Sure, that was why he was in such a hurry to leave me last night. After ravaging me, he had to leave enough time to drive back here, break down his entire store, box up the inventory and truck it to a storage facility somewhere. And he had to do it all before dawn.
It seemed to point to one thing, and it was exactly what I was afraid of. Perhaps Kenny was just a figment of my imagination, after all. If his store never existed, then neither did he. Following that same path of logic, I had to be crazy. I stood there staring at the dark, vacant storefront, not knowing what I should do.
If I really was nuts, my sister would be the one person who could confirm it. Before I approached her with this, however, I needed a coffee. I was running on fumes, like a car that was almost out of gas. I had left this morning in such a hurry that I didn’t realize my tank was empty. Fortunately, there was a Starbucks nearby and a high-octane fill-up was within reach.
****
I got to my dad’s house about an hour later, and fortunately his car was not beside Courtney’s in the driveway. I used my own key to unlock the front door.
“A pop-in?” My sister gave me a double-take when I walked in. She was sitting at the kitchen table having breakfast. In front of her was a bowl half-full with some kind of fiber cereal topped with blueberries and a splash of soy milk. “No phone call?” she continued. “What if I wasn’t alone? I could have had a guy here. Dad’s not home.”
“Where is he?”
“He went somewhere with his little friend.” Courtney stuck her finger down her throat, making a gagging sound. “Maybe he took her to the mall so she could sit on Santa’s lap.”
“Come on, Courtney.” I sat down directly across from her at the table. “Carol’s not that much younger than Dad.”
“You don’t know, you don’t live here and see her all the time the way I do. When she comes over, she makes me play hide and seek with her.”
Carol was the woman Dad was seeing. She was only nine years his junior, but she looked even younger because of her size and energy. She was divorced and had a young daughter, so she was pretty active, which meant so was my dad. Courtney thought he was going through a midlife crisis, chasing around a much younger woman, and trying to forget Mom, but I didn’t see it that way at all. After Mom died, he was devastated. He was really lost and lonely when he met Carol a few months later. Even if it didn’t last, at least she took his mind off his sorrow while they were together. I didn’t know Carol very well, and Courtney was right, I didn’t see her as often as she did, but Carol was not who I wanted to talk about.
“He does exist, right?” I asked her ambiguously.
“Who? Santa Claus? I thought Dad had that talk with you?”
“The pictures you took of Kenny. You still have them, don’t you?”
“I downloaded those, honey,” Courtney said cheekily. “Those are keepers.”
I didn’t react, and my sister’s expression changed dramatically as she looked closer at me.
“What’s wrong, Shanna? You seem a little down, even for you.”
“Something happened last night,” I said hesitantly.
I could tell right away from the look of loathing and horror on my sister’s face that she thought it had something to do with David. “What did he do?” she asked.
I shook my head. “It wasn’t David.” “Who then?”
“Kenny.”
“Kenny? What about him?”
I took a moment to consider what I was going to say and how I was going to say it without sounding completely flaked out. “He came to me last night.” As soon as the words left my mouth I regretted them.
“Whoa! Whoa! Wait a minute! You were with Kenny in your apartment last night?”
“I’m pretty sure he was there.”
“Well, was he or wasn’t he? And if he wasn’t there, what were you doing?”
I didn’t say anything.
“Oh, my God!” Courtney put her hands up to her mouth in an expression of exaggerated shock. “This guy is really in your head, isn’t he?”
“Will you be serious a minute, Courtney?” “Hey, I take masturbation as seriously as the
next person.”
“I’m trying to tell you that I had an encounter with Kenny last night.”
“I thought I noticed you walking kind of funny.”
“Forget it,” I said, and got up to leave.
“I’m sorry, Shanna.” Courtney stood and reached across the table to grip my shoulder. “I didn’t mean it. Tell me what happened. Please. I want to know.”
We both sat back down, and I let out a suspicious sigh. Looking Courtney in the eyes, she seemed sincere. I proceeded with caution, telling her about the experience I had, and she listened attentively without commenting once.
“Aren’t you going to say anything?” I asked when I was finished.