Brooklyn Story

by Suzanne Corso

  When Tony smiled and came over to hug me, however, I felt better. He was acting like the host with the most when he greeted Mom and Grandma as if they were long-lost members of his family. Pamela joined in the act, sidling up to us in her gold lamé jumpsuit with a rope belt that was much too tight. Large reindeer earrings dangled beneath her high, teased hair. Pamela’s figure had seen better days, and her clothing accentuated every curve and the extra pounds she had put on. But I could see that she must have been a real looker when she was younger.

  Pamela extended a hand and greeted us graciously, then pulled me in for a hug as if we were best friends. I yielded and played the game, hugging her back, but it was all a ruse, because Pamela had never seemed happy to see me. When she shook Mom’s hand, however, and pretended not to be flustered by Grandma yelling hello in the background, I was grateful. At least Pamela put up a good front, I thought.

  Tony looked toward Mom and Grandma. “Lemme get youse some wine,” he offered. “It’s homemade.”

  “Oh yes,” Pamela added, “sit and enjoy.” She gestured to an empty couch. “My husband will get youse sumthin’ ta eat.” Grandma winced and began to mumble under her breath about Pamela’s heavy Brooklyn accent, which matched her son’s. “He loves a house full of people,” Pamela finished.

  The three of us occupied the couch and looked over at Philip Kroon, who was sitting in his green leather armchair, talking to no one, his eyes on the floor. I tried not to stare at the painfully thin, salt-and-pepper-haired war hero. If I didn’t know better, I would have thought he was sleeping. Whatever he was or wasn’t doing, he didn’t look like he was anxious to serve anyone or enjoying a house full of people at all. In fact, if Pamela hadn’t pointed him out, I might have mistaken him for someone at the wrong party. I had never met anyone quite like Philip, but like his wife, when he got up and shook hands, at least he was making an effort to welcome us into his home.

  Grandma offered a bakery box she had been holding to Pamela. “This is for you,” Grandma said. “A nice sponge cake.”

  I cringed. Sponge cakes were so Jewish, usually for Passover.

  “Well, Grandma Ruth, thank ya so much,” Pamela said as she bent over to take the white box, which made her bloodred fingernails stand out even more. “And don’t worry, the people here’ll eat anything I give ’em, even if it’s Jewish.”

  I was speechless while Grandma muttered a Yiddish expression under her breath. Actually, I didn’t blame her for doing that.

  Tony reappeared with two filled wineglasses and handed them to Mom and Grandma. Then he turned to introduce his sister, who had come over from the dining room, where she had finished setting the table.

  I stood and greeted the sour-looking, overweight girl who had just turned eleven. Katrina did nothing to hide the fact that she did not appreciate having outside guests for Christmas dinner. “The table’s not big enough,” she whined to Tony. “I don’t want ta eat at the foldin’ table wid cousins I don’ know.”

  “They’re family,” Pamela said.

  “Yeah, well, not everybody here is,” Katrina almost shouted. “Anyways, those cousins are so go-shay!”

  I leaned toward Tony and whispered, “What does that mean, Tone?”

  He pretended to box Katrina’s ears when he answered loudly enough for everyone to hear. “She means ‘gauche.’” Tony looked directly at his sister. “Shuddup, Katrina. Ya sound like a real idiot,” he said before taking the cake box from his mother and heading back to the kitchen. His sister stuck out her bottom lip.

  I sat next to Grandma again and glanced at Katrina. She looked toady to me, bloated and overweight for an eleven-year-old, with badly permed stringy dark hair, a doughy face, and angry gray eyes. She hardly had a chance to be much different, I supposed, considering her father’s isolation and her mother’s pushiness and fawning over Tony. But the young girl’s negative demeanor and her penchant for whining made the decidedly unattractive preteen look worse. It had to be tough with a brother like Tony, who had the personality and the looks in the family, and it had become clear to me over the preceding months, as it must have been to Katrina her entire life, that he was his mother’s favorite. To me, Pamela seemed obsessed with Tony.

  Grandma leaned toward me. “Did you see how that Pamela stares at her son?” she whispered. I supposed it was obvious to everyone. “You’ll never get this one away from his mother.” I didn’t respond. No matter how Pamela felt or acted, I knew Tony was his own man.

