Camry In Tissue Land

Cold Comfort

• Alfred J. Rotheous •

Camry kept his promise. He didn't hog my blanket like Charlie or threw his limbs over me like Gracie.

He left very early in the morning, saying it's the best time to paint.

When I go down to the cafe, he is kneeling down on the floor busily painting. That strip of the wall space is separated by a rope and a screen from the seating area. His mural is still hard to decipher without his finger to guide me.

I click a picture of him and send it to Charlie.

"Where is your boss?" I ask Ricky.

"Good morning, Mr. Rotheous. What can I do for you?" Louis calls out from behind me. He is a shrewd businessman. He recently acquired an electronics shop on this same block.

"This is a nice touch." I point at the wall.

He beams with a generous smile. "Thank you. Trying to stay in style. I should have put out a wanted poster. Yesterday, a customer told me that she would have done it for free for the advertisement value. Now I am paying for this. One learns these things, huh?"

I take a sip of my coffee. "No, you don't want to be a freeloader. People you employ should want to come back to you. Get him a blanket or something, he is kneeling on the hard cement."

Louis nods, smoothly accepting my criticism. "Of course. You are correct. Absolutely. It is not like I can't spend a couple of hundreds. Let me get a mat."

Camry more likely gets paid a couple of hundreds per hour at his actual job. He isn't doing this for money. Louis or Camry, who got the better deal here?

Ricky whispers watching Louis' retreating back. "He is right scared of you."

I shrug. My office has a branch next to this building. I usually work from there. Sometimes I bring my clients here for an informal coffee. Louis is more likely scared of losing good business.

Charlie replies to my picture when I am on the bus.

Looks awesome!

I call his number.

"Good morning, babe."

He started calling me babe only recently. Two years to be exact. I think he got the habit from Camry. The first time Charlie called me babe, I melted completely. Then I heard him call Camry babe and Camry called everyone babe. And I stopped melting completely.

"You are telling him today," I say.

"Did he ask anything?"

What kind of logic is this? "You can't deny him the truth."

"He'll be heart broken."

"He already is."

"I can't do that to him. I can't tell him the guy he loves is an asshole."

"Charlie. . ."

"I can't. You won't make me."

As if it is even possible to make him do anything.

"He is grappling for excuses. He is going to break down and call that guy. "

"He'd do it anyway. Even if I tell him what Phil told, he'd find more excuses for him. We have to get him far away  from Phil first."

I stay silent.

"Babe?"

Okay, I still melt. Only a little.