52. Lonely People

52

LONELY PEOPLE

LESTER

TWENTY-ONE YEARS AGO ― May 17th, 1954

Rosemary leans her cheek on my shoulder as I peel a large apple for us with a knife. My back rests against a large tree trunk, and once the peel is off, I throw it beside us on the ground for the animals in the forest. I slice little pieces off the apple and feed it into Rosemary's mouth and she lets out a grateful hum. "Thank you, Chipmunk."

"How is school going?" I ask as I put a piece of apple into my own mouth, tasting the sweetness with every chew.

"Okay," she answers. "My grades are good. I'm working hard so I can get a good job when we finally get out. Mama's been kind to me lately. Now that I bring money in and she has enough supply of whisky, she leaves me alone for the most part."

Whereas I only have one evil parent, she has two. Her mother is just as bad as her father. The first time her father lost a poker game at one of the parties, you could still see that it hurt him to give away his daughter to those men. After some time, that went away.

He no longer only gave her up as a prize for his games, but he started prostituting her in exchange for cash as well. He was in debt with some bad men, and with the money he got from Rosemary, he was able to pay them off. Though he didn't stop there. The line was already crossed, his conscience and soul already gone.

Rosemary is the breadwinner now, while her parents shoot up drugs and drink themselves to death.

I slice off another piece of the apple and she opens her mouth eagerly before I pop it in. "That's good, Bunny. I'm doing the same. It's important that we do well in school."

"You'll get into the art academy without any trouble, Lester. You're too good already."

I huff a smile. "Maybe my art is good, but my grades have to be, too. Even for math and such. They have very high standards."

"You'll make it work."

"Have you figured out yet what you want to do?" I ask with a mouthful.

"I just want to be with you, Lester," she says, wrapping her arm around my bicep and snuggling closer against me. "The rest will come later. As long as I feel safe, everything will be perfect. And I only feel safe with you."

We finish the apple in silence, just taking in the scenery of the forest around us. Rays of warm sunlight peek through the trees, bathing us in warmth. There's a slight breeze that tickles against my bare arms, and Rosemary feels it too, because she shivers. I grab my jacket out of the grass and put it around her to warm her up.

A little bunny hops in the distance and I quietly point at it so it doesn't startle and run away. "Look," I whisper. "That's you, Bunny."

She giggles silently and I look at her face with contentment. These moments with her are the only shred of happiness I have anymore.

"We could buy lots of bunnies, and you can make cute bows for around their necks and floppy ears, like the ones you used to wear in your hair."

She chuckles. "So we'll raise a family of bunnies together?"

"Sure. Doesn't that sound fun?"

"It sounds wonderful, Lester." A genuine smile curves her lips up and I smile back. Making Rosemary smile has become my greatest mission in life. "What else?" she asks.

"Hmm, let me think." I pull her closer with my arm around her shoulder. "Maybe we could buy a nice house one day, with a big garden that you can plant lots of pretty flowers in. I could make gates all around it, so the bunnies can roam free, and no one could ever come in and hurt us."

She pulls away slightly to look at my face, and her lower lip wobbles before she bursts out into sobs. "I wish that was now. I don't know how much longer I can take, Lester. Every single face haunts me. They don't let me go."

"Very soon, Bunny. Landon and I are figuring it out. He even found someone to make fake identification for us. And we're gathering the funds. It won't be long now, okay? You'll be safe soon. I promise."

She slowly blinks her tears away and nods. "Okay. I trust you."

We stay there until we have to go home, because there will be consequences if we're late, in both our cases. In mine, I get lashes with my father's belt until I'm scarred. Rosemary is locked up in her room and kept away from school if she doesn't listen.

Over the years, our parents have figured out ways to keep us close and compliable.

We end the day with our secret handshake, and I tell myself just like I promised Rosemary: just a little bit longer .