Works & Days, chapter draft

[jones]

Another draft, ladies and gentlemen. It might not make much sense if you don't follow the story (check my sig for the link), but why not give it a shot anyway? It's comparatively short.

no title yet

Ludlow Cinema 7, 10.49p

Eyes still fixed on the closing credits flashing across the screen, Irene sat with Val on her left, Eugene on her right. The houselights brightened a little, causing her to glance from one to the other. Finding what she expected in Eugene's smirking countenance, she allowed her eyes to settle on Val, who only looked at her blankly.

"That's your favorite movie?" Val asked.

Grinning, Irene nodded.

Val shook her head. "That was... disgusting. I'm not even a religious person and I thought that was disgusting."

Laughing, Eugene stood up. The others followed him up the aisle.

Glancing about at the vast but near empty hall around them, Irene frowned slightly.

"Shame more people aren't coming out to see it," she sighed.

"'Let Jesus fuck you!'" Eugene called to no one in particular and burst out laughing. "'Let him fuck you!' Oh man, that's my new favorite movie quote!" His cheeks grew slightly red, however, and he stopped himself abruptly upon almost colliding with a silver-haired gentleman entering the aisle from a row of seats on his right. Even if Eugene had not just watched two men attired exactly as this one was cast the devil from the body of a 14-year-old girl only moments ago, he would have recognized his station immediately.

Adjusting his eyeglasses slightly, the old priest nodded congenially to indicate no offense had been given. His face burst with recognition, however, as he turned his eyes on Val and Irene.

"Irene Hazel," piped Fr. Beeks. "How long has it been?"

Irene frowned. She knew, as did the priest, exactly how long it had been, and her mind winced at the sudden recollection of their last encounter. Yet she thanked him, silently and grudgingly, for tactfully allowing her room enough to skirt the issue in the presence of her friends whom, Fr. Beeks probably guessed, knew nothing of what had passed between the former student and teacher. She forced herself to brighten her features.

"Not long enough," she laughed.

Nodding, Fr. Beeks extended one arm to touch the shoulder of the woman in her mid-thirties emerging into the aisle with a quizzical expression on her face. He nodded to Irene, Eugene and Val.

"This is Candace," he told them, "my late brother's daughter who, unfortunately, does not at all share my enthusiasm for tonight's feature."

Eugene and Val nodded as they shook hands with Candace, all the while throwing cautious glances at Irene.

Exhaling, Irene gestured toward the priest, "This is Anselm Beeks. I was in his Latin class in high school. Father, this is Eugene and Val. We live together."

Introductions made, the party stood mute and awkward for a few moments before Eugene broke the silence.

"So you uh..." he stumbled, "you liked the movie?"

Fr. Beeks nodded warmly. "Since I first saw it in 1974." Leaning forward slightly, he lowered his voice conspiratorially, "Even Irene is probably too young to remember, but when it was first released, the Catholic Telegraphed urged all god fearing Catholics to avoid it like the plague. Still, I've never met a priest who hasn't seen it, most of them more than once."

"You're fuckin' with--" Eugene checked himself and restated, "I mean... no kidding?"

"Not at all," Fr. Beeks shook his head and laughed. "I don't think there's a one of us who wouldn't trade it all for the chance to shout," here he raised his voice, "'The power of Christ compels you!' just once to Satan himself."

The brightly simple tone with which Fr. Beeks imparted this information made Irene smile despite herself and instantly pulled her mind eleven years into the past.

"Believe it Gene," she found herself saying. "Whenever he had to send somebody to the principal's office, he'd be like, 'Begone from my classroom! The power of Christ compels you!'"

Everyone laughed, except Fr. Beeks who only stared open-mouthed at Irene, feigning grave offense.

"I never did!"

"Oh!" Irene nodded vigorously. "Lies make baby Jesus cry!"

"Alright," he shrugged. "Perhaps I did, but I never said it to you." He addressed his next words to everyone. "You should've seen her. Sharpest student I ever had and an angel in the classroom. Not a bit of trouble, except for her annoying tendency to obliterate every curve I ever tried to grade on."

"Yeah," Eugene looked at Irene and nodded, "I think I'da hated you if I'd known you back then."

"You mean," Val piped, "she never did anything? No referalls? No detentions? Not even her name on the board with a check mark?"

"Hm..." Fr. Beeks raised his eyebrows and made a show of pondering the question, "nothing she ever got caught for."

A strange silence insinuated itself over the group at this point. For the briefest moment, Fr. Beeks and Irene locked eyes. This passed so quickly that only Val noticed it, yet she was quite certain that in that instant, she saw a spark of pure hatred smoulder behind Irene's gaze. In the next moment, it was gone. Val's pulse fluttered in its wake.

"Well," Irene smiled broadly, "we should get going I guess."

Awkwardly, the five of them started up the aisle again. Before they had taken more than a few steps, however, Fr. Beeks stopped and put a hand to his forehead.

"Oh," he muttered, "I think I dropped my keys back there. We'll just go back." He extended a hand, which Irene grasped cautiously, "It was very nice seeing you again. And it was nice meeting your friends."

