Chapter 24

Roxie was wearing her nicest white, silk blouse, even though it was summertime, and her ‘almost-too-tight’ black pants. She was sitting in the front room of her aunt’s house, waiting for Cal to show up. She looked at her watch: seven-fifteen.

“My perfume is going to wear off soon if he doesn’t hurry up and get here,” she said out loud.

It had been a long, hard day. She worked the morning shift at the diner, actually traded with Bonnie so she would have time to get ready. She had endured Millie’s mean little snipes about her date with Cal—she wished that she’d kept it a secret. Then, it was home to clean the place up and mow the lawn.

“I can’t let Cal think that I’m a slob.”

She had even abstained from cigarettes for the entire day, as she knew that that Cal didn’t smoke. Well, she did have one when she first got up that morning, but who was counting?

“He should be here by now.”

She jumped up and looked out the window when she heard a car passing by, but she knew that it wasn’t Cal, since she could hear the car speed by when it should have been slowing down. She had to make sure, just the same.

“I think I’ll call him.”

At first she didn’t think it was a good idea—looking like she was so unsure of herself to be was hunting him down, and Aunt Flora would never have approved—but waiting alone was driving her crazy and Aunt Flora wasn’t there to say anything.

She looked up Cal’s number in the phone book. She found his office number just above his residence. She took out her cell phone to punch in his residence number.

“Damn it! Battery’s dead. I must have forgotten to charge it.”

When Roxie’s aunt passed away she discontinued her land line as a way to save some money. She figured her cell phone would be all she needed. She plugged her cell phone in to the charging cord and dialed Cal’s home number. There was no answer.

“I’m giving him ‘til seven-thirty, and if he doesn’t show by then, I’m giving up!”

She had to admit that she’d been surprised when Cal asked her for a date, but to have Cal stand her up was a shock. Cal had never been a no-show kind of guy. That would have been Junior’s style. If she had been stood up for a date with Junior—and that had happened a time or two—she knew that he could probably be found at the pool table of the Dew Drop Inn.

The clock said seven-thirty and Roxie brushed back a tear.

“I guess Millie was right, after all. I’m just not Cal’s type. Cal must have come to his senses at the last minute. He wouldn’t want to be seen with the likes of me—just doesn’t know how to tell me.”

Maybe Cal was afraid for his career’s sake, with the Mayorship in play and all. She thought that he’d gotten over that when he told Homer Barlow to buzz off after the aborted City Council meeting. Sometimes calculations took some time and everyone has a right to change their mind—and everyone knew that Cal was the slow, calculating type.

She stood at the picture window in the living room. The silence was getting to her and she felt tears running down her cheeks again.

“There goes my makeup,” she had to admit to herself.

She made an abrupt about-face and dragged herself to the stairs. In a few moments she was in her bedroom taking off her silk blouse and black pants. She went into the bathroom washing the makeup off her face.

“I know where I belong and there I won’t need any makeup.”

She slipped on her jeans and a tank top and went back downstairs. She went into the kitchen where she’d hid her cigarettes in a cupboard. She took out the almost-full pack and lit one.

“I’m not going to hang around here all night.”

She took a few drags, expecting to feel a little buzz after abstaining for the whole day. It didn’t turn out that way. She felt the smoke burn its way down her throat. She took another drag and she felt the beginnings of a headache. She stamped the cigarette out in an ashtray.

“That was a bad one. The next one will be better.”

She knew it wouldn’t be better, but it was a habit that defied breaking, regardless how unpleasant it could be at times. There was always the next one that might be better.

“I’ve got no time to figure that out now. I know where I’m going.”

She shoved the pack into her handbag, which she slung over her shoulder, and marched out the door. Soon she was in her car traversing the road next to the railroad tracks. It wasn’t a long drive and she turned at the cutoff road marked by the red mailbox. A log cabin came into view. Junior’s pickup was parked in its usual place.

“Good! He hasn’t gone to town yet.”

She’d learned that if it was necessary to surprise Junior it was always a better idea to do so before he’d had a few than after. It was nearing eight o’ clock. Chances were that Junior had just returned from milking and was taking a shower before going into town. That would make him easier to reason with.

“He’s always more receptive without any clothes on.”

She knew her way in, so Roxie didn’t see any need to knock. If he was in the shower he wouldn’t have heard her, anyway. The door wasn’t locked, so she pushed it open and stepped through the front door.

The front room of the cabin was empty. She looked around and Roxie thought it was a lot more picked up than she had expected. Maybe Junior had expected her to show up. Maybe he already knew. Maybe Cal had said something to him. If so, everything would be easier.

She expected to hear the shower running, but didn’t. She was about to call out to him, but decided to play ‘guess who’ so she opened the bedroom door, being as quiet as she could, and took a step inside.

“What!” she gasped.

She was speechless as she took in the scene in Junior’s bedroom. She had always thought there was nothing about Junior which could ever surprise her, but ... She heard Junior’s throaty chuckle and then a few seconds of silence.

“Well, this is sure a surprise,” Junior chortled.

He was nude, sitting in bed—at least Roxie assumed he was nude. He was bare to the waist and the covers hid his lower half. He reached to the night stand and picked up his pack of cigarettes and put one in his lips.

“Quite a surprise, indeed, Roxie. I thought you had other plans.”

He glanced at the heap beside him covered with blankets and nudged it with an elbow.

