A Yonkers Kinda Girl

by Rose O'Callaghan

  “She came to see me on Thursday. Didn’t she tell you?”

  “When?” Tony asked.

  “Thursday morning.“ He watched Tony calculate the day.

  “What’d she say?” Tony asked.

  “Something I needed to hear.”

  Tony walked up to the O’Dwyer’s after dinner. The twins were playing Mommies on the walk. Tony asked them to get Lilly.

  Kelly said, “Can’t.”

  Brian was sitting on the stairs to the porch, watching. He called to Tony, “She’s grounded.”

  Tony sat on the steps with Brian and asked, “She’s grounded?”

  “Yup.”

  “How come?”

  “She skipped school. I used to go to school, but I’m sick now,” Brian said stoically.

  “You look good. What day did she skip school?” Tony asked.

  “The other day.”

  “Thursday?”

  He got no answer.

  “How long is she grounded for?”

  “’Til Thanksgiving,” Brian answered.

  “November?”

  Tony was amazed. He asked, “Six months?”

  “Yup. She was spelled.”

  “Spelled?” Tony said.

  “Spelled from school.”

  “Expelled?”

  “Yup.”

  “Does she still babysit?” Tony asked.

  “Nope. Colleen does.”

  “Hey, thanks Brian. “

  The next day Tony watched the apartment house from the station. He saw a girl his age come out at the right time.

  He called, “Colleen?”

  She crossed the street, recognizing Lilly’s friend.

  “Colleen, could you give this to Lilly?”

  He handed her an envelope.

  “Sure.”

  Colleen took it. She shook it on the way home and felt it carefully. When she got home, she ran up to Lilly’s room and handed her the envelope.

  Lilly opened it and found a note that said:

  Lilly, thanks

  Tony

  ps My father wanted you to have this

  In the envelope was a plain gold cross with the name Maria engraved on it. She smiled thinking this was the start of something big. She didn’t know they wouldn’t speak again for 15 months.

  *******************************

  7. May 1968

  Lilly sat on a wall, waiting for Frank. Emerson JHS was two miles from where they lived. They didn’t take the bus for their own reasons. Frank saved the thirty-cent fare each way for cigarettes and to keep up with his brother. Lilly thought having to walk was a residual punishment from being expelled. She didn’t realize Brian’s medical bills had pushed the family budget to the limit.

  Frank came up to her and said, “C’mon Lilly.”

  They walked for a while in silence.

  Frank and Lilly had developed a friendship by both being underdeveloped for their ages. Although they’d never admit it, they also shared an admiration for Tony. Frank would casually mention whatever Tony was doing, knowing Lilly would be grateful to hear but was too proud to ask. Lilly built Frankie up, because he needed some ego boosting. He was not as tall or athletic, or smart – not as anything as his brother.

  Lilly blurted out, “Can you believe I’m the smallest person in the school?”

  “What?” Frank asked.

  “They did the girls’ physicals in the gym today. The nurse said I’m the smallest girl in the school. My sister Colleen is 5’6” and Ann is 5’7”.”

  “Be glad you’re a girl.”

  “What? I’m about the only person who didn’t go to the dance for seventh and eighth graders. Who would ask me? I look like I’m seven. My sister Francie is four and a half. I stole a pair of her shorts. They fit! I think I’ll drown myself.”

  Frank started chuckling, picturing her in baby clothes.

  “It’s not funny Weasel Face.”

  Even at her most subdued, Lilly was not far from baring her dukes.

  “Wait a sec, Lil. How do you think I feel? I’m fifteen and barely 5 feet. When Tony was fifteen, he was over six feet. Now he’s sixteen, and he’s 6’3”. My father’s only 5’5”, I’ll probably never grow. I’ll have to go out with midgets.”

  “Frankie and the midgets. Think of the possibilities.” Lilly said seeing the humor of the situation.

  “At least they’ll be midgets with boobs, Flatsy.”

  “What’s the matter, you haven’t seen Twiggy? Flat’s where it’s at.”

  Frankie talked about the upcoming weekend.