  Dara walked through the front door with Vin, both of them dressed in their Christmas best. They had probably gotten whole new wardrobes, I thought. Dara, in a bright red skintight jumpsuit, made her way over to me as Vin searched for Tony.

  “Hey, Dara,” I said.

  “Hey, Sam.” Dara glanced at Mom and Grandma on the couch. “Your family?”

  “Yeah,” I said, and made the introductions.

  “Vin didn’t bother to invite mine. Must be nice,” Dara said, and then she went away. Probably to give Vin an attitude, I worried. Dara was famous for such antics and the holiday would be no exception for her. Man, she was a piece of work, just like all the guys said, but I felt it wasn’t really her fault. Like me, she hadn’t had much of a life, but unlike me, she certainly didn’t fantasize about a better one. After the distant cousins—a sad-looking, eccentric couple and two shy children who sat near Philip and kept to themselves—arrived, everyone engaged in easy conversation and laughter. Katrina had changed her attitude somewhat when she saw the unwelcome guests place a gift under the tree for her, and all was peaceful as the group drank eggnog, wine, and cocktails; munched on ricotta salata and mozzarella cheese, crackers and miniature meatballs; and exchanged neighborhood stories and gossip.

  After an hour, Pamela made an announcement after one of her many trips to the kitchen. “It’s ready. Let’s mangia!”

  “More freakin’ food,” Mom said to me in a low voice when we got up from the couch. “All we been doin’ is eatin’.”

  “Shush, Mom. Not now,” I pleaded as I had too many times before.

  “Reminds me of your father’s family, and look where that got me.”

  I turned to my mother with red eyes. “I’ll never be you, Mom. Never.” It was how I felt and my mother had to know. Mom swallowed hard and went to the table. I hesitated and felt sorry for her, but at that moment I wasn’t taking back my words. I had become so sick and tired of my mother putting me down. It was only when she was in a rare good mood that she would tell me that I was pretty or smart. She had never read a word I wrote, and what did that say about Mom and our relationship? I asked myself. At least I had Tony, I thought, and went to his side.

  Katrina sat down first, and everyone looked for his or her name on the tags that were placed on the red and green cloth place mats. I was relieved to be seated next to Tony. Grandma sat on my right, and my mother sat on Tony’s other side. Philip muttered something about saying grace but no one bothered as Katrina started stabbing turkey slices with her fork. “Grace,” she scoffed, and giggled as she piled ham onto her plate along with spoonfuls of buttery mashed potatoes, green beans with bread crumbs, and, of course, piping-hot, cheesy lasagna.

  It seemed the meal was over quickly and everyone got up and went to sit near the tree. It was time to open gifts, and at last, Katrina looked happy and excited. She unbuttoned the top button of her pants, exhaled loudly, and crawled around under the tree, grabbing the gifts with her name tags and shoving other presents to the side. I had bought her a jacket that cost more than I could afford, but Tony had slipped me some extra cash when I told him I was going shopping for his family. “Here’s a coupla C-notes,” he had said as he peeled off five bills from the thick roll he always seemed to have. “Pick out sumthin’ nice.” That was what all the Brooklyn Boys told their girls, I knew.

  “Careful there,” Philip warned his daughter in a low voice, one of the few things he had uttered all day.

  Katrina paid no attention and everyone left he
r alone. When she got to the present I bought her, she thanked me quickly and pushed the jacket away. Why had I bothered? I wondered to myself.

  Pamela walked over and handed me a gift. “For me?” I asked. I was surprised but shouldn’t have been. I had been so afraid of buying the wrong things for the Kroons that I’d almost forgotten I would be getting gifts, too. I took the large box from Pamela and gave her a small one in return.

  Pamela opened it immediately and squealed with delight. “Uh, thanks, Sam,” she said after she turned the eighteen-karat gold-filled pin over in her fingers.

  Tony smiled and looked at me. “Let’s see what Mom got ya,” he said. I felt so on display. I lowered my eyes, smiled without parting my lips, and opened my gift. The sweater, one that must have cost five times as much as the one I was wearing, had my initials engraved on the right side and perfect pink and blue stitching along the edges.

