Manny invited me to meet him for a drink at the local watering hole. It was a quiet place, none of the noise I had experienced in my one foray into a singles bar. Armed with our drinks we found an empty booth where we ordered some food. My understanding was that we were going to talk about a prospective partnership. Manny, however took up his story where he left off.
The four young people piled out of the Porsche. âHoly shit this throws a wrench in the fucking worksâ Susan whispered aside to him. âThe fucking Walmart expressâ She sounded totally disgusted. âFuckâ!
âThere has to be a good reason why Auntie Jean is hereâ, He whispered in her ear. âShe usually doesnât just drop in out of the blueâ.
Jean was lying on the couch with her head buried under a cushion.
âMomâ! Maria called. There was no response. âMomâ! , Maria removed the cushion covering her motherâs head.
Jean had obviously been crying.
âMomâ! Maria exclaimed. âWhatâs wrongâ?
Jean looked around the room with tear soaked eyes. âSit down dear, I have to tell all of you somethingâ.
âMomâ? Mariaâs voice was shaken.
Jean sat up and Susan and Maria sat on either side of her. Avril excused herself and went to her room. Manny sat on the edge of the coffee table facing the three ladies on the couch.
âYour father has left meâ, sobbed Jean.
âWhatâ? Maria was incredulous as Susan shot a questioning glance at Manny.
âHe left me to move in with Bonnie his secretaryâ Jean sobbed.
Maria recoiled; Manny could see the shock on her face. The news that her father had moved in with Bonnie was obviously like a kick in the stomach.
âHe says theyâve been lovers for a couple of years, that he canât stand to be away from her any longerâ. Susan reached out for Jeanâs shaking hands. âWhat will we do dearâ? Jean asked Maria plaintively.
âDonât worry Mom, weâll be fine, honest we willâ The pain was very apparent in Mariaâs voice. âWeâll manageâ, as tears started to stream down her beautiful face.
Manny felt a lump in his throat. His lovely Mariaâs world had just been rocked and he didnât know what to do. He moved from the edge of the coffee table and squatted in front of Jean and Maria. âCâmereâ, He reached out and took Mariaâs head and Jeans head and pulled them on to his shoulders. âItâs OK to cryâ, He whispered as hot tears soaked his shirt.
He looked up and Susan was smiling at him âI Love Youâ She mouthed. Mannyâs knees were getting sore as Maria raised her head and looked at him through tear soaked eyes and sobbed âYour shoulder is wetâ.
âItâs Okâ He smiled at her âGoes with the territoryâ.
âCâmon lets get you two outside into the fresh airâ, Susan whispered. She gently took Mariaâs hand and pulled her onto her feet.
âAuntie Jean, you OKâ? Manny whispered. Jean nodded into his shoulder.
He stroked her hair, âCâmon letâs get you outsideâ. Manny stood up slowly and pulled Jean with him.
They joined Susan and Maria on the porch, where the three ladies sat on the couch.
âWhy donât I get us some drinksâ? Manny turned back into the cottage.
Susan followed him to the doorway. âListenâ, She whispered. âJean being here really fucks things upâ She glanced over to where Maria and Jean were sitting. âMaria and I always use the same room anyway, so that isnât out of the ordinary. What is though, is any of us shuffling around between roomsâ.
âI understandâ, Manny whispered. âFinding out that we three are in an incestuous relationship would push her over the edge. Donât worry, itâs O.K.â
âIt might be a good opportunity though for you and Avril to get togetherâ Susan poked him in the ribs.
âDonât be fucking stupid, Sheâs Gay. Or did you forget thatâ? Manny was surprised at what Susan had just said.
âWe donât think Sheâs as Gay as she thinks she isâ, Susan glanced around. âWeâve been noticing the way she watches you. Weâre pretty sure sheâs Bi. We donât think Avril knows sheâs Bi thoughâ.
âWhat if youâre wrongâ? Manny looked at her earnestly. âI like her a lot; Iâm not going to make a move that will drive her awayâ.
