By Paul Cwick

Cathy McKenna was in an absolute rage as she stormed invisibly through the shopping mall. How dare they? she thought. They’ve certainly got their nerve. Talking about people behind their backs that way! Openly! In public! As if it’s any of their damned business! Boy, you think you really know people, you think they’re your friends. And then you find out what they really think of you! They sit there, the two of them, little Mr. & Mrs. Married, with their happy little domestic life, as if they’re so superior, so high and mighty! Talking about Greg that way! And about her! Imagine! Implying that she and Greg were crazy or something! The gall of those two! Where do they come off putting her down that way, calling her "flaky" and a "lunatic"? Oooh, it made her blood boil just to think about it!

Okay, so maybe her relationship with Greg was a little unusual. So what? At least she took some initiative in her relationship, not like meek, mousy little Norma! What gives them the right to sit there and pass judgment? At least Cat stayed with Greg because she loved him, not because she had to! Not like Norma. What would SHE know about love anyway?

This day was really turning sour for Cat. And yet, as she had initially planned it, it seemed like such a good idea. Get invisible, then take a trip to the mall and have a little fun and relaxation. What good was invisibility if you couldn’t have some fun with it once in a while? So she suggested it to Greg who, as usual, didn’t like it, and didn’t want to drive her. What was she supposed to do, she asked him, drive herself? Wouldn’t THAT look great: a VW driving around by itself! People would think that Disney was in town, filming yet another remake! It finally took all of Cat’s powers of persuasion to get Greg to drive her. It wasn’t easy, but she finally did it.

Then when they got there, all Greg did was sulk. Cat tried to show him around and get him interested in different things, but he just wouldn’t cooperate; he continued to be difficult. Then that Norma suddenly showed up out of nowhere and started talking to Greg. Cat didn’t really think that Greg would tell anyone about her invisibility, but the way he’d been acting lately, Cat decided she couldn’t take any chances. So before Greg had a chance to open his big mouth, Cat had to physically drag him away. Greg didn’t like that, but Cat didn’t care.

And it was shortly after that Greg took off and got lost in a crowd. Cat immediately went looking for him, of course, and while she was looking, she thought she overheard someone mention Greg’s name. She looked around and sure enough, it was Norma and her husband Nick, talking about her and Greg. So she decided to eavesdrop (another fringe-benefit of invisibility, she thought.) And it wasn’t long before she realized that Nick and Norma were NOT talking about her and Greg in the most complimentary of terms. She listened discretely for a while, and then ‘lost it.’

Truth be known, Cat was in a bad mood to begin with that day. She had been gradually losing patience with Greg these last few weeks anyway, and today, her patience was about at an end. For the life of her, she just couldn’t understand him. He used to be so much fun to be with when they first started going together, but now he was no fun at all. Now he went around all the time looking like he just came from a funeral, and anytime she ever tried to talk to him, he’d freak out and get upset for no reason at all. He never wanted to go out with her anymore, he never wanted to have any fun. It seemed like he didn’t want to have ANYTHING to do with her at all anymore. All he ever seemed to want to do was sit around in a corner all day long, as if he were hiding or afraid of something. What did he have to be afraid of? She couldn’t understand it. 

And lately, Greg had been getting increasingly distant, almost hostile towards her at times. Like last night. As she did many times before, Cat had spent the night at Greg’s apartment. But nothing happened between them, absolutely nothing. He didn’t even touch her, not once. He seemed to be avoiding her, in fact, as though he couldn’t stand to be anywhere near her and resented her very presence. Cat couldn’t understand it and she didn’t like it.

At first, she thought maybe it was because of her invisibility power. And that did seem a reasonable explanation at first. But as she thought about it, she decided that couldn’t be the reason. Because by now she’d had invisibility for a couple of months; that’s more than enough time for him to have gotten used to it, she thought. But since he obviously still has a problem with it, she thought, then it must be something else. He must still have his hang-ups and insecurities, and must still have trouble dealing with a special, extraordinary woman like her.

So she tried to be patient with him. It wasn’t easy, but she was patient nonetheless. It would have been very easy for her to use her invisibility for purely selfish purposes, to go out and commit crimes or whatever for her own personal enrichment. But she didn’t. Instead, she kept it a secret, just a private little secret to be enjoyed by the two of them. She even used it in very special ways, to "pleasure" Greg in ways that he could never have enjoyed from any ‘ordinary’ woman.

But did he appreciate it? Did he even care about the sacrifices, the difficulties, the discomfort she often went through to be invisible? No! He didn’t care, he didn’t even TRY to be understanding or sympathetic towards her. All he did was feel sorry for himself, because he couldn’t be invisible too.

Even when she’d fool around and play games with him while she was invisible, he’d still get so upset and take it all so seriously. He acted as though it were a life-or-death matter, but she was only playing with him, just having fun. She didn’t mean him any harm, she was just teasing. Why couldn’t he see that? Why couldn’t he understand? He just doesn’t have any sense of humor anymore, she thought.

And she had gone out of her way to be extra-nice to him too. No one could argue that. She’d been extra loving and affectionate to him, even when he wasn’t being particularly responsive. And what did he do in return? He kept being a jerk, doing things (deliberately, it seemed to her) to provoke her and make her lose her temper. She really didn’t like to get angry at Greg; she even told him so. Yet he kept doing things, seemingly minor, for apparently no other reason than to annoy and anger her.

So what was she supposed to do, just sit there and take it? Of course not. She wasn’t a little mouse like Norma, afraid of her own shadow. If Greg was going to get out of line, she was damn well going to tell him so. And if he wouldn’t listen (and he never did) well then, she’d just have to SHOW him she meant business. That was apparently the only way to get through to him (sometimes he could be so dense!)

