The Curse of Introspection (Chapter 9)

Well, Ellie and Brit are leaving day after tomorrow. I’m surprised by how sad I am about it. While I usually make breakfast for my guests, it’s not often that we eat every meal together. The three of us have kinda naturally fallen into that routine.

What’s even more uncommon, though? I’ve never spent the majority of my guest’s vacation hanging out with them. We went to MDI, we hiked Cadillac, we went to a play at the Waterville Opera House, I took them to Bangor to do some ax throwing... which was a mistake because Elizabeth is a danger to herself and others with a sharp object in her hand!

I introduced them to Sue-Ellen, Todd, and a few other people from town. We also went to Belfast and they bought some books. We walked the boardwalk, ate some dinner at this killer Italian restaurant called Delvino’s…

I’ve never had this much fun or made such a powerful friendship with any guests. They keep inviting me, so I keep going. I really enjoy their company. Ol’ Pearly even likes them. Not that she’s mean to people, but she’s pretty picky. She doesn’t warm up to any rando who stays in our cabins.

I never thought my favorite guests would be two 30-something girls from New York City.

And now they’re going home. Back to New York. I’m broken up over it. And while Brit is cool and everything… I don’t know what it is… but Ellie. She can be whiny, she can be rude… and entitled. But there’s something about her.

I haven’t felt this way about anyone since... well. You know.

There was a moment the other night where… well, I don’t know what happened… I think we almost kissed? But Brittany kinda killed it. I’m already feeling these feelings and thinking these thoughts. The weirdest one being: What would she say if I asked her to stay here with me?

That’d be so off base. So incredibly weird. And she’d obviously say “no.” What’s she gonna do? Just quit her job that she loves? Plus, she obviously makes a ton of money and there’s no way she’d be able to make her salary here!

Doesn’t change the fact I’m still thinking it, though.

Anyway, I’m off to say my prayers and take my vitamins. I’ve kinda let a few chores slip since the ladies have been around and, after they leave, I’ve got a long day ahead of me.

I know one thing, though. I can’t let her leave without kissing her.

The day before, Elizabeth and and Brittany were preparing to trying to figure out some entertainment for the evening.

“Do you know how to start a fire in the fireplace?” Elizabeth asked her roomie.

Brit flashed an incredulous look at Elizabeth. “Girl, if I knew how to do that, I would have done it the night we got here.”

“Do you think if I go knock on his door, he’d build us a fire?”

Brit shrugged, “it’s worth a shot.”

Elizabeth summed up the constitution to step out into the night, armed with the cabin’s flashlight. It was dusk with a late strawberries-and-cream sky peeking between the silhouette of the forest.

She stopped for a moment and looked up. It was the first time she had ever truly noticed the stars as an adult. There was something magical about the glittering firmament overhead.

With all the light pollution in the city, she could only really see the brightest objects in the night sky; Mars, Jupiter, Mercury… and moving constellations of satellites visible with the naked eye. Not that she could name any of them.

“Wow, a shooting star,” Ansel said from his cabin’s porch. Indeed, they had both seen one streak across the sky. He looked over at Elizabeth. She hadn’t noticed him but he had seen her coming. “Everything alright over in Cabin Lockheart?”

“We’re fine. A bit cold, but fine,” she said as she approached the screen door to his deck. “You startled me.”

“Sorry,” the sound of crickets and the rhythmic hoot of an owl punctuating his apology. “I could probably start a fire in your wood stove.”

“I wasn’t sure if I should ask,” she noncommittally replied.

“Well, no need to ask. I’m offering.” He disappeared into his cabin and returned a moment later with a box of matches and an armload of fire wood.

“Can I carry something?” Elizabeth asked.

“Here,” he said, handing her the matches, adding with a grin, “make yourself useful.”

The warmth of the fire had made the cabin bearable. Elizabeth had taken the Cadillac Mountain hoodie off and she was now wearing a tank top and running shorts. She noticed Ansel stealing glances of her thighs. Ah, an ass man, I see, she thought to herself. A man of taste.

“Go fish,” Ansel proudly declared. “I’m shocked you ladies don’t know how to play poker.”

“I know how to play cribbage,” Brittany said.

“I’ve played a game or two of solitaire on my laptop,” Elizabeth added.

“But, come on. Poker is… poker! It’s like, the universal card game.”

