A Weird Arrangement

I pulled into the long gravel drive and put the car in park. I was careful not to block the garage door. Fetching my phone from the console, I glanced at the time as I unlocked the screen. I would normally be at work. It was good to be at Cory's instead of driving a tow motor. I needed the day off. I sent the text message before climbing out of my car and stretching. The sun was climbing in the morning sky and my decision to wear shorts already felt like the right choice.

I shut the car door and made my way toward the front porch. I glanced at the modest little home, amazed at how nice Cory and Sherri had made the place. Once again I found myself wondering if one day I might build a nest like this one. The thoughts drifted off as soon as they'd formed. I climbed the brick steps to find the door already opening in front of me.

Cory stood in the door. He nodded his head to me and waved me in.

"Hey, man," he said. "You didn't block the garage, right?"

I contained my sigh. "Nah, I didn't."

I stepped into the living room of Cory's house, careful to kick off my shoes at the door. Not a thing had changed since last week. Cory bent to snatch up a few more toys from the carpet.

"Well, how's work, dude?" Cory asked me.

I shrugged. "Same."

"Did you ask Danny about the raise?" Cory asked, standing with an armful of Transformers.

I made a face. "Yeah. I did. I got the old, 'look at you next time bud' speech."

Cory scoffed and shook his head. "Crap. So I take it there's probably no openings either?"

"Nope," I answered. "Not unless you can swing District Sales Manager."

Cory snickered and made his way just down the hall.

"At this rate I'll be lucky to swing a spatula," he called back.

Cory disappeared into one of the kids' bedrooms. The silence in the house told me that the two of them were at school already. I didn't see Cory's better half, but I knew she was there. I stepped into the kitchen aimlessly, noting the half piled sink and the full garbage can beside the counter. I cringed, knowing I'd hear something about that soon.

I pulled my phone out and absentmindedly glanced at the time once again. The day couldn't start soon enough. It seemed like the weeks had begun peeling off of the calendar, and my day off during the week had become the day I looked forward to the most. My eyes drifted toward the corridor on the other side of the kitchen. I thought about opening the fridge and getting things started. I knew that was a bad idea.

As if my thoughts took form, Sherri came walking into the kitchen. At first I thought she didn't notice me. She pulled open the door to the fridge and retrieved a small blue lunch bag before turning to set it on the bar in front of me. I pretended to look at my phone, peeking at her through my eyebrows. I could see she was dressed for work, with a simple button down blouse and tight black trousers. Her black hair was fading into it's natural brown. I found myself in an awkward position trying to decide whether it was a good day to greet her or not.

"Haven't found anywhere better to hang out, Jeff?" Sherri said without looking at me.

I offered her a grin that she didn't see.

"I was actually thinking about moving in," I said. "Couch downstairs doesn't sound bad."

I saw Sherri roll her eyes. "I've got enough children in this house to look after."

Cory's wife hurried back and forth across the kitchen gathering a few items to add to her lunch bag from the cupboards. I watched her, careful to make sure she didn't look up at me. It always felt weird looking at her. Sherri was a slim girl but had very wide hips and an athletic build. I wouldn't be the first guy to sneak a glimpse at her bending over. She was Cory's wife, though. Not to mention, I knew her well enough now that she almost seemed like family. Her attitude toward me certainly fit.

"There's chips in here," Sherri said leaning into the pantry door. "I'd really appreciate it if you didn't eat them this time. They are for Hannah and Aiden's lunches."

My eyes lingered on the tight black pants that stretched over the mounds of Sherri's ass. I couldn't help myself. Gravity itself was pulling my eyes down.

"I ate this morning, Sher," I said to fill the silence. "No worries."

For the first time her weary eyes found mine as she stepped back to the bar to stuff a granola bar in the lunch bag.

"Right," she grumbled. "So you'll be good for another hour."

I didn't respond. For a few seconds, I studied her while her eyes were busy. I noted the absence of makeup on her worried face. I saw the hint of dark circles under her eyes, a contrast to the pale, icy blue orbs that rested there. For the first time since we were so much younger, I could see the faint speckling of freckles across her cheeks and nose. Something inside of me sank a little, seeing the wounds of time that were weighing on Sherri. I could hardly remember the sassy girl that had married my friend so many years ago. She was still beautiful, but much of the light in her had dimmed.

