#alex wearing his halloween costume on stage will never not amuse me

[ecotone99]

[RF] Enough to Make the Angels Weep

A mix of familial alcoholism and personal sobriety didn’t deter Sheila from loving drunk people. There is a unique honesty in intoxication. Fears, lusts, and cigarette butts come pouring out as the drinks flow back. Getting drunk didn’t appeal to Sheila, but its effect on others drew her in. Seeing people change from their everyday selves to a different creature from the safety of her sobriety was fascinating and at times frightening. An upcoming Halloween party meant the chance to see a whole new host of people, no matter how long Sheila had known them.

​

Sheila cheerfully rapted her knuckles on the door, eyeing the puzzling Halloween wreath clinging to the entry.

“Thanks for coming with me, Alex. I know you’re not one for parties, even if it’s your brother’s”

Alex shrugged, “It’s no problem, I’m sure you’ll have a good time”.

Sheila had learned in their three years together that statements like that were genuine, without the usual passive-aggressiveness that such words can contain. She quickly smiled back as the door opened.

​

“Hey guys, thanks for coming!” Paul said excitedly. Sheila stepped into the room as Alex followed behind.

“I should introduce you guys to my friend Gumba,” said Paul

Gumba was a large man taking up most of his side of the couch and wearing a construction vest with a bright yellow construction hat.

“Gumba, this is my brother Alex and his girlfriend Sheila”

Sheila waved her hand a little, “It’s nice to meet you”

She noticed a large object next to Gumba, mostly hidden from view by the couch.

“What’s your costume, Gumba?” asked Sheila

Gumba pulled a large sledgehammer from behind the couch saying, “I’m Bob the Builder but I could be Bob the Destroyer depending on how much I drink” he chortled.

Paul put out his hand to stop Sheila and Alex from going further

“I forgot to introduce my costume.” He gestured down to his body, “I’m sexy Eeyore”.

“No offense, Paul” Sheila giggled, “But, how are you ‘sexy Eeoyre’?”

Paul mock scoffed, “As you can see the zipper of this onesie is a little bit down and it can only go further “.

Sheila looked around the room a bit as she sunk into the couch.

“When did you get a piano?” she pointed to the other side of the room.

“Oh, I bought that for Brie. We’ve only lived together for a couple of months but she already has a plan to control every inch of this house” he laughed.

​

Bree walked into the room, her arms labored with Modelos.

“Hey Sheila and Alex, how are you doing?” she asked.

“We’re doing fine. Thanks for inviting us, Brie” Sheila answered

After passing out the drinks, Brie stiffly sat on the couch. She was in host mode and couldn’t find a way to get comfortable. “No problem. What do you guys want to do on this spooky day after Halloween?”

Gumba handled his sledgehammer with a little glee, “What if we smash the angel statue in the backyard?”

Brie shot up, the cartoonish eyes on her giraffe onesie rattling around. “You can’t. I don’t want to be haunted again.”

Amused, Sheila asked, “What do you mean, haunted?”

Brie sighed, “I had to spend like $450 on an exorcist the last time”. Sheila’s face scrunched at the figure.

“Okay, Sheila, I see your science-mind going wild but let me explain. My candle broke and my sister’s also broke when she’s all the way in Los Angeles” Her body tensed as she retold the story.

“Were they from the same company”

“Well, yeah”

“So, you’re telling me that faulty candles from the same company broke in two different locations…?

Brie rolled her eyes. “I know how it sounds but listen to this, when I was haunted I had a rash and as soon as the exorcist came it went away”.

Despite all honest efforts, Sheila was soon busting up with laughter.

“Sorry, I don’t mean to be rude but you’re saying that a ghost gave you a rash? What did the exorcist do, give you rash cream?”

Brie fell back into the couch with a humph, “You can think whatever you want, but just don’t touch the angel statue.”

Gumba leaned over in the silence, reaching to put his drink on the central table.

Brie jumped up again, half reaching for the drink, “Hey, can you use a coaster?”

“Oh yeah, no problem” interrupting his movement.

Brie looked around at the others. “It’s just that… my grandfather gave me this table”.

“That’s nice” Alex added tentatively

“He has dementia. He says he remembers me but I can tell in his face he doesn’t” she said maudlinly.

Paul drew her closer as Gumba retrieved a coaster.

​

Drinks were flowing and the small group devolved slowly, going from standing to sitting to slouching to eventually taking refuge on the wooden floors throughout the house. Alex nimbly went from the couch to the piano. Softly playing “Go Your Own Way”, Alex became an eerie beacon of movement in a house standing still. It was the stage of the party that Sheila weirdly loved most. She went around the party, helping those drunk as if they were wounded, offering water and assistance. Some people would resent having to babysit grown adults but Sheila loved to help these people. These drunkards were honest and appreciative, plus Sheila liked to feel needed. She starting humming to herself while cleaning the empty cans and cups. Searching for the trash, Sheila brought her stash into the kitchen where Paul was smiling from ear to ear. He stopped her with a hand on her shoulder, the fuzziness of his Eeyore onesie sleeve tickling her neck as he talked.

“I just wanted to say how great you are Sheila.”

She smiled back warmly, “Thanks, Paul I really appreciate it.”

“Alex has become so much better since dating you. I feel like it didn’t even have a brother before, he just kinda did his own thing and was closed off”

He paused, staring deeper into Sheila’s eyes.

“Alex is just so much more open now and happier, you’ve just made him a better person. I love you, my mom loves you, my dad loves you. You’re just so great”.

