Page 30 of His Old Lady

He sat and bent over to remove his boots. No stranger to sleeping in odd places, knowing Faye was under the same roof, made him edgy.

Shutting off the light, he stretched out and put his hand behind his head. Staring up into the darkness, he let his eyes adjust. There was a faint light coming from outside. Probably one of the street lights lining the residential street.

Muffling came from the other end of the house. He lifted his head, straining to hear. He couldn't make out what Faye was doing, but she wasn't going to bed after her shower.

Several minutes passed, and more noise floated into the living room. Getting back up, he walked down the hallway.

Her bedroom door was open, the light on. Faye passed back and forth in front of the dresser, holding her hand over her mouth.

His balls tightened at the thin material covering her upper body, leaving her legs bare. Her breasts quivered with each step, and he strained to see underneath the blue covering.

A sob broke the silence, and Faye stomped her barefoot. He jerked his gaze to her face. She'd squeezed her eyes shut as her body shook.

She was crying.

He approached Faye. Showing up at the bar and coming to her house wasn't supposed to upset her. He was looking out for her safety. She had no idea what kind of place she was working for or how much danger prancing around half-naked in front of strangers could bring her.

Removing her hand from her mouth, he said, "What's wrong?"

Her chin trembled. "He died."

The hair on his arms prickled. "Who?"

She pointed, refusing to look in the same direction.

He went over to the window. On the ledge sat a small fishbowl. Bending over, he peered into the water. Sure enough, a goldfish lay at the bottom on the rocks.

Squinting, he took in the small castle that allowed a fish to swim through the opening. His chest tightened, and he glanced at Faye.

Nah, it wasn't possible. "Is this the same fish?"

She nodded sniffling.

"Jesus," he mumbled, picking up the fishbowl.

He'd bought her the goldfish on her tenth birthday. She'd wanted a puppy. The best he could do, considering Grandma June hadn't wanted a dog in the house, was to buy her a ten-cent fish from the local pet store.

"Where are you taking him?" Faye followed him out of the room.

He stepped into the bathroom, flipping the light switch with his elbow. "I'm going to dump him in the toilet."

"Oh, God." She pressed against his back. "I don't want you doing it."

"One of us has to do it." He set the bowl on the counter.

"He was my fish." She squeezed around him and inhaled deeply. "I'll do it."

Curley stepped back into the hallway, giving her room in the small bathroom to do the deed. She composed herself and opened the toilet lid. Stepping out of view, he leaned against the wall and turned his head, cracking the vertebra in his neck. Dawn would soon arrive. He should probably get on his motorcycle and ride home.

Plop

Faye sniffled. Curley swallowed, hating that one more thing in her life had upset her. She was too old for him to go out and buy her another fish, thinking it would replace the one she enjoyed.

"Rest in peace, Curley," she whispered.

The back of his head hit the wall at hearing his name, and he frowned. The toilet flushed. Still reeling, he continued to stand in the hallway as Faye washed her hands and shut off the light.

As she walked out of the bathroom, he said, "You gave the fish my name?"

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