Chapter thirteen
Jack pulled the hearse up to the drive-thru window at the Commercial Bank on Hennepin at 7:23 the next morning. A zippered deposit bag lay on the seat next to him. The service-window blind was down, and the posted Saturday hours were 7:30 a.m. to noon. Jack leaned back in the driver’s seat and yawned.
“It’s easy to be up early when you don’t go to bed.”
He closed his eyes and replayed Tania’s words from the night before.
I don’t care how much of that shit you shove up your nose; I still love you for who you are inside.
A bank clerk raised the blind and spoke into a microphone.
“Can I help you?”
Rawson opened his eyes and felt a woody pushing against the zipper of his pants. He covered his crotch with the deposit bag.
An hour later, Jack came in the front door of the Good Karma Cafe. Blanche beckoned him to the register.
She whispered, “I think we’ve been robbed. When I opened this morning, there were only five singles and a little change in the cash drawer.”
Jack responded, “I just got back from depositing everything, including what was in the drawer.”
Blanche waited for an explanation; Jack squeezed the water out of a sponge pad she kept in a ramekin next to the cash register.
“I, uh . . . wanted the bank to see if any of the bills were counterfeit,” he said.
Blanche knitted her brows.
“I guess that’s a good idea, but what am I gonna do for change?”
Rawson went into his office and pulled the cafe’s first dollar off the wall. He found a playing card and used it to scrape up any spilt cocaine from his desk and floor. Then he turned over a stash box and shook out the pot stems and seeds left inside. He ground up the dregs and added them to the crap he had scratched together. He rounded out the mixture with some oregano and rolled it into two skinny joints.
Jack went into the dish room; Jose was spraying a pan. Rawson put his arm around him.
“Mi amigo,” said Jack.
He held up the two joints.
“Marijuana fuerte,” he said.
The dishwasher dried his hands. He inspected the weed and pulled a piece of fuzz from the end of one of the joints.
“Muy fuerte,” said Jack.
“How much?” asked Jose.
“Diez dollars,” said Jack.
“Five,” said Jose.
Rawson added Jose’s five singles to the one he took off the wall of his office and gave the money to Blanche for change.
Jack passed through the restaurant and caught sight of Tania. He sat down at what he thought was her table. Rene approached him.
“Do you want something to eat?”
“Is this your table?”
“No, it’s Tania’s, but some guys in my station wanted her to wait on them so we switched. Do you want something to eat or not?”
“Bacon and eggs; got any real bacon back there or just that fake shit?”
Meanwhile, Blanche was behind the register. She handed a to-go order to a woman with a shaved head.
“That’ll be $3.25,” said Blanche.
The customer handed her two bills and change. Then she put the palms of her hands together and bowed.
“Namaste,” said the woman.
Did she say “Have a nice day”? wondered the cashier.
“You too,” said Blanche.
She rang up the sale and counted the money into the cash drawer. She looked up.
“Hey, you shorted me a buck.”
The screen door slammed, and the phone rang. Blanche picked up the receiver.
“WHAT!”
She pressed the hold button.
Blanche located Jack in the dining room.
“Folger from the IRS is on the phone for you.”
“Ask him what he wants. Never mind. I know what he wants. Tell ’im I’m busy.”
Rawson put a forkful of food in his mouth. He tossed the utensil on the table, pushed the plate away, and got up.
“Tell the little weasel I’m out.”
Jack passed behind Tania; she and her customers were laughing it up.
“What’s so goddamn funny?” muttered Rawson.
That night, Tania was wakened by the sound of her voice on the answering machine.
She heard herself say, “Hello. I’m delighted you called. Please leave a message. Oh, wait for the beep; it’s coming up soon.”
There was a long pause, a beep, and Jack’s voice.
“Soon? It’s been an eternity. This is Jack. I’ve been thinking about you. I guess it’s kinda late, but maybe you could come over? Well, anyway, I’ll be thinking about you.”
Tania got up and went into the living room. A red light was flashing on the answering machine. She rewound the tape and pressed play. Tania turned up the volume. She listened.
“Soon? It’s been an eternity. This is Jack. I’ve been thinking about you.”
She left the room and turned on the shower.
Tania climbed the stairs to Jack’s apartment. The front door was ajar. She stepped inside. Jack’s mattress was on the floor; an electric fan whirled beside him. Tania put the headphones from her Walkman around her neck.
“I danced all the way here,” she said.
She knelt next to him; he looked up at her.
“I like that you like me; I like the things you say.”
Tania lay down on top of him.
“Let’s not talk,” he said.
“What a great idea!”
Jack rolled her on her back and pulled up her skirt.
