Wednesday, August 24th, 2:12 P.M.
I spent the morning working on my osher skills. I thought I'd better get as much work in as I
can before I start work on Monday. Who
knows how much time I'll have for osher after that. I'd certainly have to stop spending my
mornings spying on Valerie. Oh, what a
loss that is.
I was roaming around downtown, hoping from one rooftop
to another, when I came upon Delany as she was at lunch. At least I think she was at lunch. It was the right time for lunch and I know
people like the fresh air and solitude that comes from being on a rooftop
alone, but I don't think people get much nutrition from a pack of cigarettes.
Delany was looking out at the other buildings
completely oblivious to what was going on around her. I managed to sneak right up to her, and sit
next to her before I grabbed her attention.
"Hey Delany."
Delany was startled to find out I was there. "Aah!
Damn it, Hato. You nearly gave me
a heart attack."
I smiled at her and said, "Oh, I'm sorry."
"No you're not." To help calm, her nerves, Delany took a long
drag on her cigarette. "What are
you doing up here anyway?"
"Nothing much.
Just doing some osher exercises on the rooftops of our barely tolerable
city."
"Shouldn't you be working right now?" Clearly Delany was annoyed with me.
"I don't start work untill Monday."
"Oh.
Well, what about an apartment.
You don't want to be one of those losers who lives with his parents
untill they die."
"I've been looking for one. It's hard finding a place when you only make
eight-fifty a month."
"Eight-fifty?
You lucky fuck," Delany said dismissively.
"What do you mean?"
As she stamped out her cigarette, Delany said,
"Nothing. It's just that I work too
fucking hard to only be making four hundred a month."
I was shocked by this. "Four hundred a month? That's fucking obscene."
"No shit."
As Delany began to dig another cigarette out of her
pack, I asked her, "If I'm having problems finding a place to live, where
are you living?"
Just before she sparked up, Delany said, "With
my brother." Delany lit her
cigarette and continued. "Daniel
had an extra room, so, after some light haranguing from my mother, he let me
have it."
"For free?"
"No, I have to cover the cable."
"Oh, that's nice."
Delany took another drag on her cigarette and said,
"Why don't you stay with Sparra?"
"I already asked him, but he said he's rooming
with Wanda, and they don't have any extra space."
"That's strange."
"What?"
"Wanda told me she was rooming with her
boyfriend, so she and I couldn't be roommates.
It's too bad because, thanks to stripping, she is loaded."
Then a realization hit us. This caused me to drop my jaw and Delany to
drop her cigarette. Delany spoke
first. "Wow. Sparra and Wanda are together."
I spoke next.
What I said was significantly less significant. "Wow.
Strippers make a lot of money."
Delany noticed her cigarette on the ground, put it
out with her shoe, and said, "I should go back inside. I'm not going to make my pitiful salary by
taking a long lunch."
At that moment I thought about asking Delany out on
a date. "Yeah, I'd better go
too. That radio tower isn't going to
climb itself."
"Be safe up there."
"I will, maybe." Delany and I left that rooftop. Delany left to go back to work, I left to go
back to death defying activities I won't be able to engage in after I start
work. I know I should have asked Delany
out when I thought to do so. I'm really
regretting not doing that now.
On my way home, this time utilizing traditional
routes to do so, I picked up one of those free apartments for rent newspapers
that are right next to the free newspapers people use as rolling papers when
they get high. I'm hoping to find
something, anything, within my price range so I can move out of my parent's
house. Then again, I was also looking
for a good job, and look how that turned out.
Sigh. Later.
Hato Shurtleff
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