Famous musician, Cory Hartley, has plans to end his own life. When rekindling an old flame that never died, Cory finds himself at a crossroads, as he copes with the traumatic death of his best friend. Forced to face the past that's haunted him for a...
"I was taking him to the house off Maple to show him what all I've done to it and... we passed the intersection-"
"Yeah, I don't go that way. Why the hell would you take him that route?"
"It's quicker," Alida shrugged, "I didn't mean to, I... I didn't think about it."
Brian shook his head, finishing up his desert. Her father's disappointment was evident by the look on his face.
"I always thought you and Cory would end up together. Ask your Mom—didn't I always used to say that? I'll never forget the time I took him home after practice—you were in the backseat—you couldn't have been any more than thirteen years old. When that boy turned around to tell you goodbye... the look on his face," Brian laughed, "And your face. It was as if that was the first time you two ever laid eyes on each other."
"I remember you telling me about that. It was like love at first, even though they saw each other nearly everyday. I think it was the first time Aidan wasn't around though," SusaBeth laughed, "you told me—you said, "that's him—that's gonna be the son-in-law so we better start getting used to him." SusaBeth's face flushed with laughter as Brian nodded in agreement.
"Cory was Aidan's friend—he didn't approve of it, so... you know, whatever Aidan wanted, he got." Alida wanted to roll her eyes, but refrained—in due respect to her parents. There was one thing, however, that Aidan had not gotten his way on.
"Aidan was just scared of losing his only friend. I think Cory was about the only one that genuinely looked after him. All of Aidan's other friends used him, it was like high school hierarchy." SusaBeth confessed.
"Which is crazy because Aidan wasn't great at anything—except being popular... and being an asshole." Alida snickered, wishing Aidan were still around to hear her say it.
She imagined the lengths he'd go to in order to prove her wrong about his mediocrity. She was sure she'd be on her back by now—his sweaty armpit pressing again her face, demanding that she take it back or suffer the consequences.
"I think Aidan was more worried about you ending up pregnant. He saw you as a kid—kids making kids-" Brian spoke confidently on his opinion, only to have SusaBeth interrupt just to agree.
"It would've been a blessing though, honestly. Instead of Zora's Father—unlike him—Cory at least would've stuck around."
Alida inhaled deeply, sliding her phone out of her pocket to distract from the very obvious elephant in the room her parents couldn't see.
She was shocked to see that she had a missed call and text message—from Gretchen.
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"Would you guys mind keeping Zora tonight? Gretchen just texted me, she wants me to meet her at the bar—she needs to talk to me about something."
"Of course! We'll have her home right after service tomorrow." SusaBeth smiled.
Alida returned the expression, but only because she knew Zora would have a dozen contradictions in regards to said service when it was over—Alida was not looking forward to that.
"I'm gonna leave now—I don't wanna be there all night, so I'm gonna go on and tell Zora goodbye." Alida started out of the kitchen, making her way up the stairs to enter the guest room—the guest room that Zora had taken over.
She knocked twice before entering, smiling when seeing her at the crafts table, drawing.
"Hey."
"Hey." Zora repeated before going back her sketch.
"So, Gram and Poppy are gonna keep you tonight, is that okay? Aunt Gretchen wants to talk to me, so I gotta meet her down at The Pocket."
With that, Zora stopped coloring. She set the pencil down, turning to face Alida. "Cory's supposed to come over tonight—he said that he would be back Saturday."
"He said he may come back Saturday." Alida corrected. Zora would not win this particular debate—Alida knew Cory more than she did—and history had a funny way of repeating itself.
"He wouldn't have said it if he hadn't planned to."
Alida sighed, "Cory is full of wishes and wants, but Cory rarely delivers."
"Are you trying to say that Cory is unreliable?" Zora asked.
"In a nutshell, yes—that's what I'm saying." Zora continued to stare at Alida—her eyes burning right through her. "Look, expecting Cory to keep his word is like... expecting the Easter Bunny to show up on Christmas. He's never there when you need him, but there when you least expect him."
"Are you saying he's never coming back?"
"I don't know, Zora. I honestly don't know. But expecting him to come back... it's folly on your part."
Zora rolled her eyes, turning back around to continue with her drawing. "That's a pretty big word, Spinster—especially for someone that is a fool."
Alida scoffed, "I know I'm a fool, but I'm not gonna be fooled again, that's sheer folly. Cory left me—he just left me... when I needed him the most. I know he's great, he's... he's amazing. And although I still care about him and... a part of me even still loves him." Zora turned around, giving Alida her undivided attention, "But I don't trust Cory not to leave again. That'd be foolish—on my part. So save yourself some grief, okay? It's alright to hope he'll come back around, but don't expect him to... okay?"
Alida kissed Zora's temple, hoping that what she said would resonate with her.
"I love you. You be good for Gram and Poppy, okay? And please don't tease them about the plot holes in tomorrow's service, alright? I'll never hear the end of it if you do."
