Chapter 14: Purple Cows and Colored Pencils

Wednesday, July 15, 2009 7:15 PM

“He needs to love you.”

The ghost Tricia squatted on the bed, glowing, naked, translucent, and she looked at the real Tricia with an expression filled with love and concern. Her voice echoed as if spoken from a great distance through a long tunnel. “That is the answer to most of your questions,” she said. “He needs to love you.”

“But...” Tricia began. She stared at the image. Her future self was beautiful, content, sexy, and energized. Her long ghostly hair swam and flowed over her as if she were underwater, and she rocked her hips forward and backward, thrusting and releasing lazily.

But what am I supposed to do with him? she wanted to ask. Before she could ask, her eyes dropped down to the ghost Tricia’s hips and pubic hair, and she watched the gentle thrusting. Tricia frowned.

“Are you fucking him right now?” she asked.

The ghost’s contented look vanished. “What?” she asked.

“I said, are you fucking him? Are you fucking Joey right now?”

The ghost’s jaw dropped. “I...” she began, and she suddenly looked horrified.

“Don’t pretend that you didn’t know I noticed it. Are you fucking Joey?”

“Um...” Her face strained, and she swallowed nervously. “I um...” She looked like she was going to panic. She looked left, right, and then back at Tricia terrified. “I uh ... Um! ... Aaaghh!” She clenched her fists tight, grimaced, and strained as if pushing herself to do something really dangerous.

Tricia leaned back. It looked like the ghost was going to explode.

“I ... I ... I...” The ghost held her fists to her face, took a deep breath, and screamed.

“I’VE NEVER SEEN A PURPLE COW! I HOPE TO NEVER SEE ONE! BUT I CAN TELL YOU ANYHOW I’D RATHER SEE THAN BE ONE! AAAAAGGGHHH!” Then she ducked down and covered her head as if she had pulled the pin on a grenade, and buried her face down into whatever it was she was squatting on.

Tricia jumped back and gaped at the ghost. All was quiet.

The ghost slowly moved a hand and peeked out carefully. She looked left, right, up, and then at Tricia. She grinned, giggled, then bolted back upright, screamed, and started singing and bouncing.

“YAAAHOOOOO!!!! OH!
TODO AQUEL QUE PIENSE QUE LA VIDA ES DESIGUAL,
TIENA QUE SABER QUE NO ES ASI,
QUE LA VIDA ES UNA HERMOSURA, HAY QUE VIVIRLA.”

“Oh my god ... I’m going to go insane!” said Tricia.

The ghost stopped singing and pointed at Tricia. “I DON’T HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT FUCKING PARADOX ANYMORE! OH MY GOD! What a relief! This is going to make this SO much easier! That didn’t happen at all last time! And I was so worried that I had to get every-little-detail right! Every word and bump and thrust and grunt ... You know that first message! That was easy! I just watched that one over and over again to get it right. But THIS one! This one didn’t get recorded, and I was just stuck with trying to remember it all!” She clutched her chest. “Oh ... God, I need a cigarette!”

Tricia blinked in confusion. “What?”

The ghost pointed at her again. “You! You fucked it up! You’re the one who did something different!”

“What? Me? You’re blaming me?”

“Yeah! When I was on your side of the conversation, my first question was ‘What am I supposed to do with him!’ And I was ready for that! I didn’t ask about fucking him until ... oh ... four questions in! But NO! You had to ask something different! And guess what? THE UNIVERSE DOESN’T FUCKING CARE! Oh! This is great! I can relax now!” Her shoulders slumped and she wiped her brow. “Whew!”

The ghost blinked as she looked at Tricia. “Oh! Let me answer your question!” She leaned forward, planting her hands on the chest of whoever it was she was squatting on and leered at Tricia. “YES! Yes, I’m fucking Joey!” She started bouncing and thrusting. “And he is SO, FUCKING, GOOD, OH! YES! OH! Oh, that’s right!” She dipped down, turning her attention to her invisible lover. “Isn’t that right, honey?” she asked in an overly sweet and loving voice. “You’re such a good fuck, aren’t you?” She grabbed the invisible face and kissed it several times, humming and smacking her lips loudly. “Mmmmmm <smack-smack-smack-smack>” She tilted her head and dove, opening her mouth. Tricia watched her future self give an invisible Joey a passionate tongue-kiss.

“Ew!” Tricia grimaced at the sight. “Please tell me he’s eighteen.”

“Rrrarrgh!” The ghost growled playfully as she pushed herself back up and eyed Tricia. “Eighteen? Are you kidding?” She pushed her arms and shoulders back and thrust her impressive chest out towards Tricia. “Do you see five years of boob-sag? Do you? No! No, he’s not eighteen yet. No, I’m only about a week and a half ahead of you.”

“But, isn’t that illegal?”

Ghost Tricia waved her off. “That is the LEAST of your worries right now. No, right now, your main concern is this; He needs to love you.”