"You guys are staying here, right?" Sherri asked suddenly.

All I could offer in the moment was a shrug. She'd never asked that before.

"I mean, I guess," I said. "I had no intentions of going anywhere."

It felt like a loaded question. Maybe she was trying to get me to admit to day drinking. Cory emerged from the hall at that moment to save me from the wintery stare of his wife.

"Babe, I think Aiden's backpack is still in his room," Cory said. "The one in the closet?"

I saw Sherri roll her eyes as she grabbed the lunch bag from the bar.

"That's his old one," she told Cory. "There's holes in the bottom of it from where he drags it on the ground. He has the new one at school with him. Do you not remember? I bought him the Spider-Man backpack last weekend?"

I glued my eyes to the screen of my phone. The tone had already crept into Sherri's voice.

"Oh, right," Cory said. "Do... you want me to throw the other one out?"

Sherri shook her head. I noted her eyes as they darted over the full trash can.

"Don't worry about it," she said.

I saw Sherri motion around the kitchen.

"Look, I don't mind if you're not job hunting today," she told him, "but if you're going to be home, could you at least help me clean some of this stuff up? There's the dishes, and I've got a load of laundry that's probably full of wrinkles now and--"

"Hey, I'll take care of it, babe," Cory assured her.

I wasn't looking at them, but I could feel Sherri's eyes when she glanced at me and then back to her husband.

"Well, I need to get to work," I heard Sherri say.

Cory guided her toward the door to the garage. I could hear the way their voices grew lower as they went, and I pretended not to notice. I scrolled through minutiae on my phone and leaned on the bar. In just a few minutes it'd be over. I made a mental note to maybe show up a little bit later in the future. It was a sad thought, but things felt so awkward around the two of them now. I distantly hoped that I wouldn't become that way, if or when I ever settled down. The idea itself dissipated. That future seemed so far away.

I heard the engine of Sherri's SUV before the door to the garage closed, and then Cory appeared at the bar in front of me. I looked up at him. He simply offered me a shrug.

"Well? Shall we?" He offered.

I nodded toward the rest of the kitchen.

"You sure you don't wanna tackle the chores first?" I asked him with a grin.

Cory waved his hand. "Been tackling them all week. I've got all day."

I stuffed my phone in the pocket of my shorts and followed Cory toward the corridor on the opposite side of the kitchen.

Though it had become a routine for the past couple of months, the sense of relief still fell over me descending the carpeted steps to the basement. My hand slid down the flat rail to the landing and down another flight of steps into the room below the house. The comfort seeped into my very skin. While the house above may have seemed like a middle class playpen, the fully furnished basement was a different story. I grew excited just seeing the plush couches and the pool table. The flat screen was still tilted on the wall. The air felt so much cooler and easier to breathe in.

Cory wasted no time fetching a pool stick from the wall. I didn't immediately join him. I found the remote to the TV and brought the gigantic screen to life, then stood debating whether or not to find the PlayStation controllers somewhere in the shelving on the wall. Instead I used the remote to find some music. A thought occured to me.

"Should I go back up and grab us a few beers?" I asked.

Cory grinned but shook his head.

"Dude, it's not even nine yet," he said.

I reached for another pool cue from the wall.

"Not really seeing your point," I added.

Cory began racking the balls on the table.

"We should at least wait until Sherri is at work," he told me. "Never know when she'll forget her water bottle or something, you know?"

I nodded. I knew all too well.

Cory stood and began chalking the tip of the stick in his hand. He turned his brown eyes toward me. I already knew what he'd ask.

"Seriously, there's no spots opening up?" He asked.

I shook my head. "None. They are actually letting people go. Thinning us out. If I hadn't already been there for ten years, I'd be worried that I'd be out of a job man."

Cory grimaced, his dark goatee pulling across his thin face.

"Sherri's been on my ass about finding something," he said. "I feel like a piece of shit, you know? If it weren't for her parents helping out I don't know how we'd make it."

I watched Cory ready himself at the table, bending to line up his shot to break the set. To see the guy worry at all was unsettling. He was a handsome guy, in shape and easy going, and it felt like he should have been coming home in a suit instead of hunting for manufacturing jobs.

