“Thank you for treating us to lunch at this fabulous eating establishment in our fair fair town.”
“Yes thank you,” echoed Preacher Ziegler, presider over their marriage as Doctor Doughmachine beside him presided over Okama’s death and subsequent quick cremation. They had to do it that way because of the Pill. Highly contagious, you see. Hiigh.
The just married, just redubbed Silvers across from them both nodded, waited for more. Tony B. was still in his wedding tux but Shelley J. had to change out of her gown for fear of ruining the train. They were scheduled to leave town on it at 10:09 tomorrow morning, Eastern Standard Time — *North Carolina* Standard Time not accidentally. Because they were subbing one for another in this deal with a devil likewise named Bandana like the borough still surrounding them and, yes, still threatening to absorb them. Even if they didn’t realize it at this time. They thought marriage would set them free. . He’d been turned back to his original form of exotic pizza topping again but the talking banana’s influence would be felt for months, years, days after this. 10:09 now. Only 12 hours before the train and only 12 hours after their friend, their former Silver band member Okama Majo had passed away. And 24 hours after they originally thought of getting the marriage license, I’ll add. It all happened just that quick, as in a wink, as in an eye.
Dr. Doughmachine passed a Burger King cup across the table to the Silvers which they at first thought was a shake. But the hand stayed behind while the cup remained and they knew what it was by Doughmachine’s somber appearance. “Here. This is yours now. His body is in your hands. Do with it what you wilt.”
Frankie and Johnny, I mean, Shelley J. and Tony B. hadn’t even considered this. Where would they scatter Okama’s ashes? Certainly not this town, the place where he contracted the often fatal Pill and died as a result. Perhaps Nawt Vaya, around the Kidd Tower. It was here that Shelley considered the fate of Mr. Babyface who also lived in that structure, if not in Nawt Vaya itself. Is the Kidd Town cursed? she couldn’t help think. First Mr. Babyface with the Orgamast water funnel and now–
“Dear,” Tony B. interrupted his new wife’s reverie. “It’s time to go back to the motel. Honeymoon,” he summarized his banana fueled urges in a word while gathering up the cup with Okama’s remains. They might never leave. tbc?
Sunklands 