Kelly's Mother

Kelly’s Mother

By Krysta Walker

            Two summers ago, the summer of my junior year, was the summer I dated Kelly. That was also the first summer in ten years that the Lincoln Township Bobcats went to regionals for golf. I was a caddie that summer. That’s how I first met Kelly. Her team was out on the green. She was in a pleated mini skirt with long argyle socks stretching up to her knees. She looked like something straight out of the Lacoste catalogue. She had excellent form, almost always hitting the ball directly in the hole, no matter the distance.  A regular 17 year old Arnold Palmer.

 I couldn't take my eyes off her knees. Pale, knobby; I was strangely obsessed with those knees; touching them, kissing them, pinching them. I guess you could say that those knees were the real reason I dated her in the first place.

 I waited until she came to the range for the fourth time before making my move, smoothly complimenting her back-swing as I handed her a new club. She smiled warmly thanking me. She had cool blue eyes; cool like the swimming pool in her back yard that we spent most of our time in that summer. Those eyes looked over my face, seeing if I was worth her time. She told me her name; I asked her out to lunch.

She wore her argyle socks to our date.  She giggled as she nibbled at French fries and sipped delicately at her milkshake. We discussed our favorite things: golf, swimming, little Richie. She slipped out of her tennis shoes and touched my leg. She blushed. I touched her wrist and we were boyfriend and girlfriend.

In the second week of our relationship, she took me to meet her parents. Her father shook my hand genuinely. I subconsciously noted how sweaty my palms were. He slapped me on the back and welcomed me to his home. Her mother smiled at me and said my name, trying to remember it. It sounded strange on her tongue. Kelly took me to her room. Her walls were void of posters and other girly paraphernalia, similar to Kelly herself. She sat me down on her white duvet. While she kissed me, I stared at the calendar behind her bed. She had a test on Monday and a tournament on Wednesday. She kissed me and I touched her knees.

At dinner, her parents asked about my plans after college. I made up a respectable answer. In reality I had no idea what I wanted out of life. Kelly beamed from beside me and nudged my foot with her argyle socks. Her father cracked corny jokes and guffawed. Her mother stared at me with a small smile on her mouth. She asked me how I liked the mashed potatoes. I liked them very much and told her so. She said good. I wondered what she meant.

For the next few weeks my time was either spent working at the range or out with Kelly. We went dancing, skating, walking. We did everything together. However, a lot of our time was spent at her house. We lounged in the pool. We listened to records. We kissed on the porch. Her father was usually at work. Her mother would pop in at random times and comment on how attractive we were together. Whenever she said this, Kelly would blush and look away. Her mother would always look directly at me.

One evening, I went to Kelly’s house but forgot to call. Her mother answered the door and told me that Kelly was at a friend’s house for the night. I apologized. She invited me inside and made me lemonade. She asked me how it was. I liked it very much and told her so. She said good. I knew what she meant. She touched my leg. I wondered aloud at where her husband was. She told me he was gone for the evening. She kissed my cheek. I kissed her mouth. She took me to her room and sat me down on her bed. I told her I thought she was beautiful. She laughed and told me she knew.

I spent every day at Kelly’s house. In the afternoons I would touch Kelly’s knees. In the evenings, her mother would kiss my cheek. Her father continued to crack corny jokes.

One night, Kelly came home early. She called for her mother as she ran up the stairs. She stood in the doorway, holding her trophy. Her team had won their tournament. Shock dripped down her face and onto her shirt. She ran out the room. I ran after her. She screamed at me, raged contorted her face. Her blue eyes were ice. I tried to calm her down. I tried to hold her. I tried to kiss her face. I tried to kiss her lips with her mother’s lipstick still on my mouth. She pushed me away. She threw her trophy at me. I left.

I looked at Kelly's house from the lawn. I saw her mother standing in her bedroom window, looking at me. She smiled.

Neither Kelly nor her mother ever spoke to me again. As far as I know she never came back to the driving range. I was fired about a week after Kelly threw her trophy at me. I began work at a convenience store and starting dating a girl named Lena who always kept her knees covered. When Lena took me to meet her parents, her mother served mashed potatoes. She asked me how I liked them.

I told her I was allergic.