WOO HOO Robert meets Susan again.

I  had seen  Susan only twice.  Once at the prom. I brought another date with me, not her.  The final time was now. 

She was in the process of planting  the blade of her bare foot in this poor mans groin at a karate tournament. She looked pretty good in the gi and black belt.

I was thinking of taking up the sport as a good way to exercise, but after seeing full contact decided the pain wasn’t worth the pay off.

Bad karma here. She noticed me and thoughts of the prom must have gone through that beautiful head of hers. 

She gave the poor guy a  hard snap kick as she looked right at me. He went down like a sack of potatoes.

I decided to see if I could survive this. I crooked my finger and pointed towards next door mouthing “Lets have coffee.”

I didn’t stay long enough to watch the rest of the tournament. 

The coffee shop was a mom and pop type.  Not much of those left now.  It was run by an Egyptian couple. They had a strong brew.

“Good morning Akiiki.  How is Muminah.?”
I took a seat with my back to the entrance. The mural scene of the egyptian desert was worth the seat. The aroma coming from his kitchen area flooded my senses.

“She is okay. Thank you for asking. She said to tell you she will she will have some sambusak  turnovers for you to try.” He smiled. 

Akiiki and Muminah had charm and hospitality.  You won’t find much of that around coffee shops either.  People to busy.  Akiiki and wife, they had both.

“And what about the lamb treats she promised me?” I asked catching myself before I embarrassed him with American humor.

“Robert do you like a simple meal? Lamb with rice? Muminah makes a terrific seleq you would honor us, tafaddaloo if you sampled her dish of seleq.”

How could I say no.  I’ll admit it, I was mooching.  But Muminah could cook so good. “Okay, Ill be back around the next few days.

He gave me a bright big smile. Then his face looked puzzled.

“What’s wrong?” I asked.

“A beautiful woman, Allah blessed be His name, has entered. She has been here before, but without you. She is looking at you in an angry way. Do you have woman troubles Robert?”

What an understatement that was. “An old flame.”

“Old flame?” he asked puzzled.

“An American expression Akiiki.” I said.

“Do you want me to bring two kahwascitto?”

“No. Bring me a kahwascitto and make her a shaykhamseena.”  I needed a strong coffee right about now.  I knew Susan didn’t like coffee. She was a tea drinker.

She did look radiant in her blue jeans and short sleeved top.  Radiant and dangerous. Women never forget, they just mull it over until the right moment arrives.  I was going on the presumption that Susan hadn’t forgotten the prom, and that the moment had arrived.

She sat down.  The look of determination on her face.

“That poor guy you took out okay?”

“Yeah he’ll live.  I ought to give you the same.”

“Now Susan you know I wanted to take you to the prom, but Betty asked me first. Your still harboring that after eighteen years ago?”

“You took Betty Snodgrass to the prom? Betty Snodgrass!!  You asked me first if you’ll remember!”  Yep radiant, dangerous and memory like an elephant.

The calvary arrived just in time with our drinks.

“Hello Akiiki. I see you have met Robert already.”

“Yes Susan. But he has not told me he has a girl with such beauty.”

She smiled at Akiiki.  “Thank you for your gracious compliment Akiiki.  Your wife Muminah is as radiant.”

Blushing was not what Akiiki did normally. But he managed to do it this time. He gave a gestured bow to Susan and left.

She drank her tea while she looked at me. She was sizing me up.

It was my turn to get the crap beat out of me verbally and silently.

“What are you doing here Robert?”

“To tell the truth, I live only a few miles from here. I come here for coffee and ambiance.  I saw the dojo and thought I might take up karate.  But seeing how much pain is involved I think I’ll pass.”

“Oh.” She sounded disappointed.

“What?”

The next thing she said floored me. I almost passed out.

“Do you like lasagna?”

Okay hold up here. Robert C. Miles never passes up a free breakfast, lunch or dinner.  Besides, what could go wrong just having supper?

“You cooking?” I asked.

“Yeah I am.  Dinner’s at eight o’clock.” she said as she took pen and paper and wrote her address down.

“I’m also giving you my cell number. If you can’t make it, call and tell me you can’t make it.”

The last sentence came out cold and determined.

“Sure. But I’ll be there.”

“Good.” She finished her tea and said, “Robert don’t disappoint me again.” then she walked out waving goodbye to Akiiki.

                                                        *****                                               

         Her mother's car was parked in the driveway.  Susan's knuckles turned white.  She started simmering at her meeting with Robert.  The drapes of the front window showed her mother watching.  Susan composed herself and waved at her.

  ‘Show time’, Susan thought.

         She got out of her car and walked to the front door.  Memories, smells and voices rushed at her.  Jimmy Adler at age six, running up and pulling her hair.  'I wonder what happened to him?', she thought.