  “Thank you so much, Pamela,” I said, and gave my boyfriend’s mother a hug.

  “You’re welcome, dear,” she said, “but you need to thank Philip and Katrina, too. It’s from all of us.”

  “Thank you,” I said to the others. I glanced at my mom and Grandma, who were overwhelmed as they opened their gifts. Pamela had bought a beautiful cut crystal bowl for Mom that would easily be the most expensive accessory in our home, and a pair of antique lace handkerchiefs for Grandma. After the cousins exchanged gifts and Philip had opened his present from me, a burgundy wallet, Pamela put on the coffee and brought out dessert trays filled with pastries and pies. The Kroons really knew how to do Christmas, I thought.

  Tony sat beside me and I handed him a present. “This is for you, Tone.” He smiled, kissed me quickly, and opened his gift. It was a pair of black leather half gloves for his Harley. “Thanks,” he said as he tossed them on the coffee table, “but I don’ need gifts from ya. We’ll take a ride later for yours.”

  “That’ll be great,” I said.

  “You know what’s great?” Tony asked. “Jus’ havin’ you here with my family and all. Its like bein’ on TV or sumthin’. You know, the lights and food and everybody bein’ happy. We’re practically the Nelsons.” Tony looked over at his dad, who was listening to Grandma while she shouted a story. She was actually making him laugh, something Tony hadn’t seen his father do in many years.

  Tony looked into my eyes with a vulnerability I hadn’t seen before. I reached over and hugged him and didn’t care who saw it. It was Christmas and I was so happy.

  At seven o’clock, Tony borrowed his mother’s Lincoln and we dropped Mom and Grandma off in front of our apartment building. After hugs all around on the sidewalk, the women headed inside. “I’ll have her home early,” Tony promised, and then we got back into the car and took off down the street.

  I shivered beside him. It was a freezing cold night and I snuggled close to Tony. “Damn! It’s cold,” I said. “The wind-chill factor must be zero or something. Maybe I should go back home and get a warmer coat.”

  “No time,” he said. “I gotta meet a guy. Just stick close to me.”

  Tony drove to the center of Bensonhurst and stopped on Eighteenth Avenue in front of Coppo’s Jewelers. “Wait here,” he said. “I’ll be right back.” Tony left the car running and hurried into the store. I sat in the car wondering what the hell he was doing as I watched him through the storefront. It’s Christmas night, for God’s sake, I said to myself. Why would it be open now? I shivered again even though the heater was on. I was ready for some hot chocolate back at his house with all those crazy people.

  I watched as Tony talked and gesticulated with an elderly man and a younger one who must have been his son. The Coppos, as Tony referred to them, cowered and the older man handed Tony a small box. Tony nodded, turned around, and came back to the car.

  “Son of a bitch,” he said with a malevolent grin on his face. “He thought I was a pushover. At least his dad had some sense.” He handed me a velvet box. “I got this for ya.”

  I scrunched my eyebrows and looked at Tony. What had he just been doing? I wondered, but didn’t dare ask, although I so wanted to. Instead, I opened the box in my hand and stared at what was inside.

  “Merry Christmas,” Tony said as he reached for the sparkling gold bracelet with a heart-shaped diamond charm. He polished it against his jacket and put it on my wrist.

  “This is for me?” I asked. “Are you sure? I mean, are these really diamonds?”

  “Yeah. ’Course they are. Those guys owed me.”

  “Ooh,” I said. “I love hearts and this is the first time I got diamonds for a present.”

  Tony smirked. “There’ll be a first time for everything.”

  “Oh, thank you, thank you,” I blurted, and reached over to tousle Tony’s hair. He flinched and pulled back. “Hey, watch the hair,” he said, checking his blond coif in the mirror. Carly Simon’s song “You’re So Vain” flashed into my consciousness, but I overlooked his moment of vanity. I had been getting used to letting it pass. I looked at the heart again and then I hugged and kissed him. “How can I ever thank you enough?” I asked.

  “I gotta few ideas,” he said as he squeezed my breasts. That bothered me. I knew he wanted me to have a different feeling but I was put off by his coming on so strong at such a tender moment. I nudged him away. “Cut it out, Tony,” I said as I collected myself and slipped the bracelet onto my wrist. I sat back in my seat and as I stared into the diamonds, I couldn’t help but wonder where they came from. I wouldn’t dare say anything to Tony, but why didn’t I get a wrapped box like everyone else did?

