Page 67 of Angels Fall

“Hi,” I say.

“Hey,” she says back.

OK. Salutations are out of the way. What now?

“How did you know…?” I begin.

“Just took a shot,” she says. “I, uh, Evan gave me the address when we saw each other and so…”

Evan steps over and gives her a hug. “Great to see you,” he says. “Oh, um, you met Robert, obviously.”

“Yes,” she says, nodding to him. “Hi. Beautiful home.”

“We like it.” Robert smiles back. “Evan, we should…”

“Yeah,” Evan says, “Sorry. We have… Um, if you guys wanna… you know, we’ll be in the dining room. Just, y’know, if you wanna.”

Then he and Robert head off, leaving us standing there. A beautiful red-headed angel, and Brad Pitt at the end of Kalifornia. (He looks pretty fucked up by the end of that movie, is the point I’m making to myself.)

“He really loves you,” Maddie says, meaning Evan.

“I love him too.” I do. I follow up with, “Where are your parents?”

“At the hotel. I told them to go on and eat without me.”

“Maddie, no. I—”

“It’s OK,” she says, stepping in toward me. “I’ll see them tomorrow. It’s fine.”

She looks down like she wants to maybe take my hand. Or maybe it’s just wishful thinking on my part, because she doesn’t.

“You didn’t have to come here.”

“Yeah,” she says. “No shit.”

“Yeah. So why are you here?”

“I dunno.” She shrugs. “To show you what a person is supposed to do when someone is in need, and make you feel guilty?”

A hint of a smile skitters across her lips.

“Oh, yeah?” I ask, also smirking.

“Maybe,” she says. “Does it?”

“What? Make me feel guilty?

She nods.

“A little,” I say.

“Good.”

We are now both smiling genuinely.

“So, what do you want to…?” I start to ask.

“Can we eat something?” she says. “I’m fucking starving.”