by TJ Seitz
The Suburbs
The neighborhood looked a lot like the place I grew up in. Obviously middle class, well-manicured lawns, cookie cutter colonial and split ranch style houses with cream or white colored vinyl siding and black, forest green or rust colored shutters on the sides of each downstairs window. The driveways were decorated with chalk drawings, wagons, umbrella strollers, over-turned bicycles and Chrysler minivans.
Jackie told me which driveway to pull into and as soon as the car was parked she darted out of the vehicle and ran towards the front door shouting, “Lucy I’m Home!”
From inside the house I heard someone yell, “Jackie get your ass in the house and come give me a hug!”
As she walked away Jackie told me, “Get out of the car and follow me. It’s cool. This is where my adopted family lives. No one will be pulling any ghetto minded bullshit on either of us here.”
I locked up the car and obeyed her directions.
Inside the house we were greeted by a thickly bespectacled frumpily dressed short girl with shoulder length frazzled jet black hair. The top of her head barely came up to the bottom my chin.
She was wearing a grey t-shirt that barely covered the rolls of her midsection and a pair of sweatpants that were too small for her figure. It looked like she just rolled out of bed. I thought she was about Jackie’s and my age. The two girls embraced each other.
Another woman who looked to be in her mid to late fifties was also there. She was standing watchfully in the background, nervously smoking a cigarette. With an anxious smile and authoritative voice she reminded Jackie, “What about me? Don’t I a hug too sweetie?”
I assumed that the woman was probably the mother of Jackie’s friend. Instead of greeting me openly I felt like she was very suspicious of me and subtly giving me the evil eye. Nothing was said but I was pretty she was assessing to herself whether she should trust me or not.
She was very skinny and nervous looking and only a little taller than her daughter. She was wearing hospital scrubs decorated with rubber duckies and her hair was grayish blond and cut into a short and practice style, common for women of her age.
I quickly surmised that some of the guys Jackie brought there in the past were probably not the most upstanding characters. I could not blame the mother for being so reserved or stand offish. She did not know me from a bag of beans and considering Jackie’s past track record for men that I knew from the short time I’ve been around her, why would I be any different than them.
Jackie introduced the younger woman, “TJ this is Carol-Lynn and that Nervous Nelly behind her is Mom.”
She then spoke to both women, “I’m only here for a quick visit and t can’t stay too long. I’m going back north for a while to stay with my Grandmother. I really need get my shit together and earn some money before I can move to Hawaii.”
Carol-Lynn sighed and replied to Jackie, “You ain’t still chasing after that fat old pervert are you? I thought you were over him after you eloped with Perry.”
Jackie frankly said, “Yes. My ex was just a distraction. Professor Idomen however is a soul mate. My connection to him has to do with Fate and unconditional love not vows or niceties. Remember I got legitimate proof between all the Ouija board sessions, tarot and horoscope readings. You ought to know too since you were there when it all happened.”
Carol-Lynn retorted, “Come on Jackie. Soul mate? How many soul mates can you have in a lifetime? I say you can do much better than that. You’re smart and beautiful. Why do you always ignore the decent guys and try to rescue losers like your ex-husband or Dr. I?
Jackie answered. “Why can’t someone have more than one soul mate? It’s about the connection two people have and them accepting that bond unconditionally. It has nothing to do with numbers or whether or not they are nice to each other. How boring!”
Carol-Lynn continued lecturing, “I honestly don’t get your obsession with a man who when it comes down to it lost his son, wife and now his job because of booze and his philandering.
I think the gods cursed him. His wife left him for cheating on her and was then murdered by the dude she was sleeping with just before their divorce was finalized. The jerk let his child drown after he fell off a boat into the ocean while on a fishing trip for Christ sake because he was too freakin drunk to rescue him!
Just because he was acquitted for that on campus car accident because there was not enough evidence does mean he’s still not responsible for what we all know we saw.
He only got off because we were were all too stoned and/or drunk at the time for our testimony to be trusted by a jury. Why else would the guy leave town so quick and go to the farthest possible place away from here. He’s avoiding the truth and a possible civil lawsuit. “
Jackie obviously did not like what she was hearing and from the tone it sounded to me like the two have had this conversation more than once. Eyeing Mom’s cigarette she changed the subject, looked at Mom and asked, “Can I have a cigarette?”
Mom matter of fact-ly replied, “No. You should know better by now than to bother asking. I’m not supporting your bad habits.”
Jackie then asked Carol-Lynn, “Does Katie still live with her parents?”
Carol-Lynn said, “Yes. Mamma are You OK hanging with Jackie’s guest for a little while? We want to go see if Kate’s home.”
Her mom reluctantly agreed. “Ya I suppose so, as long as it’s only for a few minutes. He’s probably better off waiting with me than going off with you two. I doubt he has idea who any of your friends are.”
Jackie and Carol-Lynn then left me in the care of Mom. Mom started walking towards the back of the house and told me, “Please follow me and find a seat at the kitchen table. People who visit standing up make me nervous.”
