I
The young housewife, somewhere in her mid-thirties but still radiating with youth and vitality, twinkled her eyes at Abbey and said, "Welcome to Wynford! You're really going to love it here! It's a lovely town with lovely neighbours! You couldn't have made a better choice!"
Abbey couldn't help but feel charmed by her effervescence.
"That's wonderful to hear, Caity. Can I make you a coffee?"
"I would love some!" She beamed.
Abbey welcomed her new neighbour into her home. She led her guest through the uproar of boxes and packing peanuts, apologising for the mess. They arrived in the kitchen, and Abbey poured a couple of steaming hot mugs. Thanking her brightly, Caity inquired how she and her husband had come to live in their quiet suburb of Wynford.
"Well," Abbey began, "Robert was offered a job closer to here than our place in the city, and we decided the commute would just be too much. He has to work long shifts, and we hardly see enough of each other as it is."
"What about you? Moving didn't affect your career?"
"Oh no. I'm a freelance illustrator, so I can set up my studio here and be totally fine. What about you? Tell me about yourself."
As the young mother talked, her story touched Abbey's heart. Caity had been widowed only last year. She remained in her home for the sake of her son Thomas, she said. She wanted to give him some kind of stability, she was financially well-off, and their neighbourhood really was wonderful. As she spoke sadly of her dreams of a large family and a litter of children, Abbey felt a pang of sympathy. She had no children of her own, but she saw in Caity a deep well of loss and lonesomeness.
Caity proved surprisingly easy to talk to, with a sweet laugh and a wicked sense of humour. With shining black hair and disarmingly green eyes, she was an easy person to be around. Abbey warmed to her immediately. Soon they were chatting like sisters. A morning in which she originally planned to continue setting up her studio evaporated away whilst the two women talked. Caity started when she looked at her phone.
"Holy cow, look at the time! I'll have to go pick up Tommy in a minute!"
She clasped Abbey's hand for a moment, thanked her, and left. Abbey smiled as she watched her walk down the drive, the late summer sun dappling her skin. Fears she had held of being trapped and alone, so far away from her friends in this new and unfamiliar place, were already slipping away. How wonderful to have such a lovely neighbour! She reflected.
That evening she happily greeted Robert when he arrived home. He smiled and brushed her tussled ginger locks.
"You're in a good mood, dear. Your day went well, I hope?"
Thinking of her new acquaintance, she looked up at the man she loved. She took his chin in her hand and kissed him. "Yes. I think life might not be so bad here, after all."
II
The couple began to ease into their new routine. Robert's days were often long, but he found his job both satisfying and challenging. Abbey enjoyed listening to him talk of the engineering projects he had found himself immersed in.
The commissions came in from her agent, steadily but sporadically. She could spend days frantically working late into the night to meet a deadline, and then sit for a fortnight or more without anything to do except absent-mindedly doodle on her sketch-pads.
And so the days went. The final days of Summer turned into the reds and golds of Autumn. Abbey would sit in her studio and be able to see Caity take her son to school in the mornings and return soon after. She would sometimes see her exercising in athletic gear. She wondered how she filled her hours when she wasn't jogging. Whenever she had the time, she would make herself available for afternoon drinks and conversations.
They could talk at ease for hours. Abbey had found herself surprised at how swiftly their bond had formed; she had always been a more introverted person. Perhaps it was this new place that was changing her, she considered. For her part, Caity also proclaimed her happiness. They stood chatting on the grass in the pleasant sunlight, as Caity stretched her legs in preparation for her run.
"So, Abs, you free to come round to mine tomorrow?"
"I'd love to."
"Great. You know I'm free once I drop off Tommy, so I'll see you when I see you!"
Abbey watched her run off along the road with her black ponytail bobbing, a little jealous of her slim body and firm buttocks. She wondered if she would be able to look so good after bearing a child. Caity had a slim, athletic build that really suited her tall frame. Abbey was sure she could have any man she wanted. Perhaps it was too soon after her husband's death, she considered. She decided not to pursue the subject though, thinking that the pain may still be too raw. She would let Caity talk about it in her own time.
She found herself eagerly looking forward to her next date with her neighbour. She was certain she was doing her good, too. She worried about her being left alone for most of the day, in that vast, empty house. On the outside however, Caity seemed perpetually upbeat and cheerful. She was devoted to her son, and seemed to be content in her normal, quiet routine. A peculiar thing was to happen that very next day, however, that would send a shiver of curiosity down Abbey's spine.
