by Lacey Legend
Drinks in hand, the women settled in for the first movie. Part way through, loud music reverberated through the walls. Julia looked around sharply, startled.
“What the hell is that?” she said.
Ruby sighed and got up to close the living room window. “That’s Isaac ‘being alone.’ He’s having another damn party, and still not returning calls.”
Julia shook her head, a frown on her face. “Does he always party that loud?”
Ruby nodded and walked through the house, closing all of the windows. It only succeeded in blocking out some of the sound however. “This is what I was dealing with when he first moved in. He settled down when we started dating, but after the Genie Fiasco as I’m calling it, he reverted back to partying all hours with a house full of people.”
Julia stood and put her fists on her hips. “Want me to go have a talk with the kid?” One look at her friend’s face told Ruby that Julia meant business and if she said yes, then Julia would march directly next door and take matters into her own capable hands.
“No, that’s okay,” Ruby said. “Let’s just pop some popcorn and finish this movie. Then, if you want, you can read the first three chapters of The Affair in Red. If he is still ignoring me the day after tomorrow then I will call his aunt Amanda. She and I exchanged phone numbers before she left to go back to St. Louis.”
Julia crossed her arms over her chest, glaring out the window at the mayhem next door. “Okay fine, but only because you’re letting me read your book.”
Ruby laughed, trying to lighten the mood. “I’ll go get it printing off while you refill our glasses.”
When the movie ended, Ruby went about popping popcorn the old-fashioned way: with coconut oil in a cast iron skillet. It was her grandmother’s skillet in fact, seasoned and lovingly maintained over two generations. Ruby cooked in the thing as much as possible, believing a little bit of her granny was in every dish she cooked with it. Now, she shook the pan back and forth to avoid burning the delicate red and blue kernels of corn. She loved the sound they made when they started exploding in the pan, sending out their delicious tendrils of aroma.
Ruby poured the finished popcorn into two bowls, salting one and drizzling melted butter over the other. She preferred hers natural, but she knew her best friend loved the buttery flavor of fresh popcorn. Julia was half way finished reading the first three chapters of Ruby’s novel and was smiling, and making notes in the margins with a red pen. She knew Ruby would welcome suggestions, especially since Julia always gave excellent constructive criticism.
Ruby set one bowl on the floor next to her friend and picked up her goblet of lemonade. She took a long drink of it, feeling a little light and airy, as if she might be less affected by the earth’s gravity than on a normal day. She sat down next to Julia on the floor and peeked over her shoulder at her notes. She took a handful of popcorn and shoved it into her mouth.
“I think I’m a tittle bit lipsy,” she said, giggling suddenly.
Julia laughed at her. “Yeah, I’d say so. You had two peach Bellinis and a glass and a half of this spiked lemonade, so…”
“Oh well,” Ruby said clapping her hands together. “I don’t need to be anywhere. Let’s watch another movie.” She got up off of the floor and made her slow way to the book shelf which held all of her movies. She rummaged through it and pulled out a popular flick about male strippers. “Let’s watch this,” she said, licking her lips and wagging her brows at Julia.
“Oh yes, lets,” her friend agreed. “There are some hotties in that movie for sure.”
***
The next morning, Julia woke with her hair matted to the side of her face and the sunlight streaming in through Ruby’s bedroom window. She rubbed her eyes and pulled her long locks back. Looking next to her, she saw that Ruby was still sound asleep on her stomach, one hand flopped down to the floor, snoring softly. She smiled and quietly stepped out of bed and into the bathroom to get ready to leave without waking her friend, who was probably going to have a hell of a hangover when she finally did wake up. Before leaving the house, Julia cleared popcorn bowls and empty goblets from the living room. Then she left a note and four extra-strength ibuprofen along with a glass of water, on Ruby’s dining room table.