I complied.
Before getting to the kitchen she, stopped, turned around and offered, “Do you want some sweet tea to drink?”
I accepted, “Yes. Thanks you.”
The kitchen was small and dated. The room smelled like dish soap. The walls, cupboards and ceiling were painted flat white. A single light fixture was located in the center of the ceiling. A single light bulb protruded from it. It looked like part of the fixture, I assume the shade or cover, was long lost or broken.
There were a couple of potholders hanging from nails on the wall above the oven. A calendar with kitten pictures hung in the center of the wall to the right of the kitchen entrance. A red Bic ball point pen was attached to a string next to it. It looked like birthdays, work schedules and appointments were handwritten on the dates. Dates were crossed off with an “X” as they passed. There was a grey litter box and green pooper scooper on the floor, by the wall to the left of the calendar. A single light switch and electrical receptacle was located on the wall to the right of the calendar.
The room did not appear to have ever been updated since the house was built in the early nineteen seventies. The countertops were made of a faded piss yellow colored Formica that was chipped in many spots along the edges. The surfaces were randomly speckled with the color spectrum of current and discontinued Kool-Aid flavors. There was also a large burn impression next to the stove where someone set a pot down directly off the burner without something underneath. An unplugged Mr. Coffee coffeemaker set next to the burn mark.
The lime colored flooring was clean looking but as equally worn as the counters. Several of the squares, especially under the table, were peeling up or missing corners.
There was a small crank window above the sink that looked out over the back yard. I could not see the back yard from where I was sitting. The sink had two sides. One side had a drying rack full of clean dishes. The other side had two coffee cups in it and a bowl with milk and tablespoon still in it.
The stove and refrigerator looked current but basic. Both were white and didn’t really fit well with the décor of the room. The stove had electric powe
red burners. The surface was flat with the control knobs on the right side. A Winnie the Pooh teapot was sitting on the back left burner. The stove has a digital clock. It said that it was 4:09PM.
The refrigerator had a freezer unit on top and refrigerator on the bottom part. There was a red and while soggy looking hand towel handing from the refrigerator handle. There were a few magnets on the front of the refrigerator. One was for a pizza place, another was for Artie’s Car Repair Shop and the last one I noticed was for a business called Green Thumb Lawn Services.
It was a normal looking place to me. It was similar to the places I grew up around so I was comfortable with the surroundings despite me being a stranger.
I think that Mom sensed my familiarity with a middle class lifestyle. She could see I was not a junkie or conniving somebody that Jackie felt sorry for and picked up off the street. My demeanor helped put her a little bit more at ease but did not stop her from bluntly asking me, “What are your intentions in regard to Jackie and what the Hell are You doing in New Orleans in the first place?”
I seated myself at the small kitchen table. It only seated three because one of the sides was pushed against the wall. The top was covered with a light brown fabric tablecloth. There were three mismatched chairs at the kitchenette. I sat in the grey metal folding chair. In the center of the table was a square glass ashtray filled to the brim with butts, ashes and couple chunks of chewed gum. Next to the ashtray there was half a pack of filtered Camel cigarettes and a disposable lighter.
Mom served me sweet tea in a Yosemite Sam glass from the upper cupboard located on the left side of the sink. She also poured herself a glass, sat down, lit herself another cigarette and proceeded to grill me again for more details about my motives and what inspired me to drive all the way from New York to Louisiana. She stated, “You did not answer my questions. Why are you dragging some random stranger that you just met on the street willy-nilly around this part of the State? Are you stupid? Why aren’t you afraid? Are you just plain crazy? Are you a criminal because if you are I’m telling you to get out of my house right now and leave Jackie be!”
I took a sip of the tea and told her how I ended up on her doorstep. The beverage was cold and not at sweet as I worried it would be. It was obviously made with real teabags versus mix. I also like my flavored teas more sour than sweet and this was prepared that way more or less.
Mom seemed content or satisfied with my response to her questions. She stopped probing and actually seemed glad that I was bringing Jackie back home up north, rather than allowing her to be impulsive, outright stupid or simply taking advantage of her. She said, “It’s reassuring for me to meet someone who actually believes in being respectful and doing the right thing. You seem like a good man. I wish there were more people out there like you. I can only hope my Carol-Lynn is lucky enough to hook up with a good man. You aren’t looking for a girlfriend are you?”
I smiled and said, “No. I don’t need to complicate my current girlfriend situation any more than it already is.”
Once she decided that I was safe Mom relaxed and told me more about her-self. She said that that she worked as a nurse supervisor in neo natal intensive care unit at a local hospital.
She then confessed, “Carol-Lynn’s father disappeared over ten years ago. This was fine by me, since he was no prize in my eyes.
It’s not that he was mean or abusive, just a lazy son of a bitch. It was very hard to live with him.
I was such a young fool to fall for his handsome looks and endless line of shit. Had I been a little less naive I would have not married the guy and saved myself fifteen years of frustration and followed my dreams more seriously.