And she had to admit that it was at such times that invisibility really came in handy. It was about time she started to be more assertive, she thought, and now she finally had the means to do so. It all seemed perfectly right and natural to her; as long as she had this power, why not use it? In fact, it made her feel good to be the one calling the shots for a change. And if she had to punish Greg from time to time for getting out of line, well, it wasn’t because she enjoyed it (well…maybe she DID enjoy it a LITTLE bit, she had to admit.) But rather it was because she cared about him, that was all. She was only trying to make him easier to live with. What was so terrible about that? If he would only learn to listen and do as he was told, everything would be fine… But no. All she ever got from him was defiance. Either that or he’d sit around and wallow in self-pity, which was another thing that annoyed her.

She wondered whether Greg was even capable of enjoying himself anymore. Like that time at Jeremiah’s a few weeks ago. They started out having such a good time, and then suddenly he started acting so weird again. Everyone else seemed to be having a good time, why couldn’t he? Especially since she got to try out her new concentrated potion, which was successful, and she was so happy about it. Why couldn’t he have shared in her happiness? Sure, maybe she’d had a little too much to drink, and sure Greg was probably a little surprised when she disappeared right there on the dance floor. And there were maybe one or two other people who’d also apparently had too much to drink and freaked out a little bit over her sudden disappearance. But that was no reason to let it spoil their whole evening together. But that’s what Greg had done. He overreacted and got all upset about it just like he always did and ruined the whole evening for the both of them. He acted like such a jerk…that was probably why those cops and those other people kept bothering him about it afterward…

Or today, for instance, she practically had to drag him kicking and screaming out of the house to get him to drive her to the mall, to get out of the house for a while to stretch his legs and get some fresh air. She was not about to let him spend another weekend moping around the house, that was for sure. Even then, all he did was sulk during the entire drive down, without saying a word. And then he took off again, getting lost in a crowd, just like he always seemed to do these days, as if he were trying to get away from her or something. And now, once again, she had to waste valuable time trying to find him. She’d about had enough of this attitude of his, and was really getting damned sick and tired of it…

As she looked up and down the mall, trying to find Greg, she continued to ponder his unusual behavior of late. No matter how she looked at it, she just couldn’t understand it. Unless maybe… Maybe there was a reason for it… Maybe Mr. & Mrs. Domestic were accidentally right about something, without even realizing it, she thought. They kept talking about her and Greg breaking up. Maybe they knew something that she didn’t know. Rumors always have an element of truth, she realized, so maybe…maybe Greg IS thinking of running out on her. He damned well better not be! she thought. And anyway, why was Norma so interested in Greg in the first place? Was he any of her concern? Or did she have some special interest in Greg? Or did she and Greg already have something going on behind Cat’s back?

Cat was never really all that sure she could entirely trust Greg to begin with. She had always kept a pretty close eye on him, especially since discovering invisibility. But right about the time when she ALMOST thought she could trust him, he turned right around and betrayed her that one time by trying to steal her potion, after she specifically told him he couldn’t have any of it. After that, she knew she couldn’t trust him with anything. That one act of betrayal destroyed what little reserve of trust Cat had built up for Greg.

And he HAS been acting awfully nervous lately, Cat thought, like he was afraid or guilty or something. What does he have to be guilty about? she wondered. Well, I’m damned well going to find out, that’s for sure, she thought. From now on, I’m not letting him out of my sight. I’ve been way too lenient with him up to now, but no more. I’m not about to let him treat me this way. And God help him if he IS fooling around!

Cat was getting more and more irritated by the minute as she continued to search the mall for Greg without success. Dammit! Where the hell is he? she thought. He’d better not have driven home and left me here! she thought. If he has, he’s REALLY going to get it this time!

Normally, Cat tried to be discrete with her invisibility, but now that her temper was beginning to flare, she didn’t even bother with formality; if someone got in her way, she just shoved them out of the way. They freaked out, of course, but what did she care?

She looked and looked for Greg all over the mall, all through the various stores, with growing frustration at not being able to find him. Damn, it was crowded today! If she’d known it was going to be this crowded, she would have stayed home! DAMMIT! People kept bumping into her and stepping on her feet. Why don’t they watch where they’re going? she thought. And what the hell are all these mall security guards doing running around? They weren’t here earlier…

Wait a minute, there he is! she thought, as she finally spotted Greg, sitting all by himself in an out-of-the-way corner. There he sat, alone on a bench, sipping at a cup of tea. That’s just great! Cat thought. Here I’ve been practically turning this place upside down trying to find him, and there he sits, calmly drinking a cup a tea, without a care in the world! Oooooh, he makes me so mad sometimes!!

Cat walked over and silently watched him. What’s with the weak tea? she wondered. God, he’s getting to be such a wimp, she thought… He’s pathetic...

And then she noticed Greg’s eyes were darting nervously about and his hands trembled as he sipped at the tea. Yeah. He’s sure as hell hiding something, she thought. There’s something he’s not telling me. Or maybe he’s looking for someone. It can’t be me, she thought, he can’t even see me. Maybe he’s hoping to meet someone here. Well, I won’t give him the chance…

As she stood there, watching Greg sipping his tea, she became aware of an intense anger welling up within her, a fury that went far beyond the mere annoyance she had felt earlier. Anger at Nick and Norma for talking about her and Greg, anger at Greg for running out on her, anger at making her waste time looking for him, and anger at the possibility that he might cheating on her behind her back.

She flexed her invisible fingers as she watched him…

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