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Description
I didn't wake up until Tillie and Roscoe came in the door. I felt very refreshed and alert and happy although there was a little headache from all the wine. The sun was streaming in through a window and I pulled on some clothes while Tillie was in the bedroom.
Roscoe asked me how I was doing and I smiled and said, “Hungover and fantastic!”
He laughed. “It was quite a night, wasn't it?”
“Yeah! I've never been stoned before. It was incredible!”
“Yeah but watch out for that shit. It can mess you up if you get hooked.”
“Well I wouldn't want to do it all the time. Maybe just every now and then, you know...”
“Right.” He picked up a magazine and leafed through it.
“It just made everything so much better! The dessert, the music...”
“Yeah they were somethin' else,” he chuckled.
“And dancing! I never really danced before!”
“Yeah, dancing's cool.” He turned a page.
“And talking with everybody! I never enjoyed just talking so much before. Everybody was so interesting and smart.”
“Yep.” He glanced up. “That it?”
Jim looked confused. “Yeah, I guess...”
He looked back into the magazine. “What about Dorrie?”
I looked down. “Oh yeah, Dorrie. She was pretty nice.”
He put down the magazine. “Pretty nice? You were all about her, Man!”
I tried to hide my smile. “You noticed?”
“Oh hell yeah, I noticed! How could you not notice? You think nobody noticed?” he laughed loudly.
“Well....I...”
“Dorrie is one beautiful lady.”
“Yeah,” I said dreamily.
“She has got it all goin' on.” he laughed again. “I think she liked you too, Man.”
I was still looking down, putting on my shoes. “You think so?” My heart was pounding.
“Oh yeah. Dorrie's been layin' low since all that shit with that other dude came down. It's been more than a year. She's ready for something new if you want my opinion.”
“Really,” I mused.
“Really!” Roscoe laughed again.
Just then Tillie came out of the bedroom wearing slacks and a sweater.
“What's so funny?” she asked.
“Oh, just talking about the weather,” said Roscoe, winking at me.
“The weather?” Tillie turned on the kitchen faucet and filled a glass of water. “Why would the weather be funny?”
“It's a beautiful day outside!” He laughed again and walked to the window.
Tillie splashed what she didn't drink back into the sink. “Yeah, well let's hope it stays that way. Will you come and help me, Ross?” She opened the fridge. There were a few things she had ready for the day: about twelve sandwiches (three varieties, tuna salad, egg salad and bratwurst), potato salad, mixed nuts, a peach pie, some cookies, three bottles of Orange Crush, a bottles of wine, bananas, grapes and a mango. Roscoe helped her put it all in two baskets as she bustled around getting a blanket, a hat, some suntan lotion, a book, her sunglasses, some paper plates, silverware, two thermoses, the newspaper and so on. She gave me and Roscoe our shares to lug and we all left the apartment.
We waited for the bus for a good twenty minutes. When it finally arrived I stumbled on the steps and all the silverware spilled out. There were two transfers to the beach and both of them were another fifteen minute wait. When we finally got there the sun had gone behind some clouds and the wind was quite brisk and I was a little on the cold side. Roscoe and I went jogging down the beach to warm up while Tillie set everything up.
During our run Roscoe warned me that Tillie wasn't too thrilled about Dorrie and me flirting at the party. He said Tillie was a little “old school” about certain things and I shouldn't be too concerned but I shouldn't argue with her either if she brought it up which she more than likely would. He said he didn't give a rat's ass who was screwing who but once Tillie had her mind made up about something, nothing could change her.
I didn't say much. To my dismay what he said about Tillie reminded me of my dad. I'd already left one place to get out from underneath someone's thumb. I didn't know Dorrie all that well but I wanted to get to know her. I'd have to start making some money. I'd have to get my own place to live. Considering Tillie's assessment of my prospects, it wasn't going to be easy. How long was all that going to take? I was nervous enough about even calling Dorrie on the phone and now I'd probably have to be sneaky about it too. It was all somewhat daunting to say the least.
Roscoe and I circled around and he sped up and we raced back to Tillie. I really tried but he stayed well ahead of me all the way until the very end where he purposely fell down and let me win. We sat down on the blanket breathless and laughing.