  “Tony will take everyone in his car. It’ll be Tony and Jean and Mike and Cindy and Jimmy and me. It’s gonna be a blast. You should come. You haven’t seen Tony in a year.”

  “No, I can’t. I’m going to the summer house this weekend,” Lilly excused herself truthfully. She had seen Tony in the past year. He hadn’t seen her. Every time, Tony was with some gorgeous, busty girl. The last thing she wanted was for Tony to see her next to one of those overdeveloped beauties and write her off for good.

  ********************************

  8. September 1968

  A dormant bud in May can blossom into a lovely flower by summer’s end. Lilly came back with a new confidence and a new body. She had worked as a dishwasher in a restaurant and had also babysat often during the summer. She returned to Yonkers with quite a bit of money in her pockets.

  Brian was having a relapse and needed to stay close to the hospital and doctors. Bridget rented the East Hampton house for the winter. She told the kids that unfortunately there would be no weekends there until June. Lilly was worried about Brian but glad the weekends would not get in the way of her plans.

  She had grown to 5’3” and had a slender frame. She rode the subway to New York and went shopping along Fifth Avenue, moving from Macy’s to Bloomingdales. She returned by the commuter line, the Penn Central, to Bronxville, certain she would be the best-dressed ninth grader in Emerson.

  From her walks with Frank, she knew Tony and his friends hung out at the Bronx River Park. The park ran along the river through towns and suburbs where the river’s perennial flooding kept development from encroaching. Close to Lilly’s home, the park could be entered from Tuckahoe Road on the Yonkers side or Pondfield Road on the Bronxville side.

  Lilly took a Frisbee and wandered over to Eileen O’Rielly’s the first Sunday she was home. She convinced Eileen and her sister Margaret to come to the park.

  They played Frisbee for a few minutes, and two guys asked if they could join.

  Eileen said, “Sure.” And put her flirting in high gear.

  Lilly teased the guys more quietly, calling Mike “Mel.”

  Mike asked why she called him Mel.

  “Would you prefer I call you Stottlemeyer, the way you shoot that Frisbee?”

  Margaret was the one to break it up, saying she and Eileen had to get home. The guys tried to convince Lilly to stay, but she, too, said she had to leave. They asked her name, but she said no.

  “My mother always said a girl has to be introduced.”

  Mike pressed saying, “All right tell me your name, and I’ll introduce my friend Bill.”

  “Oh, all right. My name is Irene Dunne.”

  Mike asked if they would be back during the week.

  Lilly knew Tony’s schedule, so she said, “No, maybe next Sunday.”

  Margaret and Eileen didn’t understand her secrecy.

  Eileen asked, “Why didn’t you tell them your name? I’d have given the cute one my phone number if he’d asked.”

  Lilly said, “I’m after bigger fish.”

  Mike and Bill left the park and headed for Tony’s. The della Robbia apartment was directly across from the park, separated from it by the Bronx River Parkway and its service road.

  Both generations of della Robbia brothers were watching baseball.

  Mike told Tony, “You missed it. Three, count them, three, pretty girls playing Frisbee. One was God dam
n beautiful. We’re gonna see them next week.”

  Mike turned to Bill. “Irene is mine, so forget about her.”

  Tony said “Irene?”

  Mike replied, “Irene Dunne. Do you know any Dunnes?”

  “Irene Dunne?” Tony asked. “Did she laugh when she said it?”

  “Yeah, kind of. How’d you know?” Mike asked.

  “She’s going to be there next week?”

  “Yeah.” Mike was getting defensive.

  Tony said, “Any chick who calls herself Irene Dunne, I’ve got to meet.”

  Lilly invited Eileen and Margaret to come over early on Sunday. They fixed each other’s hair. Margaret’s hair was done in complicated braids, as were Eileen’s and Lilly’s. Lilly caught sight of them in a mirror and took her braids out, brushed her hair, and left it free.

  Having two older brothers gave Lilly some insight as to how guys arrange things. She thought that since the girls had entered and exited from the Tuckahoe Road side last time, they would likely use the Bronxville side today so they could check out the girls. Lilly led them to the Bronxville entrance. She couldn’t contain a smile when she saw Tony and Frank and Bill and Mike sitting on a ledge overlooking the park. Lilly motioned to Eileen and Margaret to keep quiet and led them up to the ledge.