         The scent of mother's irises brought back other memories, and other times.  Helping her mother dig up the bulbs in the moist loam and soil. Reading them for planting, weeding. then waiting for the wonderful scent of their blooms.  The scent of a prepared earth, a silver of memory, mingling with the scent of the irises.

  ‘Oh God’, She thought, ‘I'm a nervous wreck!’

         The front door opened and her mother opened her arms.

           "Honey, I'm so glad you stopped by."

           'Okay mom, guilt trip me'

           "I've been busy mom.  But you look good. Spry?  Are you seeing Jerry Adkins?" Susan knew she scored a hit when her mother caught her breath and started to blush.

  "Well, yes, I mean, he's been a such a good friend since your father passed away.”

         'Uh-huh', thought Susan wryly. 'At least moms not alone.  Oh God, just listen to you! Stop It!’          "I'm glad mom.  I see your Iris' are still blooming."          

         "Oh yes, yes.  He's so good at gardening.  He plants it deep.”

         'I'm not going there!", She thought.

         "That's nice." She said in what she thought was a neutral voice.

         "Well come in, you know the house as well as I do."

         Yes she did.  Her first puppy love kiss at age six was from five year old Jimmy Adler.  Fighting with her father over her prom dress.  Finding out that Robert wasn't taking her to the senior prom after all.

         “Honey what happened to you and Robert?”

         “Mom don’t start please.”

         “Susan if you’d just settled down and gave Robert a chance. By now you'd have a family.”

         “Mom!”

         “I’m serious! You’re almost 24.”

         ‘I’ve heard this before’, Susan thought.

         “Mom I am not going to talk about Robert.”

         “But why? Why won’t you? I know he took Emily but he seemed like such a nice boy.”

         ‘Yeah a boy on testosterone!” Susan burned at the memory. The phone call the night of the prom. Falling apart in her fathers arm. Dad was so confused.  He was about to get a gun and take him out.

         ‘I’ve got to get out of here before I say something I regret.’

         “Mom, I really only stopped by for a minute to ask you if you'd like to go out tomorrow for coffee a Akkis?”

         “Oh that sounds wonderful dear.”

         “Okay mom lets make it say twelveish?”

         “You’re leaving so soon? You just got here.”

         “I’ve got to get back to the dojo and pick up some things but tomorrow for sure.”

         Adeline looked at her daughter, sadly. It was as if she were a thousand miles apart. She walked to her and kissed her on her cheek and gave her a hug. Unknown to Susan was the heartache Adeline felt and the knot at her throat that was squeezing the life out of her.  Dampness started to fill her eyes. She would not let Susan see her weakness, if a love for a daughter could be called a weakness.

         “Okay dear it’s a date!”

         Closing the door behind her Susan felt like a heel.

         ‘Well she brought it up!’

         Sitting in her car, she broke down and sobbed just like she did those many years ago.

                                                        *****

         Robert was exhausted when he got home.  ‘Nap time’, he thought to himself.  He made sure the alarm was set to wake him in 2 hours. That didn’t work out to well. Robert woke up. He didn’t so much wake up as fall out of bed.  At that moment the alarm went off. ‘Great’, he groaned. Trying to reach the ear piercing alarm to shut it off.

         Stumbling into the bathroom dropping his pants, shirt, socks and underwear at various places on the floor, he looked at himself in the mirror and scratched his stomach. ‘Not too bad Robert’, he mused. Turning sideways and looking at his stomach he scratched his butt. ‘No not too bad at all.’

         Stepping into the shower he turned the shower on. Wrong move. It takes a while for the hot water to move through cold pipes  The cold water hit Robert like a left hook and shocked him awake.  Freezing now, and waiting for the hot water he thought of his meeting with Susan.  ‘Funny girl. Oh hell! Girl nothing, funny woman with a mean drop kick!” as he thought back to that guy that took one in the nuts.

         Finally warm water started flowing over his body. He lathered quickly and rinsed, managing not to slip in the shower. Stepping out he forgot to turn the heat on and shivered. ‘Brrrrr damn!’  He took one more look at his shiveringas self in the mirror. ‘Yep’, he thought to himself, ‘Pretty damn good!’

         Going back into the bedroom he chose some warm clothes, and thought back to what Susan had said. ‘Well if shes upset that’s good for me isn’t it?’ He thought a minute. ‘Oh shit! No! No! Please don’t let her still have a thing for me! Robert C. Miles is no mans woman.

         ‘Besides Emily  was nice girl. I should have told Susan but damn it I didn’t have time, it was too late. Why does it have to be so complicated with women.’

         His father  asked his mother that same question. If looks could kill his dad would have dropped dead on the spot. No, something else was going on with Susan, Robert hoped it wasn’t him on the menu.