Tillie had everything ready which was a good thing because we were starving. She was in a good mood and said if you couldn't stand a little wind you shouldn't live in San Francisco. I was thrilled to see the ocean for the first time in years. Truth to tell I was still a little bit high and everything had a profound impact. There were a couple of big ships way out on the horizon and the birds were everywhere, some boldly coming up to beg for food. In spite of the clouds there were actually quite a few people out on the beach although no one was in the water. The food tasted great and it had clearly been worth all the trouble. They didn't offer me any wine, and that was OK since the thought of it made me feel queasy, but I eagerly wolfed down several sandwiches and a big helping of potato salad.
After while talk turned to the previous evening. It was agreed that a good time was had by all and that smoking pot once in a while wasn't going to kill you. No one said anything about Dorrie.
Later the sun came out again and while Roscoe took a nap, Tillie and I took a stroll along the beach. We talked about Tillie's school, some memories of Grandma, the prospect of my working for Mike and then she brought it up.
“Jim, I've been thinking about something that maybe you should know.”
“What's that?” Here it comes, I thought.
“Well, I noticed that last night you and Dorrie seemed, well, a little on the familiar side?”
I didn't say anything. Tillie stopped and looked at me.
“Do you know what I'm talking about?”
“Maybe...”
She looked out over the ocean. “You see, Dorrie is like a child sometimes. She often gets into things over her head. Especially when it comes to men. She'll meet someone and jump into it without really knowing the person and down the road she has trouble handling it. I've helped her out of more scrapes than I care to remember. The last one was a real disaster. The guy was an alcoholic and hit her a couple times.”
“Jeez! That's horrible!”
“Yes, it was. Luckily she got out of it in one piece and she's been doing really well for the last several months.” She stopped and looked at me.
I scuffed a shoe in the sand.
“I think you're a little vulnerable as well, Dear. You've just left home, you're in a new place, you're trying to understand yourself...”
She let that sink in.
“You both had quite a bit to drink. I know you're not used to that. And the pot! I mean, it was fun and all but you just weren't yourselves, either of you.”
I felt like I'd been totally himself. More than I'd ever been in my life.
“And the truth is...look at me, Jimmy.”
I squinted at her.
“The truth is, Dorrie is fifteen years older than you.”
I felt the tightening in my throat. I looked down again.
Tillie put her hand on my arm. “It's such a huge age difference! Do you think something like that could really last?”
I didn't answer. My stomach felt like someone was cinching a belt around it.
She looked at me plaintively. “You're so young! You're just starting to become a man! You have so much to experience and learn about life!” She squeezed my arm. “Don't you see what I mean?”
I hesitated a moment. “Sure. I guess.”
“Do you?”
“Yes!” My irritation escaped me.
“You're going to meet a lot of girls here in San Francisco. You might even fall in love. I'm not saying there's anything wrong with that but...”
The silence was thick.
“Be careful, Jim. Take your time. Get to know a person. Find out who they are, what they've been through, what their life is really like, what you have in common.” She waited. “Honey...”
“What?” I tried to keep the anger down.
“Just...”
We stood motionless.
“Jim, look at me.”
I obeyed somewhat reluctantly.
“Be careful.”
I looked away again.
“OK?” She asked gently.
“Yeah, sure.” I glanced up at her and tried to smile.
She looked at me for a moment and then back towards Roscoe. “Well, let's get on back.”
We started walking. She looked at me solicitously. “I thought after we took everything home we could catch a movie. Would you like that?”
“Sure, I guess.”
“What do you mean sure you guess?” She tickled my ribs. “I'll buy the popcorn.”
I smiled for real. “OK.” She really was a sweet person. I knew I was lucky to have her on my side. Maybe she was right. I'd noticed Dorrie did have some little wrinkles around her eyes. Fifteen years, that was a lot. When I was thirty she'd be forty-five. That was as old as Dad. Tillie took my arm and we walked back to where Roscoe was. He had the newspaper over his face and was snoring.
“Listen to that!” Tillie whispered and giggled. She leaned down carefully and blew in his ear. He made a gurgling sound and then turned over quickly and grabbed her. They tussled for a minute on the blanket and he tried to kiss her.
“Roscoe!” She playfully pushed him away and jumped up, running. He ran after her, letting her escape for a moment, and then tackled her and held her down, finally planting a huge, sloppy kiss on her laughing and protesting mouth. She struggled for a bit and then gave in, wrapping her arms around him as they kissed passionately.
