“I will wait and see as you suggest Lilly. I still love him and there are times when he is gentle and kind in small ways. Usually on a Sunday he will have coffee made and a stack of toast on the table while I’m doing my toilette. I know it’s not much, but sometimes small things mean a lot. Another time on our anniversary he surprised me with a pearl necklace and I cried so much he threatened to take it back if I didn’t stop crying.” Lilly broke into a hearty laugh and it turned the heads of some of the passengers who only thought grief and sorrow was the topic of conversation with Lilly and Carol. Even Carl took notice and his eyes showed some interest in what was happening behind him.
A few minutes later Carl was at the desk signing in with Carol hanging back next to the door waiting to see what would happen. Carl finished and turned around with the key in his hand and said, “Well, wife, what are you standing there for, let’s go get a shower and get ready for the birthday party.” You could have knocked Carol over with a feather and she very nearly sank to her knees if Lilly hadn’t the foresight to grab her around the waist and hold her steady. Carl walked by and grabbed her arm and led her out the door. Rick was the first one to start clapping and soon a smattering of applause echoed down the breezeway leading to the motel’s room.
Lilly thought, well so much for that and she signed in taking her key to her room. Lilly knew she wasn’t an authority on motels. This trip being the first motels she stayed in, but after her first look of her room, she stood there with her mouth hanging open. Her first thoughts were where are the usual colors that depicted all the other motel rooms? This one started with the baize door that led to the baize linoleum floor to the tan walls and matching bedspread. The nightstand and lamp next to the bed she had to do a double take to focus on it being a real thing as it too blended into the wall. The only thing of color, if you could call it the color was an old print hanging above the bed of a Kansas landscape dotted with a few with yellow flowers that the artists probably thought his paintings needed something to look at besides a rolling field common to all of Kansas.
Lilly left the door open for Slim and walked to the bathroom to take a shower from a long day in high humidity and dust that was blowing now that the August sun had dried out the land from the storm. The bathroom was a carbon copy of color as the rest of the place: more Kansas dirt brown freshly painted to contrast the white toilet and sink. No tub, but a shower with a shower curtain hanging forlornly like an old used wash rag off a sink. Lilly pulled back the curtain and saw gray cement walls; a dripping shower head leaking more tears that Carol was earlier; and the smell of disinfectant reeked and made her sensitive nose balk at its job of breathing.
Lilly heard Slim close the door and turn on the swamp cooler. He called out her name, but only caught part of it over the sound of the swamp cooler clearing its throat like a John Deere tractor snorting to start the day of plowing. Lilly walked out as Slim in one stride was at the bathroom door grinning ear to ear about something. That something she knew was dinner coming up. By now the sound from the cooler was hammering in her head like a bad headache. She covered her ears and Slim turned tail and shut it off.
Lilly thanked him and stripped down for a shower. Slim followed suit and after Lilly had adjusted the shower, Slim in all his glory looked over the top of the curtain to see his future wife washing her hair. Slim said, “I see you and I’m coming in now.”
“Slim watch out for the…….” As the curtain and rod draped over Slim as he pushed the side of it open to join his fiancé.
Slim, arms waving trying to extricate himself from the curtain slipped on the slick floor winding up on his back side inside the shower as Lilly reached down to help him. Shower water flowing onto his body, Lilly with soap in her hair struggling to help him, Slim started laughing and pulled Lilly down on top of him kissing whatever parts were available in front of his face. Water pounding down Lilly gave up the struggle and lay on top of him as the shower cascaded over the top of them. Slim’s legs were next to the toilet and head against the wall of the shower as Lilly fitted her body to him. Somehow the curtain didn’t interfere and a while later satiated and rid of the curtain, Slim made his way to a standing position bumping his head on the ceiling. “Now that is what I call a birthday present,” he said with a commanding voice of triumph. “Never will I forget this birthday.”
Lilly replied through the stinging soapy eyes, “Slim you take the cake. How can you turn a disaster into a romantic setting belies believing. If you tell anyone about this I will never marry you.”