  “Well, fellas, are you going to play Frisbee or not?”

  The guys all spun around, and Lilly shot the Frisbee to Tony.

  Tony stood up and shook his head laughing, “Irene Dunne, I presume.”

  She winked at him, “Is that your Stanley act?”

  He laughed and threw the Frisbee to Frank. “Would you like to go for ice cream?”

  Lilly hesitated, then said, “Sure. I guess.” They started to walk toward Bronxville.

  Tony heard the others getting up and said, “See ya.”

  Margaret called “Lilly?”

  Lilly turned, “Margaret, play Frisbee. They won’t bite you, but watch out for Frank. You’re his type.”

  Frank laughed and threw an acorn at her.

  Tony and Lilly walked out of the park and then sat on a stone bridge over the river.

  “When did you become such a fine young lady, Miss O’Dwyer?”

  “When your back was turned,” Lilly said shyly.

  She felt very unsure of herself. They had had many long conversations in the past, but now Tony was seeing her differently.

  “Irene Dunne?” Tony questioned

  “The way they were gawking at us, I felt like a movie star.”

  “It’s been a long time since I’ve seen you,” Tony said.

  “Oh, probably about a year … maybe more.” Lilly knew every one of the fifteen months.

  “I’m sorry I got you into so much trouble,” Tony said.

  “It was my choice. Anyway it was good for the soul. Tony are you still working at the gas station?”

  “Yeah, but it’s different now. Frank pumps gas. I only work on cars. You should stop by.”

  Lilly waited a minute. “I don’t know. I don’t want to hang out at that corner.”

  She realized she might sound like a snob, and added, “I spend a lot of time with Brian, when he’s not in the hospital, and the twins … teaching them piano. You were right. My mother works hard.”

  Tony nodded at her. “You’re not a brat anymore. How’s school? You got expelled right?”

  “Yes. But Emerson’s great. None of the teachers knew my perfect brothers and sisters. How about you? Are you still planning on scholarships?”

  “Yeah …” Tony cleared his throat. “Yes, I use the dictionary. I’m more fluent in English. I’ve got a new angle. Basketball. I’m going to be on varsity this year.”

  “That’s great. Did you play at Emerson?”

  “No.” Tony stood and started walking toward Bronxville.

  His answer came through gritted teeth. Lilly followed him silently.

  “You see, Lil, when I got to Greely, Coach Veliski saw me and started having me run drills. I never thought much about it ’cause I was always working. See, at Emerson, only rich kids from Colonial Heights and your neighborhood get recruited. It pisses Coach Veliski off. He can hardly ever get kids from Emerson who have playing time. That’s why all the players are from Longfellow. Coach says the coach at Emerson has political aspirations.”

  Tony walked quickly. Lilly almost had to trot to keep up with him. Tony slowed down when they reached the ice cream store.

  As they sat on a bench in front of the store, Tony asked, “Do you always eat ice cream with lots of stuff in it?”

  “Yup, it’s interesting.” Lilly picked out a piece of peppermint. “You always eat chocolate?”

  “Nope. But it’s right for today.”

  Lilly licked Tony’s ice cream. Then when he looked at her surprised, she grabbed his cone and started to run.

  “You’re right. Chocolate is right for today,” Lilly called.

  Tony came up to her. “All right.”

  Lilly put the cone behind her back. Tony reached it easily. Lilly let go of the cone and took a step back, shyly.

  “Come on, kid. I’ll walk you home.”

  Lilly thought she had blown it. “Tony how old are you?”

  “Sixteen. I got my license and wheels.”

  “I know all about your wheels,” Lilly said. “I’m fourteen.”

  Tony asked, “Have you ever gone out with anyone?”

  “Well, not yet. Tony, did you ever get in trouble about the car?”

  “Well …” Tony hesitated, deciding how much of the story to tell. “Almost.”

  Lilly waited expectantly. He finally told her the whole story.

  Lilly laughed. “Saved from the spider woman.”