Paul drew her in for a hug. She hugged back, surprised at the grand show of affection.

As they pulled away, Sheila said, “Thank you, Paul.”

“Sorry if it’s weird to see me drunk. I just wanted to have a good time tonight. I hope you don’t, like, see my differently”

Sheila gave an understanding look, “Don’t worry about it Paul, you are a very sweet drunk. I don’t see you any differently because I think alcohol just amplifies what’s already there. Nobody turns into an asshole when they drink, they were just a jerk sober too but better at hiding it. You being such a kind drunk just confirms to me what I already knew, that you’re a sweet person”

With his hand still on Sheila’s shoulder, Paul drew two fingers from his other hand from his temple to Sheila’s, drawing an imaginary line between them.

“You just get it.” He said drunkenly.

Sheila smiled as he broke away.

“I’m going to throw up now”

She laughed, “Okay, buddy”.

Placing the cans in the recycling she turned around to see Brie stumbling by the fridge. Her giraffe onesie created a reminiscent image of a newly-born giraffe not knowing what to do with long legs. But instead of a cute baby animal, it was, just in fact a sloppy 21-year-old. She gripped onto the counter as she happily talked about a baking frozen pizza to Gumba. Sheila grabbed an extra red cup and filled it with water before handing it over to Brie.

“Here, Brie, drink some water okay?”

Brie sneered back, I don’t want to drink this, I’m just going to spill on myself” She placed the cup on the oven before taking a couple of steps to the center of the room and crumbling to the ground.

Sheila shook her head to herself and headed to the fridge to find a suitable alternative. She found a filled water bottle with a sippy lid. Whatever is good for kids is also great for drunk people she thought to herself.

​

Sheila got on the cool floor and handed the bottle to Brie.

“See Brie? It has a sippy lid which is great for drunk people”

Gumba asked behind her, “Hey Sheila, where’s Paul at?” with more interest than concern.

“He’s in the bathroom throwing up”

Brie slammed the water bottle to the ground

“I don’t even know why I’m dating him. I’ve only dated douchebags before”.

Sheila looked at her on the floor a little surprise.

“I mean, I’ve cheated on every partner I’ve ever had” Brie tittered.

Sheila felt a weight in her stomach. She had never liked Brie, but this distaste was based on a more superficial incompatibility. Nothing so concrete. It made her sick to think that the sweet drunkard she had just talked to would give such kindness to someone like this Sheila stood up, thoroughly disgusted and her head spinning slightly from the revelation. The red cup Brie placed on the oven was now deformed, slowly melting from the heat of the oven but Sheila liked to think it was from Brie’s touch alone.

​

Alex was still playing the piano happily, in his own world. Sheila grabbed his hand, “Let’s say goodnight to your brother and get the hell out of here”.

“Sure, no problem,” he said, unfazed.

They wandered down the hall until they reached the bathroom door.

Paul was slumped over the toilet asleep, his Eeyore onesie uncannily adding to the sad picture. Sheila went over and ran her hand over the back of the head. “Hey Paul, I think we’re going to get going”.

He slowly raised his top half from his watery refuge and sleepily smiled up at his brother and Sheila.

“Thank you guys so much for coming. I hope you had a good time.”

Sheila rubbed his head again, trying to provide comfort to the man. “Yeah, buddy. Take care of yourself, okay?”

Paul nodded before rested his head on the side of the rim.

Alex and Sheila filed out of the narrow bathroom and started towards the front door. Gumba was sitting on the couch in the living room. Sheila approached him and said, “Let’s go breaking that fucking statue”.

​

Gumba, Alex, and Sheila all stood in a semicircle around the angel statue. The angel was made of cheap concrete with blank eyes and a lack of a smile. Its arms were open, but it seemed in no way inviting. Alex jumped a little from foot to foot “Can I go first?”.

​

“Yeah, no problem man,” Gumba said, handing the sledgehammer to Alex.

Alex pulled the sledgehammer so it rested over his shoulder as he examined the statue. The pose seemed strangely natural despite the contrast of the tool to his small frame. “I think I’m going to go for a wing. We can turn this angel in just a woman, way less sacrilegious to destroy”. He moved his shoulder forward to have the sledgehammer fall into his hands and in one smooth motion twisted his body to hit one of the wings off. The state wobbled a bit but stayed upright, a wing missing from the woman’s frame.

“Whew, that felt good. As a recovering Catholic, there was something cathartic about that” Alex gushed. “Here Gumba, you go”

Gumba grinned, “You don’t have to tell me twice”. After winding up a cartoonish amount, Gumba knocked out the lower half of the statue, resulting in two chunks on the ground. “Alright, Sheila finish her!” he joked.

​

Sheila picked up the sledgehammer, feeling a bit silly due to her surprise at how heavy it was. She switched her grip around a couple of times, trying to get used to it. She took a moment to look at the solid metal top before turning to the chunks of angel left. She still had her arms outstretched and her eyes blankly open. This cheap concrete angel could have brought a feeling of comfort and security to believers but Sheila felt a small chill looking at the arms reaching out below an expressionless face. Sheila brought the sledgehammer above her shoulder before bringing it down on the angel’s head. She tossed aside the tool and stepped back to observe their handiwork.

​

Alex looked over at Sheila, “Do you think we’re going to be haunted?”

Sheila slipped her hand in his, “I don’t believe in ghosts. But, in some ways, I do believe the bad things you do haunt you eventually.”

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