Read Online The Collected Stories of Deborah Eisenberg by Deborah Eisenberg - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Deborah Eisenberg
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“Good.” I don’t think he really remembered the things we had said in the dark.
When we stopped at the station, Chris put his arm across me, but instead of opening the door he just held the handle. “You think I’m really weird, don’t you?” he said, and smiled at me.
“I think you’re tired,” I said, making myself smile back. And Chris released the handle and let me out.
I took the train through the dawn and walked from the station, pausing carefully if it looked as though someone was awake inside a house I was passing. Once a dog barked, and I stood absolutely still for minutes.
I threw chunks from the lawn at Maureen’s window, so Carolina wouldn’t wake up, but I was afraid the whole town would be out by the time Maureen heard.
Maureen came down the back way and got me. We each put on one of her bathrobes, and we made a pot of coffee, which is something I’m not allowed to drink.
“What happened?” Maureen asked.
“I don’t know,” I said.
“What do you mean, you don’t know?” Maureen said. “You were there.”
Even though my face was in my hands, I could tell Maureen was staring at me. “Well,” she said after a while. “Hey. Want to play some Clue?” She got the Clue board down from her room, and we played about ten games.
The next week I really did stay over at Maureen’s.
“Again?” my mother said. “We must do something for Mrs. MacIntyre. She’s been so nice to you.”
Dougie and Kevin showed up together after Maureen and Carolina and I had eaten a barbecued chicken from the deli and Carolina had gone to her room to watch the little TV that Mrs. MacIntyre had put there. I figured it was no accident that Dougie had shown up with Kevin. It had to be a brainstorm of Maureen’s, and I thought, Well, so what. So after Maureen and Kevin went up to Maureen’s room I went into the den with Dougie. We pretty much knew from classes and books and stuff what to do, so we did it. The thing that surprised me most was that you always read in books about “stained sheets,” “stained sheets,” and I never knew what that meant, but I guess I thought it would be pretty interesting. But the little stuff on the sheet just looked completely innocuous, like Elmer’s glue, and it seemed that it might even dry clear like Elmer’s glue. At any rate, it didn’t seem like anything that Carolina would have to absolutely kill herself about when she did the laundry.
We went back into the living room to wait, and I sat while Dougie walked around poking at things on the shelves. “Look,” Dougie said, “Clue.” But I just shrugged, and after a while Maureen and Kevin came downstairs looking pretty pleased with themselves.
I sat while Dr. Wald finished at the machine, and I waited for him to say something, but he didn’t.
“Am I going to go blind?” I asked him finally, after all those months.
“What?” he said. Then he remembered to look at me and smile. “Oh, no, no. We won’t let it come to that.”
I knew what I would find at Jake’s, but I had to go anyway, just to finish. “Have you seen Chris?” I asked one of the waitresses. “Or Mark?”
“They haven’t been around for a while,” she said. “Sheila,” she called over to another waitress, “where’s Chris these days?”
“Don’t ask me,” Sheila said sourly, and both of them stared at me.
I could feel my blood traveling in its slow loop, carrying a heavy proudness through every part of my body. I had known Chris could injure me, and I had never cared how much he could injure me, but it had never occurred to me until this moment that I could do anything to him.
Outside, it was hot. There were big bins of things for sale on the sidewalk, and horns were honking, and the sun was yellow and syrupy. I noticed two people who must have been mother and daughter, even though you couldn’t really tell how old either of them was. One of them was sort of crippled, and the other was very
When we stopped at the station, Chris put his arm across me, but instead of opening the door he just held the handle. “You think I’m really weird, don’t you?” he said, and smiled at me.
“I think you’re tired,” I said, making myself smile back. And Chris released the handle and let me out.
I took the train through the dawn and walked from the station, pausing carefully if it looked as though someone was awake inside a house I was passing. Once a dog barked, and I stood absolutely still for minutes.
I threw chunks from the lawn at Maureen’s window, so Carolina wouldn’t wake up, but I was afraid the whole town would be out by the time Maureen heard.
Maureen came down the back way and got me. We each put on one of her bathrobes, and we made a pot of coffee, which is something I’m not allowed to drink.
“What happened?” Maureen asked.
“I don’t know,” I said.
“What do you mean, you don’t know?” Maureen said. “You were there.”
Even though my face was in my hands, I could tell Maureen was staring at me. “Well,” she said after a while. “Hey. Want to play some Clue?” She got the Clue board down from her room, and we played about ten games.
The next week I really did stay over at Maureen’s.
“Again?” my mother said. “We must do something for Mrs. MacIntyre. She’s been so nice to you.”
Dougie and Kevin showed up together after Maureen and Carolina and I had eaten a barbecued chicken from the deli and Carolina had gone to her room to watch the little TV that Mrs. MacIntyre had put there. I figured it was no accident that Dougie had shown up with Kevin. It had to be a brainstorm of Maureen’s, and I thought, Well, so what. So after Maureen and Kevin went up to Maureen’s room I went into the den with Dougie. We pretty much knew from classes and books and stuff what to do, so we did it. The thing that surprised me most was that you always read in books about “stained sheets,” “stained sheets,” and I never knew what that meant, but I guess I thought it would be pretty interesting. But the little stuff on the sheet just looked completely innocuous, like Elmer’s glue, and it seemed that it might even dry clear like Elmer’s glue. At any rate, it didn’t seem like anything that Carolina would have to absolutely kill herself about when she did the laundry.
We went back into the living room to wait, and I sat while Dougie walked around poking at things on the shelves. “Look,” Dougie said, “Clue.” But I just shrugged, and after a while Maureen and Kevin came downstairs looking pretty pleased with themselves.
I sat while Dr. Wald finished at the machine, and I waited for him to say something, but he didn’t.
“Am I going to go blind?” I asked him finally, after all those months.
“What?” he said. Then he remembered to look at me and smile. “Oh, no, no. We won’t let it come to that.”
I knew what I would find at Jake’s, but I had to go anyway, just to finish. “Have you seen Chris?” I asked one of the waitresses. “Or Mark?”
“They haven’t been around for a while,” she said. “Sheila,” she called over to another waitress, “where’s Chris these days?”
“Don’t ask me,” Sheila said sourly, and both of them stared at me.
I could feel my blood traveling in its slow loop, carrying a heavy proudness through every part of my body. I had known Chris could injure me, and I had never cared how much he could injure me, but it had never occurred to me until this moment that I could do anything to him.
Outside, it was hot. There were big bins of things for sale on the sidewalk, and horns were honking, and the sun was yellow and syrupy. I noticed two people who must have been mother and daughter, even though you couldn’t really tell how old either of them was. One of them was sort of crippled, and the other was very
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