April 22nd, 2008

Lunch

I can  feel  the  heat  closing  in,  feel them  out there making  their  moves,  setting  up  their  devil  doll stool pigeons,  crooning  over  my  spoon  and  dropper   I  throw away  at  Washington  Square  Station,  vault   a  turnstile and  two  flights  down  the  iron  stairs,  catch  an uptown A  train…  Young,  good  looking,  crew  cut,  Ivy League, advertising  exec  type fruit  holds the  door back  for me. I  am  evidently  his  idea  of  a  character. You  know the type  comes  on  with  bartenders  and cab  drivers, talking about  right  hooks  and  the  Dodgers, call  the counterman in Nedick’s by  his first  name. A  real asshole.  And right on  time this  narcotics dick  in a  white trench  coat (imagine  tailing  somebody  in  a white  trench coat  — trying to pass as a fag I guess ) hit the platform. I can  hear the way  he  would say  it holding  my outfit  in his  left hand, right  hand  on  his  piece:  “I  think  you  dropped  something, fella”
But the subway is moving.
“So long flatfoot!” I yell, giving the  fruit his  B production. I look into the fruit’s eyes, take in the  white teeth, the  Florida  tan,  the  two  hundred dollar  sharkskin suit, the   button-down   Brooks   Brothers   shirt   and  carrying The News as a prop. “Only thing I read is Little Abner.”

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