Foundations and Plus Signs

Risks

Photo by Josue Isai Ramos Figueroa on Unsplash

The piss was dripping off the sides of the white plastic wand.

Wand.I hope you're magic.

Fauna yelled “oh my fucking” and Leili almost dropped the damn wand.

Fauna was watching one of those teen vampire shows because her cable got shut off.

Leili set the wand on the sink when Fauna made an oooh sound,like she was going to for real cry over some fake vampire shit.

Leili came out , ready to tease her and Fauna rushed to her.

There was news on the TV, not vampires, but over Fauna’s shoulder Leili saw a bloody Carhartt.

Just like Maurice's.

All those coats looked alike though…but…that looked like Maurice's.

Then the graphic said Cave In at Hambleton Tower Project.

Maurice's job.

Leili’s call to Maurice was on the second ring when the graphic said 1 Reported Dead on Scene, 9 Injured.

Leili threw up on her Spiderman t shirt.

Call went to voicemail.

Leili pulled her curly auburn hair around her face and screamed “ Momo is dead!”

Fauna thought the call had gone through and someone told Leili Maurice was dead and she started bawling.

She tried to calm herself to comfort her friend but she was too far gone.

Leili pulled it together first.

“He's not dead, he can't be dead.”

Fauna couldn't stop crying.

Then the screen showed a cellphone video of a backhoe tumbling into the massive square hole and another shot of the bloody Carhartt.

It was Maurice's. She knew it. No identifying marks, she just knew.

She wailed, pulled off her vomit covered shirt and wailed louder, dialing Maurice's number again.

Voicemail.

Leili left the message “Call me” all stutters and sobs.

Fauna walked to the kitchen, opened a can of soup and poured it in a pot. She looked back at Leili.

“ You threw up, you gotta eat.”

Both women started sobbing again.

Leili called the Corixo Construction number. Got a complex voicemail system, hung up.

However long later, Leili had to tell Fauna the soup she never wanted was burning.

Fauna turned off the burner, grabbed one of Maurice's beers out of the fridge.

Leili started to admonish her and sobbed again.

The bottom of the screen crawled with info and Leili said “ look for names, Faun, look for names.”

“They gotta tell you first, Lei, you're family.”

Leili hid her eyes and called Patti Michaels. She would know.

Patti answered, breathless.

1 guy was dead already, 1 wasn't gonna make it. Frank was alive, broken ankle. She was on the way to St. Catherine’s. Didn't know names.

If she heard anything, she'd call.

Leili held the phone like a grenade.

It rang and she dropped it.

Robo call for new roofing.

She screamed, hung up, called Maurice.

Voicemail.

Somehow Fauna had given her a beer too. It was between her legs, cold, miserable.

Leili threw it, realized it belonged to Maurice and wailed again.

She put her hair in her mouth and rocked.

Fauna rubbed her head and it felt like sandpaper.

The phone rang.

Ricio.

Maurice programmed it in her phone himself on their first date.

Leili slammed the phone against her ear.

“Hi kitten.”

Maurice.

Leili jumped from the sofa, fell, screamed “ Oh thank Jesus Momo!!!”

“ My wrist is broke…. I'm, I'm good though.”

All Leili could do was hyperventilate.

She screamed “Come home!” as Maurice was telling her Phillip Salem was dead.

Leili screamed “ Come home come home come home!”

“Gonna be a minute, Lei.”

“ I'm coming to you then.”

Leili knew she ran two reds.

Didn't care.

She was celebrating walking through the St.Catherine’s door but the rest of the families she recognized were in shocked silence.

Phillip Salem was dead.

She heard someone say “decapitated.”

They let her back to see Momo.

It was worse than a broken wrist. Had a temporary pin in it. An elaborate splint.

He was high as shit.

But alive.

Leili couldn't stop hugging him.

She had to help Momo in the door.

The morphine was making him sick, he was upset about Phillip.

Fauna kissed Maurice on the ear and went home.

Leili scooped out Momo a bowl of Fudge Ripple Ice Cream, his favorite thing besides beer, which he didn't want.

She put it on the coffee table and stood, waiting for him.

He looked at the ice cream, dropped his head gently on Leili’s shoulder.

She eased him down to the sofa, tried to give him a spoonful of ice cream.

Maurice shook his head. His eyes narrowed.

“ Lei, is Fauna pregnant?”

***