The Silvers by Jill Smith

Author:Jill Smith [Smith, Jill]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Bold Strokes Books
Published: 2014-01-31T16:00:00+00:00

*

Bridique brings Imms newspaper clippings. “I thought you might like to see what the world’s saying about you.”

Imms glances at the headlines: “E.T. flees cops.” “NRCSE makes a ‘hash’ of Silver dealings.” “Silver Tongue: how the creature from the Silver Planet talked its way out of an arrest.”

“You’re a sensation,” Brid says.

“Yeah.” Imms turns from a tabloid cover reading, “‘I only wanted to make the pain go away’: Alien spills truth about life on Earth.”

“You could hang them on your wall. Or make a scrapbook.” She eyes him. “Hey, what’s wrong?”

“Nothing.” Imms tries to smile.

Nothing is what’s wrong. An empty place is inside him, an arena that memories enter, one after another, like performers in a circus. Flames, leaping like acrobats. The cool water of a silver lake, as mesmerizing in its grace as a dancer on horseback. A black sky, once the only thing Imms knew. Now that sky is temporary, the darkness between acts. He spends nights waiting for the curtain to rise, the lights to come up. The distractions to begin.

“Mary and I need some help clearing gutters. Think we could borrow your muscles?”

“I should ask.”

“I called Captain Universe. He says it’s fine. I promised I wouldn’t let you buy weed or bone minors or anything like that.”

“Oh.”

Bridique looks at him closely. “I’m just teasing.” She sits at the table. “It must have been rough, huh?”

“It was fine.”

“I’m sure it wasn’t.”

“I thought I—”

“What?” Bridique asks.

“Never mind.”

“Spit it out, rock star.”

“I wanted to do something alone.” He looks at her. “B thinks I did it because he wouldn’t take me to the park. But I just wanted…”

“I know,” Brid says. “Believe me.” She drums the table. “We all need to fuck up on our own terms. You wouldn’t be hu—well, you’d be a rare bird if you didn’t.”

“I don’t want to be alone anymore. It sucked. The big one.”

Bridique laughs. “Next time’ll be better. How about some gutter-clearing to get your mind off it?”

Imms likes the work. He scoops handfuls of wet leaves, enjoying their slickness, their smell. He wonders how it must feel to be washed from place to place by rain. When it rains, Imms always stands outside. He knows B wants to tell him not to, but B keeps quiet, letting Imms soak.

Mary and Bridique’s neighbor helps, too. His name is Don Welbert, and Imms likes him. He doesn’t stare at Imms’s skin or ask questions about the Silver Planet. He mostly talks about sports, and when they all go in for a break, Don turns on the TV and explains the rules of baseball to Imms, Mary correcting him now and then. She knows more about the game than Don.

Mary serves blueberry pie, and Imms tells her about the book he’s reading—Tom’s Midnight Garden.

“You ought to meet my son,” Don says to Imms around a mouthful of pie. “You two would get along. He likes books.”

“You’re son’s half-wild,” Brid says.

“Better half-wild than half-witted,” Don says. “He’ll be home from school at Thanksgiving. I’ll have him give you a call.

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