From Dusk Till Dawn

Chapter 6: Seeing is Believing-Louise's Pov

The rest of the day I sit at my desk working on my Hamlet review. No one will care to print it but writing it out gives my mind a break from yesterday's eventful night. Barry's repetitive persistence to persuade me on going out with him fails after the six times he asks me.

"I get the feeling you're avoiding our date tonight." Barry relaxes back into his chair, crossing his arms.

"I get the feeling you're not understanding the definition of the word, 'no'." My eyes remain on the metal keys of my typewriter. I wish it was mine to take home but Jacob is the only one to have one in the Decker household. It sits in his fancy and expensive study.

"I'm sorry?" From the corner of my eye I can see him cock an eyebrow up. It's as if he's trying to figure me out but having a difficult time doing so.

The clicks of the typewriter helps me push Barry's insufferable voice away.

"You're interested in that scrawny Italian immigrant who came by earlier, aren't you?" He says it in a disgusted tone. Barry rests his chin on his hand watching me with intimidating eyes.

My eyes leave the typewriter for the first time since Barry engaged this conversation with me. "His name is Joseph Capurso not 'that Scrawny Italian Immigrant.'"

Pulling a cigarette out of his coat he lights it. "Alright, what do you see in this Joseph Capurso that you don't see in me?" He asks with a hint of curiosity in his voice.

"Not that it's any of your business but Joseph and I are just friends, not even that. And do you truly want me to be frank about why I'm not interested in going steady with you Barry?" 

"I'm not sure. How many bandages will I need after you tell me?" I can't help but smile and shake my head. That's the first joke he's made that actually made me smile.

"Fine, I'll lay it on you softly since you appear to be a rather sensitive man with fragile feelings." Placing a hand on his chest he pretends to act wounded.

Turning in my chair to face him. I answer, "You're just too full of it. All you care about is money. I've seen you admiring your good looks in the mirror more than you've stood admiring any other woman working here."

Barry doesn't appear hurt, only more pleased than before. "There are only two other women working here besides you and I admire your beauty the most out of all of them." He smiles his usual cocky smile before coming to his own realization. "Hold on, you think I'm good looking?" I roll my eyes. "You know what the ladies call you?" He shrugs. "I give up."

"A doll-dizzy" He nods as if agreeing with us ladies who occasionally gossip about the men in the work office. Being the only female journalist I don't see them as much. There's Kathleen and Penelope and then there's me.

"You can't see it but we're insufferable and I think in the very back of your mind you like me." His feet scoot his chair closer to me. Paul, who sits besides me glances up from his typewriter to watch in.

"Are you just saying that because my father would pay you loads of money if you somehow married me someday?" Pulling my written review out of the typewriter, I begin proofreading it.

"The probability of you being correct on that is extremely low, Decker." His nostrils flare up in anger.

"But not zero is it?" Flustered, Barry turns his chair back around puffing out smoke from his cigarette. 

"That's what I thought." I smile to myself as I head over to show Kathleen my freshly written article.

Following evening, we we're joined by Colonel Decker and his wife for dinner. The Colonel demands me to call him by his military rank since he doesn't regard me as his granddaughter. Since Ruby is Jacob's she's permitted to call him grandfather. For Jacob's father I've taken notice that the apple doesn't fall far from the tree.