“Are you on the menu?” he asked her with a cocky grin.
A deep blush shot over her face as she quickly averted her eyes.
“No,” she answered him quietly as a smile played on her lips.
“That’s too bad,” he said, leaning in closer and placing his arms on the counter in front of him.
“Don’t listen to him, Donna,” Michael said, chuckling, as he came out of the kitchen. He knew exactly what Paul was up to without hearing a word.
Donna, the waitress, jerked her head up and looked from one man to the other as a new flash of color exploded across her cheeks. She scampered away before they could embarrass her any further.
“Man, why did you have to scare her away?” Paul asked in mock injury.
“Me? You had her wanting to run the minute you opened your mouth,” Michael laughed.
Paul looked around the room and said, “Excuse me, but I refuse to eat this man’s food.”
“Shut the fuck up,” Michael laughed, giving Paul a light smack on the side of his head.
The friends joked with the familiarity of two people who have known each other a long time.
“Look at you,” Michael said, noticing the expensive new clothes Paul had on. Everything Paul had on was designer labels. “New Sergio’s, leather jacket, and check out the Capezio’s.”
“Yeah,” Paul smiled, sitting up a little taller, feeling pretty proud of himself.
“And champagne the other night, what’s gotten into you?” Michael asked him.
Guys don’t blow money like Paul was apparently doing on what they made.
“Listen, Mike, I’ve got to tell you something,” Paul said, his face suddenly becoming serious, laced with a hint of fear. He looked over his shoulders again, his eyes darting across the faces of the patrons.
Michael’s brows furrowed together, sensing that whatever Paul had to tell him was probably not good.
“Sure,” Michael answered him, putting all joking aside.
“Not here, come to my parents’ house when you get off.”
A nervousness seemed to be shaking Paul’s usually carefree attitude, and it was making Michael a little concerned for his friend.
“No problem, bro, I’ll be there.”
Michael and Paul had known each other for several years, since they were kids. Not long ago, when Paul went away to summer camp, he left as an awkward, lanky boy. When he came home, he was this towering figure of a man, 6’ 3”, and all long arms and legs.
The devilish grin that was Paul’s signature appeared on his face again. “Now, get your ass in the kitchen so Donna will come back.”
Michael shook his head smiling, “Don’t try and fuck her, man, I’ll kick your ass.”
“I can’t help it if she can’t resist me,” Paul replied with a naughty gleam in his eyes.
***
5 weeks ago…
Paul had checked his supplies ten times to make sure everything he needed was there. No matter what he did or tried to tell himself, he was still shitting his pants. It was 4:00 a.m. on a Thursday morning, and the streets of Manhattan had quieted to as much that was possible for them. The city never stopped. The adrenaline that was coursing through his body made him immune to the freezing temperatures. Paul heard a sound from his hiding place between the dumpsters in the dark alley, and it made his heart pound even faster.
A voice whispered, “Are you ready?”
Paul let out the breath he’d been holding as relief flooded him.
“Yeah, let’s get this shit over with,” he snapped.
Paul stepped from the cover of darkness into the softness of the street light feeding in from Lafayette Street downtown. There was a set of keys clutched tightly in his hand as they approached the unmarked door. He knew which ones would open the series of locks that barricaded any unwanted intruders from entering. He’d used them a thousand times when he locked up after work.
They entered the now eerie quietness. The jewelry store was always humming with energy and people during the daylight hours, but it was now silent. Paul punched in the numbers on the alarm key-pad, disabling it. He could walk through the dark, narrow aisles and paths in his sleep, they were second nature to him. The young man moved behind him, following his lead.
“This is it,” Paul whispered, standing in front of another locked door, one which he didn’t have a key to.
“Ok, move over, this is a piece of cake,” the cocky voice said as he moved to Paul’s side.
Paul stepped aside and let the young man he’d met in summer camp a few years ago go to work. Antoine, the bad-ass, scared little kid from the projects.
