First Class Stamp

by Aj Harmon

  The doctors were cautiously optimistic about Gloria’s recovery and Aldo secretly acknowledged that he couldn’t have continued to run the store and tend to his wife without his gracious daughter. He would be forever grateful. And he hoped that one day God would reward her for the years of selflessness with a good man that would treat her like the princess he knew she was.

  3.

  Two weeks had passed since Ben had mailed his latest letter to Luca and still no reply. It was unusual for there to be such a long gap between letters. He thought about it sporadically all day.

  It was a typical Monday for Ben in the office. Matt and Mark were both at home and Ryan Little was holed up at his computer going over the previous month’s financial report. Ben sat at his desk perusing his emails when Tyler, Matt’s stepson, rapped on his open door and sauntered in to sit in the leather club chair in front of his desk.

  Ben looked up to see his nephew yawn. He inwardly chuckled. He knew that Tyler had a…a colorful life outside of the office. He and Tim, Ben’s youngest brother, were joined in their quest to bed all the available women in Manhattan. Well, not anymore since Tim had become entangled in love. He was recently married, he’d drunk the kool-aid and had been brainwashed into settling into a mundane existence like the rest of the Lathem men, although both of Matt’s stepsons, Tyler and Adam, and Mark’s stepson Derek, were still all single. Adam was finishing up his residency and would soon go into his specialized field of pediatrics. He didn’t have time to date – he was too wrapped up in his work being a doctor. Derek also worked at MEL Holdings. His was in the engineering side of the business. Any renovation work that was done, Derek had his hand in it. He was pretty quiet and lived a low key lifestyle. If he dated much, Ben didn’t know about it.

  And then there was Tyler. He was so like Matt that Ben found it incredulous they were not biologically related. Tyler even looked a little like his stepfather, and he certainly was following in his bachelor lifestyle. Ben looked at the tired expression opposite him and wondered if it came from one long date or several dates over the course of the weekend.

  “You okay?” he asked.

  “Yeah,” Tyler yawned again. “Didn’t get much sleep last night.”

  Ben’s eyebrows raised and his head tilted ever so slightly.

  “I wish!” Tyler snickered at the question he knew was on the tip of Ben’s tongue. “Christopher wanted to stay with me last night, so, being the awesome big brother that I am, he slept at my house. Well, he didn’t sleep much.”

  “You had a sleepover with a three year old?”

  “Yep! And I gladly returned him this morning when mom came to pick him up. It was a once in a lifetime experience. Believe me! Once and once only.”

  Ben laughed. “That really was not even in the list of things I imagined you to confessing this morning.”

  Tyler shrugged. “I do love the little guy, but he’s not staying over again!”

  They proceeded to discuss the file that Tyler held in his hand. He was headed off to Oklahoma City to negotiate the acquisition of a portfolio trying to avoid bankruptcy. Tyler had found the deal and was trying to see it through from beginning to end and had counseled with Matt on the best way to proceed. He just had a couple more questions for Ben before he hopped onto the plane that would fly him to the Midwest.

  With Tyler satisfied and out of his office, Ben’s mind wandered back to Luca. He picked up the phone and called his assistant to find out what, if anything, was new with Crystal Towers, the skyscraper where Luca’s mother worked. After a few minutes the reply came that all was well in Rio. Ben opened a new word document on his laptop and wrote Luca a quick letter, asking him why there had been no reply from his pen-pal. He scratched out the address on a company envelope, printed the letter and stuffed it inside, licking the fold and sealing it shut. He threw it in the pile on the corner of his desk for his assistant to deal with and continued on with his work day.

  By seven o’clock that evening, Ben had accomplished a great deal. He stood from his executive leather chair and stretched. His assistant, Emily, had left about an hour before and Ben looked out his window at the cars crossing the Brooklyn Bridge. He’d skipped lunch in order to be more efficient and his stomach was growling, demanding to be fed – soon!

