John Persons Pool Party -

“That’s great,” John said.

John Person’s pool was a perfect rectangle of turquoise denial. It sat in his backyard like a statement of fact: I have arrived . The water was heated to exactly eighty-four degrees, the chlorine balanced to kill everything except the memory of what he used to be. john persons pool party

“You look terrible,” she said.

John nodded. He had felt power once. He had stood in a boardroom in San Francisco, wearing a suit that cost more than his first car, and watched a term sheet get signed. He had felt invincible. He had felt like the laws of thermodynamics did not apply to him. And now he was standing next to a propane grill in his own backyard, listening to a man who sold timeshares describe the feeling of sixty knots. “That’s great,” John said

Linda nodded. She set the glass down on the coping and walked back toward the house, where the lights were warm and the dishes were waiting and the letter from the bank sat hidden in a box of tinsel and angel hair. The water was heated to exactly eighty-four degrees,