Chapter Five
Leah walked down to the laundrette. It was several streets away from their apartment. The cost was good, and the quality of the shop was wonderful. She nodded her head to the owner before dumping the sacks of clothes onto the bench in front of the washing machine. Leah paid for the detergent then began sorting through the bags making piles of light, dark, and white clothing.
Her mother had taught her how to wash her clothes so she didn’t ruin any of her stuff. There really was a secret to it. She placed the whites into the washing machine, poured the detergent inside, put her money into the coin slots and closed the door.
She took a seat opposite the washing machine. Other days she’d bring a book to read as the washing was sorted through. Her rush out of the apartment meant she’d left empty-handed. She folded her hands under her breasts, keeping her hair down. Covering the bites on her neck was essential. For the next week or so at work she’d be covering her love bites with some scarves. She hoped no one noticed. There would be no easy way of explaining them.
The washing machine kept spinning ‘round, and Leah watched it do the cycle again and again. The rest of the patrons continued to work through their washing as she just stared at the washing machine. The constant turning reminded her of herself. The feeling of being pushed ‘round and ‘round felt familiar to her.
If only she could remember what happened the night before. Her body showed all the signs of lovemaking, and the guys had even admitted to them making love. She wanted to remember every little detail. What had they done? What had they said?
Was there something important she was missing?
She was never drinking alcohol again.
A woman sat next to her, and Leah ignored her, watching her washing machine. Her cell phone buzzed inside her pocket. She pulled it out to see her mother had left her a message about the barbeque. Leah didn’t even know if she was going to make it now. For the first time in their friendship, Leah felt uncertain.
Her phone buzzed again as the washing machine finished. She answered the call from her mother as she emptied the clothes into the basket.
“Leah, what’s wrong?” her mother said.
“Nothing. Can I call you back? I’m doing the washing.”
“Again. Why don’t you buy a washing machine for that place or better yet, start looking for a house to share.”
“It is a little early for that, Mom.”
Leah rested the cell phone between her shoulder and ear as she moved to the spinner. She paid the money then went back to the washing to load up the machine.
“Are you going to keep those men waiting forever?”
She’d confessed her feelings to her mother a few years back, swearing her to secrecy.
“Something happened last night, Mom. I don’t know what.”
“What do you mean? I need details, honey.”
Leah raised her hand out in front of her. “Please, Mom. Give me a few minutes. Let me finish loading this up in the washing machine, and I’ll call you back in a few minutes.”
“Okay.”
She finished the call, loading the washing machine then putting the clothes from the spinner into the dryer.
After she was done, she noticed the woman who’d been sitting next to her was gone. Shaking her head, Leah walked out of the front door and dialled her mother’s number.
Her mother listened as she told her everything she knew happened last night. By the time she had finished, tears spilled down her cheeks, and her hand was gesturing all over the place.
“I don’t know what to do. I feel everything has changed,” Leah said.
“Everything has changed. You’ve crossed a line with your friends. You can’t come back from that. Do you still love them?”
“With all my heart. I just can’t bear the thought of them sleeping with me because they felt sorry for me. I begged them, Mom.”
“Mitch and Chase will not hold it against you. I think you and the boys need to take a long look at your life together. It will only be a matter of time before this goes wrong.”
Leah looked through the window. “How do you know it will go wrong?”
She heard her mother sigh over the line. “You’ve slept with your two best friends. The two friends you’ve known most of your life. What would you say to another woman in that situation?”