Nov. 18 Flashfiction Confessions

 

Nov. 18 of FlashNano2022: Today's prompt, "I confess."

                                     CONFESSIONS

“So? What are we confessing this year?” Mary, the last of the five women to arrive, breezed through the door.

This was their annual retreat, held the last ten years since they had moved out of the house they’d shared in university.

Five years ago they had renamed themselves The Five Sluts. It had started with them confessing how many men they’d slept with. Anita 5, Emma 8, Maggie 4, Sue 7. Mary had only slept with one man she said, her high school sweetheart who was now her husband. Sometimes, she’d also confessed, she wished that she had more experience, but not enough to risk her marriage.

Each year, they decided what they were going to confess. 

One year was did they ever steal anything. Anita and Emma had shop lifted as teenagers. Maggie admitted to kiting a check at the bank where she worked but repaying before it was discovered. Sue regularly lifted small bills from her husband’s wallet. Now she had close to $500. 

Mary hadn’t stolen anything.

The cabin, which belonged to Emma’s parents, was well hidden in the woods, a short walk from a lake, but this was November in Maine and the women might take a walk along the edge later, but no way would any of their toes touch the water even if they could break through the ice.

Deciding the confession topic had become a ritual, with a fire in the fireplace, a good wine, French cheeses and a special bread that Maggie had carried from a Boston bakery where she stopped on the way to the retreat.

Although confessions were a big part of the retreat, time and chat was also spent on what they’d been doing the past year, memories of living together, food, their families. With their families it was showing pictures of their kids, Anita 2, Maggie 2, Sue 1, Mary 3. Emma had never married but her confession four years ago involved her abortion which revealed Anita’s and Maggie’s. Maggie was the one who declared back when they all lived together, she’d never get an abortion, admitted she couldn’t face a third child as her marriage was breaking up.

“Pass the brie,” Sue said. “For this year how about telling us the biggest lie you ever told?”

They agreed.

“I told my Mom that I’d seen Dad with another woman,” Anita said. I had a good reason. There marriage was horrible and I’d hope they’d break up.” She sighed. “They didn’t.”

“I said I had a masters on my resume. They still haven’t discovered it,” Sue said.

“I told the police, I hadn’t seen the kid who robbed my neighbor’s house. I knew him, but I didn’t want him to have a record. He had a lot of family problems.” Maggie refilled all the glasses.

“Does telling your daughter there’s Santa and a Tooth Fairy count?” Sue asked.

“No,”the others chorused.

“My husband thinks I have a book club that meets once a month. “It’s so I can have a night on my own and do what I want to do.”

“What do you do?” Mary asked.

“Normally go to a chick flick. One time I went to a bar to see if any man would try to pick me up. Sue paused. “No one did. I guess I’m beyond my sell by date.”

They went on a tangent about preserving their looks, hating their gained weight and brands of moisture they liked.

Mary went to the fridge to get more cheese.

“Wait a minute. Mary? What about you?” Anita said.

“I’m really ashamed of this one, and I hope you won’t be mad at me. “I lied about the number of men I’ve slept with.” Mary put the cheese on the table.

“How many?”

“I’m not sure. When Bill is out of town, I work as an escort.”