The Mammoth Book of International Erotica

What happened?

Don’t remember…

You just don’t wanna say.

I don’t… I don’t remember.

What? You senile already?

I didn’t want to talk about this. Too much pain. I told her a lot of things happened… no one specific thing. What I recall most is an image, an image of… of the moon.

The moon?

Moon.

Isabelle asked did you love her?

Well… yes.

You think about her a lot?

Sometimes.

You have dreams about her?

No, not anymore. Used to – have these strange…

Seems like it was all just yesterday? Last month or what?

You ask funny questions, you know.

She said what was her name?

Who?

The intended bride.

I said Beth.

Elizabeth?

I said you’re pretty smart for thirteen.

She said I’ve been married several times.

Yeah sure.

She pointed to her head amp;said I mean up here, this is where I have been married.

I asked what, none of them work out?

She said you always look for perfection in the wrong place and then she asked me hey don’t you ever dream?

What’s that?

Tell me about your dreams.

I said they’re mostly just nightmares. Dreams, you see, are nice. What I have are not nice. They are bad. You don’t want to hear them.

She said dreams are all that matter, Michael, it’s all we ever have.

(CUT TO:)

A few hours later we were playing the board game Monopoly, still on the messy floor. She had more hotels amp;money than I. Margo, in her waitress uniform, came in as we were playing.

Isabelle said hey, Momma.

Margo said to me you, you’re still here?

I said guess I got caught up in this game.

Isabelle said we’ve been playin’ games all day and I’ve been winnin’.

Margo said oh.

I said she beats me all the time.

Margo said to me I certainly dint expect to find y’all here, sweetbuns; I just thought you’d sleep amp;go.

Isabelle said we had breakfast.

I said I was sorry and that I’d go if she wanted me to.

Margo said no, no, that was awright. I’m glad you’re all here. I was just gonna get dressed and head back to that great li’l bar where we met, you know? But I do need an escort and well you are here.

I looked at Isabelle and Isabelle nodded.

I said sure sounds great I could use a drink or two.

Margo said or ten.

(CUT TO:)

Night.

I was really drunk.

I was pounding on the door to the trailer.

Isabelle answered, wearing shorts and a tank top.

Nipples of her tiny breasts hard.

I said where’s that Momma of yours?

Isabelle said I thought she was with you.

I thought so too.

She left with you. Did you lose her?

I said she was making quite a scene in there, at the bar, that Momma of yours. Was talking to every man there. Ignoring me. Who does she think she is anyway? I thought I saw her leaving with this man, I’m not sure. I thought she might’ve brought him back here.

Isabelle said she still might, who knows.

I said do you really think she took off with another man?

She said probably; Momma often does; that’s why the men don’t stay ’round long.

I ranted well your Momma is a whore! a slut!

Isabelle looked at me, cold.

I said I’m sorry, Isabelle. I didn’t mean to say that about your Momma.

Isabelle shrugged and said it’s okay because you’re right, she is a whore. But she’s still my Momma and I love her, whore or not.

I said maybe I shouldn’t stick around; maybe she’ll bring that man here; I don’t wanna cause a scene.

Isabelle said well it’d bring some excitement to all the boredom ’round here.

I asked do you think she might bring him back?

She said Momma doesn’t always bring them here, not if the man ain’t married and has a nice place to take her to.

I said it’s cold out; I think it’s going to rain.

She said I was thinkin’ it might.

Where should I go?

We can play another game.

(CUT TO:)

I woke up on the floor.

In my clothes.

Feeling like shit.

Isabelle was on her Momma’s bed, in the same shorts and tank top.

She was looking at me.

She said Michael.

Yeah?

Get up.

I said what the hell? and looked around.

I said I guess your Momma didn’t come back.

Isabelle said she doesn’t when she has two days off from work, like now. This is her weekend as she calls it so she doesn’t come back for two days from now.

I asked what happened?

She said you don’t recall?

I saw that there were a lot of beer cans around; I asked about them.

Isabelle said last night you walked down to the liquor store, in the rain, ’cause you wanted some beer. You