier without her, even with only bread and eggs for supper.
The lake was shimmering when it came up to meet him, a flash of diamonds and then the sound of a huge splash around his ears as he entered the water. It was an amazing day for a swim. Saturday and sunny, there was no school and for a few hours his mother would be busy with her sewing or her afternoon tea, or the daily book-reading she allowed herself as her form of relaxation. She wouldn't be looking for him anytime soon. He frolicked a few minutes more in the water, sometimes submerging himself and swimming down as deep as he could. After a while he swam to shore, gathering up the shirt and pants that he left sitting on the ground beside his bicycle. He sat down on a rock and allowed the air to dry himself, while chewing on a piece of gum that he had brought with him. He stared at the blue sky and relished the smell of woodpine that surrounded him. Tomorrow would be Sunday, and he would have to go to church with his mother and father again. He hated going to mass. But then again, he would be able to see Jenny all pretty with her hair tied up in a ribbon, and slim in her white Sunday blouse and plaid skirt. It was all worth it for that.
She sucked in her breath as the roller coaster twisted up the rails. She knew there was another stomach-churning plunge coming, and she steeled herself for it. And when it came she screamed, she screamed so loud but yet she couldn't hear herself above the whoosh of air around her ears, and the shouts and squeals of the other passengers with her. When those frightening seconds were over, and the coaster twisted yet again to follow the convoluted shape of the tracks, she wondered for the hundredth time what she was doing here, how she had let her cousin talk her into going on this maddening ride. She never liked roller coasters, or any ride that could induce screaming in a person for that matter. She could never figure out why people would want to make their lives miserable by riding one of these things. She had always prided herself on being a sensible person, and thrill rides, she thought, had no sense in them whatsoever. But here she was, screaming fit to spill her guts out, doing the most insensible thing she had ever done in her life, and she found she was enjoying it.
posted by dexterslab @ 2:04 PM
0 comments
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home