  Ben straightened his tie and pulled his suit coat from the rack to the side of his desk and shoved his arms into the Italian-made sleeves. He gathered his laptop and a couple of files he was planning on taking home with him and shoved them into his leather briefcase. As he rounded the corner of his desk, from the corner of his eye he saw the hand-written envelope still on top of the dark wood. He frowned and picked up his letter to Luca. The mail room would be empty by now and he really wanted it mailed. He wanted a reply to eliminate his concern. He slid it into the pocket of his coat and slammed his door behind him as he headed for the bank of elevators.

  The sidewalks were still bustling with people. Just because it was after five o’clock in the U.S.A. didn’t mean there weren’t parts of the world still in the middle of their work day. Before Ben had been promoted to a Vice President, there were many, many nights spent at the office calling Hong Kong or Sydney at four in the morning. He was glad, however, that there were others to take care of those calls now, at least for the most part.

  Crossing the street and continuing down the sidewalk, he approached Aldo’s Market. He could go home get a stamp and then mail the letter, or he could just grab another stamp on his way, saving himself time and energy. Making the most efficient decision, Ben entered the small grocery store and headed for the counter. Aldo sat on a stool behind the cash register. He looked extra tired this evening.

  “Good evening, Mr. Manning,” Ben smiled.

  “Hello Mr. Lathem,” Aldo replied. He had a knack for remembering names and made a point to formally address Ben every time he entered his establishment.

  “Was that your grandson I met the other day when I was in here?” Ben asked.

  “Probably was,” Aldo smiled. “A twelve year old?”

  “That would be him,” Ben smiled. “Good looking young man. Very polite too.”

  Aldo grinned with pride. “Looks just like his mother. And he’d better be polite. He wasn’t raised to be a thug!”

  “I don’t think you have any worries there,” Ben nodded. “Seemed like a good kid to me.”

  “We think so,” Aldo beamed. “What can I get for you?”

  “Some stamps please.”

  At that moment, the young man in question came bounding through the back entrance bouncing a basketball up the aisle to his grandfather.

  “Oh, hi!” he exclaimed when he saw Ben.

  “Hi,” Ben said as he extended his hand to the boy. “Your grandfather and I were just talking about you.” Alex looked worried. Ben chuckled. “All good stuff I assure you,” he eased the boy’s mind. “I’m Ben Lathem. Nice to meet you.”

  “Alex Grossman,” he said as he took Ben’s hand and shook it.

  “You know a handshake says a lot about a man,” Ben’s tone was serious. “You’ve got a good grip and a firm shake. No limp fish hands. That’s good.”

  “Thanks,” Alex grinned.

  Aldo pulled a book of stamps from the drawer of the cash register and Ben opened his wallet and pulled out a twenty dollar bill.

  “Do we get to keep the change this time too?” Alex asked, wide-eyed and totally serious.

  “Alex!” Aldo reprimanded.

  Ben chuckled. “You can have the eighty cents but I want the ten dollars.”

  “Sounds good to me,” Alex replied.

  Aldo handed Ben his change and Ben immediately dropped the coins into Alex’s awaiting hand.

  “Alexander Grossman? You shame me!” Aldo shook his head but Ben only laughed.

  “Enterprising if you ask me,” Ben slapped Alex on the back as he lifted his stamps and turned for the door.

  “Come back anytime!” Alex yelled after him.

  Ben laughed as h
e crossed the street and entered his apartment building. He stopped at the doorman’s desk and placed a stamp on his letter and handed it off to be mailed then proceeded toward the elevator and up to the thirty-fourth floor and home.

  *****

  On Wednesday Sophia Manning pushed the OFF button on the cordless telephone and hurled it at the sofa. It bounced off the pillows and settled on the cushion.

  “Damn him!” she screamed into her hands as she covered her face and shook her head.

  Her ex-husband was a bastard extraordinaire. For the third week in a row, he was cancelling his weeknight visit with his son. He claimed to be stuck at the office but he called on his cell phone and if he was still at the office he would’ve used his desk phone. She wasn’t an idiot, although he would never be convinced of that. Once again, she would have to tell Alex that he would be staying home…with her…again.

