Page 24

“No problem, honey. That’s what I’m here for.”
Oscar signs a piece of paper the shop owner slides toward him over the glass countertop. This is the first time I’ve seen his handwriting. It’s tiny and neat. Straight lines except for a swirl in the O’s. When he passes the paper back, he asks, “You haven’t by any chance seen my mom, have you? She’s been gone for a while this time.” The way he’s talking to the shop owner is decidedly less confrontational than when he was speaking to the drug dealer. “Last time I knew she was hanging out at Candy’s with a guy named Gregory.”
The man’s lips press together. I can tell he instantly feels sorry for Oscar, and I like the guy even more. Sure, he’s obviously mixed up somewhat with the Crew if they have an open tab at his shop, but he seems like a good guy. The owner shakes his head. “I haven’t seen her for… Well, going on a month now, I think. Last time I saw her, she was a couple of blocks down. I gave her and a redhead there a couple of bottles of water.”
Oscar taps the counter. It’s hard not to see the disappointment in his gaze. “Thanks, man. I appreciate that. We’ll be seeing you.”
The guy’s lips turn up timidly. “See you. Sooner rather than later, I’m guessing,” he adds with a wink to me.
Oscar and I turn to exit the store. To my left on a shelf is a Santa Claus cookie jar I hadn’t noticed when we walked in. It’s the first Christmassy thing I’ve seen in a year. Back home, my aunt and uncle would’ve already had their friends Christmas dinner and gearing up for the big day. I’ll have to get my real phone from Brawler and call them. Especially on Christmas. If I don’t call them then, they’ll freak.
A sudden pang hits me. Regret that I can’t be with them this year. It takes me by surprise because as soon as I could leave them, I did. I had such a one-track mind, it never dawned on me I’d miss things like birthdays and holidays. I just wanted out. I wanted this to be over with, so I could get back to my life. In a way, I’ve realized that thisismy life. These little moments like right now are what matter. Hanging on to Oscar’s hand in the middle of the store, gazing at a fat Santa with chocolate chip cookie crumbs dusted all over his red suit. The thing is kind of garish—ugly, even—but I like it. It’s a reminder that it does no good to live in the past or the future. The present is the here and now, and it’s the only thing that matters.
Oscar shifts some hair away from my face. “You like that, Princess?”
I bite down on my lip and nod slowly. This is a shitty time to not have Johnny. It’s a shitty time to get sentimental about what I do have right here right now.
“How much for the cookie jar, D?” Oscar calls out.
“Nineteen dollars and ninety-nine cents.”
Oscar peels my fingers away from him and starts walking back toward the counter.
“You don’t have to,” I say, realizing what he’s about to do. He ignores me, of course. That’s Oscar.
He fishes out his wallet and hands D a twenty-dollar bill. “You’re a good kid,” the guy tells him.
When Oscar turns around, he’s smiling, and it’s so delicious my face heats up. He reaches out with his right hand and cups the back of my head. “For you, Princess.”
I reach up on my tiptoes and kiss him right there in a shop in the middle of the Heights, savoring the moment with just a delicate press of our lips together. It’s getting harder and harder to hold back my feelings for each of them. I want to shout it out to the world. Here, in this shop, in this moment, it feels safe to share this with Oscar. This morning, in private, we were needy and feverish. Right now, I want to tattoo this moment into our minds so we can remember it for years to come.
“Let’s go, sexy,” he says, giving me a swat on the ass. He must obviously trust this guy D, too. “Grab your fat man, we’ve got a prostitute to talk to.”
I laugh, not even stunned out of the moment by Oscar’s words because I wouldn’t want him any other way.
Like he told me, I grab Santa and carry him like a football under my arm. Oscar stops me, takes his jacket off, and wraps the ceramic up in it and then hands it back to me. I settle it between us on the bike. It’s not comfortable, but we make it work.
He pulls away from the curb slowly. We travel only a couple of blocks before he spots a woman walking down the street toward us with a red mini dress on. When she gets closer, her caked-on makeup is apparent in the sunlight. Her tits are small, her rib cage almost showing through. Oscar kills the engine, nodding toward her.
She hurries, her high heels clopping down the sidewalk. When she gets to us, she props her hand on her hip. “It’s extra for threesomes.”
I almost choke. Then I have the sudden urge to gouge this woman’s eyes out of her head.
Oscar grins while the woman sizes me up. I squeeze Oscar’s hips, and he starts talking. “Not here for that. Just wondering if you’ve seen my mom. Cynthia Drego?”
“Cyn? Yeah, I know her.” She gazes up and down the street, foot tapping the sidewalk.
“When’s the last time you saw her?”
“A week ago. Maybe.” Her bored tone is understandable. She knows she’s not about to make a sale from us.
“Do you know where she is now?”
She grunts. “Gregory’s new place, probably. Prick said I was too skinny.” She pins her gaze to Oscar. “Don’t you think you could still hold me down and fuck me? I ain’t gonna break.”
I’d rather Oscar not answer that question, and he wisely doesn’t. Instead, he throws another question at her. “Where’s Gregory’s new place?”
She sighs, blowing hair off her face. “Don’t know. Just said he didn’t want me. I tried telling him how much money my cunt makes in a week, but he didn’t want to hear it. Said something about another class of women needed.”