Page 33 of Repentance and Absolution
“Could we?” he said, forgetting that he wasn’t supposed to defer to me when we were in town. Old habits died hard, I supposed.
“Sure,” I said.
It might be nice to go visiting. We might as well take advantage of our proximity. I wasn’t worried about Clarence. I figured he was one of those folks who preferred to keep to themselves and ended up married to someone who was a shade more sociable.
I liked Irene. She seemed genuine, affable and full of energy.
“Wonderful!” she said. “I have a piano and like to play. Oh, Clarence, won’t it be fun to have Oscar and Jimmy over?”
Clarence attempted a smile but didn’t seem convinced.
“Oscar can sing,” I said, because Oscar had a beautiful singing voice but I didn’t get to hear it so often—only when I asked him to sing me something to get me to sleep.
Irene turned to Oscar. “Oh! You can sing while I play! It’ll be just like a town social!”
“Well, I ain’t so good as Jimmy says—”
I scoffed. “You are, too. You got a voice like an angel.”
Then I realized that sounded like it meant too much to me. This pretending to be buddies was harder than I’d figured.
“I mean, you can hold the notes and all that,” I said, trying to downplay my appreciation of Oscar’s skill.
Irene smiled, like she’d decided then and there that Oscar was her special project. She took his arm and leaned in close. “I can tell we’re gonna be great friends, Oscar.”
Oscar blushed and let himself be coddled and petted. T’was nothing more than a friendly gesture, and Irene was married, so I figured Oscar didn’t have to worry about giving her the wrong idea.
“Irene, we need to get to the dressmaker’s,” Clarence mumbled, side-eying me as if he were afraid I was gonna kidnap his wife.
Irene took it as a cue to keep talking.
“I’m buying some material for a new dress for myself, and I have some commissions to work on. I like to have a few projects over the winter. I’m making some shirts for Clarence, too.” Her eyes widened, and she put her hand on Oscar’s arm. “If you need any shirts or trousers, I can sew them. I’ve got a whole book of patterns for men’s and women’s clothing. You’d only need to buy the fabric, and I’ll do it for you…”
“Irene,” Clarence said, taking Irene’s elbow, “come on.”
Irene let Clarence guide her forward, but she glanced back and waved. “Have a good day. I hope to see you again soon!”
We stood there like we’d just been lifted by a small whirlwind and set down in a different spot and watched them walk away down the street.
Oscar turned to me. “Jimmy, I like Irene. And Clarence? Well, he’s all right. I reckon he didn’t have to bring me home the other night, but he did—and made sure I’d be all right.”
“Yeah, and I’ll always be grateful for that.” I laughed, shaking my head. “I guess it’s true what they say, that opposites attract.”
Oscar grinned. “Yep. Like me and you. I’m small and your big. I’m friendly like Irene, and you’re miserable like Clarence.”
“Now hold on a minute,” I protested.
“Maybe not miserable. But you’re more standoffish than me.”
“Only because I’m more sensible.”
Oscar gave me a look. “Well, there you go. You and Clarence can be ‘sensible’ together, and me and Irene will have fun. Sounds perfect.”
I rolled my eyes.
We walked to the general store and spent a good forty-five minutes gathering together the things we’d need—staples like coffee and tea, wheat flour and sugar, rice and beans, canned goods, beef jerky, salt pork and fish, potatoes and root vegetables. We even got a couple of wheels of old cheddar cheese that we hoped to be able to protect from mold, since we both liked it and it would be a healthy addition to our diet o’er the winter, when fresh milk wasn’t available. Maybe next winter we could get a dairy cow and some chickens, so’s we could have milk and eggs all year long. There was a small root cellar under the floor of our little kitchen-house that had been there already and only needed cleaning out so we could use it. T’was accessed by a hatch in the kitchen floor. Thank goodness there was only the two of us. We would have needed a wagon if we’d been storing food for an entire family.
I hoped to supplement our diet with fresh meat that I’d bring in when possible. There seemed to be plenty of game about. I had found a recipe booklet for basics like breads and pies and such. I didn’t know how successful I’d be, but I wanted to try my hand at them. Didn’t seem like it’d be too hard, if I had instructions. The new stove worked real well, and we might as well take advantage, plus we’d have lots of time to kill o’er the next few months. I might as well learn something new, keep us both fed well and not succumb to boredom and brooding. I made sure to get some canned fruit so we wouldn’t die of scurvy, and powdered soups that we only needed to add to boiled water. I wasn’t sure how they’d taste, but t’was worth a try.
