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Help Marching On
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No Return The Bruises
Hearing his brother’s voice felt like the best thing that had happened to him in ages. He told him about his situation and his brand new plan to leave the bus station in three or four hours.“I’ll call you when I get to town.”“You’re gonna have to spend the night there, ‘cause I can’t go get you right now. They warned us the road to town is flooded.”“Don’t worry, bro. I’ll wait for you.”“Hope you have some fun, ‘cause you’re missing it big here, man. Jo brought Fay and some more girlfriends along, and we’ve been partying around the clock ever since they got here.”Jay chuckled. “Sons of bitches. Tell those babes I expect a nice welcome.” He saw Silvia coming. “Gotta go now, bro.”“Take care, bastard.”Jay disconnected and handed out the latte to her with a bright grin, telling her the breaking news.She took a moment to reply, surprised to see his eyes were actually blue, clear and pale like water. “That’s great, Jay! You’ll be on your way in a while!”“Hell yeah! Can’t fucking bel
No Return Complicated
Jay rested his shoulder against the window by her side, giving her the latte. She looked so calm, so composed, like she’d never told him what had happened to her, or like it hadn’t happened to her at all. But he’d seen the bruises.“There you go, with that song again,” he said softly.She smiled to thank him for the coffee and shrugged. “Yeah, it’s just catchy.”Break Free? Jay almost choked on the word. “Catchy?”Silvia noticed he’d taken offense and quickly added, “Well, not really. It’s actually gloomy, that’s why it’s catchy for me.”“You make a funny use of adjectives, y’know?”“You think?”“Don’t pull my tongue, ‘cause you don’t wanna hear my inner bastard.”“It’s okay, I like him.”“That’s why you are where you are, woman.”“You’re right, maybe I don’t like him that much.”They chuckled together.After having their coffees, they decided to give a personal touch to their corner of the waiting room. They turned the couch around and placed the coffee table before it. That way, ins
No Return The Icing on Your Cake
After moving around while they talked, changing spots on the couch, the coffee table, or standing by the windows, they sat together again for a five-fork lunch of snacks and soda from the vending machines. Then Silvia retreated to the end of the couch and curled up there with a cigarette, watching Jay speak.She wanted to remember as much of him as he could. Because, in a very straight and non-dramatic fashion, he’d saved her. His company had allowed her to take the first step to leave the hurt behind and start moving on. He’d given her something to recall on her long way home, other than that insane, violent episode that had shattered all her dreams for good.He patted her feet, pointing at his own legs. “Rest them here before your knees cramp,” he said.She squinted—what? Jay’s smile could’ve melted the iceberg to save the Titanic. In minutes.“Hey, we’ve already slept together, right? No need to be shy.”Silvia could only chuckle, and did what he wanted. They talked for another thi
No Return Emotional Rescue
“Hello?”Jay and Silvia jumped to their feet, turning to the hall door. A stout prototype of the all-American farmer grandpa stood at the doorway, water overflowing the brim of his hat to rain down on his thick jacket to his rubber boots.“You’re the ones needing a ride to town?”“Yeah! That’s us!” Jay replied.“Then bring your stuff and let’s get out of here while we still can.”The old man spun on his heels and strode away down the hall.Jay stopped Silvia when she was wearing her jacket. He’d already figured out that what had made her refuse to go back to town was that she didn’t want to face those people again, after starring on such a scandal.“Here,” he said, handing her his own jacket.“And what about you?”“Guess you’ll have to keep me warm.”The loud honk from outside made Silvia shrug and accept the jacket. Jay replaced her woolen cap with his black cap and smiled.“There. They shouldn’t recognize you like this.”Silvia froze, finally understanding what he was doing, and loo
No Return Poetry & Steam
Later on, Silvia would have time to process and fully appreciate Jay’s protective attitude. Right then, she just let him guide her up the steep, creaky stairs, designed to get rid of annoying guests with but a little push.She let him do the talking and place himself between her and the owner, who chattered like an old housewife about how many times Jay’s brother had called to ask if he’d arrived yet. The man’s grandson came two steps behind her with their bags.It took them what felt forever to reach the second floor and go to the last door at the other end of the hall. As soon as the man opened the room in the corner of the building, Jay motioned for Silvia to walk in first, standing between her and the owner again.She looked around only to find the bathroom, and hurried across the room to get in there and lock the door behind her. She noticed her shaky hands when she produced cigarettes and lighter. Her heart hammered her chest, and she was already regretting ever leaving her safe
No Return Five Ways to Kill Time
Jay was still laying back on the bed, lost in Twitterland, when his belly growled as to scare the dead. Damn, he was frigging starving and Silvia was still in the shower. Enough waiting. He stretched out his arm and knocked on the bathroom door from the bed.“Hey! I’m ordering dinner! What d’you fancy?” No answer, only the muffled murmur of the shower. “Hey! You there?” Crickets. He got up and opened the door, only enough to stick his head in. “Hey, what d’you wanna have for dinner?”She replied right away, like him breaking into the bathroom while she was taking a shower was the most natural thing on earth.“I’d kill for a steak with fries, if they have anything like that. And a garden salad. I need something fresh too.”Jay tilted his head. The cheap curtain hardly blurred her body. She was still under the warm rain, head down, rubbing the back of her neck.“Okay. Wine?”“A soda, please.”“Beer?”“Later. A classic Coke or just tap water with dinner.”So carefree? Jay smirked. Did sh
No Return Dinner with Candles
The owner didn’t take long to bring their dinner, but he hadn’t been able to fit their drinks on the tray, so Jay volunteered to go fetch them, with a six-pack for later in mind. Silvia laid the table and left the tray on the chest of drawers, where she found a candlestick behind the TV. Jay was back in a couple of minutes, and smiled when he saw the candles burning in the middle of the table. That was a nice touch. Silvia was by the window, as if she hadn’t moved while he was downstairs. Jay approached her from behind and rested both hands on her shoulders, his face brushing her hair. “Let’s eat,” he said softly. She nodded, smiling. It was so odd. His presence helped her feel so calm and confident, and at the same time, she didn’t care knowing that in the morning he’d be out of her life for good. He’d played his part in such a straight, honest way, that it was only right that he could get rid of her and on his way within a few hours. Ten years earlier, she would’ve tried everyt
No Return Save It for Tomorrow
Jay tilted his head in the following silence. “Listen,” he whispered. And Silvia listened to… nothing? Jay saw her questioning frown and smiled. “It’s not raining.” He stood up and circled the table, waving Silvia over. She joined him by the window, curious. “Look,” he said, pointing at the sky over the dark fields. “A star!” she murmured, and he thought her simple, pure awe sounded as if she’d been the first human being that had ever seen a star. His arm came up out of its own volition to rest around her shoulders, and he brushed her hair with his lips when he said, “Yeah, the storm is over.” Silvia was aware he would feel her chill, but there was nothing she could do about it. True, it wasn’t raining anymore and the storm seemed to be finally clearing. But those words meant so much more for her, and they both knew it. He felt her shiver and spoke out of a whim, like he always did so many things, his lips still against her hair. “I never told you my full name.” His voice w
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