As they parted, Eugene called to Fr. Beeks, "You want us to wait around 'n case you can't find your keys? We could drive you somewhere if you need it."

"It's alright," Fr. Beeks said without turning around. "We'll be fine."

Irene and company disappeared through the door into the brightly lit hallway. Returning to the seats he and Candace had formerly occupied, Fr. Beeks poked about absently in the shadows for a few seconds while his niece waited in the aisle. Grinning sheepishly, he drew the keys from his pocket and returned to her a moment later.

"Had them all along," he shrugged. "Must be getting forgetful in my old age. I was sure I checked this pocket."

"You did," Candace frowned. "And you're a terrible liar."

Fr. Beeks looked at her, a stock look of innocence across his face.

Candace slumped her shoulders. "I don't blame you. My dad told me all about what she did to your school. You're too nice though. If it were me, I'd've told that smug little witch to go to hell."

"Candy," he sighed and shook his head, "it's not that simple. She was... angry -- more than that, she was just... heartbroken, I think. Things were tense for everyone."

"But she--"

"The school was as much hers as mine," Fr. Beeks broke in. "If she destroyed it, she did so with ammunition we gave her. I... hated her for a long time, but I've come to suspect that the anger she felt had to be turned on something or someone. The only other one would have been herself. She couldn't have survived that, and I don't... I don't think I could have either."

the finished version will be up Sunday

thanks for reading

take care

---jones

------------------
"what Marie's not gonna do"
new chapters in Works & Days
a punk rock romance in words, music & art
http://www.freehomepages.com/worksanddays

[NecroFlash]

ooh ooh ooh, you mean to say, if i read works and days, i will find out what happened in the high school?

that was very good jones... i like it muchly... i think i really should take the time to read the whole story now, though i've been meaning to do so for the last couple of months...

thanks.

[Chilimuffin]

wonderful, as always (because unlike necro, I've been reading the website stuff ).

however, in light of gollum's point - does this mean if I go to The Exorcist, I'm going to see the priest who hated me in my high school????? oy ve.

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"Noctu, nihil pedalum pigmentum refert." - Discordelaidh

[gollum]

aie. maybe i *won't* go see the exorcist.

AIE.

<g>

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Sometimes i think everyone on this board is crazy. The rest of the time i'm sure. -Dan
somehow i see [gollum] clinging to a tower and rousingly calling for a new world order. -starky

Yeah, I'm a real prize. Tonight, I'm a bronze medal.

[gollum]

>>ooh ooh ooh, you mean to say, if i read works and days, i will find out what happened in the high school?<<

no. jones is a pooper and likes to tantalize us with brief, too-short flashes about Irene's past, but never ever gives us the full dish. pooper. (hmm. maybe i should be nicer, at least till i get *back* from staying at his place...)

anywho...is this why i should go see the exorcist??? (assuming that it *is* the exorcist that they just saw...you never actually *say* that...)

-g

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Sometimes i think everyone on this board is crazy. The rest of the time i'm sure. -Dan
somehow i see [gollum] clinging to a tower and rousingly calling for a new world order. -starky

Yeah, I'm a real prize. Tonight, I'm a bronze medal.

[jones]

Yes, the movie is The Exorcist. Do you think I should include a note about that when the chapter goes up?

As for Necro's question: so far we've got about half the dish around Irene's school days. The rest of it should come out by next spring.

Thanks for reading. Glad y'all liked it!

take care

---jones

------------------
"what Marie's not gonna do"
new chapters in Works & Days
a punk rock romance in words, music & art
http://www.freehomepages.com/worksanddays

[NecroFlash]

i think i'll tune in next spring then... heh

um, no, i really should make myself go and read your whole story... maybe over x-mas break when i don't have to worry about classes...

*makes not in calendar*

oh, and i should prolly see the exorcist too...

*makes another note*

[Branflakes]

*applauds jones*

Again. Damn, you're good.

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Branflakes, the ninja lesbian milk getter bunny protecting flirt.
The one called "brain" and "brandiflakes" and....
I'm tired of the silent majority. Silence equals death.
Life is what you make it.
"I believe you can't control or choose your sexuality"-Savage Garden
You're going to have to deal with my ego at some point.
God never gives us more than we can handle. We just don't always know that.

A dark, black ray of sunshine.

[gollum]

not that i won't tell you this when i see you tomorrow, but i think you should mention that it's the exorcist. the only way i knew that that's what the movie was is becoz there're so many people (all my friends included) talking about it right now since it was re-released. if i read this a few weeks from now for the first time, i'd be like "what are they talking about???"

but, i'm not that smart...

-g

------------------
Sometimes i think everyone on this board is crazy. The rest of the time i'm sure. -Dan
somehow i see [gollum] clinging to a tower and rousingly calling for a new world order. -starky

Yeah, I'm a real prize. Tonight, I'm a bronze medal.

[JaceSan]

Maybe I will go see this movie. I'll just have to go by myself so nobody I know will make fun of me for putting my hands over my eyes.

I'm looking forward to reading the final draft also.