The man really hated to work. He couldn’t hold down a job for long or pull his weight around the house. He was always looking for a get rich quick gimmick that would pay off big instead of getting a job and digging ditches like the rest of the world.
I’ll admit though it could have been a lot worse and I’m thankful for that. A lot of my girlfriends and co-workers married drunks and womanizers who messed things up real bad with their vices. My husband’s issues were nothing compared to others. At least we were never in need of money since I was nearly always the main breadwinner for the household.
I suspect he left the State chasing after God knows what promise or scheme to make more money, then never came back home to save face after it all went to shit.
Regardless of what happened, I still managed to keep the house and a stable life for my babies. Thank God both of our names were on the mortgage when we bought it because his credit history was pretty much non-existent.”
Mom went on to say, “Jackie’s been a good friend of Carol-Lynn’s since they met at college a number of years ago.
Of course, this was all before Jackie got knocked up by that jackass kid Perry from Texas that she was dating at the time. I never liked him, I could tell by the way he acted that he would never amount to any good and I ought to know considering I was married to one long enough to recognize a pain in the ass when I see one. I wish Jackie just dumped the guy and stayed with Carol-Lynn and me.
Jackie’s smart and would make a great mother if she had a little support and a stable environment to live in. If she chose to stay here she could have then gotten serious about college and drastically changed her life.
Instead she fell for the man-child honestly believing that a baby and wife would inspire him to grow up then moved back to Texas.
She then added, “Which from the looks of things like does not appear to have happened.”
I went on to tell her, “Yah. She married the guy, divorced him and left the baby with her former in-laws. Beyond that that though, I do not know much more in regard to details.”
Mom replied, “Jackie is really good at telling you only what she wants you know and that’s usually as little as possible. Sometimes you have to read between the lines with her and figure out what she isn’t telling you to make sense of what’s going on.”
Mom then filled me on some of Jackie’s history. Carol-Lynn it turns out was another friend of Jackie’s that she met while auditing classes at University of New Orleans.
Mom explained, “A group naturally formed because the kids studied a lot together. Their professor at the time assigned several group projects that they all worked on. They all seemed inseparable at the time.
I think Carol-Lynn, Jackie and a guy who was killed in an on campus hit and run were the core group of partners for an introduction to psychology class. Katie, the girl down the street that they were now visiting, was also in that class and spent a lot of time with them.
Everything changed though after the boy died and was buried. Jackie stopped going to classes and began hanging out with seedier people. She then got herself kicked out of the college program she was enrolled in because she was caught smoking marijuana in someone dorm room by Campus security.
That’s when she moved in with her ex-husband in that place off Carondelet in the City but didn’t stay there long because neither had a stable job to pay rent.
Eventually Carol-Lynn changed majors and move on with her life. The two drifted apart but still kept in touch occasionally.”
Carol-Lynn and Jackie returned just as Mom was finishing her story. They both looked like they had been crying. Mom asked, “Are you two OK? What happened?”
The girls both answered, “Yes. They just missed each other and were reminiscing about the past with Katie.”
I noticed Jackie was absently scratching herself again. Carol-Lynn did too and queried Mom, “Do you have anything that could help Jackie?”
Mom told Jackie to show her the rash. Jackie immediately responded by shoving her arm in Mom’s face. After quickly looking at her arm Mom asked, “I don’t see anything. Is that what the rash looks like on other parts of your body?”
Jackie said, “Yes.”
M
om then asked Jackie, “Are you using any anti-itch cream for it?”
Jackie replied, “Yes,” then pulled the two thirds spent tube of medicine from her purse and handed it over.
Mom examined the label, gave the container to Carol-Lynn then ordered her to, “Go to the bathroom upstairs and get the unopened tube of that same medicine. We have some upstairs that’s not expired. It might work better.”
Carol-Lynn complied and while she went upstairs Mom told Jackie, “I think it’s just an allergic reaction to something you used. Probably cheap soap or lotion. Stop using whatever’s causing the reaction. Keep using the anti-itch cream for another week. If the rash does not clear up by then to go see a doctor up in Ohio.”
Carol-Lynn came back with a fresh tube of medication and gave it to Jackie.
Jackie thanked Mom and Carol-Lynn with a tearful hug and said, “I really need to get going so that I can say good-bye to one more person today before calling it a day and heading back North.”
I shook both their hands and when I was shaking Mom’s hand she squeezed it harder and pulled me close enough whisper in my ear, “I’m counting on you to keep Jackie safe and get her to her Grandmother’s house. If you don’t then I’ll hunt you down and make you regret not keeping your word. My maiden name ended with a vowel. I have family all over the country who will gladly help me.”
Her comment made me smile and she smiled too as Jackie and I walked back to the car.
It was now about 4:35PM according to the clock in my car. Jackie asked me, “Are you up for one more, quick visit?”
I said, “Sure.”
She informed me, “The place was just a little further out from the City than here and only about ten or fifteen minutes away, if we get back on the highway.”
She then guided me back to the interstate and we were on our way out to another more rural location North West of the City.