Cigar smoke sat on the floor, kicked up like snow as Gregory walked through it. The option of smoking is a fascinating subject, you smoke enough, you die. Quoted rumours from the mouth of Match say "you smoke, you live enough to die tomorrow." It is a subject Gregory has put only minor thoughts into. To live today, or die tomorrow? That being said the real question is, are you strong enough to last today by yourself? Even truer a question to Gregory's heart was, does inhaling the smoke of twenty cigars mean you've smoked none, one, or the twenty cigars altogether? One deep breath within the tornado of smoke and Gregory could feel it entering her crevasses like fingers probing her lungs. She was not yet sure whether she full heartedly consented to this or had given up the fight to it.
Consumers are simple creatures, push cigars in their mouth and drinks in their face, leave several hours, not forgetting to water, and you've got yourself a small profit. Charge them the estimated price of drinks plus service, and the damage to self esteem tax. Self esteem tax was requisitely new after one gentleman had puked in Gregory's hair. It was a vile, and uncomforting blow, to this day she still smells the putrid in her hair. Gregory cared not for remembering who she charged this tax to as it happened at least ten times a week. But keenly written in her mind was the occurrence of one particular customer she had charged it to. A young man who had hit on her, mistakingly thinking she was a small male midget. Gregory had corrected the young man informing him her gender was female although her sex male, and that she was also just a small child. Although Gregory is not sure on this matter and does regret it somewhat, she feels that she is in fact just an average sized eleven year old, but then Gregory didn't spend time around children.
Mother, old and wrinkled, a slight snarl to her voice, where not so long ago there was beauty, chased the foulest customers out. Leaving only the quiet drunkards stewing in their owns guts and regrets, with wishes and dreams that they thought would come and come, but never did. Gregory looked about to check he hadn't fallen into someone else's dimension.
"You're chasing the customers out now?" Gregory asked. Mother coughed like a hover with tissue stuck down her throat.
"Cecil is coming today, dearest" Mother said, and with a cloth in one hand slapped the table, massaging it in all the wrong directions "with the news I must deliver to him it is vital we don't piss him off, anymore than needed, so that we may reduce the risk of him beheading us the very moment we leave this pub."
"Have I ever even left this pub?" Gregory asked aloud, the very moment the words left her mouth she could feel her own heart trying to wriggle down in to her chest so as to avoid being stabbed.
"So I'd appreciate it" Mother said grinding her teeth tightly so that they screeched like claws down a chalk board "if you'd change out your dress." Gregory checked her dress, it was becoming grey from the air around herself but it had yet to reach the due status of dirty. Dirty, was the whore passed out in the corner of the pub, yet mother wasn't removing that.
"Well I could" Gregory said her head tilting like a chickens would before making a kill "but I'm fucking not going to." Like a raptor Mothers head twirled, and death glinted in her eyes.
"Excuse me Buttercup" the man at the pub counter slurred "whisky please more."
"I better get that" Gregory said with a little shake of her head and made her way behind the counter.
"Yes you better."
Wheezing bearded man pulled silver sticks, the current currency out his hair, at the same time several round green coins fell out his hair. A currency used one hundred years ago. Wheezing Beard picked up the coins pushing them back into his hair, American dollar bills fell out as he did so. Gregory nor the bearded man recognised these dollar bills as the time they were from was long ignored. Wheezing Beard picked them up and looked around in confusing Gregory put the whisky in front of the man.
YOU ARE READING
Understanding Gregory
Science FictionGregory's mother refuses to acknowledge Gregory's transsexual existence. Gregory doesn't know why. Gregory does know it's pissing her off - but what can she do? She depends on her mother for home. Yet Cecil suggests she should take a journey to th...
