Chapter Seven
I walked by the red door every day when I walked home from work … whether I journeyed inside or not. Haunting me were the pictures of my trials there. Each one could be as fresh as my current reality, happening in my waking life, the memories were that potent. Days passed and Ravel continued to buy me lilies when he was in town. Though his buying trips meant there were weeks when I didn’t see him.
He came to me one afternoon quite late. It was nearly time to close the stand. I planned a meal alone, and suspected I’d masturbate to thoughts of him and the dangerous lovers in my dreams. When he stopped at the stand, there were no lilies for him to buy. Instead he brushed my cheek with his hand and leaned in to kiss my face.
“You’re back at last.” It had been two wee
