Stay a Little Longer

by Dawn Lanuza

  He let out a nervous chuckle, “Really.”

  “Yeah,” she exclaimed, “Plato’s a genius, you know?”

  Elan continued driving, shaking his head as he let Caty explain the whole thing. He’d read Plato before and thought it was quite silly. See, according to Plato, once upon a time, people were born with four arms, four legs, and two heads. Elan hadn’t taken it seriously when he read it, even less so when he heard it from someone else.

  “Now, thanks to Zeus, we’ve all been separated. Now we only have two hands, two feet, and a head.”

  “I don’t see why the separation bums you out. I’m not sure how I’d feel having two heads.”

  “Oh, you should definitely know.” She squinted, gave him a knowing smirk before he got it. He reacted too late so she just carried on. “Anyway, are you serious? We’re walking halves! We’ve been split in two.”

  She paused for a minute, as if thinking of what she’d said. He could imagine there were a lot of thoughts swirling around in her head that she was holding back. In the end, she shrugged, “Classic Zeus, always ruining lives.”

  He laughed at that. How fast she jumped from one thought to another.

  “What does this myth have to do with Jules being my friend?” Elan asked.

  “Well,” Caty gave him a look, as if giving him a final check before saying, “You are kind of like her. She could be your other half.”

  It wasn’t the first time he’d heard that. People joked that Jules was his twin or his sister just because they got along so well. In the years they’d known each other, there had been very little conflict.

  Elan shrugged. “I guess.”

  “You sure you’re not hiding any feelings for her?”

  He had been asked about this too many times—by his mother, his sister, people at school who dared to ask. And himself, at night sometimes, when he allowed his mind to wonder.

  He frowned, lips pouting a bit. “I don’t know.”

  “You don’t know?”

  He turned to her and blinked slowly. This was the look he gave people that usually made them stop bugging him, but he had the impression that it was not gonna work on her.

  She simply grinned at him, so he turned his eyes back to the road.

  “Hmm,” he heard her say. “Interesting.”

  “It’s not a yes.”

  “It’s not a no, either.”

  She had a point. But then again, there was that guy standing by the doorway earlier today, Caty’s brother. “What does it matter anyway? She’s clearly with your brother.”

  “Well, duh, they’re totally doing it,” Caty said flat out.

  Elan flinched, surprised at how those words stung. “Well, I didn’t need to know that.”

  “Doesn’t mean it’s not true,” Caty insisted.

  He shook his head.

  A wicked smile appeared on her lips. “It’s not just that. I’m sure they’re in love or something. They spend a ridiculous amount of time staring at each other, and the sexual tension is so thick around the house. I had to get out. Fast.”

  Elan cleared his throat. He was curious, even though he knew he should stop asking.

  “Pretty sure I was cock blocking the entire time,” she added, giving him more visuals he didn’t need.

  He almost hit the brakes then. He really did. But there was a car behind them, and he could only deal with one problem at a time.

  Caty smiled, a little bit coy. “You mad, Judy?”

  “No,” he answered, breathing out his nose.

  “Sure?”

  He smirked and shook his head.

  “Don’t worry. You’re not the first one. Everyone’s a little bit in love with Jules. She’s perfect. She’s smart.”

  “Jealous?”

  She smiled, slowly and mischievously. “I don’t get jealous.”

  Elan didn’t believe her. She looked like it, sounded like it too. Some friend this must be.

  “We have a complicated relationship,” she told him. “But she is my oldest friend, and I am loyal to her.”

  He wondered how much longer they had to keep talking. He hoped she would fall asleep just so he could concentrate. He liked to drive in silence—it was therapeutic. He solved problems during this time, and the roads were a cathartic way for him to undo the knots in his head.

  “Can you take a turn over there?” She pointed to the right.

  Elan’s eyes followed, “Why?”

  “You can drop me off there, actually.”

  “I thought you needed a ride to the airport.”

  “I do,” she answered, “but I actually made plans with my friend. He’s taking me instead. I just really needed to get out of the house.”

  Then why the hell did she tell Jules he was going to take her? He wanted to say that out loud but held back.

  “It’s not too far away,” she assured him. “I’ll get out of your hair in about five minutes. Then you can go back to your life.”

  She pointed, “Just turn right here.”

  It was a village gate, one with security guards manning the front. To be honest, Elan was relieved that he didn’t have to drive her all the way to the airport, but he was a bit worried as well. He knew Juliana would ask about the ride. How would she feel if he just dropped off her childhood friend at some unknown place?

  They stopped at the gate, and a guard approached. Elan rolled the window down, and Caty leaned forward.

  “Diaz,” she said. The guard seemed to recognize her and merely took a look at Elan’s driver’s license before waving them through.

  She was quiet on the way in, like she had been switched off or run out of battery power. “Take another right.”

  Elan followed her directions until they reached a two-story house sitting in a huge lot.

  “Park right here.”

  The house looked like it had been built awhile ago, but it was well maintained. In the short time he’d spent in town, he’d gotten the impression that really wealthy people lived there. Not new-money kind of rich but old-family rich. Generations of wealthy families preserving their Spanish Colonial-era houses and impressive, intimidating gates.

