The Ladies’

Last time on the Chronicles of Coralende, both my characters were out of character and the episode ended with winfry waking up to the mess he had made. It took winfry two minutes to pick up the pencils and six minutes to pick up all the bits of his courage that had been shattered across the floor. After collecting his courage he dragged himself to the ladies’ room. He didn’t need to put his ear to the door to know that isa was in the stall crying. But what could he possibly do? He was most definitely the last person she’d want to see. So what could he do? But he had to do something. So there he stood, or rather paced, a walking contradiction: had to do something, couldn’t do anything.

That’s how mrs. weatherwood found him: a wound up bundle of anxiety and indecision. It was 5:12 and mrs. weatherwood was closing up shop. In her azalea patterned sweater and brown corduroy pants, the librarian, plump as a plum, rounded the corner into the corridor of the ladies’. She was a little taken a back to see winfry outside of the ladies’ of all places, but then on second thought, she wasn’t. In spite of her closing-in dementia, she was more insightful than she looked. From three stacks over, her hearing aid was just able to pick up on winfry and isa’s little spat and mrs. weatherwood didn’t need to venture up to the fourth floor to know hormone levels at the library were higher than usual. In other words, mrs. weatherwood probably had more of a grasp on the situation than winfry.

When winfry finally looked up from his pacing to see mrs. weatherwood waddling towards him, he just about sent himself to the ICU from the mental pummeling he gave himself. mrs.weatherwood stopped next to winfry, she looked at him, looked at the ladies’, looked at him again and smirked. But not smirk in a creepy way. No, no, no. No. Smirk in the these-youngsters-are-amusing-me way. For a moment winfry almost forgot that a few meters away isa was crying because of he was a swine, but he didn’t.

Maybe it was because she felt sorry for winfry or maybe it was because she wanted more spice in her life or maybe it was just her dementia kicking in, mrs. weatherwood gave winfry a hand. “For Pete’s sake just barge in there and kiss ‘er. It’s not like anyone else is going to go in; were closed… Oh and tell ms. englewood to finish closing up. I’m leaving.” With that and a wink, of the non-creepy variety of course, mrs. weatherwood turtled her way out leaving a gapping mr. winster behind with us.

Well, what choice did he have? There was no way around it; he would have to cast a side his discretion and enter the ladies’. He took a quick deep breath and headed in to isa heading out. It took them both a minute to catch their breaths.

But that’s not what happened. It was only what winfry was hoping would happen. What actually happened was winfry, like a 5 year-old stealing from the cookie jar for the first time, nudged open the door letting isa’s quite crying slip out; he didn’t look inside. Finally, he closed his eyes and let himself walk in. One step from the door, his eyes opened to see sinks with rose colored soap, a very nervous and uncomfortable winfry winster looking back at him, three stalls, all closed, and isa’s cute red mary janes at the bottom of the middle stall.

Silence. Isa must have heard winfry’s footstep. winfry turned his neck to look at the closed door behind him before looking back towards the stalls. His Adam’s apple trembled as he swallowed. “isa … Is that you in there?”

No response.

That was it. winfry’s limits were finally hit. After everything he’d forced himself through for isa, she wouldn’t help him! He was trying so hard and he wasn’t sure how much farther he could go. His voice stumbled with emotion as he spoke to interrupt the silence.

“isa, please. Please! Please talk to me, isa. I’m terribly sorry for anything I might have said earlier. Because… well, it’s just that I know it sounds really weird, but … isa, I think I’m going crazy. I’m so sorry for getting you into this whole mess. I seriously think that I’m going crazy. It’s just that I’ve been having these moments. And I don’t really know what I’m doing. I just do. I can’t help it. I just happens. I’m so sorry isa. I’m scared.”

winfry didn’t notice when isa stood up because his legs, with all the emotional drama, forgot their job and let winfry slip to the tiles. When winfry looked up, isa was at the opened stall door looking down at him with eyes of compassion and teary red frames.

“winfry, I owe you a confession,” isa began as her cheeks crimsoned. “It’s not going to be easy for me. I’ve never told this to anyone. I don’t even know where to begin.” Sigh. “I guess it all started…”

“Maybe, the ladies’ isn’t the best place,” winfry filled in from the floor.

“I guess not.”

“We could go to the café luminot on frambigue alley. It’s only a few blocks from here.”

“ok, that sounds nice. I’d like that... But first I think you’d better get up off the floor. I can’t imagine it’s too comfortable.”

That’s it. No more. We’re closed. Come back later.

PS The ladies’ was another room winfry had never been in.

PPS I love making you guys wait to figure out what the living room is going on.

PPPS FRUSTATION OH YEAH!