The Sopranos: Caliper Story

EPISODE TWO (Part Four)

EPISODE TWO (Part Four)

~~~

Sal drives me around and we talked and I actually got to know a lot about him. We stopped at a diner and drank and ate and joked around.

     The thing was, it was so easy for us to talk to each other. We didn’t have that awkward “new person” feeling around each other. It was like we fit.

     We’d spent the whole day together and when the day ran out around six PM, he took me out to watch a movie, and I remember my cheeks going red the whole time when he’d noticed I’d grown cold and he’d draped his jacket and his arm over my shoulders.

     I could barely concentrate on the movie after that.

     And after the movie, when we were walking back out into the streets, I don’t know what possessed me to do what I did. My heart was thumping wildly and my veins were ice cold and suddenly, I just slipped my hand into his, and I could feel him squeezing my hand as if to say that was exactly what he wanted a the end of the day.

     It was quick, and maybe I was rushing things. But with him, I forgot about Jay, and I had more fun with him that I’d ever had with Jay.

     Technically, I wasn’t cheating, right? We took a break, right?

     “You wanna come with me tonight for an event my crew announced?” I ask, as we were heading for his car. “It’s an elimination sort of thing.”

     “With your crew?” He starts to open his door,

     I nod, “Yeah, and . . .” Maybe I was displaying myself a little as I leaned on the car’s side with one leg up against his tire. “Everyone’s going to be there.”

     He looks up and down at me and I felt my fingers freeze together. “Yeah, sure.” He tried to redirect his gaze, and he seemed to be having trouble with opening his car’s door.

      I walk over and pull it open for him and I noticed he was shivering nervously. I was right in front of him, cornered, my back against his black tuner.

     He hesitates and tries not to look at me. But then he takes a step forward. He holds my face and then he kisses me and we both hold our breaths. And for a long time, I hadn’t felt that fluttering cold feeling in my chest, and he’d brought it back.

     He pulls away and his face turns a bright pink, his round blue eyes gleaming in the night. He looks me in the eyes, not knowing what to say.

     “I’m really sorry.” He says, “I know that you’re with someone. I mean, everyone knows you and-“

     I grab the collar of his jacket and pull him towards me. His lips were extremely gentle and warm despite the coldness outside. I wrap my arms around his neck and breathe him in.

      And we were just leaning on his car like that for what felt like an hour.

~~~

It was like a huge concert invaded downtown. Large groups of people clambered around Caliper South Theater, hyped to watch the event. Coolers were broken up and drinks were passed down.

     They’d treated it like a camp-out. Sal was right behind me, riding in his tuner. I honk the horn a couple of times to be able to break through the thick crowd.

     They retreated to the sides and cheered at the sight of my vehicle. They gave friendly pats to my vehicle as I slid through them. All these people, all the different faces.

     And all of them came to see one thing.

     To see the best with each other. 

     My heart pumped faster at the realization. Cress Jones versus Eddie in a Takedown.