-What are you doing? I made macaroni and cheese.
-Shhhh, he said, and motioned across the lawn, to a lit window. In the window was a woman, late 20’s or early 30’s. She was facing away from the two of them, standing in front of a mirror and concentrating hard on lacing herself up into a black corset. She tugged at the laces with red fingernails, then twisted to try to see her back in the mirror. Tug, twist. Tug, twist.
-That looks difficult, said Helena
-She’s been at it for 10 minutes, said Sam.
The woman was pretty, as far as they could tell. She seemed nervous.
-Have you spoken to Pierce? Helena
-Pierce. Pierce. Don’t you ever talk about anyone but Pierce? Said Sam.
-I just thought you might want to talk about it, she said.
- Well, I don’t. He’s not interested anymore. Meesha said she saw him dancing for hours with some undergrad, then they disappeared, said Sam, between puffs.
-That doesn’t mean---
-That’s enough, ok? Please? Sam reached down to the grass and pulled out a clump, letting it slip through his fingers back to the soil.
The woman disappeared from the room for a moment, and came back with a big glass of dark red wine. She stood in front of the mirror with the wine glass in her hand, leaned forward and said something to her reflection. Then she leaned back and laughed a little, took a sip of wine, and posed with her hand on her hip.
- I’m going to Nashville next weekend, said Helena
-Do you love your plants? said Sam.
-Love? My plants? said Helena
- Yeah. Do you love them? Sam chuckled a little at the corset clad neighbor, who was frantically fluffing her hair.
- You are being ridiculous, said Helena
-Why are you? Sam asked.
- I asked you first.
- It makes me feel real, he said.
- Don’t give me a film school answer, she said. That’s such shit.
- It does, he said. I think I love her, he said.
-Love her? Said Helena
- I didn’t say I want to have sex with her, he said. I said I love her. I don’t want to have sex with everyone I love. Do you want to have sex with your plants?
- Umm, I -
- I think you should know that Pierce called me, said Helena
- Oh, said Sam, who couldn’t think of anything else to say.
- He misses you, she said.
- Oh, said Sam, who couldn’t think of anything else to say.
Suddenly there were two people in the bedroom. The man had removed his jacket and the woman was pulling him by the hand. She went to her dresser, where she had left the big glass of dark wine. She lifted up her glass to him, other hand still holding his, and said a few words before he leaned in to kiss her. He reached his arm around her waist and put his other hand behind her head. She dipped. She stood back up, secured her wine glass on the dresser, and unzipped the back of her dress. The top slid off to reveal her carefully laced corset and carefully positioned chest.
The man looked at the woman, took a sip of her wine, and then turned off the lights. The room went dark and so did the little pool of light that had shown on the grass in front of the glass. Helena
- Fucking romantics, said Sam. They spoil all the fun.
- I think the macaroni is getting cold, said Helena
