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Lady Saras' lunch................
Day five. Ebbie Rose rented a car and drove. She had her GPS and was gone no debating. No acquiescing, no talk, nothing, she was gone, gone girl gone. As she drove the voices rolled over her. She remembered the day after her canary sang she had met Sara for lunch. Ebbie knew Sara from her first job as a temp at a political consultants office. He was a bonafide spider who spun miraculous webs. They became friends. Good friends. Sara was a poor copy of her everyone said, but she couldn’t see it. They called her cosquelle plain, she called her friend. She trusted her, She trusted him.
Today started in her dreams of course: "Eggs well done, a piece of roll. "4:30 wake up call missy". a wounded beast roaring, "Fuck y'all” crawling on the floor thinking.... "jawbones break". "You came and took my shit left me grief, move on move on” There was a flood in her head and it was uncontrollable. The dam was gone. The imprints were deep and staid no way out.
Round sharp curves, slow winding bends and straight lines she found her way top down, sun on her face, wind in her hair; well whatever there was of hair, she hadn’t blown it out since she got to the island. It was a curly mess and she loved it. It was sun kissed and beach blown. The vignettes streamed through her frame by frame, words said, words she wished she said, anger, pain and sorrow the whole nines and threes. Their betrayal was the worst of it. The two people she trusted the most it was so cliché she cringed, wishing they’d come up with something different. Waited till she was on her dying bed..... something. Something that didn’t make her feel banal and old as the story was. She wished they’d been more inventive. She was in a queer way, disappointed.
The reel continued. Crawling on the floor voices screaming "jawbones break".
It was also the day she’d found out she was pregnant.
Ebbie Rose got to the restaurant early. She was in a daze to put it mildly. “You’re eight weeks pregnant Ebbie” the doctor said cheerily. “Stop joking Dr. Mann, you know I’m too old for that shit.” she smirks. “Nope serious. Congratulations Ebbie”. Not really hearing him “Dr. Mann stop you know I’m already having hot flashes”. She was getting irritated. “That doesn’t matter, you’re 8 weeks along, now we have to do some testing…….“. She couldn’t hear what he said next, all she could think was “Oh lord what is Jeff going to say, how could I be pregnant and we never have sex”?
The last few weeks Ebbie had been feeling awful. Every smell made her sick, food made her nauseous and the only time she knew that to be so was every time she was pregnant. God what was she going to do? Ebbie had pictured over the last few weeks she was dying with some incurable tumor that was mimicking morning sickness and so had 6 months to live. She didn’t know if she should be happy or dismayed. What a predicament! Laid off, cuckold and now pregnant just before her 50th birthday. Happy birthday Ebbie. Yah!!! God must be laughing his ass off right now. Lets see how you fix this one Ebbie ho ho ho. Isn’t life supposed to get easier as you got older? When does this peace thing come? This freedom and this wisdom? Apparently she was dumber than a bunch of rocks if not crazy as a loon times two. She couldn’t keep it could she? How could she not? But how could she? When she’s 60 they’ll be ten.
Sara came and found her with a double something on the rocks. It was the only thing she could keep down and she reasoned she needed something for the shock. Sara sauntered over to the table one eyebrow lifted in mock disbelief. “Taking this layoff thing a bit hard aren’t you”? Looking perfectly coifed as usual in her head to toe designer gear she reached over to kiss her on the cheek. Of course Sara still worked for her PR politico and was handsomely compensated for her years of service and loyalty. She was very good at her job. Apparently Ebbie wasn’t since she had been laid off via email two days prior. Her boss had said the company was going through financial restructuring and her position would no longer be available. She would be more than happy to give her a referral and a severance package of course was included. She was so sorry to see her go. Bullshit! It had nothing to do with her leach of a husband hitting on her at the yearly Gala when he was two sheets to the wind. "Naw Miss Kushner can keep her alcoholic husband to her self" she grimaced. "I can do crazy all by myself”.