Over a pasta lunch and a discussion of the local news, they were unexpectedly interrupted by the melody of Caity's phone.
"Sorry Abs," She said, taking off from the couch to pick up her mobile. "I'd better just see who this is."
"Hello?" Caity listened to the caller. She remained silent, the voice on the other line seemingly doing all the talking. After a moment Caity simply said, "Yes." and swiped her phone off.
"I'm sorry, Abbey, but I have to go do something now. Excuse me." There was an unusual, misty look in her eyes.
"Oh, okay. I'll walk you out." Caity remained mute as Abbey gathered her jacket and phone. Outside, she turned to say goodbye only to see that Caity had already walked away. Her brow furrowed as she observed her friend walk across the street. She opened the gate to the white house, and disappeared inside. Abbey puzzled.
It wasn't that unusual or remarkable, at first, until the exact same thing happened a couple of days later. This time Abbey was in the middle of showing Caity her latest commission, when her mobile chimed once more. She listened in silence, replied in a monotone, and immediately gave the same excuse as before, down to the precise turn of phrase. Then it happened a third time, and then a fourth. Caity would offer no further explanation, and the following day she would act as though nothing unusual had happened.
Abbey began taking mental notes. Caity would be drawn to the white house across the street, and remain there for hours, sometimes only leaving precisely at the time she needed to fetch her son from school. Looking out from her studio window, she would begin to notice that Caity would frequently return later in the evenings most nights, too. If she actually went home on those nights, it was after Abbey herself had retired to bed.
A lascivious part of her brain imagined her friend to be having an affair with the owner of the white house. That would explain the secrecy. But an affair that was conducted at every hour of the day, with Caity seemingly at his beck and call? She would run it over in her mind, talking about the mystery with Robert over dinner.
"You know, I'm sure I've not met the people who live across the way," He said. "But you would know better than I the particulars of our neighbours."
Every time they were together now, Abbey would sit in gloomy expectation of that familiar phone call. One morning as they were chatting, Abbey felt her resolve diminishing. She just had to find out what was going on.
"Caity, what is going on with you and these calls? Why are you leaving every day to visit one of our neighbours?"
Caity blinked for a moment and smiled, as though a happy memory had wormed its way into her mind.
"I'm visiting my friend, Sarah." She explained. Abbey hadn't been sure of what to expect, but she found such a simple and anodyne explanation both disappointing, and a little wounding. She suddenly felt left out.
"Sarah? I don't know her. Have you two been friends long?"
"Oh, not long."
"But you go over to her house whenever she wants you to?"
"Yes, I enjoy being with her. She makes me feel so good." That seemed a strange way to term a friendship, thought Abbey, but she decided to persist.
"Well, can I meet her?"
"I've been waiting for you to ask!" Caity clapped her hands. "I'd adore it if you came and met her."
The days phone call came as expected, and Caity repeated her little ritual. Instead of being abandoned on the street this time, Abbey followed her friend across the street. Once through the gate, they walked in single file up the steps to a door hidden beneath an ornate portico. Surprisingly, Caity did not have to ring the doorbell. Instead, she fished out a key and unlocked the door herself! Every step was a new confusing development for Abbey, even as Caity entered the house, beckoning her to follow her inside. She heard the door gently close and softly lock behind her.
With trepidation, Abbey walked further into the house. She felt uncomfortable and alien in someone's home without first meeting them. She seemed an intruder. She saw warm, dark shades of paint on the walls, hints of expensive furnishings, tasteful decorations. She wondered where Sarah was.
Beside her, Caity pulled her tank-top off her shoulders. Abbey gasped when she then unclasped her bra and let it drop to the floor. For a second she was shocked by the sight of her friend's naked breasts before her. Before she could even speak, Caity had already bent down to slip off her jeans, and was swiftly fingering off her pumps. In an instant she was completely naked. Abbey could only stutter in confusion. Her friend was utterly unselfconscious about her nudity. She blinked and tried not to let herself stare at her beautiful, pale skin, and her lean and subtle muscles. In her embarrassment she struggled to speak, only able to watch helplessly as Caity retrieved a pair of jet black stiletto heels and slipped them on. The made her even more statuesque, and only accentuated her nudity. Without a word, she walked sensuously into the living room of the house. Abbey was inexorably drawn to follow.
