Goodbye Earl: Afterwards
Mary Anne woke to the sound of the rooster crowing, blinking away the last remnants of sleep from her eyes. The tall, redheaded woman smiled as she took in Wanda laying there beside her, the little blonde looking so innocent as she slept. Slipping out of the bed Mary Anne padded barefoot from the master bedroom to the kitchen, starting up the coffee then pouring herself one once it was done.
‘Wonder how long it’ll take for Wanda to wake this morning?’ Mary Anne mused as she looked out the window at their farm, the chickens tentatively moving out into the yaed, the pigs out in their pen in the back. A few years ago this would have seemed impossible to her, but a lot of things had changed since then.
Mary Anne had known Wanda for years, all through their high school days. Both had been in the same clubs, they hung out together, they were the best of friends. Of course Mary Anne never told her best friend some things, like how her heart would skip a beat when Wanda smiled, looking up at her so tenderly.
Wanda had been stunned when Mary Anne had told her she was leaving on graduation, but she didn’t feel she had any choice. The small town had been closing in on her more and more, and she also felt more and more drawn to Wanda in ways she knew were... wrong. So after telling Wanda that she needed to look for a bright new world she left, in truth trying to find others like her.
Atlanta had been a revelation to Mary Anne in more ways than one. She found a job, found a place to live... and found the bar. After a night or two of hesitating in the little café across the street Mary Anne went inside, and entered a new world. Men dancing with men, women swaying close together, dressed as they chose and doing what they wanted to. The first time Mary Anne got asked to dance she thought she was going to faint, but in time she got used to the racing of her heart, the sweet excitement.
Still, Mary Anne never seemed to find a girlfriend or really settle down, all the dates seemed to be lacking something. She told a few friends about Wanda, not specifics but enough for them to understand, and the nodded sagely. Most had had a first crush like that, but few of those worked out in the long term. They told her to put it behind her, to move on and give her love to someone else.
Then Mary Anne heard about Wanda being hurt.
Booking the first redeye out of Atlanta Mary Anne hurried to Wanda’s side, speeding her rental car along 109 and luckily avoiding any radar traps. Wanda was a mess, battered and bloody and Mary Anne was stabbed with guilt over leaving her side, especially after hearing about how Wanda had taken up with Earl after she had left. Both of them talked long through the night, and in the end they made up their minds: Earl had to die.
It was all remarkably easy, actually. Earl, as arrogant as hell was unsurprised when Wanda took him back, and while he DID notice the odd flavor of the peas it was far too late by then. Wrapping him in a tarp they went out to the lake and gave him the old heave ho into the water, weighed down so he’d sink like a rock.
There had been a scary moment when the police came by the house the next morning, but they had been coming to take Earl in for assaulting Wanda. Both of them knew the good-ole-boy network would protect a friend like Earl, and both felt a degree of satisfaction on ridding the world of a piece of filth like that.
Without really thinking about it Mary Anne agreed to stay with Wanda after that, regretfully saying goodbye to her friends back in Atlanta and doing her computer job from their new home. Wanda, needing something to do, bought a space at the roadside stand on highway 108 selling the ham they raised along with strawberry jam made from her mother’s recipe.
“What are you doing?” a familiar voice asked, arms circling her waist as Wanda hugged her from behind.
“Just thinking,” Mary Anne smiled down at her.
Wanda moved on tip toe to kiss Mary Anne, “I missed you when I woke up.”
It was a lingering kiss, one of a lover and like always Mary Anne just melted into it. “I wish we had done this years ago,” she murmured softly.
“You might have told me,” Wanda moved to stand by Mary Anne’s side.
Mary Anne reached out to put a arm around Wanda’s waist, drawing her close. “When you told me to stop using the couch and get in bed with you, I knew I was in trouble,” Mary Anne murmured.
“I lay in bed beside you that night longing for something,” Wanda lay her head against Mary Anne’s arm, “I barely slept.”
“Join the club,” Mary Anne laughed, “if you hadn’t made the first move I thought I was going to burst into flames or something.”
“Me, too,” Wanda laughed. She looked up at Mary Anne, “The first time I touched you it felt so right... I wasn’t even scared.”
“It was right,” Mary Anne hugged her, “for us.”
“I still want you to take me out to that bar in Atlanta,” Wanda added after a moment, recalling a earlier conversation.
“It’s a pretty rough place,” Mary Anne warned.
“It’s part of the new world that you found,” Wanda said, “a new world you helped me discover.” A grin, “Besides, I thought we could dress up to the nines and have some fun.”
“We haven’t had a night out in while,” Mary Anne conceded the point, “what do you have in mind?”
Wanda reached up to tidy the men’s pajamas that Mary Anne always wore to bed, “I was thinking a slow dance to start, me in that slinky dress and you in your suit...”
“Yes,” Mary Anne croaked as she felt Wanda press up to her.
“And maybe go back to the hotel then and,” Wanda fluttered her eyes suggestively, “rest.”
“We tend to do a lot of,” Mary Anne grinned, “resting.”
“You can never have too much rest,” Wanda made circles on Mary Anne’s chest wither her pinky finger. Suddenly Mary Anne bodily picked her up, bringing a squeal of surprise from Wanda, “What are you doing?”
“I suddenly feel very tired,” Mary Anne winked, “we’re going back to bed.”
“Whatever you say, dear,” Wanda sighed happily.
End
Notes: I always got a sort of ‘Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistlestop Café’ feel from Goodbye Earl, so writing a story around it wasn’t hard. Not sure if it was intended by the Dixie Chicks, but heh. They never do explain why Mary Anne left town on graduation, so I went with her being a closeted lesbian and the plot just flowed from there.