Legacy | Benny watts

One

The place seemed like the physical representation of a chess bum. Low ceilings, lacking furniture, undignified patrons- but cheap. Cheap was what Kelly needed in this instance, as did every other chess player on a budget currently staying at the dingy motel.

Kelly scanned the lobby, looking for familiar faces to worry about. Only the two best players could qualify for next week's tournament. She was surprised, though, when a hat caught her attention. A hat, of all things, but a very distinctive one that told her there was only one invitation up for grabs. Benny Watts would for sure take the other.

And so what? Good for him. It didn't seem like the past few months had been easy on the champion. Every Chess Review article had been related to Harmon's US tour or Benny's disappearance. Either way, neither one was playing official games, and rumors spread that he had retired for good.

But he was back, and Kelly was ready to begin her career at the relatively late age of twenty-three. Just like Benny, she looked out of place. Not leather and knives out of place, or even female like Beth Harmon, who at least had that glamorous intellectual style about her. Kelly had an almost vulgar attractiveness that didn't mesh well with the scene. Even as players talked and introduced themselves, nobody approached her.

"Hi," until they did. Kelly turned around to see a man, tall but scrawny, at least five years older than herself. "I'm Daniel. Can I get you a drink?"

"I'm good." She thought back to the low quality bottles on display by the bar. "Here for the tournament?"

The man seemed taken aback by Kelly's question, as if he didn't know what tournament she could possibly be referring to, before his eyes suddenly relaxed again and he nonchalantly replied "sure." An awkward silence settled between them, after which Kelly excused herself.

She took the opportunity to slip into the elevator just before the doors closed, manually, by the hand of none other than Benny Watts. She said nothing as the second floor button was pressed, since that was her stop too.

"Stafford?" Benny asked. It wasn't unusual for someone who went to the important events to recognize her. "Where's your family?"

"Watts," She struggled with the temptation to tell him it was none of his goddamn business, but found that she still had some semblance of manners. "Where've you been?" Kelly smiled, making sure it reached her eyes.

She could see Benny shift uncomfortably at her question. It was like he actually recoiled.

"I came alone." Kelly felt like an A-hole for being mean, but her response alone seemed to be enough to put Benny at ease again.

His eyes lit up. "So you play?" It was a mixture of surprise and amusement, like finding out the cheerleader actually played football. Kelly nodded, just as the elevator came to a halt. "Want to play a game?" Four feet were already on the carpet, clearly on the second floor. A floor that only had rooms. Was he asking her to his room?

"An unranked player against a US champion?" She asked nervously.

"Come on, I just want to see if your father's finally found the next Stafford." It was no secret that her father had been trying to revive the family name. Kelly found herself following him. She wanted to know too, if she could live up to her great grandfather's legacy. Her brother hadn't done anything but lose to Benny.

Soon, the pieces of Benny's chess set were perfectly lined up on the board. His cowboy hat had come off and been placed on the bed, giving him a much more relaxed look than Kelly was used to, but he still had that killer look in his eyes, right before a game.

Kelly moved the first piece, and everything picked up from there. The rule was, make your next move within ten seconds of your opponent's last. Unfair, really, considering how good Benny was at speed chess, but necessary given how late it was.

At some point, Benny picked up his rook and froze. One second, two seconds. Kelly smiled at the change in his expression as he realized he couldn't win, even though she knew he wouldn't let her win either. He seemed almost proud. "Draw?" He asked.

"Draw."

She shook his hand and quickly made her way to her own room, right across from Benny's. It was weird to think this was the longest interaction she'd had with him, even though they'd been seeing each other around for years. Kelly hoped he could be her first friend in the chess community, or maybe even something more.

Don't judge.
He was handsome. Kelly had never thought of Benny Watts as anything but menacing up until this point. But right now, something else seemed menacing. Her door wouldn't lock.

She quickly went to the lobby to tell someone, then stopped. The crowd was a strange mix of chess players, businessmen and hookers. Through the bodies, Kelly could see that guy from before, Daniel, sitting behind the desk. He was the night clerk, she just had to ask him to call maintenance to her room, if the place even had a handyman on staff.

But she didn't. It was like there was a pit in her stomach, her gut feeling literally weighed her down and made her turn back the way she came from. Once on the second floor, Kelly went straight for Benny's room.

She knocked twice before the door crept open, and her cheeks turned red as soon as she recognized what was in front of her. Benny Watts, still in his jeans but shirtless, what looked like a kimono carelessly thrown over his frame. His bare chest was level with Kelly's eyes.

Kelly did her best to look up at his face, and not any other places. "My door won't lock..." she trailed off, not really knowing how to ask for help.

"Well, did you ask the guy downstairs to fix it?" Wow Benny why didn't I think of that before.

"It was working this morning," she said, hoping that Benny would understand. It didn't feel natural to complain. "I think the clerk asked me out tonight. He gives me the creeps."

Benny's face shifted. He looked... concerned, maybe? A cross between concern and anger would probably be more accurate. In the last few seconds, he seemed to be considering something.

He moved out of the way abruptly, gesturing Kelly into the room. "That one might be a sofa bed." It wasn't. It was ridiculously small, barely long enough to fit someone Kelly's height, and even had a slight musky odor.

She still laid on it and took the pillow Benny offered. "How do I know you're not a creep too?" She asked through a yawn.

Kelly could see the edges of an amused smile on Benny's face as he said goodnight and turned away.