“My lips are sealed my love and now would you hand me the soap?”
A half hour later both Slim and Lilly could be seen headed for the pot roast with Slim leading the way holding onto her hand dragging her like a kid with a dog that wants to go the opposite way on a leash. Ducking his head going through the door, his mind on only one thing, Slim failed to notice anyone in the restaurant he knew. The waitress, with a big smile met them at the door saying, “Please follow me. We have the banquet room ready for the birthday boy and may I say happy birthday Mr. Slim?”
Slim looked perplexed until he remembered Lilly saying something about a birthday party. They followed the waitress weaving through empty tables and chairs, with Slim only knocking over one chair on the way, to be greeted with a warm song of happy birthday being sung by all the passengers standing up clapping for him. Slim hung his head with shyness and slowly moved to the head of the table nodding his thank you like a duck bobbing for food in a pond.
Lilly sat down to his left and took stock of the table. All were present and accounted for with Carol holding onto Carl’s hand. Both looked happier than mice in a cheese larder. Bill looked half in the bag with a martini glass in his hand singing at the top of his lungs. Lilly thought he should limit his singing in the shower and that brought on a smile thinking back to their shower a short time ago. Sitting to Slim’s right stood a stand with a champagne bottle resting in a bucket of ice. Slim eyed the bottle and then ran his eyes over the table to see what had been laid out for dinner and snacks. Like a golfer looking for a lost ball in the tall grass he went from one dish to another. Lined up were sliced carrots in ice water; cucumbers hollowed out like little canoes lined up for a race with a salad dressing resembling a mix of mayo and blue cheese; pickles of assorted varieties; and in front of him deviled eggs begged him to taste their creamy goodness.
The table turned to polite conversation and from down at the end, Hugh said, “If it’s not too much trouble birthday boy, could you open the bubbly and share with us humble passengers from the good ship Greyhound?” That brought on a round of applause and Slim started to open the bubbly. Lilly had the presence to intercede and took it away from him and carefully opened the bottle to the sounds of a loud pop and pink froth dribbled down the sides of the wine. Bill jumped up and did the honors going around the table like an expert pouring just the right amount into each glass including Rick and Diane. These two love birds sat there holding each other's hand with a smile that looked glued on for the last week. No doubt they were in love and made a cute couple.
Slim turned to Lilly and said with glassy eyes, “I’ve never had a birthday party in my life. Other kids when I was in school would talk about what a great time they had on their birthdays. Me, it was just another day in a life of a too tall uncoordinated goofy kid. You know on my high school graduation even the audience laughed when I walked across the stage to pick up my diploma as my gown barely reached the top of my knees. I was so embarrassed and when the principal handed me my diploma, he said, “How’s the weather up their son?” That was the last time I hung my head for anyone or anything. I grew stronger and more confident to prove myself. Lilly, this is very special for me and I have you to thank for this nice night.”
Lilly patted his arm and raised her glass in a toast to her man. She looked around as the whole table was deathly still and watching the two of them talking. Carl stood up and said, “Let’s drink a toast to our friend and leader of the bes
t trip a man could take across the country with.”
Sounds of, “Here, here,” and once again happy birthday echoed across the room and out the door in the dining room, as carts of pot roast rolled through the door. Slim never took his eye off the dark blue baking pans with lids moving towards the long table.
Lilly punched him in the ribs and he woke up to thank all who were here for a special time. However, he would not be denied as it was time to chow down. Thirty minutes later he sat back with a happy face sipping the last of his champagne. Lilly knew he was looking for dessert and he wasn’t disappointed when two chocolate cakes looking like they were on fire as nearly fifty candles trailing black smoke approached the table on carts. Slim tried to sit up and take notice only to bang his knees on the table spilling two glasses of water. Lilly and one waitress sopped up the water mess as Slim couldn’t wait to blow out the candles. He picks one up at a time and with lungs the size of his tall frame, blew the fire out in one breath to each cake. He rubbed his hands together and asked Lilly with a little boy look, “Do you think we could have some ice cream with our cake?”
