Decky jumped up, grabbed the clothes she had dropped on the floor and started dressing quickly. When she saw that Charlie’s underwear were there too, she threw them at her and kept moving. Charlie looked like a deer in the headlights, her wide eyes searching the room. Making a quick decision, Charlie took only her underwear and climbed into the armoire, attempting to shut the door behind her. Decky thought it was a good strategy. That’s how she would play this. Charlie wasn’t there.
Finally clothed, Decky grabbed the crutches and stepped out into the large room that ran the length of the house facing the water. She was standing just outside Charlie’s bedroom door. There was a back door not five feet from her. Although the fear was acting as a wonderful painkiller, she didn’t think she could get up any speed. The kitchen area in front of her contained weapons. She would have to keep Lizzie out of this area of the house, at all costs.
Decky stood there at one end of the large room, while Lizzie continued to scream at her through the door. Decky only moved toward the locked door when she saw Lizzie grab a cast iron deck chair and head for the picture window behind the couch. Before leaving the bedroom door, she looked back and saw Charlie peaking out, totally immersed in trying to get the door of the armoire to close and stay shut. She made eye contact and asked Charlie to be quiet with a wave her hand.
When Decky finally opened the door, Lizzie hit the room like a crazed, wounded animal. “I know about you and your little LESBIAN friend!” She drew the word lesbian out adding z’s for effect. It sounded like l-e-z-z-z-bian to Decky. It had a connotation to it that indicated right away, where Lizzie stood on this matter.
Dixie had watched the whole thing evolve from the deck, where she had been lounging when Lizzie drove up. Decky was sure that Dixie had led Lizzie happily to the door. Dixie evidently knew better than to follow Lizzie into the house. Dixie now was sitting in a deck chair watching through the picture window, to get a better view of the action inside.
Just as Lizzie started for Decky, Miss Kitty made her entrance, by scrambling out from under the couch at Lizzie’s feet. Lizzie thought something had her. She screamed and leapt onto the couch. Miss Kitty ran past Decky and into the bedroom. She was twice her normal size and frightened out of her mind. Decky heard the armoire door squeak open and close again. At least they were together. Decky was out here on her own.
The absurdity of the situation hit Decky and she started to grin. She tried desperately not to, but it was hopeless. Her mother was dancing around on the couch still vibrating with anger. Her girlfriend was naked and hiding in the armoire with a cat. Her dog was enjoying the show from a safe distance. It was all just too much.
“Have you lost your damn mind? I did not raise you like this. What in the hell is wrong with you?” Lizzie was still on the couch, but gaining momentum.
“You need to calm down,” Decky said, still unable to stop grinning.
“You had better wipe that smile off your face right this minute.”
Decky bit her lip. It didn’t help, but at least she was making an effort.
“I am going to slap your ass into Tidewater Psychiatric Institute so fast it will make your head spin. They can fix you. No daughter of mine is going to be sleeping around like trash. I don’t care if that woman does have a PHD in mathematics.”
From the bedroom, much to Decky’s horror, she heard Charlie say, “It’s an EDD in administration.”
Lizzie flew off the couch. She was experiencing the same phenomenon that had just seized Miss Kitty. She seemed to blow up to twice her size, as she tried to get past Decky to the source of the voice. Decky backed up as best she could, dancing in front of her mother to block her path. Over her shoulder, she said to the bedroom door, “Would you shut up? You’re not helping.”
Lizzie snatched a crutch away from Decky, almost toppling her. She waved the crutch around still trying to enter the bedroom. Although happy that she was no longer Lizzie’s target, she couldn’t let Lizzie get to Charlie. She grabbed the crutch her mother was waving around and held it down in front of them. She had to hold very tight.
“Momma, that’s enough. You need to go.”
This redirected Lizzie’s anger to Decky.
“I will not be made a fool of. You will not embarrass your father and me this way. I can’t believe there isn’t something mentally wrong with you. It’s common and trashy and you will not behave this way. Is that understood?”
Still clinging to the crutch, Decky spoke as calmly as she could, “Mother, I am not a child. I am sorry this has upset you, but this has nothing to do with you.”
“Nothing to do with me? It has everything to do with me. What kind of mother will people think I am? I should have never let you play softball in the first place.”
“I did not do this because you let me play softball. Why are you acting like this? You have friends with gay children. You adore Toby at the burger place and he’s going through a sex change.”
“They are not my children. You are, and you will not be part of this family, if you don’t straighten up and fly right.”
Decky let anger slip into her voice, “Then I won’t be a part of your life. Would that make you happy?”
Lizzie let go of the crutch. She took two steps back from Decky and then with the coldest look Decky had ever seen, she said, “You are going to burn in hell for this.”
Then it was over. Lizzie left without another word. When Decky was sure the coast was clear, she went back to the bedroom. The house was silent once again. She looked at the armoire. In the ever so small opening, where the door would not close all the way, were Charlie’s fingertips digging into the wood. She was still trying to hold the door shut when Decky pried it open.
There, huddled together, were a naked Charlie, underwear in one hand, with a really freaked out cat between her legs.
