ninanevermore

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I thought I'd pay my friend The Carney, a.ka. Death, a visit last night. I've been too busy with life to pay Death much attention of late, which I suppose makes me a bad friend. Turns out he wasn't alone. Death had a date, which made my visit both short and awkward. I hate feeling like a 3rd wheel; though I think the two of them barely noticed me they were so wrapped up in each other.

My first clue that something was up should have been that his cigarette wasn't in his hand or dangling from his lips, but lay on the post to the fence around the Ferris Wheel of Life. I could see its lit end glowing, and I could see the dark shadow a few feat away from it, away from the circle of light from the streetlight over where The Carney usually stands. I when I reached the gate I called out "Hello" and the shadow divided into two shadows. It was then that I realized he wasn't alone.

The shadows stood side by side and merged back together as the pair each wrapped an arm around each others waist and moved toward me.

"Hey, baby girl! How you doing?" the Carney greeted me.

"Good. I'm sorry, I didn't know you weren't alone." I took a look at the woman with him. She was tall and curvy, like a perfect hourglass. Her dark wavy hair fell past her shoulders. Her large hoop earrings and flowing shirt made her look like a very sophisticated gypsy. If someone had introduced her to me and told me she was an artist, or an actress, or a dancer, or a musician, I would have thought she looked the part. Turns out, she was all those things and more.

"Baby girl, I'd like you meet Fate. Fate, this is Nina."

Fate smiled and offered me her hand.

"A pleasure," she said. Her voice was throaty and melodic, and when she spoke it sounded almost like she was singing.

"Likewise." My own voice sounded squeaky and unsophisticated. I hate the effect nervousness has on how I sound.

Fate leaned her head on Death's shoulder and nuzzled his neck. He put his free hand under her chin and lifted her face up so he could kiss her. The kiss lingered, and lingered, and lingered.

"I just dropped by to see how you're doing," I stammered. "I guess I'll be going now."

"You don't have to go," The Carney said. "We've just been catching up with each other. My girl here's been away for awhile."

"I've been busy," she said. "As always."

"Too busy for me?" he asked in mock hurt.

She laughed quietly. "Without me, you'd have nothing to do."

"Now that ain't true," he said, "But you do make things more interesting." He practally purred as he spoke to her.

"So, have you two been together long?" I asked.

"Off and on for," Fate and looked upward toward the Ferris Wheel, like she was trying to think of how many years they'd been a pair.

"An eternity," The Carney answered.

"Yes, about that long," Fate agreed.

"Since the beginning of time, huh?" I said.

"Oh, no, Time is older than either of us," Fate said.

"I figured you'd all be about the same age."

"No, Time began before we did. I came along about the time Life began, and Jim happened a short while later."

Death sometimes goes by "Jim."

"Oh," I said, and couldn't think of anything else to say. The two of them were obviously wrapped up in each other, figuratively as well as physically. Fate ran one of her hands over The Carney's chest and he pulled her toward him for another kiss. I noticed the cigarette on the post had burned itself out.

"I'll leave then. Jim, it's been nice to see you."

Jim grunted his goodbye to me without breaking from his kiss with Fate. Fate moaned her goodbye, and I got out of there before the two of them got any more carried away than they were.

As I walked away, it occurred to me that it was the only time I'd ever seen the Carney where he wasn't chain smoking.

My own experience with smokers told me he would have a cigarette a bit later, and I felt myself blush a bit with the thought.

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