The next morning, Tania stopped by Christopher’s apartment on her way home. He stumbled out of bed and answered the door.
“I know it’s early; I’ll make you a café au lait,” said Tania.
Christopher went to pee in the bathroom. Tania called out to him.
“We finally did it.”
He flushed the toilet.
“Did what?” asked Christopher as he came into the kitchen.
“We finally had sex,” responded Tania as she warmed the milk for the coffee.
“How was it?”
“It was quick.”
“How quick?”
“Uhhhh; that quick.”
“Oh.”
That evening, Tania went to Bobby Steinberg’s acting class and was paired with Dexter Davis in a repetition exercise. Onstage, Dexter pulled a ripe banana from a bunch and placed it between his bare feet. He jumped in the air and tried to catch the banana in his hand; he missed.
What the hell is he doing? thought Tania.
“You’re struggling,” she said.
Dexter placed the banana between his feet.
“I’m struggling,” said Dexter.
He jumped in the air and tried to catch the banana in his hand.
“You’re struggling,” said Tania.
He picked up the banana from the floor.
“Yes, Tania, I’m struggling.”
“You’re irritated.”
Dexter placed the banana between his feet.
“I’m irritated.”
He jumped in the air and tried to catch the banana in his hand.
“You’re irritated.”
Dexter picked up the soggy banana from the floor.
“You’re irritating me.”
Tania paused.
“I’m irritating you.”
Dexter took another banana from the bunch and placed it between his feet.
“Yes, Tania, you’re irritating me.”
“Yes, Dexter, I’m, I’m . . . irritating you.”
Dexter jumped in the air and tried to catch the banana in his hand.
“You’re hurt,” said Dexter.
“I’m hurt.”
Dexter placed the banana between his feet.
“You’re hurt.”
“I want you to pay attention to me,” said Tania.
Dexter jumped in the air and tried to catch the banana in his hand.
“You want me to pay attention to you.”
“I WANT YOU TO PAY ATTENTION TO ME!”
Dexter placed the banana between his feet.
“You want me to pay attention to you.”
Tania clenched her teeth.
“YOU’RE DRIVING ME CRAZY WITH THOSE FUCKING BANANAS!”
Dexter jumped in the air and tried to catch the banana.
“I’m driving you crazy with those fucking bananas.”
Tania grabbed the banana and threw it across the stage.
“YES, YOU’RE DRIVING ME CRAZY WITH THOSE FUCKING BANANAS.”
Tania picked up the other bananas from the floor and hurled them across the stage.
“I hate you,” said Dexter.
He came at Tania; she ran and skidded on the smooshed bananas.
“You hate me,” called out Tania.
“I WANT TO PUNCH YOU.”
Tania stopped and faced Dexter.
“YOU DON’T WANT TO PUNCH ME. YOU WANT TO FUCK ME.”
“I WANT TO FUCK YOU.”
“YOU WANT TO KILL ME.”
“I WANT TO KILL YOU. I don’t want to kill you.”
Tania sat down on a bench.
“You don’t want to kill me.”
Dexter sat down beside her.
“I don’t want to kill you, Tania.”
“You’re paying attention to me.”
“I’m paying attention to you.”
Bobby Steinberg called out, “Okay; that’s good.”
Around four the next afternoon, Tania was finishing up her shift at the cafe. A daily customer nicknamed Crabbyoldcheapguy by the staff waved his check in the air.
“Waitress! You made a mistake.”
Tania went over to his table.
“Coffee and toast are $2.25. Including the tip, my bill is always $2.50,” said the old guy.
“Coffee and toast each went up a quarter; since you didn’t know, I’ll charge you the old price.”
He took a hundred-dollar bill out of his wallet.
“I’ll be right back with your change.”
On her way to the cash register, Tania passed the back entrance to the cafe. Through a screen door, she saw Jack sitting on a crate drinking a bottle of beer. She went outside; Jack looked at her and smiled. He raised the bottle to his lips.
She said, “I liked being close.”
“So did I,” said Jack.
“I liked just feeling our feelings,” said Tania.
Jack swallowed a gulp of beer.
“I can’t see you for a while.”
What’s he saying??
“I’ve got a lot going on.”
“You’ve got a lot going on.”
“Yeah, I’ve got a lot going on.”
“Yeah, you’ve got a lot going on.”
She turned and went inside.
Tania brought Crabbyoldcheapguy his change; he counted it.
“This is the last time you’ll see me in here.”
“This is the last time I’ll see you in here?”
“I only came here because my wife was at Carefree Manor . . . and to see you.”
“You came to see me?”
“Yeah, I came to see you.”
“I was never that nice to you.”
“You were nicer than anybody else.”
He put a twenty on the table and left.