"I know you don't want me to say it," I started.

"So don't say it," Cory said.

A loud crack filled the room as the cue ball slammed into the others on the table. I watched the numbered balls bounce about, never seeming to find a place to rest. Cory stood, adjusting the slim fit tee that he wore.

I continued. "You probably would have been better off making guitars."

Cory looked at me and sighed.

"Well, that isn't an option," he said. "I was fired. Besides, it's not as magical as it sounds. It wasn't like I was some luthier huddled over a workbench and creating the next masterpiece, dude. It's all mechanical and industrialized now."

I grinned at him. "Yeah, but for that money I wouldn't give a shit if I was churning out replicas. Beats driving a forklift, man."

Cory missed his shot near the far corner pocket and stood to stare blankly at the felt on the table.

"I dunno," he said. "I need something. I don't care what it is at this point. I can't stand being in limbo for this long. And each day it seems like Sherri gets more and more bitter. I think she deserves to be."

I leaned over the table, letting the glossy stick slide over the webbing between my forefinger and thumb. Emptying my mind, I drew the path of the balls in my head and drove the cue forward. The solid ball was knocked perfectly into the side pocket. Only then did I consider Cory's words.

I looked at him.

"How is she?" I asked. "I mean she doesn't even say hi to me anymore. I feel like an intruder every time I come over now."

Cory chewed his lip.

"Hard to judge her," he told me. "I know it sounds pathetic but she has every right to be a bitch to me. She stayed home with two kids for so long while I was working all day. Has to be hard being the only source of income now."

I nodded and leaned against the wall.

"Her mom still filling her head?" I asked as plainly as I could.

"No," Cory answered. "They talk, but I don't think she's hung up on the cheating thing anymore. It's been years ago, and she knows my every move by now. Uh... most of them, anyway."

I moved toward the table, not responding. I steadied my next shot, hoping that we'd work through the "woes of the week" segment and move on. Though I felt for Cory, I hated seeing him this way.

"It's never been the same though, Jeff," he said. "She still looks at me a certain way. Like I'm another thing to look after. And she doesn't show much interest in me. She doesn't really touch me or talk to me like we used to."

I cracked the cue into another solid colored ball and watched it bounce from the corner just shy of its mark. I looked up at Cory but remained silent. I tried to remember a time long ago when Sherri had been in this room right beside us, drinking far too much for her weight class and being rowdy. Those memories seemed to be all in black and white now. I wished for another reality, but hoped that Cory would soon let the worries of his everyday life fall away and enjoy the day.

"Well, she probably is exhausted, I guess," I said, trying to be helpful. "Being a mom is full time, right? I know she's hotheaded but she hasn't slammed the door in my face yet."

Cory chuckled. "Count your days, bud. Won't be long she'll be as sick of you as she is of me."

I watched him as he bent across the table with the cue in his hand. Disturbing thoughts rushed through my head, but I chased them away. I watched a striped ball fall into a pocket across the table.

"She packed a lunch," I said.

Cory stood, examining the table for several seconds before his lush green eyes met mine. The music in the room was no match for the silence that ensued between us.

"I saw that," was all Cory said.

I stared back down at the felt on the table. A tickle of excitement began writhing up through me.

"Maybe she won't crave Subway again this week?" I suggested.

Cory tilted his head, his lips becoming a firm line. I couldn't tell if he was lining up his next shot or considering the probabilities for the rest of the day.

"You know Sherri's impulsive," he said, bending over the pool table. "She could still want to meet up."

The ball that Cory fired across the table ricochetted off of two others, and he winced before turning away. I saw his eyes dart over mine before he stepped aside and placed his stick with the others near the wall.

"Not worth a damn at this today," he explained as he stepped toward one of the couches. "Let's just... find something to watch."

I grinned, but placed my cue in the rack on the wall as well. I flopped down beside Cory on the couch, welcoming the comfort of the cushions. It was nicer than any single piece of furniture in my apartment, even my bed. Slumming it on this couch for months on end had been a running joke between Sherri and I, but if it ever came to that I knew it wouldn't be the worst thing. Cory was already mashing buttons on the remote, killing the music and surfing for a show to stream.

