The Characters of My Universe (part 2)

Hello Awesome Visitors! It's time for a new episode of ...

This is a continuation of last Thursday's "Let's Talk". So ... to get caught up, please click here.

The characters I may (or may not) consider strong will be from my contributions to The Divergent Ink short story anthology collection. To date, there are two books completed from this collection, Crackles of the Heart and Pleasure Prints. Each book centers around a question, and each participant has to answer the question in one's own way in short story form.

The question posed in Crackles of the Heart was "Can the hot, handsome guy fall for the average, awkward woman?" My story featured in Crackles is "Seven Days of Stimuli".

My awkward character's name is Bette. Bette is a hard-working small-town woman with simple pleasures. When visually stunning Jesse comes into the store on what's normally her day off, her mind accelerates into complex overdrive. The story follows Bette over the span of seven days, and trust me, a lot definitely happens.

This excerpt outlines her first encounter with Jesse.

Normally, I wasn’t the type to ogle at anyone, yet this customer was different. His wayward, oak brown hair was filled with random streaks of grey and the curls slightly bounced with each step he took. Although he wore a black dress shirt with matching slacks, I could see the outline of his bulging biceps.

What would those biceps feel like? Would they be slightly soft or unmistakably hard?

Soon, the saltiness of blood blended in with my saliva. Not only had I nibbled on my bottom lip but I did it just enough to draw blood. I withdrew some tissues from my pants’ pocket and dabbed away the drops.

What was taking Courtney so long? Being up at the front was starting to make me uneasy. Also, impatience started to set in. How long would he and his buddy be in the store, looking at everything but wanting nothing?

God must have heard my lamentations. The conversation the hot guy was having with his friend soon became discernable, indicating they were approaching the checkout area.

“Man, I don’t understand why you just didn’t want to use my stash.”

“Chuck, I appreciate the offer but I don’t fuck with that brand. I only use the best for my wood.”

“Jesse we’ve searched everywhere in this store for your brand. Not only do I not see them but do they even sell jimmies in this joint?”

I cleared my throat but neither Jesse nor Chuck acknowledged me. The sound was made a few more times before Chuck commented, “Hey you want a cough drop for your throat?”

Jesse walked over to the checkout lane, then spotted the condoms locked up behind me. “Chuck, you damn idiot! She was letting us know they are locked up behind the register.”

My cheeks flushed as he looked at me. Jesse’s eyes reminded me of the artificial grass that was just planted in front of my parents’ house. Those eyes were so vivid, so rich, so green!

“You have to excuse my friend ...“ Jesse began, reading the name tag. “Bette—he’s had a bit too much to drink. Quite honestly, so have I. Matter of fact, there’s a fine sexy woman waiting for me.”

“Understood. So, what’s your pleasure Jesse?”

Jesse’s eyes darted from left to right, scanning the choices. “How did you know my name was Jesse? Have we seen each other before?”

The plop of a Juicy Fruit gum pack startled me. Chuck tapped Jesse on the shoulder, “I’m going to wait in the car. Pay for the gum, will ya?”

“Cheap ass!” Jesse yelled while Chuck rushed out of the store. “You never answered my question, Bette.”

“You didn’t answer mine, either. What’s your pleasure?”

Although, to be perfectly honest, tracing your sensual lips with the tip of my tongue would rank very high on the list.

Although Bette is awkward, she exudes strength in a moment when another female is insulting her, as reflected by this excerpt:

There was something familiar about the woman and I permitted myself further scrutiny. The woman had a model’s height—even without the heels, she was 5’ 10”, easy. Blond hair was coiffed to perfection, the makeup, applied to a high standard. She could get any guy she wanted! Perhaps she was a small-time movie star, or in one of those made for TV movies.

Luckily there was a pen in my pocket, since people always stole the pens from the cash register, and I tended to take notes while doing the inventory planograms. Hmm … but what could this beauty write on?

The Subway sandwich wrapper was smoothed down. I took a deep breath and began my approach, then paused when Jennifer Lopez’s “Booty” blared from the woman’s phone.

“Hello? Hey Candy what’s up? How are you? No, I’m still bummed about the whole thing, but what did we really expect? We did meet up with them at the club.”

The woman paused, probably waiting for Candy to finish talking. “Well, at least Chuck is trying to fix things!”

My ears perked at the mention of Chuck. Wasn’t he the guy with Jesse on Saturday night?

The woman paced back and forth. “Hold on; let me activate my Bluetooth. Balancing you on my shoulder is starting to hurt Candy.”

