to do it even though I thought I was donating it.”
It’s hard to imagine anyone making this guy do anything, but at five-to-one odds, Sev must have bet $400 on me.
Sev looks at me and asks, “Where did you learn to fight? You knew what you were doing with Butch.”
Tina shows up with her bar tray filled with goodies. There’s an entire bottle of rum, the 151 version – it’s as close to pure grain alcohol as you can get. She places two long beer glasses filled from the tap onto the table along with two shot glasses. She pours two shots of 151 and then clicks her cigarette lighter and touches the flame to the top of the shot glass. The rum catches fire and Tina says, “Enjoy,” and walks away.
“What’s with the fire?” I ask.
“It’s kinda gotten to be a tradition you know, working in the Kosher World freezers all day, the guys found this helps warm the bones.”
“Wait, you mean you guys think this warms your bones?”
“What are you a fuckin’ doctor now?” Sev snaps.
“I’m not saying anything Sev, it makes sense, I just never thought of it before.” Holy shit, just when I think I’m getting along with the guy.
Sev takes a sip from his cold beer, puts the beer glass down, picks up his fl aming 151 shot and throws it down his throat. So I pick up my shot glass and I’m telling myself, no matter what, don’t cough or act like a pussy.
I swallow and real quickly chase it with my beer. It’s as rough as I expect but I maintain some degree of dignity.
“We got two more fights over the summer. You got any more in you?”
“I don’t know, Sev. I kind of did this one spur of the moment. I’m not sure how a planned one would work out. Me fighting...is that the only way the shit treatment is gonna stop?”
“No, that’s done whether you fight again or not.” Sev motions to Tina for more drinks. “You’re all right. The job’s tough enough and I piled a load of shit on you. You handled it, plus some. We couldn’t believe you didn’t bail. You do your job now and things are gonna be fine. If you want to fight, it helps us. If you don’t, we’ll just sew Hector Pinto’s finger back on and get good odds.”
Look at my boy Sev trying to tell a joke.
Tina walks over to the table and pours two more shots. Tina has a look like she’s seen everything ten thousand times. She doesn’t seem to have an attitude but she’s not too sweet either. Her face is hardened from too many asshole drunks, but you can see that once upon a time she was a looker. Yeah, I’m pretty sure Tina is attractive; I haven’t had enough of the 151 to distort her favorably.
Sev picks up his shot glass and I do the same. He says, “Nice win.” We just tip the shot glasses in each other’s direction because you definitely don’t clink glasses here. We simultaneously down our drinks.
“So where did you learn to fight?” Sev asks as he motions to Tina for some more rounds.
“It’s kinda weird. I blew my knee out during a game and couldn’t play hoops anymore. I used to play a lot of basketball. I even got a scholarship to play at high school.”
“Bullshit, they don’t give high school scholarships.”
“Yeah, they do and I got one. I got one to play at a real ritzy school in Locust Valley, Long Island. Before that I almost spent my whole life playing hoops in Hempstead Park.”
“I know Hempstead Park. It’s not Rucker Park or West 4th Street but it’s on the map.”
“Yeah, that’s it. Me and my boys were always there.”
“So how was the school?” Sev asks as we throw back two more shots.
“School was okay.” I hold back a 151 cough and say, “I got through it. I learned what I needed in class and saw a different way to live. We got a decent hoop team out of it and I had some colleges looking at me. But my timing sucked. I tore my knee up in the playoffs of my senior year. No time to show I could heal up and it killed the college interest I was
It’s hard to imagine anyone making this guy do anything, but at five-to-one odds, Sev must have bet $400 on me.
Sev looks at me and asks, “Where did you learn to fight? You knew what you were doing with Butch.”
Tina shows up with her bar tray filled with goodies. There’s an entire bottle of rum, the 151 version – it’s as close to pure grain alcohol as you can get. She places two long beer glasses filled from the tap onto the table along with two shot glasses. She pours two shots of 151 and then clicks her cigarette lighter and touches the flame to the top of the shot glass. The rum catches fire and Tina says, “Enjoy,” and walks away.
“What’s with the fire?” I ask.
“It’s kinda gotten to be a tradition you know, working in the Kosher World freezers all day, the guys found this helps warm the bones.”
“Wait, you mean you guys think this warms your bones?”
“What are you a fuckin’ doctor now?” Sev snaps.
“I’m not saying anything Sev, it makes sense, I just never thought of it before.” Holy shit, just when I think I’m getting along with the guy.
Sev takes a sip from his cold beer, puts the beer glass down, picks up his fl aming 151 shot and throws it down his throat. So I pick up my shot glass and I’m telling myself, no matter what, don’t cough or act like a pussy.
I swallow and real quickly chase it with my beer. It’s as rough as I expect but I maintain some degree of dignity.
“We got two more fights over the summer. You got any more in you?”
“I don’t know, Sev. I kind of did this one spur of the moment. I’m not sure how a planned one would work out. Me fighting...is that the only way the shit treatment is gonna stop?”
“No, that’s done whether you fight again or not.” Sev motions to Tina for more drinks. “You’re all right. The job’s tough enough and I piled a load of shit on you. You handled it, plus some. We couldn’t believe you didn’t bail. You do your job now and things are gonna be fine. If you want to fight, it helps us. If you don’t, we’ll just sew Hector Pinto’s finger back on and get good odds.”
Look at my boy Sev trying to tell a joke.
Tina walks over to the table and pours two more shots. Tina has a look like she’s seen everything ten thousand times. She doesn’t seem to have an attitude but she’s not too sweet either. Her face is hardened from too many asshole drunks, but you can see that once upon a time she was a looker. Yeah, I’m pretty sure Tina is attractive; I haven’t had enough of the 151 to distort her favorably.
Sev picks up his shot glass and I do the same. He says, “Nice win.” We just tip the shot glasses in each other’s direction because you definitely don’t clink glasses here. We simultaneously down our drinks.
“So where did you learn to fight?” Sev asks as he motions to Tina for some more rounds.
“It’s kinda weird. I blew my knee out during a game and couldn’t play hoops anymore. I used to play a lot of basketball. I even got a scholarship to play at high school.”
“Bullshit, they don’t give high school scholarships.”
“Yeah, they do and I got one. I got one to play at a real ritzy school in Locust Valley, Long Island. Before that I almost spent my whole life playing hoops in Hempstead Park.”
“I know Hempstead Park. It’s not Rucker Park or West 4th Street but it’s on the map.”
“Yeah, that’s it. Me and my boys were always there.”
“So how was the school?” Sev asks as we throw back two more shots.
“School was okay.” I hold back a 151 cough and say, “I got through it. I learned what I needed in class and saw a different way to live. We got a decent hoop team out of it and I had some colleges looking at me. But my timing sucked. I tore my knee up in the playoffs of my senior year. No time to show I could heal up and it killed the college interest I was
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