The Resident (part twenty-eight)

Chapter Four

An Odd Man Out

(part twenty-eight)

Aura turned, surprised, not happy, but deciding to have it be a good thing. “For Christmas, Dad. These sweet people are John Rancilton and Claudine, his fiancée. His mother, Gina. And this is Teconieshe, my father.”

“That sounds foreign.”

“It will become familiar,” the old man said.

“Tee-kahn. Ee-Shee?”

“Teconieshe. One name.”

John’s mother, too, took a making-the-best-of-it pause. “Claudie! You’re part of a trend. But then you’ll take John’s name and be normal. Or usual. I ought to say usual.”

Claudie had twined her arm through John’s, pressing elbows, and through her elbow he felt a tremor.

“Well, the green sofas,” Aura said. “We’ll want white somewhere, some lace or net curtains for those doors. Stacy, we’ll change the colors of the lights for the junipers and have them be red and white.”

“All white?”

“No, I’m not feeling it. Red and white, and then red accents, throw pillows for the sofas. Velvet or damask. We’ll do a nook here, a tabletop tree. Claudine… You look pale. Claudine, do you have thoughts on music?”

“Billy Joel,” Claudie said.

“Well, that’s fine. Dad, let’s have cake and coffee.”

“Glad to.” Teconieshe tapped Claudie on the shoulder, passing.

Aura sat her down, bent to ask her something. John edged to the background, loyal to his mother.

Gina was annoyed. “So, everything here.”

“Well, you said supper at home, after the actual… But then you won’t have to cook.”

“You won’t have guests. You’ll be in front of a whole crowd, people we don’t know, doing the Christmas buffet, and… And I’ll be standing there, I guess. Watching you and Claudie, and whoever officiates.”

“I will officiate.” Teconieshe laid a tray. “Chocolate-carrot. Banana walnut. I have a legal license, and a minister’s license. Good for a few things around here.”

A kitchen staffer poured the coffee.

“Look at the little cups and saucers! John! I love pink roses! Can I have both kinds of cake?”

Claudie was better. John asked his burning question. “What Billy Joel song?”

“The one on the radio.”

Aura brought An Innocent Man, and those were the songs they danced to, ate to, said goodbye to the kind people of Oathbreach Farm to.

But not goodbye. Claudie started a class there after the holiday break. “I’m going to learn to work at a hotel.”

Why? Do you want to do that? I thought you didn’t need to work. These, and something more sinister, that she wanted a failsafe to this marriage, in case she stopped standing him, reduced John to answering, “Uh huh.”

41

An Odd Man Out

The Resident (part twenty-nine)

(2025, Stephanie Foster)