I knew he was killing time. His knee bounced up and down beside mine. All he wore was a simple tight Tshirt and basketball shorts. I tried not to let my mind to wander too much. It was always better that way. I kept my eyes up and on the TV. Cory did the same, filing through the thumbnails that dashed across the screen on the wall.

A daring thought occured to me, and I couldn't keep it from slipping free.

"How long... has it been for you guys?" I asked.

I looked over at Cory. He didn't look back. I saw him swallow and take a breath.

"W-what, in bed?"

I waited, unsure if it was too far.

Cory made a face. "A while. She doesn't...."

He rubbed at the short hairs of his goatee. I silently cursed my own stupid mouth. In all the weeks I'd been in this very room, I'd never asked something so forward. It was done, though, and all I could do was watch Cory wrestle with the answer.

"She hasn't been interested in that in a long time," Cory finally said. "It's all just routine now. Same thing every morning. Same thing every night. I mean... I don't know, I try... but I know what time she gets tired. I guess I know better. It's just not the same."

I licked my lips. "Sorry, man, I didn't mean--"

"No, you're good," Cory told me. "You know her. You remember how she used to be. It was actually... embarrassing at one time how into it she was. She could get wild. And weird."

Images I couldn't erase flew through my head. Back then I'd felt like a third wheel. The nights in this basement, before it was even finished, with nothing but blacklight and neon illuminating everything. The blaring music still rang in my ears. I could still see a younger Sherri dazed by alcohol. Her huge smile seemed a permanent fixture then. I wondered if it were the same girl, dancing in my memories wearing hardly more than her bra. Awkward times felt so distant but warm. I remembered many nights that I had to retreat upstairs. Sherri would just climb into his lap....

"I might have fucked all that up," Cory told me. "Or maybe it's just life, and kids, and marriage."

I grinned, hoping he'd see it.

"You're really selling this 'settling down' thing, you know?" I said.

Cory smiled. "Oh, don't worry. You'll get your invitation to real life sometime, Jeff."

"Got enough of it here to go around, man," I replied.

I felt the vibration from Cory's leg from a foot away on the couch. He dug for the device in his shorts and looked at the screen. Soon after, his fingers were darting across the thing while I tried not to watch in silence. My own leg began to shake up and down. I stared at the TV screen on the wall and pretended to read the description of the series Cory had almost selected.

"Sherri's at work," Cory said.

A tiny burst of excitement numbed my chest. I glanced over at Cory. He continued to stare at his phone. The silence in the basement was now deafening. I rubbed my hands along my shorts. A wet pool formed on my tongue. My mind was already spinning.

Cory set his phone to the side on the arm of the couch. His eyes found mine. There was a lot to unpack there. I saw much of the same weariness that I'd found in his wife's eyes earlier. Looking deeper, there were bits and pieces of so much more. The expression was a cocktail of varying flavors, all distinct but warping together into a singular potent emotion.

His lips parted, and I saw his tongue peeking at me from just behind his perfect teeth.

"What... what do you want to do?" He asked.

I could feel the rush of nerves in his body. The same sensation swept through me. His huge brown eyes watched me. Mine began to drift downward. Through his tight Tshirt I could see each hard curve of his body rise and fall with his every breath. I couldn't resist a glimpse at his blue basketball shorts. The fabric just draped itself over his legs. I could see the shiny surface of the material moving, twitching.

"I've got a hunch," I told him, trying to steady my breathing, "that you might be able to guess."

I could tell that a chill slithered its way down Cory's back. He bristled, blinking his eyes and rubbing his hands across his shorts.

"It's still so early," he pointed out. "We... have all day."

I bit my lip. I didn't even have to look down to see his shorts moving on their own.

"Yeah, I guess," I said. "But do you really want to wait?"

My hand was reaching before I even willed it to do so. First my fingertips slid over his thigh, then my palm. I squeezed, amazed at how tight his legs were. I looked Cory in the eye. I heard his breathing change. I kept groping until my fingers found what they were searching for.

Even as my hand closed around it through the silky shorts, Cory's flaccid dick was throbbing erratically, swelling in my fingers. I squeezed and tugged at it through his shorts. Cory shifted in the cushions. I kept fondling him, unable to decide between staring over at him or watching the thing take shape beneath his clothes. He wasn't wearing anything beneath those shorts. That much I could tell, and I knew it was deliberate.