The last time Paul had gone away to camp, this skinny kid had gravitated to the clown Paul was. His joy and playfulness was something the then boy didn’t see a lot of in the so-called friends he had back at the half-way houses he spent most of his time at in the inner-city. All the kids had already been tarnished by life’s harsh realities of drugs, violence, prostitution, and death. The gangs had been taking over the neighborhoods slowly and completely, destroying everything they touched. Paul was a breath of fresh air to Antoine’s angry soul.
The dark figure stooped, pulling a pouch containing small tools from his pocket, and he proceeded to pick the lock. It was apparent Antoine knew what he was doing. The door creaked slowly open. He turned his face to Paul with a huge grin while shoving his tools back in his pocket. He stood and let Paul take the lead again to direct them towards the safe. They closed the door behind them. Beams of light sprung to life as they turned on their flashlights. Paul walked to the farther wall.
“Here it is,” Paul told him breathlessly.
Excitement and fear raced through his tall, thin frame, as the blood pumping through his body pounded against his skin.
“Man, this is the easiest fucking job I’ve ever done. You could have done it yourself, but I’m glad you asked me,” Antoine laughed in his heavy New York accent.
“Just open the fucking thing and let’s get out of here.”
“Fucking relax, we’ll be out of here in five minutes, and we won’t have to worry about shit again,” Antoine laughed again.
“I’ll feel better in five hours when I’m back home. Open it,” Paul hissed.
“Ok, ok,” his friend said as he stooped again, this time in front of the safe, resting his ear against its front.
He placed two glove covered fingers on the rotary dial lock and started to turn it. The clicking noise seemed to shout and ricochet off the walls, screaming for help.
After a few turns, Antoine lifted his face and turned the handle. Paul held his breath as sweat poured from every pore of his body. A click sounded and the door gave way.
“Holy fucking shit, you did it!” Paul laughed nervously.
“Yeah, man, I am THE master,” he replied smoothly.
“Move, let me get the shit,” Paul ordered.
“I know, I know.”
Paul grabbed his friend’s bag and switched places with him in front of the safe. He filled both of their black bags with the cash inside. When he took everything he thought couldn’t be traced, he stood, and turned.
“Ok, let’s go” Paul said curtly.
Antoine closed the safe, turned the lock, and they walked out the door after turning off their flashlights. They moved briskly through the backroom they’d come through. Paul opened the backdoor a crack and peeked out, making sure no one was in the alleyway before opening it. The man walked out and moved to the darkness as Paul pulled the door closed behind him. He didn’t lock the door, or reset the alarm. He hoped that someone would come in after them and ransack the place, hiding any signs that they’d been here.
They walked through the alley, as casually as Paul could, out onto Broadway.
Paul was a nervous wreck as they moved down the steps of the B train subway. Every sound and every voice made him jump. The only thing going through his mind was the plan they’d made. ‘Take the train to Antoine’s apartment, separate the
money,’ over and over again. He wasn’t a thief, not until tonight. But he was sick and tired of working for ‘the man’ and watching everyone else get rich.
“Be cool, man,” Antoine chuckled next to Paul, as the subway car gently lurched forward.
“That was some crazy shit,” Paul laughed, the naughty boy he’d always been showed himself for a moment.
He was going to lose him, it was only a matter of time.
***
Now…
Michael stood staring at the money laid out on Paul’s single bed. Paul’s parents lived in a beautiful brownstone in Greenpoint. His father did well, the family was very close, and his parents were attentive to their children. Paul came from a good family.
“Holy shit, you’re fucking crazy, man!” Michael said, shaking his head in disbelief.
Michael hadn’t believed the story. Not until he’d seen the money. He still couldn’t believe it. Lanky little Paul was not the same kid he used to be.
“It was easy!” Paul laughed.
“Yeah, easy to get a bullet in your ass, easy for that guy to fucking kill you and take everything, easy to get your ass thrown in jail for the rest of your life,” Michael stated, still in shock.
“No, it was fine. We walked in, I had the keys, and he got the safe unlocked on the first try. We were in and out of there in five minutes.”