âWe know you like her, weâve been watching you tooâ Susan smiled. âItâs O.K. you have our blessing. Maria and I decided we want to bring her into the foldâ. Susan kissed him on the cheek âWhy donât we just see what happens, O.K.â?
âYou said she was just coming out of a relationship. That she didnât need any involvements or crapâ! Manny looked at his sister steadily.
âI know what I said. That was then, this is nowâ. Susan pushed past him. âWait hereâ.
His sister walked through the cottage to the room that she and Maria were sharing. She came back after a few moments, something in her hand.
âHereâ She said, âI hope you need theseâ. Susan handed him a package of condoms. âI picked them up in town from the machine in the ladies bathroom. Cost me a dollar a pieceâ.
âWhat theâ? Manny looked at the package.
âListen, Maria and I planned on seducing you. We went on the pill a few months ago. Avril didnât plan on anything. Get the pictureâ?
Susan went and sat with Maria and Jean. Manny stuffed the package into his pocket and went into the kitchen, butterflies in his stomach.
He poured three large glasses of wine, and he was just pouring himself a beer when he heard a noise behind him. He turned to see Avril smiling at him.
âProblemsâ? She asked, looking around.
âYea, big onesâ He whispered.
âThanks I would love a beerâ She nodded towards the bottle in his hand.
âIâm sorry, it was rude not to ask if you wanted oneâ He apologized. âLeo has left Jean to live with his secretaryâ.
âOuchâ! Avril whispered. âPoor Jean, poor Mariaâ
He handed her the beer. âHow are theyâ? She asked.
âIn a mess, theyâre both crying out on the porchâ. Manny nodded towards the door âWill you give me a handâ?
They picked up the glasses and headed towards the door.
Susan was sitting in the middle between Jean and Maria. Susan had an arm around each of them, comforting them. She looked up as Manny and Avril arrived. âThanksâ She smiled as Manny offered the wine.
The three ladies sat silently drinking their wine. The occasional sob escaped Jean, but Maria looked and sounded a bit better. âListen Iâll leave you lovely ladies here to talk. Iâm going to go sit on the dock and enjoy my beerâ Manny softly informed them.
âWant some companyâ? Avril asked.
âSure why not, that there dockâs big enough for both of usâ He was glad of the company.
The two young people walked out to the end of the dock. Manny sat down and removed his shoes, placing them on the dock beside him. âBetterâ He sighed âMuch betterâ.
âDo you think the dock is dirtyâ? Avril asked.
âProbably, it lives in the elements, for sure itâs dirtyâ He looked around him.
âI was going to join you down there, but I donât want to ruin my dress, Iâm going in to changeâ Avril turned towards the cottage.
âHereâ, Manny removed his shirt and placed it next to him. âSit on thisâ He smiled up at her.
Avril hesitated then kicking her shoes off sat next to Manny. âThank you, you didnât have to do that, I could have gotten changedâ. She drank some of her beer. âMm, this is niceâ She took a deep breath. âThe humidity is pretty bad though; itâs like trying to breath through a warm wet spongeâ.
Manny laughed. âIt was like this last night tooâ. As he said that a faint flash in the distant sky signaled an approaching thunderstorm.
âWhat was thatâ? Avril looked at him.
âThunderstorm, It may come this way, maybe notâ He took a swig of beer.
âHow far away is itâ? Avril brushed her hair away from her eyes.
âShe is so beautifulâ Manny mused, fascinated with the way the shadows danced on her face.
âA long way awayâ, He returned his attention to the distant horizon. âIt may not even get here, it could be headed north. Itâs a long way off thoughâ He turned to look at her. âDoes it bother youâ?
Avril said nothing she just gazed out over the lake.
âLook at the Fireflies dancing, arenât they gorgeousâ? She whispered.
âYou should have seen them last night, there were millions of themâ Manny took another drink. âThey dance around your head when you swimâ.
âYou swim at nightâ? Avril looked at him.
âSure, we go skinny dippingâ He chuckled.
âReallyâ? Avril sounded incredulous.