Ophelia Drowned

Chapter 5

At the end of the session I didn't feel any better. On the way home I told my mom to save her money and forget about therapy. It wasn't helping. She grumbled something about how Dr. Felix had come to her highly recommended and that I would just have to try harder.

I didn't ask where she got recommendations. It seemed like a macabre discussion topic for the water cooler but my Mom didn't have a life beyond her job so I could only imagine she had gotten this from a work associate.

Things were going back to normal. I would go back to school in a week- I had asked my Mom for more time but she was adamantly against it. I had a mountain of homework to catch up with, no interest in even attempting it, and -to make matters worse- she was going away again.

"It won't be long- I'm lucky to even have this chance," she said as we pulled up to the house. I was leaning my head against the window, watching the snow and pavement roll by while I tapped the glass. "Most people wouldn't give a second chance to a woman who goes running out of their meeting like that-"

She stopped talking as the car stopped and I looked up. There was a black bike leaned against the garage.

"Well, who does that belong to?" asked Mom, who liked to suppose that she knew all of Ellie's friends and their respective modes of transportation.

"Josh?" I guessed, just to see the color drain out of mom's face.

Josh was the boy she had caught Ellie making out with at a neighbor's party last summer. It had been a blow to her belief that Ellie was still the little girl who used to collect ballerina figurines and pretend that she was married to Elmo. So far as I knew Josh was a nonentity in Ellie's life these days but I liked the reaction his name got anyways.

Mom got out of the car and forgot to turn it off. She slammed the door and went marching towards the house. I took the keys out of the ignition and followed. Chances were good that this was going to be an encounter I didn't want to miss. When I got inside I found Mom striding through the living room, back towards the kitchen. I could hear Ellie's voice and- surprise, surprise- a lower one.

Mom disappeared beyond the kitchen entryway and I heard her start off with Ellie's name. But the rant that should have come after this didn't. Her tone dropped to pleasant.

"Oh, it's you- I thought- oh, never mind that-"

I set the car keys onto the coffee table and walked into the kitchen as well. Mom was already fidgeting awkwardly with the coffee maker. Standing in the middle of the kitchen, in his dark ratty jacket and black boots was Hex. I think I stared a little too long. I really couldn't believe he was back. When he caught sight of me a smile lit his face. Honestly.

"Maggie," he said. "Hi- I just came by to see how you were today and.. um.. Ellie let me in."

I glanced at her. Ellie was in the corner, arms folded, lips pursed as if she had just eaten a lemon. It was more emotion than I had seen her wear in well over a year. She caught me looking at her and looked as if she would say something but then she just scowled and walked past me, putting her earphones back in.

"..hi," I said, looking back at Hex. "I'm fine, I guess..."

"You look good," he admitted, and then added. "You look better-"

"Are you joining us for dinner tonight, Hector?" Mom interrupted him, graciously. "Our options are a little better than last time."

"No thanks, I told my Mom I'd be back before dark."

"Well she can come too," she insisted. "We'd love to have her over."

"No, thanks. She's..uh..she's not feeling well today," he said. He turned back to look at me. " I was just wondering if we could hang out sometime.."

Hang out? I admit this was the last thing I had expected to be asked today.

"I guess," I replied, tentatively. It wasn't the most enthusiastic response but I was beginning to think there was something seriously wrong with him. After putting my weird on display last time I didn't really think there was a chance in hell he'd ever come back, no less want to hang out. But hey- I collected suicides didn't I? Maybe he collected weirdos.

"Is that your phone?" he asked, after another uncomfortable silence that seemed to be a problem we had in common. He pointed to the cellphone that was plugged into the wall by the microwave. I hadn't brought it with because no one was calling me anyways. I nodded and he took it, dialed a number and checked his own cellphone quick.

"Got it," he said. "I'll call you tomorrow."

With that he said a quick goodbye to my mom, gave me a final half raised wave and showed himself out of the house. That was bizarre, I thought.

"What a nice boy," said Mom.