“She’s gone. Get dressed. We’re leaving.”
Charlie did as she was told, still shaken and a bit confused. “Where are we going?”
“We don’t have a lot of time.”
Charlie looked even more frightened, if that was possible. “What do you mean?”
“That was Lizzie sober. We just have time to make it to my house. Grab the cat and let’s move, now!”
Charlie went to get the cat carrier and rounded up Miss Kitty, who was still in shock and happy to be back in a familiar environment.
Charlie asked Decky, as she followed her slow progress down the steps, “Why are we going to your house, won’t she just come there?”
“Yes, she will, but I have something there you don’t have here.”
“What?”
Decky jumped into the driver’s side while Charlie and Dixie got into the Expedition. She looked at Charlie and said very seriously, “Bullet proof glass.”
#
They didn’t talk much on the way to Decky’s house. Charlie bit the tip of her index finger. Her feet were up on the seat, knees pulled in close to her body. She didn’t look scared anymore. She looked like she was solving a problem far away on a classroom chalkboard.
When Decky wasn’t looking at Charlie, she was watching the road for any sign of danger. The last time Decky was going to roast in hell was when she got a tattoo. It was just a small rose on her ankle, very elegant. Now it was barely visible through the scars from past surgeries. Her mother had freaked. First, she’d gone and associated herself with Carney trash, which is what her mother called theatre people, by changing from pre-law to theatre in college. Then Decky got a tattoo in the spring of her senior year.
Decky had gone home on the Friday after getting the tattoo. Her mother had somehow found out about it and was waiting at the county line when Decky crossed it. She had followed Decky home with her headlights flashing on and off, honking the horn and swerving the car, all the time screaming at how Decky better get her ass home. Decky could not hear her mother over the road noise and honking horn, but she could definitely read her lips.
Lizzie had threatened to have
skin graphs taken from Decky’s ass to cover it up. Decky had to wear socks to church whenever Lizzie was around. Going to church had been her father’s idea. He had two strong willed women living in the same house. Decky had attended church from birth to college, after that she had only made it at Christmas and Easter.
With Decky’s lack of church attendance, playing ball or doing theatre on Sundays, and now the tattoo, Lizzie had had enough. Decky’s mother said that she would burn in hell and refused to speak to her. It would have been fine with Decky if, when her mother refused to speak to someone, she really did it. What Lizzie really meant was she refused to speak civilly to them. R.C. had suggested to Decky that she go to church more often when she was at home, to try and ride out the storm. It helped, and Lizzie finally forgot about the tattoo and moved on to other things.
This time, Decky thought, was different. The look in Lizzie’s eyes meant war. She would work every angle on this one. First, there would be Zack. Thank God, he was grown or Social Services would be waiting on the doorstep when they pulled up. Lizzie would call them anyway to see if the dog could be rescued.
She would threaten Charlie’s job, but they had already talked to Brenda about that. She told Charlie and Decky that the administration had faced this issue under previous circumstances and chosen to leave it alone. It seems the U’s attorney advised them of a major lawsuit loss based on the U’s non-discrimination policy and all was swept away. The same would go for Charlie and Decky, even more so, since Charlie could accuse Lizzie of using her position to break the law, which is one definition of discrimination.
That didn’t mean Lizzie couldn’t make life hell for Charlie. The administration may back Charlie, but she would be judged and sides would be taken. Administrators hate controversy and Lizzie could stir it up with the best of them. Those who hated gay people in general could be rallied to Lizzie’s cause, no doubt. It could get ugly. She only hoped that she could shield Charlie. as much as possible, from Lizzie’s wrath.
Decky checked her messages when she got in the house. The first message was from Brenda. Lynne had been deposited at the airport and hopefully gone forever. Decky hadn’t thought about Lynne in hours. She flexed her right hand. Next were a series of calls from her mother that began with a call that morning relaying their arrival home. Soon the calls became abusive and Decky simply deleted them.
There was a frantic call from Brenda warning them of Lizzie’s arrival and an apology for telling where they were. Zack called. He said Lizzie had called him a few minutes ago and he was just glad he was in Alaska. He wished her luck and said he loved her. The last call was Brenda again apologizing and offering Charlie sanctuary until the hurricane had passed.
While Decky listened to the messages, Charlie went down to the mudroom to retrieve an old rubber pan, Decky had suggested they use as a litter box for Miss Kitty. The house was surrounded by sand, so Charlie filled the pan, and prepared food, water and bathroom privacy for Miss Kitty. When Decky was off the phone, they let Miss Kitty out of her crate.
Miss Kitty was a small black and white cat, with a big attitude. Not a bad attitude, more a queenly manor. Dixie, who was the only royalty in the house up until now, sniffed at Miss Kitty. She must have associated the smell with Charlie. She walked over, sat down at Charlie’s feet and moved her eyebrows up and down. She seemed to be assessing whether this was a necessity. She glanced over at Decky.
“She’s staying, get used to it,” Decky said to Dixie’s upturned face.
