Kilmeny, Kilmeny, Where Have You Been?

Kilmeny was not waiting beneath the old oak at the entrance of their cul-de-sac. The tree rested in the early morning light, its roots inexorably pushing the sidewalk into an ever greater tilt, but it rested alone. Liam, a tall, golden shadow under its canopy, scuffed the toe of his sneaker in the bare dirt between surface roots. An acorn from last fall skittered onto the sidewalk and rolled into the gutter among errant grass clippings and litter. Liam looked at their comfortably shabby, suburban houses, side by side in the cul-de-sac. Kilmeny’s front door remained closed. Liam pulled up the lockscreen on his phone. 7:03 AM. He really did not want to be late to waterpolo practice again. He was still sore from yesterday’s after-school conditioning laps. He adjusted his backpack and thumbed open the texting app. “Kilz? R u coming? Getting late.” 7:05 AM. His phone remained silent in his hand. “Getting late. See you at school.” Liam gently knocked on the bark of the oak tree and hopped over the surface roots to the sidewalk. He turned out of the cul-de-sac and broke into a sprint to catch up with his other reason for reason: Benny Stater. Standing at 5’5”, he was sporting a polo shirt and blazer over jeans with exquisitely gelled, dark hair. The effort would be wasted the moment they hit the pool, and Benny would be the last man out of the locker room, his hair once again pristine. Liam admired that level of discipline and commitment. He punched him lightly in the shoulder. “Beeeeenny. What’s up, man?” “Bro, it is morning, and we are on our way to swim laps for sadism. Same as yesterday. Hold up. Where’s Thing 2?” “Dunno. She didn’t come out and didn’t answer my text.” “s**t. Are you ok? How are you holding up? Have you started to bleed yet…you know…from no longer being joined at the hip?” “I’ll live,” Liam answered drily, “She probably just slept in.” “Oh, sure. It starts there. Then the next thing you know, y’all are gonna start having different opinions. One day you’ll look at her and realize you are no longer color-coordinating you’re outfits…” here, Benny came to a stop in front of Liam, nearly tripping him, and slapped his hand in the center of his chest, “Bro. Liam. My parents are already divorced. You cannot separate too. I. Will. Cry.” “Benny. Stop. You and I both know your room is well-stocked with facial tissues.” “And hand lotion, but I digress.” “And it’s not like that.” “‘It is never like that, until it is like that.’ Write it down, tattoo it. That wisdom is my gift to you on this dark morning.” “Holy s**t, shut up!” “Great, new topic! Whom should I date this week? Anya or Ritu?” “Ritu? Anuj’s sister? Ha! Anuj will end you and then his mom will call your mom.” “A challenge, you say?” “Why don’t you, I dunno, form a relationship with someone based on, like, mutual respect and similar interests or something? Take it slow for once, man.” “Who says I do not? We are all in it for Science! Our youth is for experimentation.” “So glad your parents put you in debate. It’s really added to your unholy powers.” “You cannot say I do not respect them, man. That’s not cool. But I am not tryna be anyone’s husband. I am tryna be a boyfriend. One of those things is not like the other, and I do not lie to them.” Just then, they were interrupted by a bevy of female voices calling out to Benny. Three of his current girlfriends were waiting for him in front of the school. They would no doubt equally faithfully sit and watch the team practice. Liam heaved a sigh and turned to make a comment to Kilmeny who was still, alas, not there. He scanned the students filing into the school for pre-class athletics. Her familiar, dark shape was not among them. After a lifetime in the same neighborhood, he would know her instantly, anywhere. He stood for a minute, adjusting his backpack, before shuffling into the school. Liam popped open his locker. His gaze landed on a photo from Halloween of their sophomore year. Benny was dressed as The Cat in the Hat. As referenced earlier, Liam and Kilmeny were dressed as Thing One and Thing Two. Under that ratty blue wig, Kilmeny’s hair was a deep, dark brown falling mid-back in thick, heavy waves. Liam’s hair was a gold streaked with white from long hours of swimming in the sun. They both stood 5’10”, with slender, athletic builds. When Benny was not referring to them as Things One and Two, he was calling them his “beautiful, elderly bookends.” There was also a photo from this past Halloween. Benny stood in a tall, cardboard crown as Max from Where the Wild Things Are. Liam and Kilmeny stood to either side as fearsome beasts. It was their friendship, tidily summarized. Liam rattled off another text to Kilmeny before stashing his phone in his locker and heading to practice. She still had not responded by first period.