De... bo... rah...
Martin didn't sleep at all well that night. Nor did he rise at the usual time the following morning.
His final, fitful doze -- the last of many -- ended early, but he lacked the courage to leave his room. Lying in his bed, he eventually perceived sounds... those of his mother and father as they prepared to leave for work. He even imagined that he could hear the voice of his sister now and then, quietly conversing with one parent or the other.
He wondered fearfully how long it would be before he heard outraged voices screaming his name.
A sudden, soft tap at his door almost made him leap off the bed.
"Martin?"
He recognised his mother's voice.
"Uh... yeah?" he croaked.
"Time to get up, sweetheart. Your breakfast is ready."
The kindly tone of her voice confused him. Why wasn't she accusing him, railing at him in furious judgement?
"I... I'll be down in a minute."
On reflection, Martin could only conclude that Deborah had kept the events of the previous evening to herself.
Why would she do that? he wondered. Then, he knew why... he thought he knew why: to preserve the family.
The idea that his sister could be so selfless only increased his self-hatred. He began to entertain the notion of suicide, to consider the possibility that he deserved to die.
His mother interrupted his thoughts by calling him to breakfast again, this time from downstairs.
Martin clenched his jaw. There was only one honourable course of action open to him: he must go downstairs and confess his crime, even though to do so would destroy the family and break his parents' hearts, all in the space of... oh, probably less than one hundred and twenty seconds.
With supreme reluctance, Martin rose from his bed, dragged on the clothing he had worn the previous evening and left the room. Having reached the bottom of the stairs, he shuffled along the passageway that led to the kitchen, feeling like a death-row prisoner on his way to the electric chair.
Upon arriving at the kitchen, Martin halted in the doorway and hovered there, indecisive. He saw that
she
was there, sitting on a stool at the bar, clad in an off-white woollen shift and lightweight, tan-coloured ankle boots. He noted dully that she looked, as always, utterly edible.
His father was nowhere to be seen, having presumably already departed.
His mother gave him a quizzical glance.
"What's wrong, Martin?" she asked.
Martin drew breath to confess his crime... but cowardice overwhelmed him at the final instant.
"I... I'm not feeling well," he said instead, quite truthfully. "I... don't think I'll be going to class today."
Deborah gave not the slightest sign that she was aware of his presence.
"Oh, dear," his mother responded sympathetically. "Better stay home, then, for a day of rest."
"Thanks."
Still ignoring him, Deborah rose from her seat and headed for the front door.
"Don't forget to say goodbye to your brother," his mother called.
Deborah froze in her tracks, stood utterly still for a moment, then slowly turned back.
"Of course," she murmured.
She walked over to her brother, smiled at him, placed both hands on his shoulders, rose up on her toes, leaned forward and touched her lips to his left cheek, briefly, softly, warmly.
"I hope you feel better soon," she said.
Then she was gone. His mother followed shortly afterward.
Martin's gut was as tightly knotted as it could be.
Deborah had seemed truly determined to behave as if absolutely nothing untoward had happened between them.
Martin suddenly remembered that he hadn't yet washed his body. He still carried the filth of his crime.
He made his way upstairs, took fresh clothing from his room and headed for the bathroom, where he stripped, then dropped his used clothing into the laundry basket. He stood under the shower for a very long time, pondering dazedly.
At last, he turned off the water, towelled himself dry, then dressed. He was glad to cover his body: his nakedness was abhorrent to him.
He needed to think, he decided. He needed to think a lot.
Martin made his way back to his bedroom, intending to lie down for his rumination. He had almost reached his bed when a voice spoke.
"I've been waiting for you."
Utterly shocked, Martin spun toward the sound so quickly, he almost lost his balance.
Deborah was there, sitting in a shadowed corner of his room.
"... whuh... whuh... whuh..." Martin babbled.
Deborah giggled.
"You sound like a confused helicopter."
Martin gulped.
"Wh-what are you doing here?" he said. "What do you want?"
Deborah stared at him for a long moment, then nodded slowly.
"That's right, Martin," she said. "That certainly is the question, isn't it? What does Deborah want. Because it would be a complete waste of time to ask what Martin wants. That question has already been answered, loud and clear."
Martin couldn't hold her gaze. Profoundly ashamed, he lowered his eyes.
"So... let's consider what Deborah wants," his sister continued.
She rose to her feet, whereupon Martin saw that she was now wearing a short housecoat... and nothing else, as far as he could see. Smiling, she opened the housecoat, shrugged it off her shoulders and let it fall to the ground, demonstrating that it had indeed been her only garment.
"D-don't..." Martin stuttered.
Deborah looked at him in apparent surprise.
"Don't what?" she queried softly. "Don't get naked?"
Martin nodded dumbly.
"But, Martin," she said, as if confused, "I thought you liked me naked. You certainly seemed eager to see me naked last night."
To this, Martin could summon no answer.
For a moment, there was silence, during which Deborah regarded him speculatively.
"Didn't I please you?" she asked. "If I didn't please you, all I can say is that I'm sorry to hear it. Very, very sorry... because you pleased me, Martin. You pleased me beyond belief."
Martin could scarcely credit what his ears were hearing. He searched her face for signs of duplicity, but detected only candour. Her smile seemed nothing but inviting.
"So... did you... I thought you... did you...?" he mumbled.
"Did I come? Oh, yeah. I came alright. You well and truly popped my cork, little brother... no, you smashed the entire bottle of champagne to smithereens. I blasted off like a goddam rocket. I exploded like a fucking cluster bomb.
She shook her head, reminiscing.