Old Flames Sputter Out

Jess hummed a nameless tune as she walked along West Cedar Street. The night air was refreshingly cool and crisp, her heels echoed on the sidewalk. She didn’t regret accepting the invitation from Kevin and Leigh to have dinner at their new restaurant; they were good company, and she’d enjoyed the food. Their new friendship was one good thing that had come of the strange reunion at Pete’s last week. Leigh was a lot more subdued and even than Jess remembered, but she still had a clever, incisive wit and a loud laugh. Kevin had grown into a more confident, if still nervous and shy, man. They were surprisingly good for one another, and every once in a while, when they looked at one another, she could catch glimpses of what they’d suffered through together in rehab.

She began to regret walking from her apartment, still two blocks away. Her feet ached–clearly she’d chosen the wrong shoes. A nice bath would help, she’d do that when she got home. Then early to bed; she had to get an early start tomorrow morning.

She heard a car slowing down, and almost jumped out of her skin when the horn honked. She glared at the driver as he pulled alongside her.

“Well hey there, pretty lady,” he drawled in a terrible, fake Texas accent. “Where ya headed?”

“Hello, Brian,” she said evenly, not stopping.

“…That’s it? ‘Hello, Brian?’ After ten years, that’s your greeting? How about ‘Hey, it’s great to see you after so long!’ or something like that?” He still wore a cheesy grin on his face.

“I’ve been waiting for you to show up. Took you, what, a week?” She stopped and folded her arms over her chest. “I saw you at Pete’s. So it was you who set that up? I should have known.”

“Well, hey,” he said, flustered, “That’s not true.”

“Oh, really?” she snapped back. “I don’t believe it for a moment, it’s exactly the sort of crap you’d pull. You used to talk about doing things like that all the time. Now I guess you did it. Congrats. You didn’t even have the decency to say hello, naturally.”

“I didn’t think the time was right,” he said. “I didn’t want to shock you.”

She laughed, voice dripping with sarcasm. “Good of you to think of me! Wow, Brian, you absolutely kill me. So where the hell have you been for ten years? Farting around in a minivan?”

“I’ve been here and there,” he said.

“Oh, mysterious,” she said, unimpressed. “And ‘Spiritual Delivery Service,’ what the hell is that? Do you deliver pizza for the Lord?”

“No, I help people,” he said, miffed. “I do God’s work. In my own way.”

“What a rebel!” she sneered. “Brian Kunitz, lonely drifter, here to help. How many fantasies are you living out right now?”

He plastered that shit-eating grin back on his face. “All of them, babe. I’ve got an interesting life. …It is good to see you again.”

“So good you couldn’t even say hello last week. You just had to sit there and bug Allison. Wonderful. She’s completely freaked out by you, you know. She called me last night.”

Brian shook his head. “I can’t get used to it, Mark being ‘Allison’ now. When did that happen?”

“A few years back. She’s a good person, she comes to church. Sits in the back, never says a word, but she’s always there to help out when we need her. Unlike some people.”

Brian ignored that. “Mark was always like that. Same old Mark, different covering.”

“Leave her alone,” advised Jess sternly. “She’s going through enough without you winding her up.”

Brian shrugged, still smiling. “He–she–called me. I go when people call. Comes with the territory. So… can I give you a lift home?”

“I don’t think so,” said Jess stiffly.

“Maybe we can get a coffee. Catch up.”

“Not interested.”

“Are you sure? I know a place out on the Turnpike. They’re open late.”

“No,” retorted Jess. “I have an early day tomorrow. Church stuff, then work.”

“Ah, always church. You still at the same old one?”

“Of course,” said Jess.

“How’s the old rev. doing?” Brian asked. “I miss him.”

“Left years ago,” she said. “Transferred clear across the country. I think he was looking for you. But you wouldn’t know about that, would you?”

Brian shrugged. “Sorry.”

She glared at him. He sighed.

“Maybe I ought to get going. It’s been good to see you. We should catch up, really.” He put the minivan into gear.

“I waited for you,” Jess said quietly. Brian glanced back at her, his expression unreadable. “I waited for years, but you never came back. You never called. Not even an email, just to let me know you were still alive. I stopped waiting a long time ago.”

“I’m sorry,” he said. “I could try to explain it, over coffee.”

She shook her head. “Drive away, Brian. I don’t want you back in my life.”

He sighed. “If you reconsider, talk to Allison. She has my cell.” He gunned the van and swerved out onto the street.

Jess smirked in satisfaction. Got to him. Good. Bastard.