“Well” said Sara as she launched into her monthly updates. Ebbie Rose sat and listened. Nodded where she had to, laughed where it was needed and clucked and tsk tsked in the spaces. She felt she was seeing Sara for the first time. How was she in bed, did they talk about her, did they laugh at her, was she better than her, was he in love with her, what did he see in her, what was wrong with her, did her kids know? Sara had never gotten married, she was eternally seeking love aka a man. She had three daughters ranging from 18 to 15. Smart beautiful girls and she adored them. But sara had a string of men in and out of her house looking for the one. Each girl had a different father for which she never judged. Jeff had often remarked on it but she had not looked down on her friend for that, she had accepted her for not being perfect. Did she approve of her lifestyle having strange men in her house with young women ? No, and she often made comments about the safety issue but she did not condemn her for it. So, how much of this non judgement had accounted for her current situation. How much had she facilitated. How much of an opening did she give by regaling about her relationship with her husband. Sara had no boundaries. She often tried to buy the men she was dating. She threw money, sex and promises their way for them to stay with her but they never did. She reeked of desperation. So she was aware of her no boundary issue. But to sleep with her best friends husband? Why was she so shocked? "Ebbie"! "Ebbie"! she heard her name in the din. She emerged. "Oh god sorry ...I'm poor company today. I was listening but I have a lot on my mind". with a hand on chin tired shrug. "I figured" laughed Sara "since I was threatening to say the alphabet and you said nothing". "Whats wrong hon tell Auntie Sara bout it"? At that moment Ebbie Rose wanted to throw herself into the arms of her friend and say "you’re fucking my husband" but instead she took a sip of her drink and said” I'm pregnant”
Sara looked liked she'd been slapped. Clinking silverware on inexpensive plates and mindless chatter invaded louder than emergency sirens could through a Mid Town crowded restaurant during the lunch time rush. "Here's to the ladies who lunch". The song crept into her head and she had the overwhelming urge to start singing. She giggled a restraint. "Holy fuck"! Sara whispered. "I need a refill... she swivels in her chair, all composure gone. "Excuse me!" she wails over the noise "can you bring two more of these”? she waves to the server with no please or thank you. Ebbie hated when she did that but today she didn’t care. Somedays it was good to have a Sara. "You’re not going to keep it are you?" Sara half pleaded in concern fussing with her napkin and silverware as she leaned into Ebbie. "I don’t know, I don’t know what to do". Ebbie muttered. "I've put this stuff behind me. Not ready to get back into pampers. I don’t have a job." "Have you told Jeff?" Sara asked. "No." Ebbie sighs. "I just found out a few minutes ago before I came here." Sara all but yanks a drink from the servers hand. "Thank you. Just bring us two house salads to start. No don't ask we haven’t looked at the menu yet." she dismissed him without even looking. "What do you think hell say?" she continues. "I don’t know I don’t think hell be happy, who knows were not on the most friendly terms these days since he blames me for losing my job." Ebbie didn't want to think. "But you had no control over Miss Prudence." Sara insisted. "Besides he makes more than enough for you and the kids. It’s not like you splurge and spend his money, in fact I keep telling you to do so and travel more." Sara considered herself an almost world traveller. An officianado on singles vacation packages. Ebbie wondered was Jeff going with her when he had a trip? She used to go with him in the early days but once the kids came and their social life began taking over it was too difficult. Was that it? Had she left the door open to Sara? "I know" she countered "but as he sees it if I wasn’t wearing that dress and I played politics I wouldn’t have been fired." "Well you do know you suck at it and I've been telling you you need to play the game."said teacher Sara for the umpteenth time. Ebbie Rose left her body in an instant and went from zero to ten angry in less than a millisecond because Jeff had said the exact same words to her. Instead of screaming till her eylids fell off like she freakishly wanted to and yanking the grotesquely expensive beautiful Byonce wig off Saras' head she jolted up and said "Sara I don’t feel well I have to go, I’ll call you later."" You sure you ok?" Sara looked worried and relived as the air in her fishbowl was depleting too fast. "Ok I understand... no worries I got the check and lets talk later." sailed after her as Ebbie Rose left and never looked back.
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