“But why? And what about the book? His story?”

“Oh, get over yourself, you spoiled brat!” the ghost yelled. “You think this is about you, and about what all you can get out of him. Well, forget it! This isn’t about you. You’re not going to pull the book deal out of him! You think I sent him to you to help your career, right? Well, you’re wrong! He’s not going to help your career. If anything, he’s going to fucking destroy it! AND GOOD FUCKING RIDDANCE!” She bounced on those words, plunging an invisible cock inside her and bouncing her large breasts with each thrust. The ghost then pointed out into the air. “FUCK YOU MARTY!” she yelled. “FROM ALL THE WAY THROUGH THE SPACE-TIME CONTINUUM ... FUCK YOU!”

Tricia’s eyes went wide and she gasped. “What, is he going to fire me?”

The ghost pointed at Tricia. “Again, LEAST of your problems! Concentrate on this! Joey needs to love you. This is not about you. This is about him. You are not important. Joey is.”

Tricia crawled forward on the bed towards the ghost. “What are you talking about? Why does he need to love me?”

“I can’t go into those details. All I can tell you is this; He and I, we were meant for each other. You can feel that already. You already know that you need him in your life. Well, he needs you in his life. He needs you in his heart. And you need to protect him. Look...” The ghost shuddered with what she had to say. “The shit is going to hit the fan real soon now, and I know you’re going to hate me for not telling you what all is going to happen, but I have to tell you, it MUST happen. All of it! And you’re going to be scared, but you’ve got to get through it. You’ve got to protect Joey. As long as he is with you, or Annie, or even Sandy, he’s safe. But Joey is important.” She pointed at Tricia. “You are not!”

“What’s going to happen?”

The ghost shook her head. “I can’t tell you. If I do, Joey is dead.”

“Dead? What do you mean? Why can’t you tell me?”

“Look, all I can say is this. Telepathy is a bitch. If you know what happening, it’s over. The only thing you need to know is Joey needs to love you. He needs to love you more than anything else in the world. And he already loves you. You just need to nurture that. And all you have to do is give him what he needs, give him what he wants. And don’t ask for anything in return. And yet, he’ll give you so much that you want, so much that you need...” The ghost smiled. “Now that’s a paradox for you! Time Travel has got nothing on Love when it comes to paradoxes. In order to get what you truly need and want from Joey, you can’t ask him for it. You can only give to him.”

“So...” Tricia looked down at the area under the ghost, knowing that a future Joey lay under her. “So do I need to seduce him soon?”

The ghost shook her head. “You can’t seduce him. Joey is not the same type of man that you are used to dealing with. For his whole life he’s either been controlled for his powers, or in hiding, terrified that someone will try to control him. Seduction is just another form of control, and he won’t respond to it. Something else has to happen.”

“What? What’s going to happen?”

“Something wonderful. Something beautiful.” The ghost traced a finger across her invisible lover’s chest, and she smiled at him. “And even though you are going to do something wonderful and beautiful for him tonight, this is not the night. You’ll know the moment when it comes.” She glanced back up at Tricia. “Oh, and that first time, that first night, the first time you get on top of him like this ... Wait until just before your orgasm hits, and then ask him to push you through time.”

“That’s the time travel? The first night?”

The ghost winked at her. “Trust me.” She looked down at her lover again and cocked her head. “Oh Tricia, I wish I could tell you more, but I can’t. It’s going to be scary, and dangerous, and I honestly can’t guarantee that you are going to survive it.”

Tricia gasped. “But, you survived! I have to survive, right?”

The ghost teared up. “Time travel doesn’t work like that. But just know this: Everything is going according to plan. Everyone in your life now is in it for a reason. Keep your friends close. Keep your faith close. Protect Joey, and don’t let anyone else stop you because it’s too dangerous. Do whatever you can to protect him, even if it means jumping out the god-damned window to go after him! He is everything! Think creatively! You can get through anything with him, even if he’s...” She choked up and ran her hand across her lover’s heart. “ ... even if he’s dying in your arms and you think there is no hope. As long as he is alive and with you, there is always hope.”

Tricia clutched her heart. “Tricia ... what’s going to happen?”

The ghost shook her head. “I can’t say any more.” She paused. “No le diga cuando usted descubre sobre su madre.” She smiled down at her lover. “That’s right! I’m going to be your new mother!” She shifted her hips.

Tricia gasped. That’s not what she just said! “Can he hear me? Or see me?”

“No,” she said sweetly to her lover. “I know what you want ... You want to hop in the shower again, don’t you? She glanced back up at Tricia. “He thinks you look sexy when you’re wet.”

“Tricia, please! You’re scaring me! What do you mean I might not survive? What is it about his mother? Tell me, please!”

“I can’t. The only thing I can tell you is when Anton asks, it’s three mustards to five mayonnaise. But I have to go now. You have everything you need. And I have one more phone call to make.”

