"Friends and Lovers" - A Short Story

Friends and Lovers

By, C. Heidi Drew

May 20, 2008

"Adele, I'm leaving!" George called from the front hall.

"Email me when you get there," Adele yelled back from the kitchen sink where she was cleaning up the morning dishes.

"What, no kiss?" He said as he reappeared in the kitchen.

"Well, my hands are wet. Come here."

She dried her hands on the dish towel hanging on the refrigerator handle next to the sink and turned around to give him a kiss. George took his lap top computer in its case and headed to the garage.

"Do you need help with your bags?" Adele offered, but there was no reply as the door banged shut.

I guess he didn't hear me, Adele thought as she continued with the clean up of the kitchen and considered what she was going to do with her day, next. It occurred to Adele that she enjoyed the missing of George as much as she enjoyed his being home…if not more. She had no doubt that she loved him but the emotion of missing him was more exciting than their usual interactions and when George came home after one of his business trips, there was always something new that had some sort of affect on their lives other than the usual routines of daily living. That's what happens after ten years of marriage, she dismissed

Adele had recently sold her floral business because it was more work than profit. The problem for her now was she didn't know what she wanted to do with her life. She wasn't able to get pregnant and she didn't want to adopt. She decided she wasn't enough of a fan of children to raise a kid she hadn't spawned. When her friends who had already had children became mothers, their children were the only thing they could talk about. What a bore!

Coming back into the present, she recalled, she was meant to meet Inez today for lunch. Inez was a very busy woman with her varied pursuits of new experience but having children wasn't one of them either, nor was having a lover, it seemed. Presently Inez was taking an acting class. She had asked Adele to bring a novel Inez had lent her because Inez wanted to find a scene in it that she was hoping to deliver for her final monologue presentation. The theme assigned for the monologue was one where the character was grappling with homosexuality.

First, she remembered, Adele had to phone their mutual friend, Simone who was relocating to Seattle for a new job. Everyone expected Adele to be heartbroken about Simone leaving Massachusetts but Simone had been complaining for so long about the northeast provincial attitudes and blustery, cold Boston winters that Adele was just happy and relieved for Simone. It occurred to her that Inez seemed happy to not have the competition for Adele's friendship even though Inez had so many more friends than Adele had or maybe even, needed. When Simone and Inez became friends, Inez had scolded Adele for giving Simone a party. "You never gave me a party and we've known each other much longer."

"But, I've made you lots of birthday bouquets, Inez," Adele had responded. "Besides, you told me you don't like to make a big deal out of birthdays and Simone does."

"Forget it; let's not make such a big deal of this," Inez shut her up as if Adele had started the whole conflict in the first place and the following year Inez started throwing her own birthday parties for herself. She was a social animal.

Simone wasn't home when Adele rang her. She thought that she was probably running around getting last minute things done. Her husband, Lucas had already left for the west coast because he had a gig out there. Lucas was a jazz pianist. Adele left a message on her voice mail, "Hi Simone, please be sure to call me before you go. This time leave a message and if you change your mind about taking a cab to the airport, my offer still stands to drive you. It doesn't matter that your flight is at seven in the morning; you can just spend the night. George is away on a case."

Then Adele changed into one of her more unusual outfits thinking; Inez had such interesting clothes and she didn't want to appear as boring as she felt wearing her more comfortable clothes around Inez's theater crowd.

Inez was waiting in the parking lot in front of the community theater when Adele arrived. "Do you have my book?" Inez asked immediately.

"Of course, but I didn't get to finish it. It's such a fat book. How are you ever going to find that scene where the one nun is seducing the other? I haven't come across it, yet."

"I don't know but the story isn't written in first person so I then have to rewrite it as if I'm one of the two nuns coming to terms with the seduction by this afternoon. Do you mind if I skip lunch today? We're meant to read our monologues this afternoon and perform it memorized next week," Inez informed her. "Will you come see it?"

"Not a problem. It's not like I'm terribly busy, now and I just ate breakfast, anyway."

When Adele got home there was a message on her answering machine from Simone. She sounded odd and just asked Adele to call back. As it turned out, Simone had decided that she wanted to stay overnight at Adele's and get a ride to the airport in the morning. "I have to tell you something in person before I go," she said just before disconnecting.

This was going to be fun. Adele hadn't had an overnight with a girlfriend since she married George. At about four o'clock that afternoon, George phoned her and she told him about Inez's final assignment in her acting class and about Simone spending the night that night. They joked that maybe Inez was a closet lesbian and would feel slighted by Simone's overnight.