I was a little embarrassed but also fascinated. Except for movies, I hadn't seen much actual affection between adults in my life. Not to mention the fact that, in Kentucky, Roscoe would have have found himself in big trouble.
Finally he let her go and they stood up and brushed the sand off. “OK, now let's get this show on the road! We've got a movie to catch!” she commanded.
Roscoe saluted, “Yes, sir, ma'am!”
I did it too. “Yes, sir!”
We packed everything back up just as it started to lightly rain. Tillie ran ahead and hailed a cab as we awkwardly galloped behind with the rest of the stuff. We caught one before getting drenched, dropped the stuff off at the apartment while the cab waited and then climbed back in.
There was some debate about what to see. Roscoe was in favor of a Western or war movie and I was willing to go with that. But Tillie insisted on a romance, preferably something from the Thirties or Forties. We settled on a showing of Hitchcock's Rebecca at a revival house. I thought I'd seen it but wasn't sure. Roscoe rolled his eyes but went along.
I remembered the film once it started but I couldn't recall the plot so I recognized most scenes and characters but it kept me in suspense too. It was a classic story of true love struggling against past relationships and deep dark secrets. Tillie was completely rapt and Roscoe got into it as well. They held hands throughout the movie and were very touchy-feely with each other.
I was also very affected by the movie. I thought Joan Fontaine looked a little like Dorrie and I identified with the heroic but flawed character of Maxim played by Lawrence Olivier. I deeply rejoiced at the happy ending and tears were streaming down my face. It confirmed my belief that love was the most important thing in the world and life wouldn't be worth living unless I experienced it for myself.
After that we went out for dinner, Italian again, Tillie's favorite. I had a glass of wine and we all had a grand time together. As we rode home in the cab I was alone again with my thoughts in the front as Roscoe and Tillie made out in the back seat. When we arrived at the apartment Tillie told me not to stay up too late and they sped off.
It was only about nine-thirty. I made myself a sandwich and looked at the TV listings. It was amazing to have so many choices since back home in Kentucky we only had two channels and they both went off at midnight. Here there were over twenty and all kinds of programs I could never see at home. I watched a detective show for awhile and then I picked an old movie, The Seven Samurai, that I'd heard was good. I caught it somewhere in the middle and was enjoying it but something kept nagging me in the back of my mind and I couldn't totally relax and just watch it. After about half an hour I went to the table where Tillie kept her phone and opened the drawer. As I suspected, inside was her address book. I started thumbing through it. I didn't know Dorrie's last name but I found her easily enough. There was no address there so I looked her up in the white pages in the big phone book. There she was, D. Finch, on O'Farrell. I looked for it on the map and found it. It wasn't really close but not terribly far either. I mused on what would happen if I just showed up there but I knew that would be pretty crazy. But there was the phone number. I debated the pros and cons with myself for a good twenty minutes. Finally I just picked up the phone and dialed.
My heart was beating like crazy. It rang, once, twice, three times. I wanted to hang up. I wanted no one to answer. I'd let it ring one more time.
“Hello?” There she was.
I hesitated. I could still hang up. “H...he...hello...Dorrie?” I managed to choke it out.
There was a pause. “Who is this?” There was apprehension in her voice. I could still hang up, I thought.
“It's Jim. You know, from last night.” I was shaking.
“Jim! Oh my God, you scared the hell out of me! Do you know what time it is?”
I looked at the clock. I'd lost track. It was 11:30.
“Oh my gosh! I'm sorry! I didn't realize. I'll call back some other time.”
“No, that's OK. Goodness, you gave me a fright!”
“I'm really sorry. I probably shouldn't have called.”
“No, it's OK. I'm glad you did.”
My heart swelled. “You are?”
“Yes, of course! We had such a nice time last night. I was wondering when we'd get another chance to talk.”
“You were?” I tried to hide my joy.
“Jim, it's OK! Just relax, Dear. Now tell me how you are and what you've been doing.”
My heart was still beating like crazy. “Oh I'm nothing much.” I kicked myself. How could I say something so stupid?
Dorrie laughed. “You don't give yourself enough credit!” She teased.
“Yeah, right.” I laughed. “What did you say again?”
