Pen Pal

by J.T. Geissinger

It’s raining as my husband’s casket is lowered into the hole in the ground.

Oh!

“I’ll wait forever if I have to.” That’s it. There’s nothing else, except a signature scratched below the words. Dante.

so not dead husbands name

The dining room chandelier flickers. I hear popping and crackling noises when I hit the light switch in the master bedroom. Every once in a while, the doorbell rings when no one is there.

Oooo haunting?

He’s in prison, after all. To get there, he had to do something bad.

When did we figure this out

“Ten … thousand?” “Yeah.” “Dollars?” “No, seashells. Of course dollars.” I make a face at him. “And you claim you’re not hilarious.”

LOL jesus

Do I make the check to Godzilla, or should I just leave it blank?” “Godzilla’s fine,” he replies, gazing steadily at me. “What should I put on your receipt? Dragon Lady With the Sad Eyes?”

I gasp in shock when I see the ugly purple splotches encircling my neck.

What

The marks could also have been caused by the accident.

So she was part if the accident too...

A woman living in hell. Tears welling in her eyes, she says hoarsely, “Do you think she could forgive me?”

Omg....

“Johnnie Walker Blue,” I tell him. “Three fingers. Neat.”

Jesus

“Can I ask you a personal question?” “It would be great if you didn’t.” Ignoring that, he says, “Do you find me attractive?” My breath catches. My heartbeat takes off at a gallop. I set the glass down on the table and say carefully, “I’m married.” “That wasn’t my question.” “Aidan—” “Because I think you’re beautiful. Sad, a little bitchy, but fucking beautiful. I want you to come home with me tonight.” Floored, I gape at him. “What?”

Oh shit

“I can honestly say I don’t even know my own name right now.” “It’s Kayla,” he says softly, then leans in and presses his lips against mine.

Holy shit

“My plan is to get you naked and find out how you sound when you come.”

Damn

“Not that I’m saying I’m going to sleep with you, because I’m not, but just for the sake of conversation, you should know that I’m a lights-out kind of girl.” “Not with me, you’re not.”

This man...

“I like it when I irritate you.” “That’s unfortunate, because I like it when I’m not being irritated.” “Your mouth gets all puckered and your nose wrinkles up. You look like a prissy little old lady.” “Whoa, slow down with the compliments, Romeo! I’ll swoon hard and hit my head on something.”

This banter is so good

His mouth next to my ear, he says in a guttural voice, “Is this what you need, baby? You like it rough? Or do you want me to recite some poetry and make you a cup of fucking tea?” “This! This!”

Jeebus

“Fight Club?” “That’s what I thought when I first saw you. That you looked like the founder of a fight club.” Then I grimace. “Is that bad?” “No. Because I am the founder of a fight club.” I gape at him. “Seriously?” “No. I just wanted to see what you’d do when I said that.”

Omg i love him

“It’s been great, champ! Thanks for the fabulous sausage-stuffing!”

Bahaha god please dont

Chuckling, he leans down and kisses me again. “Bashful and bitchy. My two favorite things.”

Ugh where is my aiden

Hub? Cameras? Remote control? I start to get nervous. “That sounds expensive.” Jake grins knowingly. The bright pink piece of gum he’s chewing sticks out from between two molars. “Aidan said that if you mentioned money, I’m supposed to tell you that you know what happens.”

Hahah

Which is when I happen to glance over Jake’s shoulder out my office window and notice someone standing in the yard, down near the water’s edge. Partially hidden by the trunk of a tree, the figure appears to be a man. Though he’s too far away to discern any facial features, and his eyes are obscured by the brim of the hat he’s wearing, I have the distinct feeling that he’s staring right at me. I catch a glint of white as the man bares his teeth like an animal.

..... Help

How naïve we are when we’re young. How easily we trust that the sun will keep rising and setting, warming our days. And what a terrible blow it is to discover it isn’t the sun that makes things bright, but the people who love us, so that when they’re gone, everything is plunged into darkness.

Aww

I know that because Michael had it valued. It had been his grandfather’s. He carried it everywhere with him. He swore it brought him luck.

Omg

Every drawer is pulled all the way out. Every cupboard door stands wide open. I clap my hands over my mouth to stifle my terrified scream.