Miss Kitty in turn, ran straight for the couch and began sharpening her claws on the cushions. Dixie followed her and barked when Miss Kitty started scratching. Miss Kitty stopped and got comfortable on the back of the couch. Dixie assumed her normal spot on the end of the couch, and they both appeared to have decided to share the space.
Charlie smiled and held Decky’s hand as she watched the two animals on the couch. “I need to warn you Dixie, this may all be a ruse. She’s been known to play tricks like hiding behind doors and springing out after you.”
Decky added, “Well, in the spirit of full disclosure, Dixie has been known to eat cat food, so it will all even out.”
Charlie wanted to take a shower and Decky needed a swim. Decky craved the swimming. It relieved stress and let loose all kinds of wonderful chemicals in her body. She was addicted to it. She needed it now. Decky also needed the exercise to work the alcohol completely out of her system, and she needed to think.
Decky swam like a woman possessed. She swam the first laps in anger. Her mother was judging her. Decky was the same person that her mother knew yesterday. What was so different about Decky that her mother had acted that way? Why couldn’t she reasonably sit down and discuss this?
Decky would tell her mother she did not expect her to accept Charlie as a member of the family, just a member of Decky’s family, Charlie, Zack, Dixie, and now Miss Kitty. She would tell her they could agree to disagree, much like the tattoo. Decky and Charlie did not have to be around her mother, after all Decky had been avoiding Lizzie as a vocation for years. It would be much better if her mother were not so invested in Decky’s life. Decky had been glad when Zack was born, because it gave her mother someone else to concentrate on.
It was all about Lizzie. Lizzie would be telling herself she was trying to help Decky. She would tell herself Decky was in need of mental help. She would tell herself anything except the fact her daughter was gay. Well, she is going to have to learn to deal with it Decky thought. If this was finally the straw that breaks the back of Decky’s relationship with her mother, then so be it. She did not want to hurt her mother, but she was not going to let Lizzie ruin everything. Not now, when she had Charlie, the one thing she knew she had been missing her whole life.
Decky swam for the sorrow of loss. She could never go back to the way things had been. At the party last night, all had been accepting of Decky’s new lifestyle, for the most part. After all, this was a lesbian friendly environment; however, she did notice that some people treated her differently than before. Decky felt no differently about them. Why should she? Nothing had changed, other than, she was now involved in a relationship with Charlie. That really had nothing to do with anyone except the two of them.
Fortunately, Decky did not care what other people thought of her. She liked herself. She had never sought or needed approval from others to be happy. She was comfortable in her own skin. Decky had made unfortunate decisions, but she learned from them and moved on. Unlike Lizzie, Decky did not hold on forever to every misfortune or tragedy. She got over Trey; she could get over anything.
Decky did not want her relationship with Charlie to cause her son any hardship. She would take extra care to insure that. Decky recognized it would be hard on her father. He would have to try and hold Lizzie together without Decky’s help. She would call him tomorrow night, when she knew her mother would be at her Eastern Star meeting. Decky understood in her heart, he would love her no matter what. He was just like that.
Decky was sorry her mother had chosen to dive full throttle into a downward bi-polar drama. She would work this to death; finally have a psychotic episode where she would embarrass herself to no end. Lizzie would then slink off, sorry for her behavior, until the next thing set her off. From here out it was anybody’s guess how it would go down. Decky could count on one thing for sure. The reaction would be directly proportional to the amount of alcohol Lizzie consumed between now and the moment she lost her mind.
Decky swam until her arms and legs became too heavy to lift anymore. The swim helped her ankle. She had placed one of many braces she had collected over the years on the ankle before the swim. It felt good to use her leg fully. Decky climbed out of the lap pool. Then she went to the bar where she created an ice bag. Returning to the Jacuzzi, she propped up her ankle on the side of the pool with the ice and cooled down.
She was reclining there, lost in thought, when Charlie descended the stairs.
“Decky, we’ve been touring the house with Mi
ss Kitty.”
Charlie, holding a struggling Miss Kitty, was following Dixie down the stairs. The cat had all four legs flying in different directions. Then Decky witnessed an incredible feat. The cat actually spun her back legs around and kicked off of Charlie’s chest. While her back legs were doing this, her front legs and head were facing the other way. It was like a wild game of twister. Dixie was mystified.
“I see she’s really enjoying it.” Decky was finally relaxing. It had to be Charlie’s presence, because how bad could life be with her by Decky’s side.
#
After preparing a meal and eating it, the two tired women retired to the bedroom. Miss Kitty proceeded to make herself comfortable in the center of the bed. The ‘queen on her throne’ look drove Dixie nuts. There was only one royal in this house and Dixie was sure it was she. Dixie jumped on the bed, did three circles around the cat and then chose Decky’s pillow for her perch.
Decky and Charlie left the animals to work it out amongst themselves. Decky sat down in one of the oversized chairs with ottoman, making it the size of a twin bed. Charlie fixed Decky a bucket of ice for the ankle, which Decky dipped in and out of, while they watched the news. They did not talk much. Charlie fell asleep in the chair with Decky, her head resting on Decky’s chest. It felt like the calm before the storm.
Out on the Sound Page 17