“I asked how you were!”
“Oh, I'm fine. I was just watching a movie.”
“Which one?”
“The Seven Samurai.”
“I've seen that! Isn't it fantastic?”
“Yeah, I was really enjoying it.” I felt proud of myself for my good taste.
“Sometimes I think that they just can't make good movies anymore.”
“I totally agree! They just seem so stupid. The newer ones I mean.”
“Yes!”
“We saw another one today.”
“On TV?”
“No, we went out to a theater.”
“You and Tillie?”
“Yeah, and Roscoe too.”
“Oh, that's nice. What did you see?”
“Rebecca?”
“The one with Olivier!”
“Yeah.”
“I love that movie! I've seen it three times.”
“This was my second. Time.” I winced.
“Don't you just love the style of photography? All that drama. It really sends me.”
I wished she'd been there to watch it with me.”Maybe we could go see a movie together sometime.” It just flew out of my mouth. I immediately regretted it.
“I'd like that,” she replied.
My heart skipped several beats. I was sweating profusely under the armpits.
“You would?”
“Of course.”
Tongue tied again. Then, “That would be great.”
“Yes, I agree.”
“OK, I'll call you again sometime.”
“OK, you do that.”
“OK. Well bye now.”
“Goodnight.”
“Goodnight.” I hung up.
I fell on my back on the floor and tried to catch my breath. I started laughing and laughing. I couldn't stop. I rubbed my face all over with my hands. It felt numb. I lay there for a long time, staring at the ceiling. Finally I got up. The TV was still on and the movie was almost over. I watched it but my mind was racing. Roscoe had been telling the truth. She did like me. I knew it now. I wished I hadn't been so nervous and been able to talk to her longer. I was so excited there was no point in trying to sleep. I turned the channel to another movie. It was King Kong, about fifteen minutes in. I'd seen it a couple times but not recently. Faye Ray was gorgeous with her little nipples showing through her skimpy outfits. I loved the hokey special effects and corny dialog. “'Twas beauty killed the beast!” But it touched me, nonetheless. I was pretty sleepy by the end and dropped off as soon as I hit the pillow.

Description
I didn't wake up until Tillie and Roscoe came in the door. I felt very refreshed and alert and happy although there was a little headache from all the wine. The sun was streaming in through a window and I pulled on some clothes while Tillie was in the bedroom.
Roscoe asked me how I was doing and I smiled and said, “Hungover and fantastic!”
He laughed. “It was quite a night, wasn't it?”
“Yeah! I've never been stoned before. It was incredible!”
“Yeah but watch out for that shit. It can mess you up if you get hooked.”
“Well I wouldn't want to do it all the time. Maybe just every now and then, you know...”
“Right.” He picked up a magazine and leafed through it.
“It just made everything so much better! The dessert, the music...”
“Yeah they were somethin' else,” he chuckled.
“And dancing! I never really danced before!”
“Yeah, dancing's cool.” He turned a page.
“And talking with everybody! I never enjoyed just talking so much before. Everybody was so interesting and smart.”
“Yep.” He glanced up. “That it?”
Jim looked confused. “Yeah, I guess...”
He looked back into the magazine. “What about Dorrie?”
I looked down. “Oh yeah, Dorrie. She was pretty nice.”
He put down the magazine. “Pretty nice? You were all about her, Man!”
I tried to hide my smile. “You noticed?”
“Oh hell yeah, I noticed! How could you not notice? You think nobody noticed?” he laughed loudly.
“Well....I...”
“Dorrie is one beautiful lady.”
“Yeah,” I said dreamily.
“She has got it all goin' on.” he laughed again. “I think she liked you too, Man.”
I was still looking down, putting on my shoes. “You think so?” My heart was pounding.
“Oh yeah. Dorrie's been layin' low since all that shit with that other dude came down. It's been more than a year. She's ready for something new if you want my opinion.”
“Really,” I mused.
“Really!” Roscoe laughed again.
Just then Tillie came out of the bedroom wearing slacks and a sweater.
“What's so funny?” she asked.
“Oh, just talking about the weather,” said Roscoe, winking at me.
“The weather?” Tillie turned on the kitchen faucet and filled a glass of water. “Why would the weather be funny?”
