The Leftovers

weakness, but before she could do it, the toilet flushed. A moment after that, the bathroom door swung open. And then, just as Meg came into view, smiling an apology, the phone buzzed in Kevin’s hand. He flipped it open without checking the display.
    “Hello?” he said.
    *   *   *
    NORA WAS so startled by the sound of his voice that she couldn’t bring herself to speak. She’d somehow convinced herself, with the help of two glasses of wine on a mostly empty stomach, that Kevin wouldn’t be home, that she could just leave a brief message on his voice mail and make a clean getaway.
    “Hello?” he said again, sounding more confused than irritated. “Who’s there?”
    She was tempted to hang up, or pretend that she’d dialed the wrong number, but then she got hold of herself. I’m a grown woman, she thought, not a twelve-year-old making a prank call.
    “It’s Nora,” she said. “Nora Durst. We danced at the dance.”
    “I remember.” His tone was a little flatter than she might have hoped, a bit guarded. “How are you?”
    “I’m okay. How about you?”
    “Fine,” he said, but not like he meant it. “Just, uh, enjoying the holiday.”
    “Same here,” she said, but not like she meant it, either.
    “So…?”
    His not-quite-question hung there for a few seconds, long enough for Nora to take a sip of wine and mentally review the speech she’d rehearsed in the bathtub: You want to go out for coffee sometime? I’m free most afternoons. She had it all figured out. Afternoons were low-pressure, and so was coffee. If you met for coffee in the afternoon, you could pretend it wasn’t even a date.
    “I was wondering,” she said. “You want to go to Florida?”
    “Florida?” He sounded just as surprised as she was.
    “Yeah.” The word had just tumbled out of her mouth, but it was the right one, the one she’d meant. She wanted Florida, not coffee. “I don’t know about you, but I could use some sun. It gets so depressing up here.”
    “And you want me to…?”
    “If you want to,” she told him. “If you’re free.”
    “Wow.” He didn’t sound unhappy. “What kinda time frame are we talking about?”
    “I don’t know. Is tomorrow too soon?”
    “The day after would be better.” He paused, then said, “Listen, I can’t really talk right now. Can I call you later?”
    *   *   *
    KEVIN TRIED to look nonchalant as he pocketed the phone, but it was hard with Laurie and her friend staring at him with such frank curiosity, as if he owed them an explanation.
    “Just an acquaintance,” he muttered. “No one you know.”
    Laurie clearly didn’t believe him, but what was he supposed to say? A woman I barely know asked me to go to Florida and I think I just said yes? He didn’t quite believe it himself. He’d only been off the phone for a few seconds and already it seemed like there must be some kind of mistake—an elaborate misunderstanding, or possibly even a practical joke. What he needed to do was call Nora back and get a few things clarified, but he couldn’t do that until he was alone, and he had no idea how long he was going to have to wait for that. Laurie and her sidekick looked like they’d be happy to stand there and stare at him for the rest of the evening.
    “So.” He clapped his hands softly, trying to change the subject. “Is anybody hungry?”
    *   *   *
    LAURIE WALKED slowly toward Main Street, lagging a step or two behind Meg, enjoying the unfamiliar sluggishness that comes with a full belly. The meal hadn’t been fancy—there were no leftovers from an afternoon feast, the way there should have been on Christmas night—but it was delicious nonetheless. They’d devoured everything Kevin put in front of them—baby carrots, bowls of Campbell’s Chicken Noodle Soup sprinkled with oyster crackers, salami and American cheese sandwiches on white bread—and then topped it off with a bag of Hershey’s Kisses and a cup of fresh hot coffee.
    They were approaching the corner when she heard footsteps, and Kevin’s voice calling her name. She turned to see him jogging down the middle of the street, no coat or hat, waving one arm in the air as if he were trying to flag down a taxi.
    “You forgot this,” he said when he caught up. There was a little box in his hand, the orphaned present she’d noticed under the tree. “I mean, I did. It’s for you. From Jill.”
    Laurie knew that much just from looking at it. A gift from Kevin would have been