With that achieved, the lady took the small phone and nestled it between her chest and the fabric of her bra. She hadn’t taken notice of me, yet I couldn’t bring myself to sit back on the bench. I had to find out more.

“Alright I’m back. Like I said Candy, at least he’s making an effort. That loser friend of his hasn’t called or texted me.”

Loser friend? She certainly wasn’t talking about Jesse! Was Candy co-signing on this woman’s thoughts or trying to convince her that this assessment was in error?

“He must not be screwed up too tightly, because no man in his right mind could refuse me!” The lady exclaimed.

“You shouldn’t talk bad about him like that.” Had I really said that out loud? Sure I was thinking it but had I gone insane by making it audible?

The lady noticed me for the first time. “Candy let me call you back.” She hit the button on the Bluetooth, ending the call. She strutted until she was inches from my face. “Excuse me, what did you say to me?”

It was too late to back down now. “In case you’re hard of hearing, I said you shouldn’t talk bad about someone simply because he’s not into you.”

The lady’s laugh reeked of sarcasm and her breath stunk of cigar. Black and Mild, apple flavor—the same Jaycee smoked.  I wrinkled my nose, which the lady mistook for something else.

“You’re looking down your nose at me? On what grounds? Look at you and look at me. The only male you’d be able to catch is the kind that eats sloth in a troth!”

The words did sting but I wasn’t about to let this conceited bitch know. Famous or not, I no longer wanted her autograph. Balling up the Subway wrapper, it left my hand and hit her forehead.

The woman’s mouth flew open in shock.

“Maybe I’m not drop-dead gorgeous like you on the outside, but personality-wise I will always win over someone like you. Do you know why? Because there’s not enough makeup in the world to camouflage your ugly attitude!”

Another strong character who's worthy of mentioning is Jaycee. She's very outspoken and not afraid to step up when trouble is about, as reflected in this scene:

Jesse was in a conundrum. In the midst of doing the right thing face-to-face, a situation blossomed that was getting nastier by the second.

What should I do? If I go towards the parking lot, Sasha may get ideas about damaging my car. If we stay outside, we’re going to cause a spectacle, if we haven’t already. The best bet is to go inside the store and hope Sasha doesn’t follow me.

He stormed towards the front entrance. Without warning, Sasha jumped on his back, locking her legs around his waist. One of her arms wrapped around his throat while her sharp nails clawed at his face.

“Ow! Get the fuck off me, you psycho!” Jesse dropped to his knees. His first thought was to overpower her and fling her to the ground. He didn’t want to injure her or exacerbate the event. Sasha’s ego was wounded and taking no prisoners.

In the midst of the fray, a young woman rushed towards the two of them. “Ma’am you are causing a disruption on our property. If you leave the premises now, then we’ll tell the cops there’s nothing to see here. I can’t control whether the guy you just assaulted will press charges or not, though.”

Sasha released Jesse, venom redirected to the poor white trash of a cashier standing before her. “I’ll tell you, like I told your fat excuse of a coworker, who do you think you are stepping to me like-”

Jaycee’s fist connected with Sasha’s nose. A smirk of satisfaction revealed itself as Sasha fell backward. In the background, claps erupted. Jaycee could tell without even looking around that Melinda was frowning. This was definitely a write-up, if not termination. Plus, the expensive labels this mouthy whore was sporting meant she could sue and win.

The police cars arrived. Melinda stood next to Jaycee and said in a voice only Jaycee could hear. “I told you to keep an eye on things, not get involved.”

The question posed in Pleasure Prints was "Where is Paradise?" My story featured in Pleasure Prints is "Onus".

"Onus" is one of the first stories where my main character is an old woman. Cecilia Teflon knows that she is nearing the end of life on earth but she has a confession she hopes puts her on the path to spiritual paradise.

What is admirable about Cecilia Teflon is her dedication to exerting independence, despite being in a nursing home. Her tenacity shines in the following scene:

Cecilia flashed a look of trepidation at the Malacca cane leaning next to the metal bedpost. Her son-in-law Gordon had bought the contraption during one of his travels overseas, boasting it to be one of the best “in her condition”. Cecilia grew to hate every time Gordon coined the phrase. Gordon may have believed he was doing Cecilia a favor, but it was quite the opposite. Cecilia was a “give it to me straight” type person, like the generations of Teflon women before her. In Cecilia’s opinion, nothing should be sugar-coated except the tops of doughnuts and the bottom of an iced tea glass.