“It's a beautiful day outside!” He laughed again and walked to the window.
Tillie splashed what she didn't drink back into the sink. “Yeah, well let's hope it stays that way. Will you come and help me, Ross?” She opened the fridge. There were a few things she had ready for the day: about twelve sandwiches (three varieties, tuna salad, egg salad and bratwurst), potato salad, mixed nuts, a peach pie, some cookies, three bottles of Orange Crush, a bottles of wine, bananas, grapes and a mango. Roscoe helped her put it all in two baskets as she bustled around getting a blanket, a hat, some suntan lotion, a book, her sunglasses, some paper plates, silverware, two thermoses, the newspaper and so on. She gave me and Roscoe our shares to lug and we all left the apartment.
We waited for the bus for a good twenty minutes. When it finally arrived I stumbled on the steps and all the silverware spilled out. There were two transfers to the beach and both of them were another fifteen minute wait. When we finally got there the sun had gone behind some clouds and the wind was quite brisk and I was a little on the cold side. Roscoe and I went jogging down the beach to warm up while Tillie set everything up.
During our run Roscoe warned me that Tillie wasn't too thrilled about Dorrie and me flirting at the party. He said Tillie was a little “old school” about certain things and I shouldn't be too concerned but I shouldn't argue with her either if she brought it up which she more than likely would. He said he didn't give a rat's ass who was screwing who but once Tillie had her mind made up about something, nothing could change her.
I didn't say much. To my dismay what he said about Tillie reminded me of my dad. I'd already left one place to get out from underneath someone's thumb. I didn't know Dorrie all that well but I wanted to get to know her. I'd have to start making some money. I'd have to get my own place to live. Considering Tillie's assessment of my prospects, it wasn't going to be easy. How long was all that going to take? I was nervous enough about even calling Dorrie on the phone and now I'd probably have to be sneaky about it too. It was all somewhat daunting to say the least.
Roscoe and I circled around and he sped up and we raced back to Tillie. I really tried but he stayed well ahead of me all the way until the very end where he purposely fell down and let me win. We sat down on the blanket breathless and laughing.
Tillie had everything ready which was a good thing because we were starving. She was in a good mood and said if you couldn't stand a little wind you shouldn't live in San Francisco. I was thrilled to see the ocean for the first time in years. Truth to tell I was still a little bit high and everything had a profound impact. There were a couple of big ships way out on the horizon and the birds were everywhere, some boldly coming up to beg for food. In spite of the clouds there were actually quite a few people out on the beach although no one was in the water. The food tasted great and it had clearly been worth all the trouble. They didn't offer me any wine, and that was OK since the thought of it made me feel queasy, but I eagerly wolfed down several sandwiches and a big helping of potato salad.
After while talk turned to the previous evening. It was agreed that a good time was had by all and that smoking pot once in a while wasn't going to kill you. No one said anything about Dorrie.
Later the sun came out again and while Roscoe took a nap, Tillie and I took a stroll along the beach. We talked about Tillie's school, some memories of Grandma, the prospect of my working for Mike and then she brought it up.
“Jim, I've been thinking about something that maybe you should know.”
“What's that?” Here it comes, I thought.
“Well, I noticed that last night you and Dorrie seemed, well, a little on the familiar side?”
I didn't say anything. Tillie stopped and looked at me.
“Do you know what I'm talking about?”
“Maybe...”
She looked out over the ocean. “You see, Dorrie is like a child sometimes. She often gets into things over her head. Especially when it comes to men. She'll meet someone and jump into it without really knowing the person and down the road she has trouble handling it. I've helped her out of more scrapes than I care to remember. The last one was a real disaster. The guy was an alcoholic and hit her a couple times.”
“Jeez! That's horrible!”
“Yes, it was. Luckily she got out of it in one piece and she's been doing really well for the last several months.” She stopped and looked at me.
I scuffed a shoe in the sand.
“I think you're a little vulnerable as well, Dear. You've just left home, you're in a new place, you're trying to understand yourself...”
She let that sink in.
“You both had quite a bit to drink. I know you're not used to that. And the pot! I mean, it was fun and all but you just weren't yourselves, either of you.”
I felt like I'd been totally himself. More than I'd ever been in my life.
“And the truth is...look at me, Jimmy.”
I squinted at her.