Ruby woke a couple of hours later and stumbled into the bathroom. She brushed her hair and teeth, and scrubbed her face without turning on the light. She could already feel the pressure of the night before building up behind her nose and it was a wonder to her that her eyes didn’t pop right out of their sockets. Ruby changed into her jogging clothes, although she had no intention of leaving the house if she could help it, preferring instead to hibernate after a night of drinking and work on her novel. Upon descending the stairs, she made a mental note to thank Julia for doing a bit of clean up before leaving. Then she walked into the dining room and saw the note, the four pills, and the glass of water, and made a mental note to kiss the ground Julia walked on and buy her a manicure/pedicure combo next time they went to the salon.
She downed the pills, chasing them with the water and then retrieved a cold wash cloth and laid down on the couch for a bit. Just until the room stops spinning and my eye balls quit pounding.
“Time to get up and get to work,” she said about half an hour later. She stood up and stretched, moving into a couple of yoga poses: the warrior and plank, before starting the coffee pot and turning on her computer. She grabbed the pages on which Julia had scribbled her notes and laid them to one side for reference. Julia had beta read all of Ruby’s books and she appreciated the honest feedback, especially if there was a plot hole she had missed.
She worked for a few hours and then slid her office chair back and stretched her arms up over her head. Ruby bent her neck from side to side, trying to work out the kinks that had formed as she worked, hunched over the desk. She found herself suddenly wondering what Isaac was doing right now. Was he thinking about her at all, or was he still fixated on the Genie Fiasco? Was he regretting the way he had thrown his aunt, and last living relative out of his house? Was the party a cry for attention, or did he decide that being a party host and bad boy was a better path than what he could have had with Ruby?
Ruby sighed and rested her chin in her hands, staring out the window. There was a slight breeze evidenced by the swaying of the willow branches. She slid the window open a few inches and let the breeze wash over her face while she continued to fret about Isaac. I know Julia said I should give it another couple of days, but it’s hard to just sit here and do nothing when he’s less than ten yards away from me.
She pulled out her cell phone and dialed Isaac’s number. Straight to voice mail again. But this time she couldn’t leave a message. A robotic, female voice informed her that the subscriber’s voice mail box was full and that Ruby should please try again later. With a dejected sigh, Ruby ended the call and went into the kitchen to make some semblance of lunch. She slathered peanut butter and apple jelly on wheat bread and cut it into triangles. While she ate, Ruby sent a text to Julia, thanking her for the pills, the water, and for being such an amazingly awesome friend.
We are going to the salon next weekend. My treat, Ruby’s next text said.
Deal, came the reply.
Ruby worked for a few more hours, until her fingers were tired and refused to type any more. Then she tried Isaac’s phone again, even though she knew she wouldn’t get through. She pulled the business card Isaac’s aunt Amanda had given her out of her purse and sent a text to what she assumed was the cell phone.
Hi, Amanda, It’s Ruby. Isaac still ignoring me. His voicemail is full. No answer when I knock. Partying every night.
A few minutes later Ruby’s phone rang. It was Amanda. “Hi, Amanda. Sorry to bother you.”
“No bother at all, Ruby,” Amanda informed her, “I’m just wrapping cheese in cloth to press out the whey. But I have a few minutes. I’m a little bit surprised and a lot dismayed at the way my nephew is behaving. Do you think I should come back down there and
try to talk sense into him?”
Ruby bit her bottom lip and looked out the office window, wishing she was as free to sway in the breeze as that willow tree. “Do you think he’d resent us? I mean, maybe I should just give up and write it off as an educational experience. I just don’t know.”
“No, Ruby. Please don’t give up on him. Isaac has had it tough. Not just Genie, either. These so-called friends of his started coming around, acting all chummy when he inherited, convincing him to spend his money on leisurely pursuits. These are the same little punks who treated him like shit in high school, understand.”
“Why would he let them into his life then?”
“He wants to be accepted, and he doesn’t have any frame of reference as to how to do that, so he parties, because hey everyone likes a party, right?” Amanda said, her statement ending in an edge of sarcasm.
“Yeah, I can see the appeal. To be honest, I’m starting to feel like an obsessive girlfriend. I keep calling, I keep looking out my window. I keep wanting to go over there when he’s having a party and confront him, but at the same time I don’t want to cause a scene in front of that crowd.”