The ladies looked at each other and laughed. Brit sardonically hissed, “and what, you’re surprised we’ve never smoked cigars, either, right?”

“Yeah, poker just feels… kinda cowboyish,” Elizabeth teased.

“I’m nothing if not a cowpoke,” Ansel grinned. “Do you have any sixes?”

“GO FISH!” Blurted Elizabeth with a bit more enthusiasm than she intended. “Brit, do you have any Kings?”

“Damn it!” She replied, handing her friend two cards.

“Ansel, do you have any tens?”

“GO FISH!” He yelled, mocking her.

“We’ve been playing Go Fish for like an hour and a half, Ellie,” Brit lamented with exasperation.

“I told you I’d teach you poker.”

“NO!” They both protested.

Ellie probed, “so who does your interior design?”

Ansel found the term interior design to be amusing, given his living situation. He consequently let out a chuckle. “Well, I had a designer but I had to fire her,” he joked.

“Mmm. Well, it looks like you could use some help.”

“Fuck, that was rude, Ellie,” Brit exclaimed.

“What? I’m offering my help—free of charge!”

“Oh yeah?” Ansel asked. “What would be the first thing you’d change?”

Without a hesitation, Ellie glanced upwards; “I’d paint the ceiling a normal color.”

“Hey, that wasn’t me. It was like that when we bought the cabins.”

“You and Pearl?”

“What else would you change?” Ansel asked.

“The day bed. They haven’t been in fashion since 1995. Get a sofa instead.”

“What else?”

“Replace the area rug. Maybe a neutral high-pile.”

“That rug was my grandmothers.”

“And change out the art on the walls. Maybe frame some photos taken by previous guests.”

“Man. You really had those locked and loaded, huh?” Ansel’s inquiry was more of an observation.

“I’m a professional.”

Brit was bored. She got up and went to the kitchenette. She opened the cupboard, grabbed the bottle of banana flavored schnapps and three shot glasses. She returned to the card game.

“Aren’t you ladies a little too old for shots?” Ansel was visibly uncomfortable at the arrival of the liqueur.

Brittany bit back, “it’s not like we’re in our 40’s.”

Elizabeth clocked Ansel’s discomfort and shot a dirty look at her friend. “I good. I’m not gonna drink tonight, Brit.”

“What? 99 Bananas if your favorite.”

“Put. It. Away.” She spat through gritted teeth. As Brittany got up and returned to the kitchenette, Elizabeth leaned over the coffee table and took Ansel’s hand. “Hey. Are you okay?”

“Yeah. Oh yeah. I’m fine.”

“No, really. I’m sorry about that,” Elizabeth said, trying to comfort him.

“I just… have a bit of… history with alcohol. It’s a long story,” he said. “I’m sorry. I should probably get some sleep.” He got up and quickly left their cabin.

Elizabeth got up, glaring at Brit from across the room. “I hope you’re happy.” Then rushed out the door after him.

“I didn’t know,” Brittany said under her breath.

Elizabeth vaulted around the corner of the building, chasing after Ansel. He was heading back to his cabin, his silhouette accentuated by the faint moonlight. “Ansel, wait!”

He stopped walking and she quickly caught up to him. He was sobbing.

“What happened?”

He was silent.

“Ansel, talk to me.”

Still silent, he wiped his tears away with his sleeve. He cleared his throat and squared his shoulders. “I’ve gotta get some sleep.”

He tried to resume his short journey home but she moved herself into his path. She reached up and ran her hand through his hair.

“Whatever it is, you can tell me.”

“It’s nothing,” he said—emotion obstructing his speech.

“Okay, well, you don’t have to tell me. I’m just sorry. Whatever it was. I’m sorry.”

The energy between them was palpable and it felt like the right moment. To her, he seemed like a wounded animal. To him, she was caring and empathetic. She moved her hand from his hair to the back of his neck and their lips drew close…

“What the fuck happened?” Brit hollered as she came around the corner of Cabin Lockheart.

The moment was gone, their lips not having met. Elizabeth’s eyes had been closed, though, with anticipation. When Brit interrupted them, she threw her head back in frustration. When she opened her eyes, Ansel was gone. The screen door on his porch slamming shut under the tension of a spring.

About The Author:

B.E. Waites

B.E. Waites is a New England-based author. They're also a gamer and an amateur photographer. When they're not writing, they work in the public health sector.