“The truth is, Dorrie is fifteen years older than you.”
I felt the tightening in my throat. I looked down again.
Tillie put her hand on my arm. “It's such a huge age difference! Do you think something like that could really last?”
I didn't answer. My stomach felt like someone was cinching a belt around it.
She looked at me plaintively. “You're so young! You're just starting to become a man! You have so much to experience and learn about life!” She squeezed my arm. “Don't you see what I mean?”
I hesitated a moment. “Sure. I guess.”
“Do you?”
“Yes!” My irritation escaped me.
“You're going to meet a lot of girls here in San Francisco. You might even fall in love. I'm not saying there's anything wrong with that but...”
The silence was thick.
“Be careful, Jim. Take your time. Get to know a person. Find out who they are, what they've been through, what their life is really like, what you have in common.” She waited. “Honey...”
“What?” I tried to keep the anger down.
“Just...”
We stood motionless.
“Jim, look at me.”
I obeyed somewhat reluctantly.
“Be careful.”
I looked away again.
“OK?” She asked gently.
“Yeah, sure.” I glanced up at her and tried to smile.
She looked at me for a moment and then back towards Roscoe. “Well, let's get on back.”
We started walking. She looked at me solicitously. “I thought after we took everything home we could catch a movie. Would you like that?”
“Sure, I guess.”
“What do you mean sure you guess?” She tickled my ribs. “I'll buy the popcorn.”
I smiled for real. “OK.” She really was a sweet person. I knew I was lucky to have her on my side. Maybe she was right. I'd noticed Dorrie did have some little wrinkles around her eyes. Fifteen years, that was a lot. When I was thirty she'd be forty-five. That was as old as Dad. Tillie took my arm and we walked back to where Roscoe was. He had the newspaper over his face and was snoring.
“Listen to that!” Tillie whispered and giggled. She leaned down carefully and blew in his ear. He made a gurgling sound and then turned over quickly and grabbed her. They tussled for a minute on the blanket and he tried to kiss her.
“Roscoe!” She playfully pushed him away and jumped up, running. He ran after her, letting her escape for a moment, and then tackled her and held her down, finally planting a huge, sloppy kiss on her laughing and protesting mouth. She struggled for a bit and then gave in, wrapping her arms around him as they kissed passionately.
I was a little embarrassed but also fascinated. Except for movies, I hadn't seen much actual affection between adults in my life. Not to mention the fact that, in Kentucky, Roscoe would have have found himself in big trouble.
Finally he let her go and they stood up and brushed the sand off. “OK, now let's get this show on the road! We've got a movie to catch!” she commanded.
Roscoe saluted, “Yes, sir, ma'am!”
I did it too. “Yes, sir!”
We packed everything back up just as it started to lightly rain. Tillie ran ahead and hailed a cab as we awkwardly galloped behind with the rest of the stuff. We caught one before getting drenched, dropped the stuff off at the apartment while the cab waited and then climbed back in.
There was some debate about what to see. Roscoe was in favor of a Western or war movie and I was willing to go with that. But Tillie insisted on a romance, preferably something from the Thirties or Forties. We settled on a showing of Hitchcock's Rebecca at a revival house. I thought I'd seen it but wasn't sure. Roscoe rolled his eyes but went along.
I remembered the film once it started but I couldn't recall the plot so I recognized most scenes and characters but it kept me in suspense too. It was a classic story of true love struggling against past relationships and deep dark secrets. Tillie was completely rapt and Roscoe got into it as well. They held hands throughout the movie and were very touchy-feely with each other.
I was also very affected by the movie. I thought Joan Fontaine looked a little like Dorrie and I identified with the heroic but flawed character of Maxim played by Lawrence Olivier. I deeply rejoiced at the happy ending and tears were streaming down my face. It confirmed my belief that love was the most important thing in the world and life wouldn't be worth living unless I experienced it for myself.
After that we went out for dinner, Italian again, Tillie's favorite. I had a glass of wine and we all had a grand time together. As we rode home in the cab I was alone again with my thoughts in the front as Roscoe and Tillie made out in the back seat. When we arrived at the apartment Tillie told me not to stay up too late and they sped off.