  Tony beamed as he drove away. “A good guess. I think Mom got jealous when I told her I was gettin’ ya one,” he said with a laugh. I didn’t think that was funny. Pamela always acted as if I was taking away her Tony. With an added resentment like this gift, I thought, it could only get worse. Was Tony deliberately trying to upset his mother or was it just the way things were? I wondered. “Looks good on you, Sam,” Tony said. “I guess I got real good taste.”

  “You sure do,” I said, looking forward to showing it off wherever we ended up next. But in a few minutes we were back in front of my apartment building. “What are we doin’ here, Tone?” I asked. “I want to go show off my present.”

  “Show your mom. I gotta do a thing wid Vin.”

  “Oh, Tony, not tonight. Please. It’s Christmas. I don’t have school tomorrow and I can stay out late. My mom won’t care. Honest.”

  Tony’s eyes narrowed. “What did I just say? I gotta go out and you gotta go home. That’s the way it is.” I slumped against my seat and tucked my chin into my chest. Tony looked at me for a moment and then softened his tone. “Ya gonna wear that for New Year’s?” he asked.

  “Of course,” I mumbled as I twirled the bracelet. I didn’t want him to leave but decided I would be happy to go in and wait until I could tell Janice about it. Besides, Tony and I would be together on New Year’s Eve and that was exciting. I didn’t want to ruin it by not appearing grateful.

  As he drove away, I thought it strange how all the guys would leave their girlfriends alone no matter what night it happened to be. I found myself perched to Tony’s every word, and when he wanted to see me, I jumped.

  I made a vow to myself Christmas night that the New Year would be different. I would make it so.

  “That’s some bracelet!” Janice exclaimed the next afternoon when we sat across from each other at Sally’s. “I toldya you’d better get used ta that kinda treatment.”

  I looked at my wrist and thought about how Tony had dropped me off when I wanted to stay out with him. “I guess I’ll have to get used to being left flat, too,” I said, my head still lowered.

  “It’s worth it. The Young Turks are movin’ up on the Mustache Petes in Bensonhurst.”

  I looked up at my best friend. “I’m not interested in Bensonhurst,” I said.

  “I know, I know. It’s Manhattan ya want to conquer.”

  “With Tone right beside me.”

&nb
sp; Janice looked out the window and I followed her gaze. Bustling Eighteenth Avenue was filled with women wearing fur coats, spike heels, and teased coifs, and men with slicked-back hair who shuffled along looking side to side with their hands in leather jackets. “I gotta be honest, Sam. I don’ know if he’ll ever fit into that world,” she said, and then we faced each other again.

  “He has to,” I said. “’Cause that’s where I’m gonna be.”

  “Did you tell him you’d be with me now?” Janice asked.

  “Of course. On the telephone this morning, right after he mentioned about everyone going to Platinum tonight.”

  “Isn’t it great? We get to spend almost the whole day together.”

  My eyes drifted again to the scene outside the diner. “Yeah,” I said, and wondered where in the neighborhood Tony was at that moment.

  For Tony, as I found out later, a great deal was changing that Christmas week.

  I always used to think that Vin had a secret crush on me, and God, I would never even breathe that out loud. But every time I was around Vin, he would always try to show off about his family and their business. He talked a lot. He would say things a girl like me, well, should just not hear. But there he was this one time, blabbering away about a bunch of shit I wasn’t supposed to know about. I pretended not to pay attention, but I listened to everything.

  Around the same time, Tony and Vin had become inseparable, and Tony had become Vin’s “come with” guy when he was out doing business. Vin liked Tony’s easy manner and his willingness to follow directions, and for him to be Vin’s eyes and ears around town. In fact, he became so valuable to the Prigantis, they invited him to a local meeting with the Teamsters.

  The union president and Tino were in negotiations, as Vin wanted a piece of their action and the Teamsters needed protection from the local cops. Tony was helpful at that meeting with his easy manner and lighthearted banter, which worked out so well, they all raised a glass at the end of the evening, satisfied that each side had gotten what they wanted.