Fuck... Off...

Just me, my paranoia, and the drawers and cupboards, which all apparently have over-greased rails and hinges. Because there’s no other explanation for this. Because the kitchen doesn’t just decide to fling things open on its own.

Yup....

My husband is dead. He fell off our boat and drowned. I watched it happen.

Curious...

“I wish you knew how perfect you are. How different and perfect. I’ve never met anyone like you. Whenever we’re together, I feel like a new man. A better man. Like everything bad that’s ever happened to me doesn’t matter anymore because your sweet smile takes it all away.”

Bark

“Fuck my mouth,” he orders. “Ride my face, baby. Don’t make me tell you again.” Okey dokey, sir.

Woof

I’m lost in thought as I get in the car and start it, but freeze when I see what’s sitting on the dashboard above the steering wheel. A 1937 D-type buffalo nickel.

Wtf

“Hi, I’m Kayla! I’ve been hearing strange noises in my house, jars fly out of my kitchen cupboards on their own, my memory has more holes in it than a spaghetti strainer, I’ve got a new pen pal in prison, and I started an intense sexual affair three weeks after my husband died with a man who calls me his bunny rabbit!”

Oof

When I look around, however, the kid has disappeared.

Pardon!?

A strange pause follows. It seems fraught. “I entered the code.” “How did you know what code to enter?” Another strange pause follows. She asks hesitantly, “How do you think I know it?”

Um..

She gazes at me steadily. “What you believe is immaterial, Kayla. Because ghosts most definitely believe in you.”

Hello

Ever the practical one, Fiona turns businesslike. “What we need is a séance.” I say flatly, “That’s ridiculous.” “No, the federal tax rate is ridiculous. This is simply a situation that needs to be remedied.”

LOL

“It’s impossible. Ghosts don’t exist.” Fiona smiles. A bass rumble of thunder rolls through the sky. The rain increases, peppering the windows and drumming against the roof. Then the overhead lights turn themselves off and on three times, like a smug supernatural fuck-you.

Girl

“What I’m worried about is giving my heart away to a woman who’s still wearing a wedding ring.” The sadness in his voice makes my heart flip-flop. I whisper, “Oh, Aidan. I’m sorry.” “You don’t have to apologize. Or explain yourself. I don’t ever want you to feel obligated to explain yourself to me. I know you’re just taking this one day at a time.”

Dude tell him!!

“Kayla, be careful with me.” Surprised by that, I ask, “What do you mean?” “I know you think I’m strong. But the problem with strong things is that they’re brittle. They can’t bend under stress. They just break.”

My heart

“I’m only amazing when I’m with you. The rest of the time, I’m nobody.”

Omg... Im sad

Walking through the front door with his arm slung around a curvy brunette’s shoulder is a man I’d recognize anywhere, even from the back. Aidan.

Oh fuck

“Hi,” I say, smiling nervously. “I was just passing by and thought I’d get a reading.” After looking left, then right, the woman shuts the door in my face.

Damn....

Am I being haunted by the spirit of my dead son?

This is what im saying

Why is he so scary? The boy points at me. He lets out a high, bloodcurdling shriek, his mouth stretched open and his blue eyes wide in terror. Then he turns and bolts, disappearing from sight.

What...

REVENGE

Well i hate that

“It’s more likely that the spirit believes he’s imprisoned. Metaphorically speaking, he is.”

Huh

Like an army of spiders, cold horror crawls over my skin. I whisper hoarsely, “No.”

What

The headline isn’t Local Man Drowns, as it appeared when folded. The full headline is Local Man Drowns Wife.

Omfg

Michael didn’t die. Aidan did. Michael killed him. Right before he killed me.

What????!?!!

Michael and Kayla were married young. Before the outbursts started. Before the beatings started. Before he kicked her so hard in the stomach, she miscarried their child.

Omg

Something slips out of his shirt pocket. It splashes into the water and tumbles past my face, small and round, silver and glinting. It’s his lucky 1937 buffalo nickel, the one he never leaves home without.

Omg

I lived two parallel lives, one past and one present, removed from reality but believing myself in it, utterly blind to the truth.

Ah