The Malacca cane reminded Cecilia of the steady decline of mobility. On most days, she was able to slide along with considerable ease. Yet, for the past month, the cane was more of a dependable leg than her own. Now Cecilia wished that the telephone was on her nightstand rather than the rickety desk which had seen better days.

Forty-seven steps … an eternity for liver spot covered legs riddled with all the “ritis”, primarily Mr. Osteo. Add to that a “weakened” heart function and a “decompressed” lung function, Cecilia thanked Heaven to get anywhere at all, even if it was just to the toilet.

“Okay, here goes everything.”

Cecilia’s breathing remained steady as she scooted closer to the exotic cane. Once in proximity, her slender fingers grasped the unusual handle. After the meticulous calculation of balance versus weight, Cecilia mentally counted to three, then hoisted herself to a standing position.

Tap, slide. Tap, slide. The melody of cane and slow feet. To make the trek seem shorter, Cecilia devised a freestyle.

“Tap, slide. Tap, slide. An old woman’s way of staying alive. Tap, slide. Tap, slide. It could be worse in this old folks’ hive …”

Another character whose strength I appreciate is Geoff. It's very admirable how much love he has for Amber Moon, despite certain differences in their background. Even when Amber Moon isn't initially friendly to him at first, that doesn't stop his level of chivalry, as reflected in this scene.

“Why wear shoes that could damage such beautiful feet?”

The question hung in the air. Geoff didn’t expect an answer, nor would he receive one. Amber Moon was still out for the count

.

He was unsure how long Amber Moon had laid on the sidewalk. The primary concern was getting her somewhere safe and out of the wet clothing. Luckily, his sister and Amber Moon were almost the same size. The most noticeable difference was Amber Moon’s voluptuousness, which he tried to ignore upon changing the clothing

.

Geoff cringed at the red blotches on Amber Moon’s feet. Too much walking, too little comfort. He grabbed a bottle of lotion from the top of his dresser. After placing a dime-sized amount in his palms, Geoff rubbed his hands together, then commenced massaging the weary feet.

He was extremely focused on the task, so he was unaware that Amber Moon was awake.

“Where am I?” 

Her voice startled Geoff. He paused.

“You’re in my house. Not sure if you remember me or not … ”

Amber Moon was still deciding whether this was real. Earlier, she requested that the universe give her another chance with Geoff. Was it really a coincidence that Geoff was the one who found her?

“Yeah I do, but what happened?”

“I found you outside, unconscious on the sidewalk. What were you doing out there, without a raincoat or umbrella? You’re lucky no one tried to mug you.”

“Geoff it’s a long story.”

“Wait … I don’t recall telling you my name on our first encounter.”

Amber Moon shook her head. “You didn’t. I overheard one of your friends say it before you left. Why haven’t you been back to Café Wysteria? Is it because of me?”

Geoff laughed but Amber Moon didn’t share the mirth. “Don’t flatter yourself. I mainly go when Shannon wants to perform. Ever since the cold reception, she hasn’t been back there. Truth be told, the lot of the performers seem to be excessively emo or total prima donnas. Neither one is my speed.”

Amber Moon sat up abruptly, her feet sliding out of Geoff’s hands. “If that’s the case, why did you even buy me that drink?”

Geoff glared at Amber Moon, earnestness mirrored in his eyes. “I heard your poetry and believed you were different. Turns out, I was wrong. You were cold, just like my friends predicted.”

“Well, in that case, I’ll be on my way-”

“Not so fast … unless you don’t want to wait on your clothes. They’ve got another half hour in the dryer. Besides, it’s late. Just rest. You can split in the morning.”

Amber Moon scoffed. “Dude, are you serious? Thanks, but no thanks. I’ll just catch an Uber from here.”

Geoff shook his head in resignation. “Have it your way Amber Moon. If you need anything, I’ll be in the living room. Like you, I’ve had a rough night.”

Amber Moon looked around for her phone. Soon, the events prior to her passing out surfaced. Without her phone, she couldn’t access the Uber app. On top of that, she had left her purse at Café Wysteria.

“Geoff, did you by chance see my cell?” she yelled.

“Yeah but it’s too damaged to function,” was his response.

Maybe Geoff was right—perhaps she should stay put until the morning. Even if the phone was working, she didn’t know Geoff’s address or how far she was from home. On the nightstand were some pills and a tall glass of water, along with a yellow Post-It note.

To help with your hangover.

All right everyone! That's all for Part 2 of The Characters of My Universe.  Stay tuned for Part 3.

Until next time,