It was only about nine-thirty. I made myself a sandwich and looked at the TV listings. It was amazing to have so many choices since back home in Kentucky we only had two channels and they both went off at midnight. Here there were over twenty and all kinds of programs I could never see at home. I watched a detective show for awhile and then I picked an old movie, The Seven Samurai, that I'd heard was good. I caught it somewhere in the middle and was enjoying it but something kept nagging me in the back of my mind and I couldn't totally relax and just watch it. After about half an hour I went to the table where Tillie kept her phone and opened the drawer. As I suspected, inside was her address book. I started thumbing through it. I didn't know Dorrie's last name but I found her easily enough. There was no address there so I looked her up in the white pages in the big phone book. There she was, D. Finch, on O'Farrell. I looked for it on the map and found it. It wasn't really close but not terribly far either. I mused on what would happen if I just showed up there but I knew that would be pretty crazy. But there was the phone number. I debated the pros and cons with myself for a good twenty minutes. Finally I just picked up the phone and dialed.
My heart was beating like crazy. It rang, once, twice, three times. I wanted to hang up. I wanted no one to answer. I'd let it ring one more time.
“Hello?” There she was.
I hesitated. I could still hang up. “H...he...hello...Dorrie?” I managed to choke it out.
There was a pause. “Who is this?” There was apprehension in her voice. I could still hang up, I thought.
“It's Jim. You know, from last night.” I was shaking.
“Jim! Oh my God, you scared the hell out of me! Do you know what time it is?”
I looked at the clock. I'd lost track. It was 11:30.
“Oh my gosh! I'm sorry! I didn't realize. I'll call back some other time.”
“No, that's OK. Goodness, you gave me a fright!”
“I'm really sorry. I probably shouldn't have called.”
“No, it's OK. I'm glad you did.”
My heart swelled. “You are?”
“Yes, of course! We had such a nice time last night. I was wondering when we'd get another chance to talk.”
“You were?” I tried to hide my joy.
“Jim, it's OK! Just relax, Dear. Now tell me how you are and what you've been doing.”
My heart was still beating like crazy. “Oh I'm nothing much.” I kicked myself. How could I say something so stupid?
Dorrie laughed. “You don't give yourself enough credit!” She teased.
“Yeah, right.” I laughed. “What did you say again?”
“I asked how you were!”
“Oh, I'm fine. I was just watching a movie.”
“Which one?”
“The Seven Samurai.”
“I've seen that! Isn't it fantastic?”
“Yeah, I was really enjoying it.” I felt proud of myself for my good taste.
“Sometimes I think that they just can't make good movies anymore.”
“I totally agree! They just seem so stupid. The newer ones I mean.”
“Yes!”
“We saw another one today.”
“On TV?”
“No, we went out to a theater.”
“You and Tillie?”
“Yeah, and Roscoe too.”
“Oh, that's nice. What did you see?”
“Rebecca?”
“The one with Olivier!”
“Yeah.”
“I love that movie! I've seen it three times.”
“This was my second. Time.” I winced.
“Don't you just love the style of photography? All that drama. It really sends me.”
I wished she'd been there to watch it with me.”Maybe we could go see a movie together sometime.” It just flew out of my mouth. I immediately regretted it.
“I'd like that,” she replied.
My heart skipped several beats. I was sweating profusely under the armpits.
“You would?”
“Of course.”
Tongue tied again. Then, “That would be great.”
“Yes, I agree.”
“OK, I'll call you again sometime.”
“OK, you do that.”
“OK. Well bye now.”
“Goodnight.”
“Goodnight.” I hung up.
I fell on my back on the floor and tried to catch my breath. I started laughing and laughing. I couldn't stop. I rubbed my face all over with my hands. It felt numb. I lay there for a long time, staring at the ceiling. Finally I got up. The TV was still on and the movie was almost over. I watched it but my mind was racing. Roscoe had been telling the truth. She did like me. I knew it now. I wished I hadn't been so nervous and been able to talk to her longer. I was so excited there was no point in trying to sleep. I turned the channel to another movie. It was King Kong, about fifteen minutes in. I'd seen it a couple times but not recently. Faye Ray was gorgeous with her little nipples showing through her skimpy outfits. I loved the hokey special effects and corny dialog. “'Twas beauty killed the beast!” But it touched me, nonetheless. I was pretty sleepy by the end and dropped off as soon as I hit the pillow.