"I'll call you if anything changes with this case but I should be back by Friday," George told her. He was a Plymouth county district attorney and there was a sexually dangerous person in prison that he was trying to get civilly committed to Bridgewater State Hospital before his prison term was up. The prisoner had repeatedly molested young men and showed no remorse. When George had a sex crime case, his specialty at his firm, they often joked about sex to lighten the harsh reality of all the perversion in the world.

Simone arrived at Adele's by taxi around six o'clock with her two bags, a backpack and her lap top computer. "Can I just put my suitcases in your car so I don't have to carry them out there at dawn? I've got tomorrow's clothes, my book and my cosmetic bag in my backpack."

"No problem. Here're the car keys. I'm making us eggplant parmesan for dinner and I bought some chocolate chip ice cream for dessert, if you want. I was thinking we could make pop corn and watch a movie later, too," Adele suggested but Simone was already out the door with her big bags. No one really cares what I have to say, Adele thought and then she remembered that Simone had said on the phone that she had something to tell her that seemed important. When Simone reentered the kitchen she appeared distraught. "So what do you have to tell me?"

"Can I have a glass of wine?" Simone begged.

"Sure, help yourself." Adele watched Simone get down two wine glasses and pour them each a large glass of red wine.

"Stop staring at me!" Simone bawled. Adele turned back to the stove and dipped another piece of eggplant into the egg batter, then the seasoned flour. Their first pour of wine usually opened up to frivolous chit chat but the silence then felt palpable to Adele. Suddenly, Simone blurted out, "I've got breast cancer."

"Oh God, Simone!... When did you find out?" Adele turned to face her with a pained look. "And you're still moving all the way out to Seattle where you have no friends or relatives to support you?"

"I'll have my husband! And I have a job there so I'll have my medical insurance to pay for my treatments. You know that Lucas, as a session musician doesn't have insurance."

"Yea, and Lucas is always traveling and hardly ever around," Adele responded. "Doesn't it take a few weeks for your insurance to kick in and won't they deny you treatment if you were diagnosed before you got the insurance? What does Lucas say about all this?"

"I haven't told him," Simone confessed. "That's what I wanted to talk to you about tonight."

"Me?" Adele cried. "Why talk to me? I'm still too afraid to tell George that I don't really want to have a baby, now."

"It's the hip new thing to not want children," Simone told her. "Just ask Inez. Everyone in her theater group is childless except that one single mother friend of hers that brings her kid everywhere she goes and just expects everyone else to watch him. They claim there are too many children on this earth already."

"That's easy for them to say; probably because most of them are gay," Adele added.

"I think Inez is gay, too you know," Simone told her. "She sort of came onto me when we said our good-byes this weekend."

"What? How? I mean, why do you think so? Are you sure?"

"No, but she kissed me squarely on the lips and told me she loved me." Simone told Adele.

"That's just Inez's overly dramatic way. It doesn't mean she's gay," Adele declared. "But who cares about that? Do you and Lucas want kids? I mean this will probably have a lot of impact on his life too, you know. He needs to know about your...situation." Suddenly, Adele felt like a hypocrite.

"It's okay, Adele you can say the "c" word." Simone said. "Lucas and I talk about kids but because I'm the steady income earner, that's all we do, talk about it in the abstract. Besides, we're apart too much with his musical career, to raise and support a kid."

"Well, now you're going to need him to be your support," Adele declared. "Or," she paused. "Stay here. I'll be your support."

"I wish you could come to Seattle," Simone responded and then they both took long, slow swallows of their wine. Adele, not knowing what to say, turned back to the counter to continue preparation of their dinner.

"Can I help?" Simone offered glad for the normalcy of this task and then the phone rang.

"Yes," Adele responded. "You can answer that. I've got eggy, flour fingers."

Simone picked up the hand set of the phone and checked the caller i.d. "It's Inez," She clicked the "on" button then said to Adele. "You want to talk to her?"

"Not now." Adele said, holding up her messy fingers. Simone hung up the phone again. "I'll call her later. Have you told her about…?" She gestured to her own breasts.

"It's okay, you can say it; but no, I haven't told her about the breast cancer. She's never been one I think of to turn to with female problems. She seems so tough and resilient."