Amanda was silent for a moment, thinking, “Go over there and confront him. That’s my advice. Go knock on his door, his windows, all that. Or wait until he’s having a party, and then go let yourself into the house and find him.”
“I don’t like the idea of causing a scene. Everyone will think I’m his crazy girlfriend.”
“Well, don’t cause a scene or start a screaming match, no. I just mean, if you go over there and you are face-to-face with him, then he has to talk to you. If he pushes you away, or refuses to talk to you, then I’ll come down and see if I can help. I can’t get away for a couple of days though; too much to do on the farm just now.” Amanda sighed.
“Well, okay. I’ll think about it,” Ruby finally said, “I was hoping he would just snap out of it.”
“So was I, but he can be stubborn and hard-headed from time to time,” Amanda said, resigned to the facts.
Ruby heard music coming from next door. “Sounds like the party is starting. I’m going to let you go and head over there. I’ll text you when I get back and let you know how it went.”
“Okay. Good luck.”
Ruby hung up her cell phone and tossed it on the desk. She powered down the computer knowing there was no way she’d be able to work now. Then she screwed up her courage and walked out her front door and across the small expanse of manicured lawn that separated her from the man she loved.
Chapter13
Ruby felt the bass reverberating through the air as she walked up the steps to Isaac’s front door. All of the windows were open and music was pouring out of it like water from a shattered glass. She questioned herself every step of the way, both wanting to confront him and wanting to run back to her house and just forget the whole thing. There were party-goers everywhere. Ruby smelled the scent of wood fire on the air, coming from the bonfire out back. Two women were bumping and grinding their hips against one another on the living room floor while onlookers cheered and dared them to make out. Ruby sighed and shoved past them.
There were several couples, plastic cups full of colorful liquids, slow dancing with one another. A woman wearing a bikini top, a short swimsuit skirt, and not much else, took a long drink from her cup and then leaned her head against her dance partner’s chest and closed her eyes. Ruby felt a tiny pang of envy that she wasn’t dancing with Isaac right now. In the dining room two women had set up portable dancing poles and were down to thongs that left nothing to the imagination. Someone had dragged the couches from the living room into the dining room and people were cheering the dancers, and putting money in their mouths.
“You wanna go, little lady?” one man asked, leering at Ruby.
“No thanks. I’m just here looking for my friend.”
“I’ll be your friend.” The man waved a twenty at her.
Ruby glared at him, flipping him the bird as she walked up the stairs. She heard the raucous laughter of the men on the couches following her up the stairs. The staircase seemed long and forbidding. No matter how many steps she gained, Ruby felt like a dozen more had been added on at the top, preventing her from ever reaching Isaac, whom she hadn’t seen anywhere downstairs. Nor was he at the back of the house around the bonfire. Wood smoke drifted through all of the open windows, creating an atmosphere that under other conditions Ruby could consider cozy, inviting, and even romantic. A vision of her and Isaac in front of a fire place, mugs of coffee or cocoa in hand came to her unbidden. Ruby felt tears squeezing into the corners of her eyes and dashed them away with her hand.
Finally, upon reaching the top step of the second floor, Ruby heard grunting and moaning coming from behind the closed door that led to the guest bathroom. The woman behind the door was evidently enjoying herself very much, Ruby thought as she moved past the door. Next she came to one of the guest bedrooms; empty. The second guest bedroom was occupied by multiple people. They smiled and waved her in without missing a beat.
“Join us,” one smiling woman said. “It’ll be amazing!”
Ruby smiled and backed out, closing the door firmly. What in the world have I walked into? She was reminded of the scene in the movie Pinocchio and his adventures on Pleasure Island. It’s like a damn orgy in this place. Ruby then briefly considered whether or not she would have joined them if she had been invited to the party under better circumstances.
