She couldn't run from it forever. Once her dark secret catches her in a chokehold, Raven Rosario has only one choice to set herself free: pick up the phone and dial her ex's number.
|2018 Purple Eggplant Winner for Best Short Story|
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The rainfall was heavy when they finally arrived in the starry hours. Anxious, I was high up watching from the window, making out the scene through the pitter patter splashing against the glass. Larry popped an umbrella up for coverage as Raven stepped out of the car with Ace slumped over her shoulder. The car door shut and they jogged forward. When the shapes of them disappeared, I went in the bathroom to check on my appearance for the 10th time in the last 30 minutes.
Two new specs were found on my white vest, so I put the lint roller to it. I then started adjusting the collar of my black dress shirt, though it didn't need adjustment. I shined my cufflinks that didn't need shining. Perfection was within reach. I needed it. All that Raven and I scribbled on paper for the mailman was flashing back to me like life before death.
Throwing my hair brush down, I leaned over the sink. My mind was rewinding back further to the end of '87, when with one look into angel eyes, my world warped into another dimension. There, I was someone I never knew. I was weak.
That man from four years ago left when she did. I hadn't seen him since. He belonged to the alternate reality Raven and I shaped and wrecked. It's strange how nervous I was to see her again. Raven's love was like black ice. It takes you without warning, when it's too late and you're already spinning out of control. Maybe I was already there, skidding across the pavement. In the mirror, my identity was slipping down the drain the more I stared back at myself. I wondered if I'd see me come sunrise.
Snatching the ounce of lucidity I had left, I went to meet them in Ace's bedroom. Just as Raven was saying goodnight to Larry, I appeared in the doorway. "Hey, thanks," I said to him, slipping my hands in my pants pockets.
"Yup, you all have a nice night."
Raven thanked him as well and began slipping off her coat. "Hi."
"Hi." My heart was ticking like a time bomb. "You look nice."
"Thanks," she said moving towards the closet with her and Ace's coat. She looked well rested half past 3 AM. Her hair was blown out, probably got it done before she hopped on the plane, and her cranberry shirt cut off just before her jeweled belly button. And the make-up she wore accented her natural beauty well. "And as always," she said to me, "you're looking very dapper and fine yourself."
Grinning, I gave myself a once-over. "Thanks." Cutting away from studying her, I went to tuck Ace into the bed, pulling up the covers to his chin. I kissed one cheek and lingered on the other. I missed him. "You think he's gonna sleep all night?" I asked, thumb running through his curls.
"Yeah, he'll be fine."
"What if he has to use the bathroom?"
"He'll see the monitor. Thank you for doing all of this with the room." I had it decked out like his back in Galpin. Raven had only seen pictures of it. "It'll make him more comfortable."