“Lilly replied with a mother’s voice, “Yes, my little boy, you can have some ice cream with your cake.”
Jasper, even though he was smiling and having a good time watching Slim, he also out of the corner of his eye, after Frieda bumped his leg, saw Bill three sheets to the wind with martini after martini lolling his head like he had a stiff neck. He thought: “I hope he doesn’t cause any trouble. It would be a shame to spoil such a nice party.”
Frieda whispered in his ear, “Maybe you should take him outside for some fresh air and coffee. If he argues, don’t force him. I see Al keeping an eye on him too and Sue is trying to keep Al from yanking him out of here before he causes trouble. Why can’t the man act like a man?”
Jasper mumbled something and decided to let it develop. He knew Al could handle him if he suddenly blew up and caused a ruckus.
Slim meanwhile along with the rest of the passengers, save Bill, enjoyed the party chatting back and forth eating cake and ice cream. Slim nodded once in awhile, but went at the cake and ice cream like a dog with a bone. Three pieces later he gave up and sat back looking pleased with everything he had done. One might think he just finished building a rocket ship and now it was time to see it go up. He took his job of eating seriously and made sure every crumb was off the plate before leaving it to the clean up people.
And then all hell broke loose. Bill slammed his fist onto the table bouncing water glasses over and then he stood up and shouted at Carl: “You fat SOB why can’t you treat your wife with respect?” His words were slurred so it came out. “Ou sum btch eye tret or ife wit spect?” Al was up at the first sign of movement as all looked on with shocked faces at Bill’s drunken comment. Before anyone could say or take belief in what was going on, Al had Bill by the arm dragging him out of the room with the other arm up against his neck in the back as Bill shouted, “Hey what are you doing. That hurts.”
Just as sudden was the outburst, then just as suddenly it turned quiet as a tomb. Jasper was quietly proud of Al as Sue hurried out the door following them.
Slim sat there dumbfounded and didn’t know if it really happened or not. It started and stopped so fast, he wasn’t sure it was real. He turned to Lilly and said, “How about all of us going for a walk and do a little window shopping before we hit he hay?”
Lilly nodded her head and looked around the table at what was left of the party goers and they all nodded agreement. Slim noticed some cake left and Lilly said, “Don’t worry big boy, I will make sure we take what’s left back to the room for your appetizer before breakfast tomorrow.”
Outside the restaurant, Al had Bill up against the wall talking to him inches from his face saying, “Look you over the hill drunk, this is a special occasion and I will not let you ruin it for love nor money. You sober up now or I will make you wish you were never born. Now, we are going back into the restaurant and you will drink coffee until your pee is black and you are sober. Do you understand me?”
Bill glassy eyed and trying to focus on Al nodded his head. It was then that Al realized he was too drunk to do anything but sleep it off. Al bent over and like a fireman rescue he slung Bill over his shoulder and carried him across the street to his room. At the door he dug through Bill’s pocket and found his key. He opened the door and half drug and half walked Bill to his bed leaving him passed out to wake up with a headache the size of an elephant’s headache from losing his girlfriends to a younger stronger male.
Walking back he met Sue and he told her he put Bill to bed to sleep it off. The others were slowly walking down the street looking their way waiting for them to join in the cake walk off before retiring. All of them guessed right seeing Al and Sue walking across the street to join them about Bill sleeping it off.
The night was warm but a nice Kansas breeze smelling of soil mixed with traces of maturing corn tickled their noses. A half moon, right side up said no rain was forecast. Some believed if it was an upside down half moon it would rain. The only traffic was a few cars leaving the downtown and a few late truckers homing in on the pot roast. A line of trucks was parked for the night down one side of the street and on the other side a half dozen pickups were nosed into the tavern. Approaching the tavern, blue smoke from inside preceded the loud country music out the door. Reflections off the lights of the trucks made it seem the trucks were watching the activity inside like eyes of wives glaring at their husbands when they walked through the door late for dinner and smelling like beer and dirt from a hard day's work in the fields.
