my old house.”
“Holy Tao!”
“And I was drawn here randomly by an overheard conversation on a subway.”
“What karma!” he hollered, leaping out of his chair and giving me a hug. I softly pushed him back into his chair.
“Well,” I resumed calmness. “When would you like me to begin?”
Taking a deep sigh, he wiped the sweat off his brow. “How would you feel about starting your training tonight, right up until closing?”
I didn’t want to spend the night in this sleazy theater. “Well, I’m feeling a fear, a panic, my heart is palpitating, panting deeply, quickly. But I’m willing…” I faltered as I put my hand over my heart. “I’m willing to give it…a stab.”
“Maybe tonight is a bad idea. In fact, you better get some rest. You know, what you need is some miso and rest.”
He walked me to the door and concluded, “Give me a call tomorrow and we’ll arrange a time.”
“Thank you,” I said, breathing more easily. When he closed the door, the significance hit me. The replaced esteem, especially considering the long decline into hopelessness that had been averted by this eleventh-hour reprieve, the full impact hit me as I dashed excitedly through the dim, nefarious halls head on into some small guy, knocking him flat to the ground.
“I’m so sorry,” I said as I reached down, unintentionally grabbing him around the chest to help him back to homo erectus.
“Hey!” I heard a high-pitched squawk. “Get off, sleazebag!”
I realized that through the shirt I was juggling a set of boobs. Quickly I let go and she fell back to the ground.
“You’re a girl!”
“I’m a woman, manboy!”
“What are you doing here?”
“I’m the projectionist,” she replied. “What’s your problem?”
“Oh, sorry,” I replied, flustered. Not knowing what else to say, I nervously said, “How do you do? I’m straight.” And then I bolted out.
FOUR
I retreated back across Twelfth and down Broadway intending to return to Helmsley’s with the heartening news. But as I passed by the NYU dormitories, specifically the one that housed Eunice, I thought about that olive man in the white suit. Instant anger and hurt eclipsed the jubilation of the new job. I realized that this was something that had to be resolved. I wondered if they’d be together now.
It was still the lighter side of twilight, so I decided to try to find her. A guard insisted on announcing me, so she was on guard when I got to her door. When the elevator stopped on her floor and the doors slid open, shewas standing there, leaning against her door holding a can of Tab, which she was sucking through a straw. We entered the room.
How could she do that to me? I stood still and stared at that milky, silky soft skin, her shadowless face. At first, I tried to remember and then I tried to forget his filthy hands fumbling over her and then I tried not to imagine what might’ve followed.
“Aren’t you going to say anything?” she asked after a patient interval.
“You probably heard I was fired.”
“I heard, but I couldn’t believe it….” She rambled on about what a shit Pepe was, and gave me some cinema updates. It sounded all so innocent; she didn’t realize that I saw her being felt up at the Ritz.
“I missed you dearly,” she soon concluded.
“How much?” I mumbled. I took a single step toward her and she took a couple of steps backwards until she was up against the small pullout sofa.
“What do you mean?”
“I mean I know you didn’t go out West to visit the folks.”
“What do you mean?”
“I saw you at the Ritz the other night with that old guy, letting him kiss you and feel you up.”
“I don’t see how what I do is any business of yours.”
“It is when I spend two months dating you in the cold until I lose sensation in my fingers, and my girlfriend and job.”
“Wait a second. You can’t dump all that on me.”
“You knew what I wanted.”
“And you knew what I wanted.”
“Yeah,
“Holy Tao!”
“And I was drawn here randomly by an overheard conversation on a subway.”
“What karma!” he hollered, leaping out of his chair and giving me a hug. I softly pushed him back into his chair.
“Well,” I resumed calmness. “When would you like me to begin?”
Taking a deep sigh, he wiped the sweat off his brow. “How would you feel about starting your training tonight, right up until closing?”
I didn’t want to spend the night in this sleazy theater. “Well, I’m feeling a fear, a panic, my heart is palpitating, panting deeply, quickly. But I’m willing…” I faltered as I put my hand over my heart. “I’m willing to give it…a stab.”
“Maybe tonight is a bad idea. In fact, you better get some rest. You know, what you need is some miso and rest.”
He walked me to the door and concluded, “Give me a call tomorrow and we’ll arrange a time.”
“Thank you,” I said, breathing more easily. When he closed the door, the significance hit me. The replaced esteem, especially considering the long decline into hopelessness that had been averted by this eleventh-hour reprieve, the full impact hit me as I dashed excitedly through the dim, nefarious halls head on into some small guy, knocking him flat to the ground.
“I’m so sorry,” I said as I reached down, unintentionally grabbing him around the chest to help him back to homo erectus.
“Hey!” I heard a high-pitched squawk. “Get off, sleazebag!”
I realized that through the shirt I was juggling a set of boobs. Quickly I let go and she fell back to the ground.
“You’re a girl!”
“I’m a woman, manboy!”
“What are you doing here?”
“I’m the projectionist,” she replied. “What’s your problem?”
“Oh, sorry,” I replied, flustered. Not knowing what else to say, I nervously said, “How do you do? I’m straight.” And then I bolted out.
FOUR
I retreated back across Twelfth and down Broadway intending to return to Helmsley’s with the heartening news. But as I passed by the NYU dormitories, specifically the one that housed Eunice, I thought about that olive man in the white suit. Instant anger and hurt eclipsed the jubilation of the new job. I realized that this was something that had to be resolved. I wondered if they’d be together now.
It was still the lighter side of twilight, so I decided to try to find her. A guard insisted on announcing me, so she was on guard when I got to her door. When the elevator stopped on her floor and the doors slid open, shewas standing there, leaning against her door holding a can of Tab, which she was sucking through a straw. We entered the room.
How could she do that to me? I stood still and stared at that milky, silky soft skin, her shadowless face. At first, I tried to remember and then I tried to forget his filthy hands fumbling over her and then I tried not to imagine what might’ve followed.
“Aren’t you going to say anything?” she asked after a patient interval.
“You probably heard I was fired.”
“I heard, but I couldn’t believe it….” She rambled on about what a shit Pepe was, and gave me some cinema updates. It sounded all so innocent; she didn’t realize that I saw her being felt up at the Ritz.
“I missed you dearly,” she soon concluded.
“How much?” I mumbled. I took a single step toward her and she took a couple of steps backwards until she was up against the small pullout sofa.
“What do you mean?”
“I mean I know you didn’t go out West to visit the folks.”
“What do you mean?”
“I saw you at the Ritz the other night with that old guy, letting him kiss you and feel you up.”
“I don’t see how what I do is any business of yours.”
“It is when I spend two months dating you in the cold until I lose sensation in my fingers, and my girlfriend and job.”
“Wait a second. You can’t dump all that on me.”
“You knew what I wanted.”
“And you knew what I wanted.”
“Yeah,
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