ARRvol34 master reduced - Flipbook - Page 47
I must have fallen asleep for a few hours after work tonight,
that’s that. Brown hairs skewwhiff this way and that with a nest to
ground the strays, that’s that.
I wished Todd were here.
He was my boyfriend, I think. Otherwise he was just another
person.
The Porch Giant grew silent, though I’m sure he was standing tall
right outside my window, flicking the rocker switch to the porch
light on and off. I thought about sloppy joes.
Gaseous thoughts gurgled up inside of me, and I kept an eye on
the static reflection directly in front of me. The light seemed to
bounce off my skin.
I remembered that I had closed the bar around two-thirty this
morning. Ordinarily, Todd would wait for me outside the bar when
my shift was over to fool around in the back of his truck for a half
an hour or so before dropping me off to my porch. Safe.
Last night was a special occasion. He had to take his wife out for
their anniversary. They ended up staying out into the early hours
of the morning at a bar a few blocks down from where I worked, as
around two in the morning I got his message that he wouldn’t make
it to pick me up, due to his wife wanting to have sex with him for
their anniversary. I replied with an “All right.” His wife—I’m nearly
sure of it—was dressed in a slinky pink dress, a slim fast diet giant
in heels. The kids were at home with a babysitter. All was normal, as
he sipped his fourth neat scotch, allowing his eyes to glaze over his
wife in a drunken need of fondness.
I remember locking the bar’s door, and pulling on it to double
check whether or not it was locked. I remember turning around
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