“C’mon, don’t be shy. Say ‘hello’ to our guest.”

The heap of blankets moved for just a moment and then stopped moving.

“C’mon,” Junior insisted, “c’mon outta there!”

The heap of blankets moved a bit more. First a forehead, and then a pair of eyes, and at last a whole face poked its way out of the cocoon.

“Hi, Roxie,” a familiar voice said. “Junior and I are a couple now.”

It was Bonnie. She grinned at Roxie. Roxie knew the look—when a person is half embarrassed and half trying to convince themselves of something.

“I believe you two know each other already,” Junior said.

“Bonnie?” Roxie asked Junior. “How could you? It’s almost robbing the cradle.”

“Well, I admit that she’s not up to your high standards,” Junior grinned, “but with some training and practice...”

“Oh, shut up, Junior,” Roxie yelled.

She thought that Junior would get angry, but she saw that he was laughing at her. She stood over the pair staring at them, not knowing what to say.

“Hey Bonnie,” Junior said at last, “I said ‘don’t be shy’!”

He grasped the blankets Bonnie clutched around her shoulders and pulled them off, exposing her body. Bonnie said nothing, but folded her arms over her breasts and crossed her legs to hide herself.

“That was you, once, Roxie,” Junior laughed.

“Not a chance, Junior!” she spat back. “I was well-used before I ever got into your bed.”

“And I was, too!” Junior replied.

“True enough,” Roxie said. “I suppose you got her drinkin’ with you down at the Dew Drop, too.”

“I’ll take care o’ that soon enough,” Junior replied. “First, I had to teach her how to...”

“Never mind! I get it, Junior,” Roxie answered.

Roxie took a deep breath. She was wondering if things could ever be patched up between her and Junior. He had never been slow to hurt a person when he wanted to hit back, but usually not when he was sober.

“Maybe I haven’t seen him enough when he’s sober to judge that,” she thought.

‘Take a look at me, Bonnie,” she said in a lowered voice. “Do you like what you see? ‘Cause in not too long a time, this will be you.”

Roxie had to admit to herself that she wasn’t all that slow at shooting a nasty barb, herself.

She turned and walked out of the bedroom. She paused in the front room and took a last look around. Bonnie was mumbling something behind her, but Roxie couldn’t make it out and knew it wouldn’t have amounted to much, anyway.

As she walked through the front door and closed it behind her she heard Junior calling to her again.

“So, are ya condemnin’ me or yerself?” he yelled.

Roxie got into her car and started the motor.

“Good question, Junior!” she said out loud as she put the car in gear.

She didn’t know the answer. She would have to think on it overnight.

“He stood you up?”

Roxie looked around the diner to see who might be listening in to Millie shouting out her private business. Millie was standing a few feet from her with her mouth wide open and her hands on her hips. There weren’t any customers in the diner as yet early on Sunday morning. That left Stan, and his opinion wasn’t all that important.

“Quiet, Mille! I didn’t tell you that so you could broadcast it to the whole world.”

Mille took her hands off her hips and covered her mouth with her hands, as though she could take it all back. After a moment, she folded her arms across her chest.

“Well, I’m sorry about that, Dearie. It just took me by surprise, that’s all.”

Roxie didn’t quite believe that Mille was all that sorry, but it didn’t matter because she figured that she was sorry enough for both of them.

“I was expectin’ something a lot different, that’s for sure.”

Millie nodded.

“I guess that Cal Tucker is no better than his brother,” Millie said.

“Worse!” Roxie shot back in an instant. “I would have expected it from Junior if he didn’t feel like going out with me. But Cal—he made me feel like he was committed. I thought he would show up no matter what the...”

Mille stepped a bit closer to Roxie and lowered her voice.

“Look, Honey, I don’t want to rub it in, but...”

Roxie looked away and wiped a tear off her cheek. Mille paused but took a deep breath, so Roxie was sure that she had more to say.

“Girls like you and me—we’re poison to a guy like Cal —because of his career and all. Cal probably figured that out at the last minute but didn’t know how to tell you. I’d bet you anything that he won’t even show up to tell you in person. He’ll just let you figure it out for yourself.

There’s a world that people like Cal live in and there’s another where we live,” Mille went on. “You tried to cross over. But you had one foot stuck here and you’ll never get it unstuck because it’s who you are. His world won’t allow for people with dirty feet. Get used to the idea.”

“But you...” Roxie started to say.

“Oh, I latched on to Stan. But you can’t compare him to Cal, can you?”

Millie had been pretty blunt about the whole thing, but it all seemed pretty clear.

“I suppose I brought it all on myself,” Roxie admitted. “I guess I forgot what I’d always told myself: ‘dreams are just made for dreamin’. I let myself get caught up in it. It’s just like Aunt Flora used to be.”

“There you go,” Millie laughed and patted Roxie on the shoulder. “But don’t worry. Junior is sure to take you back. You’ll forget all about Cal and won’t have lost a thing.”

Roxie shook her head.

“No, I’m done with Junior. I’ve got to make some changes.”

Millie took a deep breath and shook her head.

“Still dreamin’ a bit, aren’t you?” Millie said and shuffled off to a table to wait on the morning’s first customer.

Roxie checked the coffee supply and took a dish cloth to wipe down the counter. She kept the fact that she’d found Junior and Bonnie in bed together from Millie on purpose.