  As Sophia retrieved the phone and placed it back on its base on the side table, she knew she wouldn’t be so outraged if Willis hadn’t also flaked on his weekend visitation as well. It had been four weeks since he’d seen his son, but it didn’t seem to bother him or he would make an effort. She could probably count on her two hands how many times he’d actually picked up his son since the divorce. He occasionally called and talked to Alex mid-week, and a couple of times had even sent a present – the latest video game and a skate board, both of which made Sophia furious. A video game was going to rot his brain and where the hell did Willis expect him to ride a skateboard in the middle of the Financial District? They were better off without him in their lives, but Sophia needed the child support to pay their expenses. Without it, they’d be in big trouble.

  She heard Alex bounding up the stairs. He’d been with his grandfather in the store for the past hour helping to stock shelves. Aldo paid him for his time and Sophia knew that her father was a good influence on Alex, something Willis had never been, nor would ever be.

  “I’ve made fifteen dollars and eighty cents already this week,” he grinned as he walked into the kitchen, finding his mother unloading the dishwasher.

  “Great! Put it in your bank before you blow it on something stupid.”

  “Okay,” he sighed and marched down the hall to his bedroom.

  Sophia couldn’t put it off any longer so she followed him. Leaning on the door frame, she watched as her son pulled the large jar from the corner of his closet, unscrewed the lid, threw his money inside and then put the lid back on.

  “Have you decided what you want to buy yet?” she asked nodding at the half-full jar.

  Alex shook his head. “I want to go to a Yankees game but I’d have to have enough for two tickets because you wouldn’t let me go alone.”

  “Darn right I wouldn’t,” Sophia chuckled. She cleared her throat and took a deep breath. “Your dad called a little bit ago and…”

  “And he’s not coming. Figures.”

  Sophia hated Willis but her heart broke as she watched the small shoulders on her son slump and his head fall forward, his chin resting on his chest. She was used to him canceling but Alex would never understand why his dad couldn’t seem to make him a priority in his life.

  “Tell you what,” Sophia perked up. “Let’s you and me go to dinner and then to a movie. Want to see the new Star Trek movie?”

  “Really?” Alex’s eyes shot up to hers, a sparkle in them that made her smile.

  “Really. Who wants to have leftover hamburger casserole again anyway?”

  “Not me!” Alex grinned.

  *****

  When Ben returned to his apartment after a long day at work, he was relieved to see in his mailbox a letter from Luca. While still in the elevator, he ripped open the envelope and quickly read the contents of the letter. Luca’s mother, Maria, had told him he was not allowed to write any letters to Ben until he had completed his school assignments that were delinquent. Luca called her mean but Ben just chuckled. His own mother had threatened him more times than he could count to get his homework done timely. He commiserated with his buddy but also knew Maria was completely in the right.

  With all assignments completed and turned in, Luca now had a few weeks holiday from school and would be able to write as often as he could. Ben was happy to get the news that Luca was well and so all worst case scenarios were scrubbed clean from his mind. He hadn’t realized how worried he’d become until he knew he had no reason to be.

  Ben shrugged out of his jacket and hung it on the back of the dining chair. He loosened his tie and walked to the fridge and pulled a bottle of Mountain Dew from the door. He chugged several gulps, burped loudly and then went to get changed. He’d been invited to Matt and Janie’s for dinner. Actually, Ella, his niece, had invited him and Janie had agreed.

  In jeans, a Yankee’s t-shirt and Nike flip flops he headed back down the elevator and out into the warm summer evening to walk the few blocks to his brother’s apartment.

  *****

  Alex all but skipped on the sidewalk, hurrying his mother along, pleading with her to move faster because he was “staaaarving!” Sophia grinned and shook her head and just half a block later entered the pizzeria to grab a couple of slices to eat on the way to the cinema. Alex ordered two cheese and Sophia one pepperoni and in a couple of minutes, pizza and drinks in hand, they were back out on the street and headed for popcorn at the theater.