“Tricia! Wait!” she pleaded.

“I’ll see you on the train!”

FFOOOMM! The ghost vanished. Tricia sat on the bed and stared at the empty space where her future self was sitting just moments ago. She trembled, and a single tear rolled down her cheek.

“No le diga cuando usted descubre sobre su madre.” She swallowed. “Don’t tell him when you find out about his mother. What is it?” She looked over into her mirror and saw her terrified face. She hugged herself.

“I may not survive ... Joey is everything ... He needs to love me...” She got up and pulled the portrait of herself he had drawn for her and ran her fingers over the surface. “Give him what he needs ... Give him what he wants...”

Knowing what Joey wanted, Tricia put the portrait back on the wall, strode out of the room, grabbed her purse, and left the apartment.

It was over an hour later when Tricia returned. As she walked in the front door carrying her purse and a tall, wide, and shallow bag, she saw Joey and Annie sitting in the living room watching her. She swallowed hard, drew up her courage, and walked in towards them. Joey stared at her angrily, while Annie watched, patiently.

Tricia knelt on the floor. Her face was a mask of shame. “Joey...” she said softly. “ ... I want to apologize to you. I have not been fair to you, and I am sorry ... I, all this time, was hoping that I could ... convince you to let me write your story. To help my career. And I never thought about what you were going through. I mean, here you are trying to bury an old life and start a new one, and here I am trying to dig up the old one and make a buck off of it. And I’m sorry. I will never bring it up again, I promise. And I will understand if you are still angry with me, and if you want to leave, but please don’t ... I want you to stay with us, and I want to help you ... and I think you’re actually a good influence on me.”

Joey actually smirked when she said that. Annie grinned and waited.

Tricia sniffed and took a deep breath. She held out the bag to him. “I got this for you. For your new life.”

Joey looked at the bag suspiciously, and turned to Annie for support. Annie nodded to him. He took the bag, opened it, and inhaled suddenly as he looked inside. His eyes became wide with wonder and amazement, as he pulled out the art pad and colored pencils set. “Oh my god...” he exclaimed.

“There’s also some art gum eraser in there,” Tricia added. “Enough to erase a lifetime of mistakes ... I suppose I should have gotten some for myself too.”

“Thank you!” he said, practically tearing up. “This is ... amazing.”

“Do you forgive me?”

Joey nodded. “I ... I’m sorry for pushing you.”

“I deserved it.” She looked at Annie for her approval. Annie gave her a grin and a thumbs-up.

“Well!” said Annie. “I suppose I should go to bed now.” She pulled her chair back and spun it towards her room. “According to our rotation schedule, you two are together tonight. But I think in this case, it’s all really up to Joey. So if I don’t see one of you in a few minutes, I’ll see you both tomorrow. Good night.”

“Good night, Annie.”

“Good night.”

Annie gave Tricia a wink and rolled over to her room. After she left, Joey opened the colored pencils set and looked through the pencils.

“So...” Tricia said shyly. “ ... what’s going to happen now?”

Joey pulled a light brown pencil out of the kit and held it up to Tricia. He compared the color to her. “I think this one is closest to you.” He then opened his art pad to the first blank page and lay it on his lap. He studied her. “If you could just stay with me right there right now?”

Tricia smiled shyly and nodded, and he started to draw.

“NOOOOO!!! STOP!!!” Joey thrashed and screamed in his sleep, waking Tricia up as she lay next to him. Torrents of sparks erupted from his hands and illuminated the room, and his eyes were glowing brightly.

Tricia quickly grabbed the blanket and put it over his hands. She grabbed him through the blanket and shook him. “Joey! Wake up!”

Joey thrashed some more, and his eyes stopped glowing. The sparks stopped flowing from his hands, and his eyes snapped open. He saw Tricia, his eyes teared up, and his face twisted.

“He was ... he was on fire!”

“I know. Come here.” She pulled him close to him and hugged him. Joey started shaking as he cried. “It’s okay. We knew the nightmares were going to continue. It’s all right.”

“And that man ... Delgado ... He was laughing ... He was saying he got away with it.”

“Shhh ... It’s okay.” Tricia rocked the crying boy to her bosom.

“I want these to stop!”

“I know. We’ll get through this.” She held him and rocked him as he cried and shuddered.

“I want him dead!” he cried.

“Calm down. You’ll be okay. That’s it.”

She continued to hold him, rocking him steadily and soothing him. Joey eventually settled down. Tricia watched him closely as he fell back asleep.

Joey was quiet that morning as Tricia rushed around the apartment collecting her things for work. He sat on the couch sketching various shapes on his new art pad, and wished Tricia good luck as she left for work.

Annie started working on her projects, but at one point she sniffed and reached into her pants. “Damn...” she said, and she turned to Joey. “I knew we shouldn’t have gone to that Ethiopian place last night. I’ll be in the bathroom for a while.” And she wheeled off to the bathroom.