“Honey, why don’t go wash up before dinner, you know how your father will be when he gets home.” Sarah, Lenore’s mother, called across the kitchen. Lenore sat on sofa in the living room watching her brother, Michael, play with cards in front of the old fireplace. He had dust all over his face and hands. Each time he shuffled the deck, more specks would filter through the air around him.

As he shuffled the deck one last time, he stood and dusted off his pants. “Mommy, he’s not going to yell, is he?”

Sarah frowned as she looked up from setting the table. In a dejected voice, she told him, “Not if we just do what we’re told, all right?” She held a tight-lipped smile as she continued with her work.

Lenore’s father was a labor worker, out in the backcountry of Kansas. Even as remote as the state could be, the small town where their family lived, was even more so. There was nothing but open fields and farmland for as far as the eye could see and the only jobs out there were mill workers and quarry laborers –things Lenore’s father seemed to be an expert at if his worn hands and work boots were anything to go by.

On long hot days, Lenore’s father would come home and pop open a cold bottle of beer, sit his feet on the coffee table, and read his books and papers. If it was cooler out, he would sit on the porch with his bottle and watch the breeze blow the tall grass in the yard. On hard days, he would yell at Sarah and the kids. Lenore hated those days– they seemed to happen more frequently now than before.

“Mom, why do you put up with his yelling?” Lenore called from the couch, turning her head over the back so that she could see her mother.

Sarah wiped her hands on the front of her dress as she set the casserole dish on the table, “Len, let’s not talk about this now, huh?” her southern drawl pulling out the vowels as she spoke.

“I just don’t think he should– “

“Who should what?” Lenore’s father dropped his lunch bag on the counter as he cut Lenore off. A frown was hard-set on his face and kicked his dirty boots off next to the refrigerator.

“Oh nothing, Dear! Len is just talking about some boy in her class!” Sarah rushed towards him to give him the newly opened beer, ushering him towards the table. ‘Why don’t sit, Michael will be down shortly so we can eat dinner. I made Chicken Casserole, your favorite!”

Lenore’s father sat gruffly in his chair at the head of the table, back to the backdoor he had just entered through. He took a long swig from his beer and leaned back in his chair, sending what can only be called a ‘evil eye’ in Lenore’s direction.

“Best stay away from ‘them boys, Len’. You’re too young for all ‘at.”

~~~ 

Lenore had drowned out the sound of Prof. Monaghan’s voice as he speiled on about trading customs during the Incan Empire. He was talking about some sort of “blah blah blah blah blah,” that Lenore was not interested in. In the seats in front of her, she could see that guy from the ally, Silas, staring at her as he whispered to his desk mate. It had been about a week or so since she ran into him, and in all honesty, she forgot he was even in this class. She had been too focused on getting through the piles of notes and reading responses that had been assigned.

“All right then folks if no one has any questions…I’ll see you next Thursday. I expect those papers to be finished as we won't be meeting Tuesday and that will give you plenty of time to revise them. Good night.” He began packing his bag and looked away from the class. The majority of the group groaned in annoyance at the reminder of the due date.

Lenore looked up from her own bag and spied Silas grinning and bidding good evening to his friend. He made eye contact with Lenore as he rose from his chair and started walking in her direction. Lenore did not want to talk to him, so she quickly averted her eyes and packed her notes away quicker.

“And where are you running off to, sweetheart?” Silas said as he pulled a chair around the front of her table, sitting with his arms over the backrest.

“Home,” Lenore spat out. She reached for her textbook as he placed his hand on top of the open pages. His nails were clean and manicured; He seemed more put together than someone who hangs out in an alley, stalking women would be.

“Have you given my proposal any thought, You know it would really be worth your while. We could really– ”

“How?” Lenore cut him off, steeling her eyes and shoving his hand off her book, “Just how exactly do you plan to make my life “better?” she used her fingers to make little air quotes around the word better.

“Well, Len, If you give me a chance, I’d show you. Me and my family, well let's just say we’ve got some tips and tricks that can really come in handy during a pinch.” He punctuates this remark with a wink and smirk. “And before you ask, again – it’s got nothing to do with drugs or anything. It’s more a sense of, I don’t know, community.”

“Never call me that again,” Lenore’s mother would call her that, drawing out the letters so that it sounded more like Lynn than Len. Just hearing it pronounced that way made a sick, oozing feeling pool in her stomach.

The two have moved now, walking out the classroom and down the hall. Well, Lenore has moved, Silas just followed her with his hands raised in objection. She continued flatly, “You sound like you're recruiting me into a cult.”

“Jeez, Lenore, it’s nothing weird like that! Look you know what,” he said pleadingly with a bit of a chuckle, “Why don’t we go out to dinner or something and I’ll tell you more then?”

He is kind of cute. Lenore thought as she considered him. His hair was long and dark, and his skin tone was pale but even. You know what? Fuck it.

“Fine. I’ll go with you out to dinner, but you are paying.” She paused in her walking as they exited the building, turning, and facing him. His face was lit up like a kid on Christmas. Yeah, okay he’s cute.

He pumped his fists and grabbed her shoulder, “All right! Tomorrow, 9:00 PM. I’ll meet you at that bodega, you know the one, from before?”

Lenore nodded her head, a slight smile playing on her lips, “Yeah, okay.”

“Sweet! Awesome! You’re not going to regret this!” He turned and started walking in the opposite direction of where Lenore was headed. “I’ll see you then!”

Lenore shook her head and started down the cement path through the park. I hope this isn’t a dumb idea.