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Disneyland

September 1, 2018 By Robert Vaughan

Disneyland

I came into the office and she was doing a Suzanne Sommers video. Air chopping step-ups, her flesh moving like a summer lake on a hot day. She said, “Wanna’ play?” but I pretended I’d misheard her, and jetted toward the kitchen. She followed me.

“Hey, what’s the rush?” I heard behind me. I cracked the top off a Bud with my teeth. Drained half of it while she stretched in the doorway, arms reaching toward the molding above her head, her sweaty upper lip quivering.

“They called again.” Her voice had that familiar spooky sound like a guest on a Jon Walsh program.

“Who?” I sat at the counter on a stool I’ve always hated because my feet can’t find the floor.

“The police. They have a new lead-”

“I don’t want to hear it…” As soon as I’d blurted, I felt shitty because I knew in some way it was all she had. All we had. Memories. The past. “I’m sorry,” I mumbled. “What’d they say?” Downed the other half of the Bud.

“Inspector Stevens thinks he might have a match- some kid in Letchworth, New York.”

Happened over ten years ago. That’s a lifetime when it’s your only kid. Disneyland. Easier for me to assume he’s dead- and in some ways, I suppose he is. Maybe we all are, going through the motions, muddling through another day?

Easy to blame each other, even though it happened so fast.

How does the sky reconcile a lost cloud?

The sun a spot that no longer exists?

A shadow crept over the room like it had always been there.

Milk cartons.

Wanted lists.

Missing Children support groups.

I was done. I walked to the fridge and opened a second Bud.

“What’s for dinner,” I asked.

About Robert Vaughan

Robert Vaughan teaches workshops in hybrid writing, poetry, fiction at locations like UWM, Red Oak Writing, The Clearing, Synergia Ranch and Mabel Dodge Luhan House. He leads roundtables in Milwaukee, WI. He was a finalist for the Gertrude Stein Award for Fiction (2013, 2014). He was the head judge for the Bath International Flash Fiction Awards, 2016. His short fiction, ‘A Box’ was selected for Best Small Fictions 2016 (Queen’s Ferry Press). Vaughan is the author of five books: Microtones (Cervena Barva Press); Diptychs + Triptychs + Lipsticks + Dipshits (Deadly Chaps); Addicts & Basements (CCM); RIFT, co-authored with Kathy Fish (Unknown Press) and FUNHOUSE (Unknown Press). www.robert-vaughan.com.

Artist Credit:

Britney Horton-Baker is a freelance illustrator from Orlando, Florida. Participating in the arts since childhood, she has shown work throughout the central Florida area including Maitland Festival of the Arts, Little Fish Huge Pond, Seminole State College, Jeanine Taylor Gallery, City Arts Factory, Hourglass Brewery, and The Falcon. She is admittedly terrible at social media, but her Instagram can be found @beebubot.

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