Page 77 of Merrily Ever After
I don’t think he’s entirely wrong. But he’s not entirely right, either. And just like I keep quiet to protect myself, my guess is that her attitude is a bit like armor. The world can’t hurt you if you don’t let it in.
“She’d like the choir,” I say, thinking of her records. “She loves music.”
Colleen looks surprised. “How do you know?”
“I deliver food to her house sometimes.” I glance around the square. “It’s Christmas,” I say. “It feels wrong that we’re all here celebrating, and she’s by herself.”
Colleen doesn’t answer, and when I look back at her, it’s to find her watching me with a small smile.
“Well then,” she says. “Let’s go get her.”
*
“I’m still learning,” Colleen says as we drive up Mrs Fallon’s lane twenty minutes later. She borrowed her older sister’s car, a machine that’s barely surviving as it is, but with Colleen behind the wheel … “I think I’m getting the hang of it, though.”
She’s not. She’s a terrible driver. But I lie and nod because I want to make her happy.
“There we—sorry! Sorry.” She winces as we stop abruptly, the seatbelt catching me just in time. “Sorry.”
“I’m grand,” I say, wheezing slightly.
“I didn’t see the gate.”
“It’s dark,” I agree and get out of the car to open her door.
“This place is even bigger up close,” Colleen says, gazing over my shoulder. I glance back at the house. I guess it does look a little foreboding at night. You’d probably think it was abandoned if it wasn’t for the warm light coming from the downstairs windows.
“She lives here?” Colleen breathes.
I nod.
“All by herself?”
Something in her tone makes me pause. “I think she likes it like that.”
“If you say so,” Colleen says, sounding unsure. I feel an unexpected surge of defensiveness for my dance teacher, even though I know Colleen doesn’t mean anything cruel. It’s the same thought I had myself when I first started coming.
“You wouldn’t like to live here?” I ask.
“It’s beautiful. But I wouldn’t want to live alone. I want a full house. People and animals.”
“You like animals?”
“I love them. Dogs especially,” she adds with a grin. “Mam won’t let me get one.”
And I make a silent promise right there that I will get her as many dogs as she wants.
We open the gate and walk slowly up the driveway, the frosted ground crunching beneath our feet.
Mrs Fallon doesn’t come out, which surprises me. The car engine isn’t quiet, and she must have heard us come up, but no one appears, so I ring the bell and settle back to wait.
Colleen hops up and down beside me, but I think it’s more out of nerves than cold, as proven by the tiny step back she takes when the door suddenly flies open.
“What?” Mrs Fallon barks before I can open my mouth.
Colleen tenses beside me, but I feel a smile pull at my lips.
“Merry Christmas,” I say. Mrs Fallon peers at me like she’s trying to find the secret truth behind my words.