The reality of it still hadn’t set in yet with Paul, and how smoothly it had gone. But he couldn’t shake the fear that someone was going to come and bang on his door, beat the shit out of him, and throw him in jail, to spend the rest of his life being the inmates bitch as they took turns pounding him in the ass.
“Just don’t be stupid and flash this money all over the city. You’re already going out and buying expensive clothes. Someone will notice, bro, and they’ll put two and two together,” Michael tried to talk some sense into his naïve friend’s head.
“I’ve already thought of that, Mike. We could go upstate, nobody really knows us up there. This could be really good for us. I trust you, man, you’re smart. You could find us a place, we’ll have money, a lot of money,” he laughed again as his hand swooped out over the piles of cash on his bed. “I’ll take care of you.”
Michael glanced back and forth between the money and Paul. There was fear in Paul’s eyes.
‘Fuck!’ Michael growled to himself. ‘What the hell am I supposed to do? Not help him? The guy looks scared as hell.’ Michael looked at him again.
Michael’s life was just starting to take an upward turn. He’d been promoted at work with a raise. He was living in a good place, and was surrounded by good people. And he’d met a woman that made him feel like he was somebody, that he was special. Now, he was being pulled into a situation he knew he couldn’t turn his back on. His friend needed him.
Michael’s mind envisioned relaxed days in the country. He tried to think about the positives of the offer Paul made. No worries, no time clocks to punch, and no fears about how much money he had in his pockets. And Natalie.
“I don’t know,” Michael hesitated.
“We could go for a little while, give it a try, get out of here until it calms down. It’ll be fine, I promise. And I really like Sylvia. A lot.”
Paul looked intently at Michael with his big, blue, puppy-dog eyes, the same look he used to charm women.
“Don’t look at me like that, I’m not a broad,” Michael laughed half-heartedly. He didn’t want to add to Paul’s worries.
Paul was giddy and hopeful. He could tell Michael was considering his offer. If Michael couldn’t help him, nobody could.
Michael’s resolve began to melt away. It sounded so simple. The more he thought about it, the simpler it got, or so he made himself believe. He considered all the possibilities as he fought with his conscience and logic. He didn’t do the job, but he knew about it now. So that made him an accomplice.
He was fucked.
“Ok,” he whispered.
“I knew I could count on you, man!” Paul said, slapping him on the back.
“Take it easy, you’re still a little punk.”
The last vestiges of their childhood innocence slowly disappeared, their carefree attitudes mingling almost for the last time as they were about to begin a phase of their lives that would change them forever.
Michael thought about the whole situation all night, not sleeping a wink. His mind was in overdrive, contemplating every possibility and every situation. Paul was a good friend, and Michael knew only too well what it was like to feel you were all alone in the world. He’d spent most of his childhood like that. The thought made him visibly flinch. He would help his friend, from as much of a distance as he could keep.
At least that’s what he tried to convince himself.
***
When Michael walked into work at 7:00 a.m. the next day, his heart ached. It hurt him to leave these people who’d taken him under their wing and treated him with kindness and appreciation. People like this were very rare in his life.
“Celia,” Michael began to the owner’s wife, “I’m leaving.”
She studied his face in only a way a mother could, reading into the soul of someone she loved.
“When?” she finally asked. She saw something in him that broke her heart, but there wasn’t anything she could do to help him.
“I’ll finish out the week. A friend of mine had an emergency and needs me,” he said, being as honest with her as he possibly could, the only person he would be honest with.
“Ok,” she whispered, smiling sadly. She placed a hand on his shoulder and lifted herself to her full height, reaching to place a kiss on his cheek. He leaned down and hugged her, genuine affection filling him with everything she meant to him.
When Michael finished his shift, he knew he had to call Vinnie and ask for his help, at least for a short while. He and Paul couldn’t go to Johnny, asking to camp out on his dorm room floor for a few weeks. Besides, the longer he could put off Johnny’s questions, the better off things would be. He had to take things one step at a time.
“Hello?” Vinnie answered the phone.
“Hey, man, how’s it going?” Michael greeted him on the phone.
