Cats or Debts

By Michael Warner

She thought for a moment, this time in silence, about what was happening to her. She kept trying to piece together the crumbling images and fading sounds of memories with men who she thought might be right for her. Every time she tried to remember the good times she had, how fun she could be, her thoughts would jolt her back to the endings. They all had endings.

The men she dated never fit a particular mold. Some were handsome and athletic, others portly and jovial. Some of them were employed and could provide the comforts of life, while others were vagabonds whom slept on her couch and were grateful for the dinners she bought them. The only thread that bonded them was the time line of their departure.

She never seemed to be able to break the five week threshold. Each and every one of the scamps would wander elsewhere after no more than five weeks and she just couldn't figure out why. Was it her looks she thought? Was it her personality? The questions would spin on and on in her head. The answers, though, were never constant.

She remembered a common thread: they all ran after the first of the month. But it didn't make sense. Why the first? It was an unremarkable part of the month. She did nothing other than pay her bills. The bills! She always had bills. Too many bills that never went away.

It was always on her to-do list -- she had been meaning to call one of those debt reduction services or something, but it seemed hopeless now. That couldn't have been the only thing, it could have been the cats. All spinsters have cats! It certainly could not have been the ever-growing, ever-present bills. Could it? - 31377

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