My Seven Deadly Stories

GEORGE - Part Two

Continued:

Grace thought for a moment.
"Hey George, I was just going to get a drink. Would you like to keep me company?"
Grace was hoping to maybe get a couple free drinks and probably help with her car later on. You can't blame a girl for trying. However, men rarely turned Grace down. She was in her mid thirties but still pretty, despite hard living and even harder partying. Grace was not yet haggard though with several deep lines beginning to form around her features, she had a youthful appearance because of her tiny figure.
George was struck dumb for a moment. George had never been on a date. He'd kissed a girl named Abigail once when he was 7 years old. That was the summer his grandparents took him to Galveston. That was the first and only time he'd been to a beach, and his first and only kiss.
George glanced at his watch, "Well sure, why not?" he replied, feeling giddy. "I'll follow you there."

Grace smiled and waved as she drove off. George in hot pursuit trailing behind her.

The pair stopped at a hole in the wall tavern. It was smokey and dark inside. George never came to these types of places. George never really drank. He just didn't enjoy it. Grace mentioned that they had snacks and appitizers there which brightened George up considerably.
They sat and talked over drinks. Grace's drinks. George bought her several over the next couple hours while he gingerly nibbled on nachos, mozzarella sticks, and stuffed potato skins.
Grace became very animated, boisterous and flirty once she began drinking. George was very flattered from the attention which was all new to him and quickly became smitten.

Grace liked George. He was easy to talk to and he was nice to her.
George didn't want to leave but he had to get up early for work the next day. George made his big play. He wrote down his number on a napkin and told Grace to call him if she ever had car problems or anything. George walked Grace out to her car to make sure it started and they parted ways.

Grace woke up with a sharp headache and her face stuck to a pillow. She pushed herself up and looked around. Her head was swimming. Deciding that was a bad idea, Grace sunk back into the pillow. At least it was her pillow. This time. There had been many days recently Grace had woken up in a strange place, not remembering how she'd gotten there or the events of the night before.
Grace rolled over and lit a cigarette from her nightstand, then tried to connect the dots from last night.

George hit his alarm and rolled off his bed. It was Friday and George like to buy donuts for the office on Fridays. George was just trying to be liked and win friends but before he knew it, it became expected of him. He was always looking for approval from others.
George quickly performed his morning rituals and then picked up his laundry basket, dumping the contents across his bed. Finding what he determined to be the least wrinkled outfit, hurriedly got dressed.
On the road and on the quest for donuts, George pulled into the drive-thru at Daytime Express. At the window, George ordered three dozen donuts and also a dozen breakfast burritos for himself. George drove to work with one hand and gorged himself with burritos with his other. Grease ran down the corner of his mouth to his chin unnoticed.
He walked into the office carrying two dozen donuts, leaving the last box for himself in the car. George placed them on the break table, grabbed himself a jelly filled donut, and headed to his desk. He devoured the donut, mashing it into his face before he ever reached his seat, dropping a blop of red jelly on his shirt in the process.
There was already a stack of work waiting for George on his desk. His mind began to wander after a while to his night out with Grace. He had a hard time focusing on his tasks. George trudged through the rest of his day.
George walked into his apartment, winded from climbing the stairs and threw his jacket on the side of the chair before collapsing into it.
While sitting there, George daydreamed about what he was going to eat for dinner. There wasn't a lot of choices in town.
The phone began to ring. George didn't want to get up. He didn't feel like talking to his mother today. He pulled himself up anyway to get the phone. It was a strange number. "Hello?"

"Hi, um is this George? This is Grace."
After a silent pause she added, "From yesterday."
"Of course Grace! How are you?" George inquired.
"I'm okay. I was just wondering if you wouldn't mind giving me a jump or maybe just a ride? I need to pick up a couple things at the store and can't seem to get ahold of anybody." Grace replied.

George picked Grace up that evening in his car. He took her to run her errands and then they went out to dinner at the Steak 'N' Ale Tavern. George ate an enormous meal while Grace drank mugs of ale and picked at her plate. They talked for hours until closing time.
They met again the next night for dinner and drinks. Then again the next evening. They fell into a comfortable routine. Eventually Grace ended up moving in with George. They made an unlikely couple. Grace with her tiny frame weighed about a hundred pounds soaking wet. Then there was George, quite portly at almost four hundred pounds.
It is said that opposites attract. There must be some truth to that. They seemed to have found happiness in each other. They enabled each other's demons perfectly.
One night they returned home, settled in bed and turned on Netflix. Grace picked a movie with Brad Pitt. Grace liked watching anything with Brad Pitt. George didn't care as long as it was entertaining. It was a suspense movie called Seven.
Grace was extremely drunk on this particular night and fell asleep during the first five minutes of the show. A cigarette still burning in her fingers. George looked over and carefully removed it from her hand. He was kind of hoping this would be a Viagra night. George liked those nights. Instead, it turned out to be a Lunesta night. George opened the pill bottle and shook it into his hand. Three pills landed in his fat palm. He usually only took one as per doctors orders because of his heart but tonight George was feeling some kind of way and swallowed all three at once. He chased it with a gulp of milk he'd brought with him to bed to go along with his box of Cosmic Brownies.
George only ate about half of the box before losing his motor skills. He was working on a brownie wrapper when the pills started taking effect. George felt a sharp pain in his chest and had a hard time breathing right before he lost consciousness...

The town read about it in the papers three days later, after Grace didn't show up for her scheduled shifts at Friendly's. According to the police report and eye witnesses, George had a stroke in his sleep and rolled on top of Grace, whose blood alcohol was two times the legal limit. Even had she been sober, there might not have been anything she could've done but since she was passed out drunk she probably gave not fight at all. George crushed her nearly flat over the course of the next three days until their bodies were discovered. Paramedics were surprised to find George had a very faint pulse. At first, they were both presumed dead. They worked to stabilize him and took him to the hospital. George never made it out of his coma. He would remain on a feeding tube until he perished nineteen years later.
Nobody said life was full of happy endings.