Longer pause. Uh, you
know, she was moving
out of the dorm, into
an apartment. I’m not sure…
Things are growing clearer.
“Is there a problem, Mrs.
Rosselli? I just want to
catch up with old friends.”
The longest pause of all.
You’re not their friend,
Kristina. You’re nothing
but trouble they don’t need.
Stung
But not really smarting,
I could tell her that
both of her children
need all the friends
the ycan get—trouble
or not. One is eighteen
and gay, in a city where
homosexuality is almost
as dirty a word as “Democrat.”
The other will be lucky
to finish her freshman year
in college—too much time
buying affection with an
omnipresent speed stash.
But saying that won’t suit
either of us at the moment.
“I’m not sure what you mean,