“Good, and you?” Vinnie was happy to hear from Michael. They’d gotten close in the few months they’d been hanging out on the weekends. He thought Michael was a good guy and would do anything for you.
Which is exactly what Michael was doing now, although Vinnie didn’t know it. He would, though, soon enough.
“Good, thanks. Listen, I wanted to talk to you before Paul talked to your sister, Sylvia, so this wouldn’t come as a surprise. Me and him are gonna be coming up with Alex this weekend. We’ve been talking, and we’re going stay up there for a while. You know, get out of the city, start something new. We love it up there, even though I got my ass thrown in jail,” Michael laughed.
“Yeah, man, but that couldn’t be helped. That guy was a dick and you did what all of us were about to do. Don’t worry about it. I think that’s great. I’ll talk with Sylvia and my parents, there’s plenty of room upstairs, you guys can stay here for a while, until you get settled.” Vinnie was excited that his other group of friends were moving upstate.
Vinnie did exactly what Michael had hoped. Vinnie was a good guy, he was generous, and he didn’t have an underhanded bone in his body. He opened his home, and anything he had, to help out his friends. A new pang of guilt filled Michael. He was bringing Vinnie and his family into their mess. But he had no one else to ask, and Paul was going to do it anyway, it was better coming from him.
“Thanks, I appreciate it. Paul’s going to call Sylvia soon, she can let him know if that will be ok. He really likes her, a lot.” And that was the truth.
Just like Michael liked Natalie a lot. It sucked that he had to lie to her. He couldn’t let her get dirty with this mess, he had to shelter her somehow, keep her separate from it. His heart constricted with the reality of it. But he pushed it aside. He had to keep a clear head
. There was work to do.
“Cool, she likes him too,” Vinnie answered him.
“Alright, Vin, I’ll see you on Friday then. Thanks again, bro, I owe you,” Michael said, sincerely moved by his friends generosity.
“Yeah, call me if you need anything else.”
“Will do, bye.”
“Bye.”
Things were in motion and everything was falling into place.
He left the house to go see his son. The thought of leaving and only seeing him every couple of weeks already broke his heart.
‘Life was going to be good,’ Michael thought as he made a lame attempt to convince himself of that. It was replaced by Natalie’s beautiful face as she laid naked beneath him when he made love to her. She looked so perfect, she was perfect, what they’d shared was perfect. His heart surged with emotion and the pain of things yet to come.
***
That Friday evening, Michael and Paul met Alex and started the two hour ride for New Paltz. They laughed just like they had every other time, talking about getting laid, and having fun. Michael and Paul didn’t say anything about not coming back with him. It was Friday, time to party. Paul pulled out a joint and they passed it around. They told Alex about the dance contest, Fat Boy, and how Michael had gotten arrested, and how it was worth it. As they were talking about all the women they had gotten, would be getting, how Alex almost got his ass kicked by the boyfriend of the girl he laid last week, and how, even if it was a keyhole, Johnny would stick his dick in it, Michael’s mind was someplace else. He couldn’t stop thinking about Natalie, wishing he could tell Alex and Paul he wouldn’t be going to the club tonight. His mind pictured them together. Her scent wafted through his senses, the feel of her soft skin made his fingertips tingle, but her taste lingering on his tongue almost made him crazy. Reality sucked him back in. His friends expected him to be there for them, and he couldn’t let them down.
Michael and Paul were going to start their new life. But was it going to be the life Michael really wanted?
5 CHAPTER FIVE
“What’s up?”
Vinnie walked into Baachus on Main St., downtown New Paltz, announcing himself to his friends. It was always a chill place, a hippy joint, but was even more laid-back tonight; it was Thursday. This was the kind of place he hung-out with his friends from school, the people he’d spent his life with and had grown-up with, his real friends from his real life. There was gorgeous Mark, the high-school jock that all the girls drooled over, Tommy, the skinny kid with blonde hair and freckles whose muscles somehow started to blow-up, Charlie, the one who teetered on falling to the stoner side, and finally Jughead, who was just burnt, but the sweetest guy you could ever know. They were sitting at a back table on a regular day.
The Rooster Club Page 7