  “So this is your friend’s?” he asked.

  “Yeah,” she agreed, “something like that.”

  She opened her door, and Elan started to get out, but she stopped him. “Don’t worry, I’ll get my bag. Just open the trunk.”

  “Don’t be silly.”

  “No, really.” Caty touched his arm and squeezed lightly, leaning closer to him. He could smell her then, and the scent reminded him of ylang-ylang. It was subtly sweet with a hint of spice, but she pulled away before he could be sure. “Thanks for the ride, Judy.”

  “Sure.” Elan would have reacted to her calling him Judy, but he saw the change in her demeanor. She was tense and seemed a bit scared. His eyes searched for hers, but she leaped out, grabbed her bag, and stood on the sidewalk for a second.

  He let the motor idle and watched as she approached the gate. She seemed surprised he was still there, so she waved him away. He was determined to stay, at least until he was sure he’d dropped her off at the right place.

  No one was opening the gate, so he thought he could help by honking the horn, and a loud beep blurted out.

  Eyes wide, Caty left her bag on the sidewalk and walked over to the car with a murderous look on her face.

  “Just. Go,” she mouthed.

  Unbelievable, he shook his head. How could she be so annoyed when he was trying to do something helpful. So he just did what he’d been wanting to do since they left Jules and Kip—he drove away.

  Slowly, but away.

  She shouldn’t be here. She knew that. But she just had to see for herself.

  Maybe it was a curse her parents had named her Catalina, after all. She hadn’t tho
ught about it until Elan mentioned the saint’s martyrdom. She was a martyr for standing outside this house when she knew she shouldn’t.

  But what she knew didn’t change what she felt.

  Caty hated coming back to San Juan. People seemed welcoming, but she knew better. They liked to talk here, dig out secrets and taunt each other with smug smiles, winks, and passive-aggressive comments.

  With everything that had happened to Caty before she left for Toronto, she was pretty sure that people knew her so-called secrets. She had been terrified that someday people would so casually mention these at gatherings, like it was one of those town anecdotes.

  Back then, she’d found a distraction in Otto—the very person who was now peeking out from a window. Right now, she was hoping he could still do the same.

  Caty raised her hand, but he disappeared. She turned back to her phone and reviewed the unanswered messages she’d sent him. Out of the corner of her eye, Caty saw Elan’s car slowly driving away. Then she looked up and, to her surprise, found someone else stepping out of the house. Madeline, who was not supposed to be there! She was supposed to be on a trip, at least that’s what Otto had told Caty.

  For a moment, she stood frozen on the sidewalk. Only when Madeline approached the gate did Caty find herself frantically pulling at her luggage.

  Ah, shit. She let go of the suitcase and saw that Elan’s car was about to turn the corner. No, no, no.

  Caty waved her hands and screamed to get his attention. She knew she’d told him to go, but, Please, God, please make him turn around. She heard someone else shout—it was Otto, she was sure of it—but she didn’t have time to look back.

  She thought, I’m being chased by Otto’s fiancé. This is real. This is happening.

  “Elan!” Caty shouted, running as fast as she could.

  To her relief, the car stopped. She screamed his name one more time, and he reversed, stopping just in time for her to open the door and jump in as if they were in a bank heist.

  He was her getaway car.

  “Go, go, go, drive!”

  When she was safe inside the car, Caty finally turned and saw a glimpse of Otto. She’d seen him earlier this year when she came back for a visit. They had met and reconnected. Madeline wasn’t even in the picture then. She was just the new “girlfriend of the month,” but now she had a boulder of a diamond flashing on her ring finger. Caty hadn’t missed that.

  She had met Otto when she was young and he was, well, older. He was her father’s friend—the cool guy who dropped by their house to talk about cars and sometimes business. Her father showed him how to restore cars while her brother, Kip, watched and she stayed in her room.

  Over the years, Otto was the one who never seemed to marry. He just had occasional girlfriends—all gorgeous, all younger. Madeline was even younger than Caty. Everyone knew her as that kid that Sarge Reynoso, the local TV celebrity, mentored. She took acting and dance classes with him and was determined to be a big star. She had a few successes but never had her big break, so she decided she’d rather be a big fish in a small pond.

  Madeline sure caught a big fish, because Otto was the biggest catch of all. He was the Resident Bachelor, and since coming home, all Caty’d heard from the gossips was how Madeline finally got Otto to settle down.

  But Caty had thought Otto would leave Madeline. She was only supposed to last for a month, maybe a couple more.

  Stupid, stupid, stupid.

  Caty really shouldn’t be with someone like Otto. She knew that. He’d told her so. Even gave her all the reasons.

  For one thing, it would be a long-distance relationship since she was in Toronto. She didn’t believe in that. She couldn’t survive on pining. Caty needed the comfort of having the person there—the security, the companionship.

  But Otto was a grown-up, she reasoned. He could do anything. Except break up with Madeline. Except meet her and at least tell her why he had chosen the other woman over her.

