A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall

Chapter XXXII: Bette Catherine Eyes

Angus rifled through some papers with a cigarette in his mouth as he sat on my lap. "Bills?" I asked.

"Mmhm," he mumbled. He took the cigarette out and sighed. "Look at this water bill, what kind of number is that?" he asked holding it up to me. "Which one of us is showerin' too much? That's it, from now on, we shower together." I laughed. Angus flipped through his collection and stopped at what looked to be a handwritten letter. "An' look at this," he said pointing at it with his pinkie. "From someone named Bette Catherine. Says, 'Dear Angus...I went to your concert last year in Detroit and I had a great time. I saw you up there and my heart beat a million times per minute, I swear. You were all good, but I want you to know you'll always be my favourite.'" Angus looked at me smugly. "Hear that? Her favourite."

I rolled my eyes.

"'I also want you to know that if you ever want a good time and a fun date that I'm always available. I'm in the Detroit area and would love for you to come pay me a visit sometime. I've never actually been with a man before-'" Angus started laughing. He couldn't seem to finish the letter so I took it from him.

"'-but I've got tons of practise on myself so you don't have to worry about anything, also I'm on the pill.'" I looked away from the letter, the jitters crawling across my skin. "Charming," I said handing the letter back to Angus. 

Angus controlled himself. He stood up from my lap. "Well Miss Catherine ought to be rather disappointed when she learns I'm taken," he said kissing my cheek. My face felt hot. "No idea how she even got our address....I'm gonna have to get better privacy measures around here. Not even a return address, how the hell am I supposed to pay her a visit? Oh, this one's for you." He handed me an unopened envelope covered in cursive writing. "It's uh...from the Popplewells."

I sighed big time and took the envelope. Wonder what good ol' Popplewell has to say to me this time. I ripped the envelope apart and squinted at the bright yellow card covered in pieces of confetti. 

Dear Guest,

You are formally invited to celebrate Sheryl Moira Popplewell's seventh birthday party this Saturday. We will be hosting dinner and games for the children, and drinks for the adults. The dress code is "fancy". There will be strawberry cake with fresh strawberries grown by your local Popplewells themselves. Bring presents, nothing is too expensive. I expect you here by five o' clock sharp. 

Wanda Moira Popplewell

I had completely forgotten. Sheryl's birthday was the fifteenth of June. It wasn't that I didn't want to go, but I really had had enough Popplewells to last me a lifetime. Angus came back from putting the papers on the kitchen counter. "What is it?"

"We're invited to Sheryl's birthday party," I said holding it up for him. The confetti made a mess all over the floor. Angus worked up a smile.

"That could be fun, are ya' goin'?" he asked. 

"I will if you will."

"I dunno, love, the invitation is for you," Angus said. "I'm sure Wanda won't be thrilled if I jus' show up, ya' know? Might send the police after me."

"That's all the more reason to go," I said. "We'll piss her off." Angus laughed. "She'll never invite us to anything or bother us ever again."

"I'm not disagreein' with ya'..." he said. "But I still like seein' little Sheryl, ya' know? An' if Wanda throws us out that means we can't see her again either."

I hadn't thought about that. If Wanda deemed the pair of us threats to her outstanding reputation or her daughter's, we'd probably get a restraining order placed on us. And Sheryl couldn't ever play with her Angus anymore. I wanted to crumple the stupid invitation and hurl it across the room. There was no way I could be on my best behaviour with her around. I was already on a short fuse lately, I could blow at any minute. And strawberry cake?? Along with shellfish I was also conveniently allergic to strawberries. It was like she was purposefully trying to kill me. No cake for me. I wasn't really hungry anyway. Not with recent circumstances. Angus wasn't the only one his work was putting pressure on.

**********

"Hey, Ang, why don't you get your girlfriend to act in our video? She's kinda cute." A man with long dark hair said.

"That's not really her cup of tea," Angus explained. "She doesn't like to be on camera, ya' know?"

As Angus turned to leave he overheard someone mutter in the other man's ear, "Mate, she's crook. Hire someone decent."

Angus said he did his best not to say anything but I guess he was in a mood the rest of the day. With all the extra work piled on them from filming music videos downtown to castings to meetings to playing small shows in Australia, this was the straw that broke the camel's back. I tried not to let it get to me. 

Why can't people keep their thoughts to themselves?

**********

I cleaned up the confetti and threw it all in the rubbish. Both of us wanted to laze around the house all weekend but a party sounded like a good way to forget everything happening. I reread the invitation and saw a little note in tiny print at the bottom. 

One plus one is allowed.

"Angus?" I called finding him in the kitchen with his mouth full of leftover Scottish chokkie. 

"Hm?" he asked wiping his mouth. 

"It says I can bring a guest." I held up the sickeningly yellow invitation. "Are you busy this Saturday?"