Tales of the City 08 - Mary Ann in Autumn

thought you might enjoy the experience. It brings back the past like you wouldn’t believe. All sorts of people.”
    “That’s just it. Do I really want that?”
    “Why not?”
    She stood up again. “I’ve pretty much kept the friends I wanted to keep. If you lose someone along the way, there’s usually a good reason, isn’t there?”
    “What about fans, then? There must be a lot of them.”
    “Fans?”
    “Michael says you were a big star here back in the day.”
    She rolled her eyes conspicuously, but he could tell that she was pleased. “I had a local show. I was … you know … somebody for a while, but ‘star’ is pushing it.” She paused for a moment, then asked: “What’s this about, Ben?”
    He was asking himself the same question. Sure, he was trying to lift her spirits, but his other motive was undeniably self-serving. Mary Ann might not be so dependent on Michael, Ben figured, if she had a wider network of supportive friends.
    “I just thought you’d enjoy it,” he said. “It’s been fun for me, and—”
    “I wouldn’t even know how to do it. I’d probably—”
    “Well, that part’s easy. I could set it up for you in a few minutes. If you wanna use my computer, you could …” He cut himself off, suddenly wary of overselling it. “Sorry, I get like this. Just tell me to shut up.”
    She smiled and began folding the empty canvas bags on the butcher-block island. The act was so methodical and matter-of-fact that she might have always been tidying things away in this kitchen. “Where do these go?” she asked.
    “Just leave them. I keep them in the car.”
    She arranged the bags in a stack and gave them a nervous pat to indicate that she was done. Without looking up, she said: “I know how invasive this is.”
    He was thrown, so he feigned confusion. “What?”
    “Me being here. Leaching off your happiness.”
    Now she was gazing directly at him, waiting for his response. Where had this come from anyway? Could Michael have said something to her?
    “C’mon,” he said finally. “You’re not leaching off anything. We’re happy to have you.”
    “No, Ben, that’s sweet, but … I’m sort of borrowing your husband.”
    He shrugged. “Then make sure to give him back.”
    She laughed. “Well … okay … deal.”
    He picked up a tub of Earth Balance and tucked it into the butter bin on the refrigerator door. “I get it, Mary Ann. I know why you need him.”
    She seemed to study him for a moment. “Where on earth did he find you?”
    He gave her a heavy-lidded smile.
    “Oh, that’s right,” she said. “The Internet.”
    “I’m telling you, it’s a force for good.”
    “I’m not looking for a man, if that’s what you’re thinking.”
    “I didn’t think you were.”
    “Could you set it up on my laptop?”
    “Set up what? Oh … sure.” He was amazed how quickly she’d capitulated. “Of course.”
    “Is now a good time?” she asked.
    B EN FELT AN UNEXPECTED SENSE of accomplishment when Mary Ann broke the news to Michael over dinner that night.
    “Ben got me going on Facebook, Mouse.”
    Michael set down his fork and looked at Ben. “No shit.”
    “I thought she’d enjoy it,” Ben said evenly, wondering if Michael, for one reason or another, might think this was a bad idea.
    “It was kind of liberating,” said Mary Ann. “I used my maiden name and listed myself as single on the profile. They had a box that said ‘It’s Complicated,’ but it really wasn’t complicated at all, so I just said single. It was like a quickie Mexican divorce.”
    Michael grunted. “That guy deserves a quickie Mexican hit man.”
    Ben was jarred by this response, and it must have showed.
    “I mean it,” said Michael, stabbing his salad as if there were vermin hiding in it. “I’ve been thinking about it. No fate is too cruel for that douche nozzle.”
    Mary Ann smiled at the terminology. Ben recognized it as one of Jake’s expressions, so Michael must have just been saving it for the right occasion.
    “You know what you should do?” said Michael. “You should talk about the Skype thing on Facebook.”
    Mary Ann winced. “Right, Mouse. Why not share my humiliation with the world?” She turned to Ben. “He told you about that, I guess.”
    Ben nodded.
    Michael said: “I don’t mean mention it directly. Just the occasional veiled reference. So he knows that you know.”
    “I’m sure he’s not on Facebook,” said Mary Ann.
    “Yeah, but his friends