  Caty turned away and covered her face for a minute, feeling the heat on her cheeks from running, and maybe a little bit because of the disgrace. She looked up and felt Elan watching her. She dared to look directly at him, but he dodged it. He had one hand over his mouth, as if he was deciding whether to let her stay or kick her out.

  She sat back in her seat and decided to stay quiet.

  They drove in silence until Elan suddenly pulled over to the side of the road. He rolled the window down and rested one hand on the steering wheel. He took a deep breath, shoulders lifting as he did, then bowed his head and muttered under his breath.

  She watched him for a moment until he seemed to calm down.

  When Elan finally turned back to her, Caty realized she’d been holding her breath the entire time. She exhaled slowly, watching him watch her.

  She took another breath, then asked, “Were you counting Mississippis?”

  “No,” he spat. “Yes.”

  “Why?”

  “Because—” he paused. “Hang on. I’m supposed to be the one asking questions. How about you tell me what the hell happened back there?”

  Caty felt herself close off as shame flooded over her. Was she still trying to win over an engaged man? She didn’t know what she was doing; she only knew that she needed to run away and be somewhere else. But she didn’t live in San Juan anymore, so she had nowhere else to go but to the only person she still knew, Otto.

  She felt like crawling into the back of the vehicle. “Nothing. I don’t want to talk about it.”

  “You’re not even gonna tell me who those people are?”

  Caty blinked at him, arms crossed over her chest. She looked away, her legs crossed, and her face completely hidden by her hair. How could she actually tell him without being judged? She knew she shouldn’t have gone to the house, but apparently she was too stubborn for her own good.

  Scratch that, she was too lonely. She needed the distraction.

  “Jesus Christ,” Elan spat out. “At least tell me what I’m getting into by sticking with you.”

  There was so much frustration in his voice that she had to look. He seemed rattled, and he took another deep breath, exhaling through his mouth, fighting to keep himself calm.

  Shit, Caty thought, recognizing those expressions.

  Elan licked his lips and turned back to the steering wheel. Without another word, he started driving. It seemed too late to say anything more, so she didn’t. She simply watched him drive in silence.

  All the rapport they’d been building was gone, she thought. They actually had something going on earlier; they were getting warm and gaining momentum.

  “Where are we going?” she finally asked.

  Silence. Fantastic. Now he’s back to ignoring her. Caty hated it when her questions weren’t answered, but that’s what she’d done to him earlier, and now she was getting a dose of her own medicine.

  She marveled at how she could make herself feel even more alone by simply looking for company. So Caty simply closed her eyes and hummed a song to herself until she fell asleep.

  three

  They arrived at the airport. Only . . .

  Caty bit her lip since Elan was still ignoring her. He did wake her up to tell her they were at the airport, but not a word more.

  So what did he want from her? He wanted to know what the hell happened earlier. She got chased by Otto and Madeline, that’s what. Did he need to know why? Absolutely not.

  For one thing, he’s a Judy. Second, he’s Juliana’s friend, which makes him Double Judy.

  “Do you need help with anything?” he asked.

  “No,” she answered, fumbling around her seat, not sure what she needed to do first. She had just woken up. Her head was still a bit woozy, her hair was a mess, and she needed a splash of water on her face.

  “I’m not flying out yet,” she said.

 
He froze. His entire body went rigid.

  “I lied. I told Juliana I moved my flight so I could get out of the house. As I said, sexual tension. Thick,” Caty explained. “I fly out tomorrow morning.”

  Elan tilted his head slightly. His jaw twitched, as if to say, So now what?

  “Can you please take me to a nearby hotel instead?”

  He took a moment before he nodded, exhaled heavily, and drove out of the departure lane.

  It was killing Caty that he kept ignoring her. She didn’t like it. She didn’t know him, but she hated being ignored. Usually it was okay if someone didn’t like her, but him? He just seemed utterly disappointed. Or let down. She didn’t understand why, and she couldn’t let it go.

  “I wasn’t welcome in that house,” Caty said quickly, looking away. She didn’t want to see his expression as she tried to explain. “Obviously, I didn’t know how much, but now I do.”

  Still nothing. Caty stole a quick glance at Elan, but he was still doing his best to avoid her. It was as if he was on autopilot, driving her to her next destination.

  “Elan,” she called his name.

  His jaw twitched, but he stayed focused on driving. Caty exhaled loudly, letting him know she was tired of the silent treatment. When they got to the hotel nearest to the airport—the one with the expensive shops and casino—Caty pointed out, “I can’t afford this.”

  He winced, shook his head, and drove away to find another hotel. They found one, all right, but it was still not in her price range.

  “I didn’t pay my credit card bill last month,” Caty said aloud, so Elan had to drive away again.

  They ended up at one of those budget places, the kind you stay in just to sleep and do nothing else. It was still near the airport, so she could ask the concierge to get her a cab when it was actually time for her to fly out.

  She didn’t protest when he parked. She followed him to the reception area and nodded when he asked, “A standard room okay with you?”

  He reached for his wallet, but she touched his elbow. She felt the jolt when he flinched. “What are you doing? I’m paying for it; that’s why I kept telling you to stop going to the expensive ones.”