Author's Note: Written for the Writer in a Drawer competition on LiveJournal. The prompt was "Seven Deadly Sins," and I selected the classical definition of Sloth.
Don't own!
"Sloth… is an oppressive sorrow, which…so weighs upon man's mind, that he wants to do nothing."
– St. Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologica.
Owen stood on the airfield long after Diane's plane disappeared, watching the sky, listening for (praying for) the sound of the Sky Gypsy returning. By the time he finally gave in, he was shivering, the fingers gripping her scarf getting stiff with cold. Not good for a doctor.
He went back to his car and started it up, tossing the scarf on the passenger seat before driving off. He was a fool for thinking she'd stay, for thinking he could ever be enough. The signs had been there from the start. She'd told him making love was only the next best thing to flying.
She was the real Sky Gypsy. Diane claimed her plane was named for its engine, but really, it had been named for her pilot. If gravity could never keep a grip on her, what chance did love have?
He got back to his flat and headed straight for the cabinet with the half-empty bottle of Scotch. Out of habit, he turned toward another cupboard for a glass, and noticed the bunch of nearly overripe bananas on the counter. She'd made such a fuss over them that first morning. Rationing made miracles for her of things he took for granted. He turned away from the bananas and decided he could do without a glass.
Opening the bottle, he took a swig before walking back to the living room and sinking onto the sofa. Diane's red silk dress lay crumpled on the floor, out of his reach. Just as she was.
His mobile rang. A quick glance showed it was work calling. Probably someone wanting to know if Diane needed anything.
She'd needed a pilot's license, two days ago.
Bugger work. They could do without him. As the mobile fell silent, he took another long pull on the bottle and gazed at Diane's dress on the floor. He should really do something about that. And he should toss out those bananas; he hated them once they started turning brown.
There were a lot of things he probably should do, but right now, he just didn't feel like it.