Red Leaves

‘You’re right. Let’s go to Canada.’

‘What, forever?’

‘Yes,’ he said. ‘Let’s go to Canada forever.’

She pushed him lightly. ‘Boy, you’ll say anything right now, won’t you?’

He smiled. ‘Anything.’ He was lying sideways, propping himself up on his elbow. He blew on her face again and then kissed it.

Kristina wondered about Conni. What was Albert going to tell her?

‘Canada, huh? Albert,’ Kristina said, ‘why Canada? Seems far away.’

‘The farther the better,’ he said. ‘Tell me you don’t want to go.’

‘I didn’t say that,’ she said cautiously, thinking.

‘Let’s go,’ he beseeched her. ‘We’ve got the money - you said so yourself. There’s nothing stopping us.’

She wanted to ask Albert about his imminent engagement to Conni. How are you going to take me to Canada and get engaged to her at the same time? she wanted to ask.

Albert poked her gently. ‘Well?’

‘And when this money is gone, then what?’

‘Then nothing. Then we’ll get more money,’ he said.

‘From where?’

Albert pulled away from her and stared at the ceiling.

‘Howard and I are now officially divorced,’ Kristina said. ‘Grandma is dead.’

‘There must be some money tucked away somewhere,’ said Albert.

‘What are you talking about?’ Kristina said, a little shrilly. ‘There’s no money, I’m telling you.’

‘So? We’ll get jobs. We’ll have money.’

Smirking, Kristina said, ‘You’re gonna get a job, Albert?’

‘Sure, why not?’ He put his hands behind his head. ‘I’ll try anything once.’

Now Kristina lay on her side, propped up by her elbow, and stared into his face. She wanted to tell him about the money, but she was just waiting for the right time. When he was married to Conni, maybe. She smiled at her own little joke.

‘What’s so funny?’ he asked.

‘Nothing, nothing,’ she quickly said. This was not a good time.

‘Rocky? If I break up with Conni, will you break up with Jim?’

Oh, not this again. She wanted to say, break up with Conni? Is that before or after you get engaged? But she didn’t.

‘Albert, please,’ she said. ‘Please.’

He gritted his teeth. ‘I just don’t know about that Jim of yours.’

Getting defensive, Kristina said, ‘Why, because he’s a nice guy? Because he treats me well?’

‘Because having sex with you is against his religion.’ Albert said meanly. ‘Some relationship.’

‘Well, I didn’t know he didn’t like to have sex when I started going out with him, did I?’

Staring passionately at her, Albert said, ‘No, Rocky, not just not like to have sex. Not like to have sex with you.’

‘But it’s easier for you this way, isn’t it?’

‘Yes,’ Albert said instantly. ‘At first I couldn’t stand the thought of him touching you.’ He paused. ‘Of anybody touching you.’

‘Well, how do you think I feel about you and Conni?’ Kristina said. They fell silent. Kristina was thinking about Thanksgiving. To be with him. Not to be alone. Not to be with Jim or with Conni or with Howard, or alone, but with him, far away - in Canada.

‘We don’t have to go anywhere,’ Albert said. ‘The ten grand, the ten thousand goddamn dollars we have. We could save it.’

‘We could,’ she said tentatively.

‘Yeah. We never have any money.’ He pulled away farther.

‘I never have any money.’

‘What do you need money for?’ Kristina asked. ‘Conni always pays for everything.’

‘Not just Conni, dear Rocky,’ said Albert, staring at her in the night light. ‘Not just her.’

And then they slept together in her room, naked on her narrow bed.

CHAPTER TWO (#ulink_07439ea5-e147-5742-ae1a-3582f5846ecf)

Monday (#ulink_07439ea5-e147-5742-ae1a-3582f5846ecf)

Kristina rushed to get ready for her seven-forty-five Modern Christian Thought class. To save time, she put on the same clothes she’d worn on Sunday.

Albert was sitting on the bed, next to Aristotle spread out on his back.

‘Get him off,’ Kristina said. ‘His hair gets on everything.’

Albert didn’t touch the dog. ‘His hair is already on everything.’

‘Albert!’ she said, raising her voice. ‘Aristotle! Down!’