Read Online The Church of Dead Girls by Stephen Dobyns - Free Book Online
Authors: Stephen Dobyns
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ashes on the floor.
Aaron approached in a relaxed manner and Cindy said they expected him to say something, maybe make a joke of his own. When he reached the table, Aaron winked at Hark, then bent over to speak to him in private. Hark was surprised but he leaned forward so that Aaron could say something in his ear. Aaron had never spoken to him. Otherwise, most likely, Hark wouldnât have leaned forward like that.
Instead of speaking, Aaron grabbed Harkâs ear with his teeth and bit down. Hark yelled. He kicked out at the table, knocking the glasses onto the floor. Hark grabbed Aaronâs shirt but the pain must have been excruciating. Aaron backed up, dragging Hark out of his chair. He had most of Harkâs ear in his mouth. Hark kept trying to hit Aaron, but he was stumbling and kept yelling. Junior hurried out from behind the counter. Aaron dragged Hark backward as he bit down. Then he clamped his teeth shut and gave Hark a shove. Hark staggered across the restaurant, holding his hands to his bloody ear. Aaron stood by the door, then he reached in his mouth and removed something. It was Harkâs ear, three-fourths of it, at least.
Junior shouted at Aaron, âGive it back!â Presumably he thought that the ear could be sewn back on. Of course everyone else was shouting as well.
Aaron put the ear back in his mouth and began to chew it. His white shirt was covered with Harkâs blood. Hark himself was lying on the floor with his knees drawn up, screaming. Cindy was with him but most of the kids just watched Aaron chew up Harkâs ear. Then Aaron spat it out and the ear plopped down on the white marble floor. One of the boys described it as looking like those chewable wax Halloween lips: a pink formless blob, lying on the white marble and half across a green plastic straw that someone had dropped.
Aaron ran his tongue around the inside of his mouth and glanced around him with perfect calm. Junior called the police.
Aaron spent several hours in jail before being bailed out by his father. During his last years of high school he seemed to despise his father. They were never together and in school Aaron would pass him without even a nod. And Chuck Hawley told me that when Patrick picked up his son at the police station, Aaron refused to look at him.
Although Aaron was charged with assault, the matter never came to trial. Many people said how Hark had tormented Aaron. It must have been clear that Aaron wouldnât be convicted. Instead, it was decided that he should seek psychological counseling. He didnât return to school but studied at home and took special tests. He was an A student and had already been accepted at Buffalo. The point was to keep him out of school because he was certain to cause a disruption.
Hark stayed out of school as well. There was no question of the earâs being replaced. Aaron had chewed it to a lump. The ear was put in formaldehyde and kept as evidence. Chuck Hawley told me it was quite an item at the police station. Deputies from other towns and even state troopers showed up to look at it.
Aaron went off to college. Patrick continued to teach. Janice worked in Norwich and had her boyfriends. Once during the summer I saw Hark on the street. He had a bandage over the place where his ear had been. Later it healed to a pink scar. Hark let his hair grow over it. I donât know if plastic surgery could have given him another ear or if he chose not to do it. Patrick certainly would have paid for it.
Aaron was gone for three years. I suppose he might not have come back if it hadnât been for the death of his mother. It isnât new to say that a town is like a family. Even strangers share your experiences. You drive down the same streets, shop at the same stores. Nobody could be more of an outsider than I am, but Janiceâs death was a rude invasion into my life as well. It affected how I saw the world, how I saw my neighbors. If it did that for me,
Aaron approached in a relaxed manner and Cindy said they expected him to say something, maybe make a joke of his own. When he reached the table, Aaron winked at Hark, then bent over to speak to him in private. Hark was surprised but he leaned forward so that Aaron could say something in his ear. Aaron had never spoken to him. Otherwise, most likely, Hark wouldnât have leaned forward like that.
Instead of speaking, Aaron grabbed Harkâs ear with his teeth and bit down. Hark yelled. He kicked out at the table, knocking the glasses onto the floor. Hark grabbed Aaronâs shirt but the pain must have been excruciating. Aaron backed up, dragging Hark out of his chair. He had most of Harkâs ear in his mouth. Hark kept trying to hit Aaron, but he was stumbling and kept yelling. Junior hurried out from behind the counter. Aaron dragged Hark backward as he bit down. Then he clamped his teeth shut and gave Hark a shove. Hark staggered across the restaurant, holding his hands to his bloody ear. Aaron stood by the door, then he reached in his mouth and removed something. It was Harkâs ear, three-fourths of it, at least.
Junior shouted at Aaron, âGive it back!â Presumably he thought that the ear could be sewn back on. Of course everyone else was shouting as well.
Aaron put the ear back in his mouth and began to chew it. His white shirt was covered with Harkâs blood. Hark himself was lying on the floor with his knees drawn up, screaming. Cindy was with him but most of the kids just watched Aaron chew up Harkâs ear. Then Aaron spat it out and the ear plopped down on the white marble floor. One of the boys described it as looking like those chewable wax Halloween lips: a pink formless blob, lying on the white marble and half across a green plastic straw that someone had dropped.
Aaron ran his tongue around the inside of his mouth and glanced around him with perfect calm. Junior called the police.
Aaron spent several hours in jail before being bailed out by his father. During his last years of high school he seemed to despise his father. They were never together and in school Aaron would pass him without even a nod. And Chuck Hawley told me that when Patrick picked up his son at the police station, Aaron refused to look at him.
Although Aaron was charged with assault, the matter never came to trial. Many people said how Hark had tormented Aaron. It must have been clear that Aaron wouldnât be convicted. Instead, it was decided that he should seek psychological counseling. He didnât return to school but studied at home and took special tests. He was an A student and had already been accepted at Buffalo. The point was to keep him out of school because he was certain to cause a disruption.
Hark stayed out of school as well. There was no question of the earâs being replaced. Aaron had chewed it to a lump. The ear was put in formaldehyde and kept as evidence. Chuck Hawley told me it was quite an item at the police station. Deputies from other towns and even state troopers showed up to look at it.
Aaron went off to college. Patrick continued to teach. Janice worked in Norwich and had her boyfriends. Once during the summer I saw Hark on the street. He had a bandage over the place where his ear had been. Later it healed to a pink scar. Hark let his hair grow over it. I donât know if plastic surgery could have given him another ear or if he chose not to do it. Patrick certainly would have paid for it.
Aaron was gone for three years. I suppose he might not have come back if it hadnât been for the death of his mother. It isnât new to say that a town is like a family. Even strangers share your experiences. You drive down the same streets, shop at the same stores. Nobody could be more of an outsider than I am, but Janiceâs death was a rude invasion into my life as well. It affected how I saw the world, how I saw my neighbors. If it did that for me,
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