Is this what Isaac gets up to at these shindigs? Ruby felt her ire rise briefly. It boiled over completely however when she walked through the open door of the master bedroom and found Isaac lying next to a woman who definitely wasn’t Ruby. Ruby gasped, audibly, startling the occupants of the bed. Isaac’s eyes widened and he half sat up, one arm involuntarily lifting, as if reaching for Ruby.
“What the hell are you doing, Isaac?” Ruby screamed. She felt the table she had bumped into when she gasped and grabbed the first thing her fingers alighted on. Car keys. Whose, she didn’t know, nor did she care. She hauled back and chucked them as hard as she could, not caring who she hit with them. Then she spun on her heel and ran down the stairs and out the front door of the house, past the dancers, ignoring the leers of the men on the couch who were still stuffing dollar bills into thongs.
“Ow, dammit,” the woman in bed with Isaac shrieked. “The bitch hit me!”
“Dammit,” Isaac said more angry at himself than anything else. “There’s a first aid kit in the bathroom there. I’ll be back in a minute. I have to fix this.”
“Fix what?” the woman was demanding, even as she held a hand over her bleeding cheekbone. “Was that your girlfriend? Oh, my gosh, you have a girlfriend?” The woman ran into the bathroom and slammed the door behind herself.
Isaac ran down the steps, ignoring the dancers on the poles who reached for him as he passed. Out on his front porch, he could see that Ruby had already made it up her front steps. He yelled her name, but she ignored him. Or couldn’t hear him. He sprinted down the steps and across the lawn, up her steps just as she slammed the front door. He heard the knob lock and the dead bolt clicking into place.
Ruby stared out the window at him, glaring, tears running down her face. “You cheating asshole,” she shrieked through the glass. “If that’s the life you want, then you have no business being in mine!” Then she grasped the curtains and closed them, nearly ripping them from their rod.
Isaac pounded on the door. Ruby could hear him yelling apologies, but she ignored him, putting her hands over her ears to shut it out. Finally she stood up, opened the curtain to find him still standing there. She shrieked at him to go away and retreated to the kitchen to pour herself a spiked lemonade and hide out in her office. She huddled into a ball in the comfortable chair she had in the office’s corner and cried into her glass. Ruby ignored the phone, turning it off without looking to see who was calling.
“I hate him. I hate men. I hate him,” she whispered over and over to herself
as she cried. She gulped the beverage and set the glass on the end table before pulling her knees to her chest and wrapping her arms around them.
***
Ruby stayed this way for a long time, maybe hours. It was well into the middle of the night when she woke suddenly, having fallen asleep. She looked at the clock and saw that it was one in the morning. There was no sound, except the night sounds of insects in the willow tree, which were loud enough to be heard through the closed window. Ruby sat up, stretching the kinks out of her trim body. Her face was streaked with salt and her eyes felt grimy. She went into the kitchen and scrubbed her face with a dish cloth dipped in cold water. Then she pressed it against her closed eyes.
After a few minutes, she went upstairs and rummaged in her medicine cabinet for the Visine. After dosing herself with the drops, she drank a glass of water, undressed and got into bed. She fell into a fitful sleep full of half-remembered dreams. Things chased her, taunted her; she woke several times feeling the stress of the dreams. After laying away for another hour or two, she finally fell asleep and slept through the morning and into the early afternoon.
***
Ruby turned on the coffee maker, feeling hung over. She had only drank the one glass of lemonade, but coupled with the stress of the confrontation with Isaac and the hours-long bout of crying, et cetera, she felt as if she had downed an entire keg by herself. Ruby downed some Aspirin with her coffee and then remembered that she had promised Amanda she would call her after talking to Isaac. She sighed, feeling tears threatening to fall again. Ruby fought them back though, and pressed a cold wash cloth against her eyes until the feeling passed, She didn’t think she could spare the moisture required to have another good crying jag. She made a mental note to drink a lot of water today and went into her office to retrieve her phone.
Sitting at her kitchen table, Ruby turned the device on and saw she had four text messages, all from Isaac and a voice mail. She ignored the text messages and listened to the voice mail. It was from Amanda. She had called around ten that morning, while Ruby was still fast asleep.
