Page 21 of Big Witch Energy

Regina shrugged. “You give people ice cream, they tell you things.”

“Ladies, enjoy your lunch,” Caroline said, stepping away from their table and turning to Ben. For a moment, it was like she’d forgotten he was the one sitting at the table and the customer service smile fell from her face to a much more reserved, blank expression.

That was not becoming more fun with repetition.

“Ben, how are you settling in?” Caroline asked.

“Oh, there’s always a million things you forget you’re going to need for a new place. You know how it goes,” Ben said, nodding.

“Not really,” Caroline said, just one octave short of a verbal eye roll.

Ben wanted to slap his hand over his face. He was an idiot. Caroline had never moved into any new home—just an older house inherited from family. He sighed.

“Look, Caroline, I’m not trying to make things uncomfortable between us. I know we’re probably not going to be best friends, but I don’t think we have to be this…awkward? I thought we left things on a pretty decent note.”

“Yes, and then we didn’t talk for almost twenty years,” Caroline said. “That was not an accident. At least, on my part. You had your own life, and I was happy for you.”

“And you’ve had your own life too—” Ben said.

“Not like you have, and you know why. I told you about it when we were kids. And now is not the time for this conversation,” Caroline replied, glancing over at Margaret’s table. Then her eyes darted upward as the ceiling groaned.

“I can’t believe we’re having this conversation at all,” he said, lowering his voice so the members of the Nana Grapevine within earshot couldn’t hear him say, “Talking about curses like they’re a real thing that exist.”

“I thought you understood,” Caroline whispered. “It wasn’t personal. It wasn’t that I didn’t want to be with you. Do you think it was easy? Knowing you were out there in the world? While I’m stuck here? You know what’s happened to my family. Hell, you went to a couple of the funerals.”

She looked so upset. And he wanted to turn the tide of this conversation. He hadn’t been able to talk to her in forever, and he was messing it up. “I understand that you believe the curse is real, and I’m not going to insult you by trying to change your mind.”

“Don’t patronize me,” she said. “I don’t care if you think it’s real or not. I do, and I’m the one whose neck is on the line.”

“Caroline, please. This isn’t how I wanted this to go,” he pleaded. “I’ve been trying to tell you how much I missed you—down to the marrow in my bones—since I got back on the island, but I keep messing it up.”

“Well, it’s not exactly how I pictured this conversation going,” she huffed. “At this point, I can’t even fake the dignity of pretending I haven’t rehearsed what I was going to say to you…over and over in my head, when I couldn’t sleep. And in those imaginings, I didn’t picture the words ‘curse’ or ‘funeral’ coming up.”

“Let’s start over, please. I don’t care why we split years ago. It still hurts, but I don’t want it to keep us from—” He sighed. “So much has happened since then, and I’m so afraid that I’m going to mess this up this time around. And I might miss out on connecting with you again, on hearing how you’ve been, what you’ve been doing. I just don’t want to lose out on the chance to know who you are now.”

“Oh, sure, I’m a whole new person,” Caroline said, smiling and shaking her head. “Living in the same place, working the same job, in the same building. It’s the sort of huge change that spurs personal development.”

“Technically, we’re both different people, on a cellular level,” Ben told her, making her laugh. “You’re body regenerates cells every minute you’re alive. I’m a doctor. I know things.”

Oh, how he’d missed that laugh.

“So, I’m new Ben, better than New Coke, I promise,” he said, reaching out to her. He saw the hesitation cross her face, as if for a moment, she considered letting the business of the bar distract her and let her dash away. But she took a deep breath and extended her hand.

“OK, new Ben,” Caroline sighed. “Nice to meet you.”

His fingers closed around hers, warm and familiar, and it was like his homecoming was complete. For just one second, everything was right.

And then, overhead, it sounded like the fist of God was knocking on the roof.

“What the?” Caroline looked up, blinking as plaster dust sprinkled down on her face like snow. Ben stood, a sour, heavy feeling settling into his gut as the other customers slowed their movements, looking up at the ceiling with their forks halfway to their mouths.

Ben started to say, “Caroline, I think we need to—”

The building shook and the room went dark as wood and debris cascaded over the windows facing the water. Ben launched himself and pulled Caroline under the table with him as the floor trembled. In the distance, he could hear screams as he tucked his chin over Caroline’s head.

She fit against him as she always did, like she was made for him. But he didn’t want to admit to himself how happy he was to have her in his arms again, when her world seemed to be collapsing around them.

Chapter 5

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