Lilly Laughs Loudly

Mr. Rondhart is wearing long pants, a striped button down shirt, and a colorful tie. His wife is wearing a flowered dress, very red lipstick, and a most likely fake smile.

The other married couples in the party are also wearing colorful ties and fake smiles. There are many tables covered with white linen cloths, as are the six chairs around each of the tables. It’s a sunny Sunday. The grass retains traces of yesterday’s dew. Three waiters walk around with trays topped with glasses of icy water, glasses of icy carrot juice, and bottles of cold (yet not icy) champagne. Every ten minutes, the waiters run into each other, and they mutter something in Spanish.

In one of the corners of the garden, there is a photo booth; Mr. Rondhart’s wife is looking towards it, while Mr. Rondhart plays Sudoku on his cellphone.

Asks Mr. Rondhart’s wife: Would you like to take a picture with me in the booth?

Answers Mr. Rondhart: No thanks.

Mr. Rondhart’s wife’s fake smile leaves her face and flies over to one of the daffodils beside the booth. Mr. Rondhart sneezes. Mr. Rondhart’s wife stands up. She says so I’ll just take a picture with Lilly, then.

Lilly is Mr. Rondhart’s wife’s sister. Today, Lilly is wearing a particularly short, black dress. Her lipstick is redder than Mr. Rondhart’s wife’s lipstick, and her nose is definitely smaller. Mr. Rondhart’s wife scans the garden, and finally spots Lilly talking to one of the waiters, drinking a glass of cold-yet-not-icy champagne. Mr. Rondhart’s wife heads towards Lilly, and Mr. Rondhart sneezes a second time, still seated, still playing Sudoku. Lilly sees her oldest sister coming, and she smiles. She speeds-up her Spanish while she talks to the waiter. Mr. Rondhart’s wife is very bad at languages. Mr. Rondhart’s wife gets there, looks at the waiter, and the fake smile seems to drift back from the daffodil to her face.

She says Lilly, come take a picture with me, you look so pretty and photo booths are so fun. The waiter says would you like some champagne, ma’am, in perfect English. Mr. Rondhart’s wife says no. (She doesn’t say no thank you.) Lilly says come on, sis, drink a glass with me. She says maybe this handsome man can drink a glass with us, too. The waiter’s cheeks turn red. Mr. Rondhart’s wife says: Lilly, please. Lilly laughs loudly. Some heads turn around to look at her. A group of women to their right roll their eyes after noticing Lilly’s dress. Lilly says ok, let’s take a picture.

The two sisters head towards the picture booth. Mr. Rondhart is having trouble with the two last empty boxes of the Sudoku grid on his cellphone, and he sighs and looks up while he drinks a sip of his champagne. That’s when he sees Lilly and his wife walking towards the picture booth. He looks at Lilly’s legs, and seems to hold his breath for some seconds, as if he were recalling something. He then sneezes once more.

Suddenly, the Sudoku grid in Mr. Rondhart’s cellphone screen disappears, and it begins to vibrate. The screen says: Incoming call. Unknown number. Mr. Rondhart answers the phone while he sees one of Lilly’s legs disappear into the picture booth. Mr. Rondhart says: Hello? Mr. Rondhart says: Son! How are you? Mr. Rondhart’s face fills with one of the few non-fake smiles of the party. He stands up while he listens to his son (his son is currently studying in Munich for a year), and heads towards the picture booth. As he walks to the booth, Mr. Rondhart says things like: Hum… Great, that’s great!… and, finally, How are your studies going? Mr. Rondhart’s wife and her sister are both inside the picture booth, giggling. Mr. Rondhart says to his son: It’s been long since you’ve spoke to your stepmom, she’ll probably be excited to hear you. And guess what, Lilly is here too, remember Lilly? Wait a second.

Mr. Rondhart looks at the cellphone screen, and presses the button that says Speaker. Then, Mr. Rondhart opens the curtain of the photo booth, extending his right hand (which holds the cellphone), and says: Peter just called! Talk to him, he’s on spea—

Mr. Rondhart stops talking. The two sisters are not by themselves—a man dressed in white is with them. A waiter. Lilly says what the fuck do you think you’re doing? We’re taking a picture here! Mr. Rondhart looks at his wife. Mr. Rondhart’s son’s voice says Dad? Mr. Rondhart doesn’t answer. He looks at the waiter. Lilly says close the curtain! Mr. Rondhart says what are you doing here with this man? He then raises his voice and says answer me! He grabs his wife’s arm with his left hand. He asks, now screaming, are you out of your mind? Lilly says: get your hand off my sister!

The waiter doesn’t talk—he’s sweating, and his cheeks are now definitely pale. Mr. Rondhart’s wife says: Lilly. Lilly says this man is absolutely fucked up! Mr. Rondhart’s wife says: Lilly! The waiter starts to say something, but Mr. Rondhart’s wife tells him to shut up. Lilly says to Mr. Rondhart: I’m sick of you coming into places where you’re uncalled for. Lilly says: Will you ever leave me alone? Lilly screams: I’m sick of you!

Silence.

Then, silence overrun by Lilly’s sobs.

Mr. Rondhart’s voice trembles as he says: Lilly, please.

Two men sitting in the nearest table stand up and start heading towards the photo booth, as do the group of women who rolled their eyes at Lilly’s dress. Mr. Rondhart’s wife seems to be about to talk, but, suddenly, she stops. She looks at Lilly’s legs. She looks at her husband’s eyes. She does not look at the waiter, but turns paler than him. And she says, very quietly, fuck you both.

As she leaves the photo booth, she takes the cellphone from her husband’s hand, presses the red “end” button, and throws it towards the daffodils.