  Tony told her, “I really didn’t mind painting. Larry Esiason was an interesting man. He always made coffee when I finished for the day. He taught me a lot.”

  “The spider woman wanted to teach you something too,” Lilly teased. “Tony, I’ve got to get home soon.”

  Tony answered, “C’mon. I wouldn’t want you to get lost.”

  Lilly giggled. They talked about their families on the way back.

  “Tony, there’s something I’ve got to ask you.”

  “Shoot.” Tony said.

  “Your father’s from Italy, right?”

  “Right.”

  “How come he doesn’t have an accent?”

  Tony looked at her quizzically. “You know, you’re right. My Uncles Nunzio and Joe hardly speak English, their accents are so thick. Nick moved here young, so he has more of a New York accent, but Pops, he hardly has an accent at all. I’ll bet it has to do with my mother, my real mother. She used him so badly. He felt like a wetback. I think he never wanted to be used again … he wanted to be safe. I think he tries to talk like Walter Cronkite.”

  “I wear the cross he sent me.”

  Lilly pulled the chain from under her shirt. They walked a while without talking. Lilly smiled until her cheek muscles hurt, but she could not stop smiling.

  Tony asked what subjects she was taking. He told her since he was only working three evenings a week and Saturdays, he could come up and help her with algebra. She wasn’t having trouble with algebra, but if he wanted to tutor her, that was fine with her.

  That evening Tony thought of Lilly. She was a little skinny, but in a nice way. She wasn’t curvaceous but her heinie looked muscular, probably from playing the piano. He wasn’t sure about her breasts. He had often thought a girl had boobs but then found out that they came off with the bra. He had discovered the joy of sex when he was fifteen and, since then, mainly stayed with girls who were joyful. He hadn’t seen Lilly in a long time, but he had been glad when she and Frank became friends. He knew she was inexperienced with dating but was surprised by how skittish she had become when he put his arms around her to retrieve his ice cream. He decided to take it slow.

  He waited a week to go to her home. Lilly thought she had misread him. She was in Colleen’s room practicing dancin
g with Colleen and Ann. Daniel knocked on the door to say Lillian had a beau. Lilly ripped off her sweatshirt while Colleen went through her closet for her prettiest shirt. Ann took the butterfly barrette from her hair to lend Lilly, in a sisterly conspiracy. Lilly made a well-practiced descent down the staircase. Tony felt he was watching a princess.

  “Where’s your Algebra book?”

  “Oh, I’ll be right back.”

  Lilly raced up the stairs, forgetting her poise and breaking the illusion.

  After that, Tony came to help her once or twice a week, but their relationship was not progressing. Lilly thought every time would be the time he would kiss her. Tony didn’t want to scare her off. One evening they were sitting at the kitchen table, when she got a call from another boy. Lilly told the caller she couldn’t go to the Halloween dance with him since she already had a date.

  Lilly sat down. “Now where were we?”

  Tony mumbled, “Here,” and pointed to the book. He looked away from the book then and caught her eye. He bent over and softly kissed her.

  Lilly blushed. Tony asked, “Who are you going out with?’

  The wise ass in her recovered before the etiquette-reformed self. “Some big dumb basketball player if he ever gets around to asking me.”

  Tony kissed her again.

  *********************

  9. May 1969

  Lilly was in Social Studies class, daydreaming. Next year, she would be in Greeley with Tony. It would be wonderful. Tonight, they would go to the church house. Every Friday, the Wesleyan Church in the neighborhood let the kids use the church basement, which was laid out well for teenage entertainment. The lower basement had a stage and basketball court. Up six stairs was a huge room with old sofas and chairs, black lights, and a stereo.

  Lilly knew they’d probably get stoned on the staircase behind the library and then head to the church house. Lilly was pretty good at rolling joints. Tony’s ripped in the middle. Lilly smiled as she thought of his reaction the first time she pulled out a baggie of pot and asked if he wanted to smoke.

  The summer before, Lilly had babysat frequently for other summer people. She slept two days a week at one house while the mother went to the city to work at her gallery. The father came out every weekend. They had a baby grand piano. Lilly played for hours, long after her wrists and fingers began aching.