Fay: A Novel by Brown Larry

Author:Brown, Larry [Brown, Larry]
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Publisher: Algonquin Books
Published: 2000-03-30T16:00:00+00:00

All the shops and stores along the beach road had shut down now, nothing but empty parking lots and dark windows. The only lights came from the few gas stations that were open around the clock.

“Dead as a hammer this time of night,” he said, to nobody in particular, and they didn’t answer. He drove on through the rest of the green lights and put on his blinker to turn across both lanes and back into the parking lot of the Love Cage. It was empty except for Reena’s car.

“I guess Arthur’s done gone,” she said. She flipped her butt out the window when he brought the El Camino to a halt. Fay could feel both of them looking at her and she knew that she was expected to say something now.

“Well?” Reena said. “You want to go back to that crackerbox with me or you want to sleep in a real bed for a change?”

Aaron looked away and out the window. He turned the music down. Reena nudged her leg with her knee, made a motion with her eyes, one that meant Go with him. Fay cleared her throat and turned her face to him.

“You don’t think your mama will mind?” she said.

“Naw,” he said to the night outside the window. But then he looked back at her. “You don’t have to go if you don’t want to.”

She sipped at the Coke, then put it back in her lap.

“Okay,” she said. “I believe I will.”

Reena opened her door immediately and got out.

“I’ll see y’all in a minute,” she said, and reached into the bed for her groceries and started over to her car, fishing in her pocket for her keys. Fay sat close to him on the middle of the seat, reluctant to stay that close to him, but more reluctant to slide over to the other side and maybe have him think she didn’t want to be that close to him.

He turned his head a fraction.

“You can move over if you want to.”

She scooted over a few inches and felt him studying her. Reena was getting into her car. She heard the engine start and then the headlights came on, then the backup lights.

“Say you got to get your suitcase?” he said.

“Yeah. It’s up at Reena’s. Won’t take me but a minute to go in and get it.”

He was already turning the wheel. Reena’s car swung around backward and then it stopped and came forward by them. He pulled it into drive and followed her out.

He didn’t say anything through the other traffic lights and through the turn up the street or gliding up the hill under the street lamps and his silence made her nervous. She figured maybe he was just one of those people who didn’t say much. That was okay. She could be that way too sometimes. There had been lots of times when she and Sam hadn’t talked much, were comfortable enough with each other in their quiet.

Reena’s taillights went out of sight ahead of them around a curve.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.