Passing the tavern and a hardware store, a jewelry store shone its lights on the sidewalk pulling passer bys like a magnet to the windows full of diamonds and pearls. Lilly and the other women gathered in front whispering to each other like some secret lay just beyond their reach. For most of them, save Carol, the price was the secret shared that night as the men stood around kicking the parking meters waiting to move on to something a little more interesting like the car dealer across the street. In the showroom an anomaly sat like a ruby in an Indian princess crown. A new Corvette sat still, but Slim said it looked like it was going ninety miles an hour down the road. “How would I ever fit into that little thing,” he said to the men.
Al remarked, “I could fit into it, but where would I get the money to buy one of those?”
Carl said with a laugh, “Al, I will loan you the money if you have the proper down payment and a job to make the payments.” That cracked the men up and the ladies all turned around to see what was so funny.
Sue was the first one to ask, “What's so funny guys?”
Al, with a chuckle said, “We were wondering what a sports car is doing in this jerk water town. You can’t tell me a farmer is going to go Saturday shopping in one of those things, can you?”
Lilly got the point and said, “Well now, maybe I will buy Slim a birthday present and he can drive me around the cornfields.”
Slim replied, “Lilly even if I could get into it, my head would be above the window. I would need goggles and what a sight that would be to someone looking on.”
“Come on let’s go you guys I see a drug store open up the street and I want to buy something,” Rick said to the group as they all turned to follow him up the street to the Rexall Drug store. Once inside Rick and Diane went to the card section and picked out a birthday card for all to sign. Slim and some of the men sat at the counter drinking a Green River through a straw. The girls were checking out the makeup section and some of the local teens were hanging around the comic book section smacking gum and quietly talking about who knows what.
Herm, sitting next to Slim asked, “Pardon me for asking Slim, but after you and Lilly are married, where will you live?”
“Herm, I have no idea, but one place in Missouri is quite nice. You will see when we pass through the state it lovely and peaceful.”
“I am looking forward to it and no matter where you live I think you
and Lilly will be very happy.”
“Thanks Herm and we will write you and give you our address so you and Viola can visit us,” he said with warmth and friendship.
After the drug store and Slim with his card safely tucked into Lilly’s bags, they made their way back to the motel for a good night's sleep. The town was quiet now with only the occasionally pickup rattling its way home. The stars were out looking like the many candles on Slim’s cake, twinkling their eyes saying good night.
Slim unlocked the door and started moaning and groaning from his stomach which looked like someone had inserted a balloon and filled it to the breaking point. Lilly scolded him and he meekly agreed he shouldn’t have eaten so much cake. He took his clothes off and pulled the mattress off the bed to the floor. Lilly went to the bathroom and when she came out, Slim was snoring away. Lilly smiled to herself and snuggled up to him even though it was still too warm in the room from the hot day. Soon she too drifted off thinking about the future and where they might live after this trip was over.
Chapter 12
When Slim woke up long before daylight his morning constitutional brought on the sweats. After the first run to the bathroom he tried to sleep again, but shortly thereafter, back he went again. Finally after the third trip he took a long hot shower and felt better. Lilly was still sleeping so he decided to sneak out and check the bus over and by then Lilly would be up and ready for breakfast. A glutton for punishment, he looked forward to a breakfast of steak and eggs. He thought, Lilly will be watching me so I will only have a small breakfast and then later at lunch time I will pour it on.
After a safety check and all was right with the world, he went back to the motel room to see how Lilly was coming along. He found her dressed and ready to go as he opened the door. She scowled at him and he hung his head like a school boy who cheated on a test and was caught by the spoiled teacher’s pet tattling on him. Slim said with downcast eyes and mostly under his breath, “I’m sorry Lilly. I have learned my lesson and will cut back on my cake consumption in the future.”
All Aboard! Romance on Route 66 Page 12