"I know what you mean but breast cancer isn't really a female thing. It's the cancer part of it that anyone can sympathize with," Adele said as she washed and dried her hands.

"I guess I'm not looking for sympathy. I just need support."

"Talk to Lucas." Adele went to the blinking phone and held out the hand piece to Simone. She then turned back to her cooking and placed the casserole of eggplant in the oven. Next thing was to make a salad. She took another gulp of her wine and got out the various makings along with butter and garlic for the French baguette. Simone retreated into the guest room and sat down on the bed staring at the phone. Suddenly the bed felt so good that she lay down and resting the phone on her stomach. Mentally drained, Simone faded into an restless sleep.

She dreamed of seeing her childhood friend, Jennifer on a playground that had a tower resembling the space needle in Seattle. Then they were kissing. Lucas appeared on a stage in the background and was singing to all of them the refrain from "Danny's Song" by, Loggins and Messina, "Even though we ain't got money I'm so in love with you honey and everything will bring a chain of love. In the morning when I rise bring a tear of joy to my eyes and tell me everything is going to be alright."

She woke with a start when the phone rang on Simone's belly. Automatically, she turned it off.

Immediately then, Adele's cell phone rang out in the front hall where she had left it in her purse. When Adele scrambled for it, George asked her why she hung up on him. She told him about her current situation and Simone's bad news to explain that it was probably Simone who hung up on him. He concurred that Simone could stay with them longer if she needed to. "Anyway, I rang to tell you that I'll be back tomorrow. My client was committed to the state hospital's psychiatric ward today."

Simone came out of the guest room a bit disheveled from sleep. "I hung up on someone; I'm sorry. I never did call Lucas because I fell asleep. I guess I'm too tired tonight," She confessed. "I'll talk to Lucas when I see him in Seattle. Telling him from here isn't going to change anything. I know how much you care, Adele but I've got to handle this diagnosis my own way." She paused and added, "When it comes down to it, we're really in this life all alone anyway, you know?"

"Yea, I guess," Adele pondered this lonely thought. "I'm really going to miss you, Simone."

"I'm not dying, you know!" Simone barked.

"I mean, now that you're really moving all the way across the country."

"Come visit."

"Okay," Adele said. "Dinner's ready. Let's eat. You need to fatten up for chemorexia." and they laughed.

As they were setting the table the phone rang again and without looking, Adele picked it up. She didn't really believe in screening calls; it only put off the inevitable and she hated it when people forgot to call back so she tried to treat people the way she wanted to be treated.

"Hi, Adele?" Inez barked, launching into her with, "Why did you say you didn't want to talk to me? Was that Simone? I thought she went to Seattle."

"Hi Inez; I was cooking when you called before and now we're about to sit down." She looked at Simone with an, I'm sorry look and Simone looked at Adele shaking her head with hand over her mouth. "Simone is leaving tomorrow morning and she wanted me to take her to the airport so she's spending the night. We're about to eat dinner. Can I call you tomorrow or is this important?"

Simone was grateful for her quick dismissal of the phone call and they proceeded with dinner in a rather subdued, contemplative way.

It worked out that Adele could pick up George at the airport only one hour after dropping off Simone the next morning.

On their way home from the airport, at Adele's interested questioning about George's trip, he told her with pleasure about the ease of his case and what would come next with it. Then Adele found the opportunity to unload all the difficulty of Simone's situation as it had played out. At that point, George offered more drama to the situation. "You do know that Lucas has the occasional affair when he's on the road, right?"

"What? No!" Adele declared.

"I think, actually, he may have had a one night stand with Inez."

Adele's eyes filled with tears. "So, your teasing about Inez being gay, was really just a joke, I guess."

"Yes, but don't interfere, Adele," George warned her. "Maybe Simone knows, maybe not, but they have to figure this out for themselves and unless she asks you, I wouldn't offer up anything. It'll be okay, Adele. Simone will be okay."

"I don't want to adopt a baby." Adele burst out. "I don't love babies, like you do. It would be just one more game playing human being with health issues draining the earth of its resources."

"Can we talk about this later?" George said, realizing how upsetting all of her friends' dramas could be for Adele. "I love you, sweetheart."

"How would you feel if I flew out to Seattle to support Simone through her chemo?" Adele suggested.

"Did she ask you to?" he questioned.

"No, but if she does…" Adele said. "I can't wait hear how it goes for her out there."

"Wait!" George commanded. "But of course, I wouldn't stop you from going."

"I love you, too, George."