  Sadly, Sophia couldn’t remember the last time she’d been to the movies with her son. She needed to make sure that he received the attention he needed from her, as apparently her ex would remain an ass and end up being an absentee father. She had several friends who’d divorced their husbands for one reason or another, but most of them were attempting to make it work where the kids were involved. Child support, custody, visitation, new partners, health insurance, parent-teacher conferences, little league games, new half-siblings, step siblings and the list went on forever. On the rare occasions she got together with her girlfriends the topic of conversation always ended up on how to navigate post-divorce existence. It wasn’t easy and it sure as hell wasn’t pleasant...for Sophia anyway.

  Alex was smiling and chatting away and excited for the evening ahead. He’d been such a happy baby and continued to be a happy child. And now as he stood on the doorstep of his teenage years, Sophia hoped that the trend would continue. Her life, however, was one stress upon another stress upon more stress but she’d desperately tried to shield her son from it. Without her parents, Sophia had no idea how’d they make it each month without the free rent of their apartment. Money had always been a problem for her since the moment she’d married Willis. In the beginning of their marriage it was because they didn’t have any. They survived by eating mainly hot dogs and mac and cheese, living in a dumpy studio apartment with occasional hot water, while she worked two minimum waged jobs and he went to school. Willis said he couldn’t work while in college because his mind needed to be focused and he had to work hard to get good grades so that he’d secure a good job. How many times had she come home after being on her feet for fourteen hours to find him sitting playing a video game, the laundry piled by the front door waiting for her and dirty dishes from his evening meal in the sink, with nothing prepared for her to eat? How many years had she lived on five hours sleep a night so she could pull a double shift at the eatery so their rent would only be three days late, instead of ten?

  And then? Willis graduated and school was finally behind them, for him anyway. He’d managed to get a job for the first year as an assistant manager at a cell phone retail store and money was still tight even though tuition and books were expenses of the past. He had to have the ‘right’ clothes to wear and sometimes spent half of his paycheck on shoes and ties and cuff links. For most of that summer, Alex, only three years old, wore his swimsuit because most of his clothes were too small and her paycheck had to pay the rent and the electricity bill, with nothing left for even a trip to a thrift shop for the toddler’s wardrobe. And finally, when the dream job materialized and Willis finally go
t to wear his five hundred dollar pair of shoes and his fourteen carat gold cuff links to a real job where he made real money, and she was allowed to quit her job, he controlled all the finances and she was given an allowance that had to pay all the household bills with a little left over for food and clothes for Alex. Sophia hated having to beg for extra money to buy cleats for baseball, or supplies for art camp in the summer. She learned quickly that a blow job released his rigid hold on the checkbook and as she gagged as he released down her throat she just kept telling herself that Alex was worth any amount of degradation and humiliation she felt.

  As they made their way down the aisle of the darkened theater, Alex picking their seats, she knew she would do anything for him…and she had. Popcorn in hand, her son wiggled and fidgeted until the lights dimmed and the THX surround sound swirled and whipped around the theater. Sophia sighed, knowing that she’d averted another disappointing evening for her boy, but was unable to focus on the movie in front of her. Her thoughts had drifted to her mother, who was at home, and she hoped all was well. She’d left her in the company of a good friend who’d come over to visit, fortuitously at the right moment for Sophia to leave. Aldo had all but ordered her out when she’d approached him about the possibility of taking Alex out for a needed break but her mind was still in caretaker mode as she thought about her frail mother.

  Sophia’s parents had been together since they were about fourteen. Both born to Italian mothers and American fathers, they gravitated to each other in school. They’d been brought up with the same morals and middle class values of hard work and integrity. Now, hardly considered old at sixty, they both still worked hard and loved each other deeply. Sophia couldn’t imagine either of her parents alone; when she thought of them, they came as a pair. Gloria’s healing was slow but the prognosis was optimistic. Just a few more weeks and hopefully she’d be back to her usual chipper and energetic self.