Disappearing Act—Christine Livingston and Meg Bumgartner
Saturday, I returned to work, floating on air as I delivered plates full of barbeque ribs to patrons. I’m not sure what had me feeling so good, although getting a good night’s sleep on that incredibly comfortable bed had something to do with it. And of course, then there’s Melinda, who wowed me at every turn. But after all that she had shown me, I wasn’t so sure she could do it anymore. I found myself praying that she could make it through the next month, because I did not want to see her fail.
“Chrissie, what’s a girl got to do to get a little service around here?”
“Meg! When did you walk in?”
“Just now, can you take a break?”
The dinner rush hadn’t started yet so I said sure, and led her over to a table. “Do you want something to eat, Meg?”
“No, thank you.”
“So, how did you find me? I don’t recall telling you where I worked.”
“I’m a detective, remember? I know where you live and where you work. Have you considered moving closer to work to save you some time and expense?”
“Yes, that was my original plan, but I don’t want to now because of Norma.”
“Norma?”
“Yes, she’s in her eighties and lives in the apartment two doors down from me. She’s become like a grandmother to me and I treasure her friendship. I don’t want to move away from her.”
“She sounds very special and I’m glad for you. Listen, I’ve been trying to get a hold of you but I couldn’t find you at home or at work. Is everything all right?”
“Oh yes, everything is great. I had a day off and Melinda took me to San Francisco to show me where she lives.”
“Where she lives? Are you two, uh…”
“Oh no, it’s nothing like that. I’ve challenged Melinda to a test and she wanted to show me what she would be giving up in order to complete the challenge.”
“I don’t understand?”
I explained to Meg what we would be doing and why, and she was shocked when I told her that Melinda would be moving in with me.
“Why can’t she get her own place?”
“Because I want her to succeed and after seeing how rich she really is, I think she needs a go between to help her over the rough spots.” I looked at Meg closely and saw the concern in her eyes. “It’s really all right, Meg. I could use the company during the holidays.”
“You know she drinks heavily and throws cash around like it grew on trees?”
“It’s okay, you can say what you’re really thinking, that she’s a bad influence and will lead me down the devil’s path. But you’re wrong about her, Meg. I’ve seen an incredible change in her since I first met her. She wants to change and I want to help her change. I believe that my convictions are stronger than hers and I have no fear of her influence over me.”
“You’re convictions had better be rock solid, because money is a strong enticement. Especially considering—”
“Considering that my parents kicked me out and I’m living in a slum now? If I can withstand that kind of heartache, I can withstand a little enticement from Melinda Blackstone. And just imagine if she succeeds, which I know she will, she will be a completely different person with empathy for others and compassion for the less fortunate.”
“Chrissie, where do you see this going, your friendship with Blackie?”
“I’m afraid to say it out loud in case I jinx it, but I see us being more than friends. Together we could do so much more to help people, than we could ever do separately. At least, that’s what I would do with my money if I had any.” I realized I was treading into revealing waters. “Anyway, to change the subject, were you looking for me for a specific purpose?”
“Yes, Frankie and I wanted to invite you to Thanksgiving dinner. Frankie’s a wonderful cook and you won’t be disappointed.”
“Oh, but I am disappointed. I have already made plans to be with Norma and Melinda on Thanksgiving.”
“That’s all right, perhaps we can get together some other time.”
“Absolutely. Can Melinda come too?”
Chapter Fourteen
A Lot To Be Thankful For — Christine Livingston, Melinda Blackstone and Norma Shelby
Norma invited us to Thanksgiving dinner, and Melinda asked me if she could provide a turkey dinner with all the trimmings on Thursday. I told her no, because it would defeat the purpose if she stored up on supplies and then lived off of them for any length of time. Even if it was just for the holiday. Since that would be her first full day of being penniless, I told her that I would use my emergency tips and buy the turkey. That way Norma wouldn’t be out the expense. Even if she did have antiques worth a lot of money, she didn’t have any money either.
Norma was very excited to be spending the holiday with friends and I wondered how long it had been since she’d had someone spend the holidays with her. I know that I had dreaded being alone on the holidays and now I was looking forward to them.
Melinda moved in the day before Thanksgiving, bringing only the clothes she wore, a dark blue shirt and a pair of jeans, plus some T-shirts, another pair of jeans and underwear. She left behind her wallet full of credit cards, her cellphone and her money. The only problem that I could see, and didn’t have a solution for at the moment, was her expensive Italian Suede shoes. She said she didn’t have anything cheaper. In this neighborhood people have killed for less.
“So, do you think you’ll survive in this tiny apartment for a month?”
Her face was like stone when she said, “I sleep in the raw.”
I think she meant to shock me with her statement, but I had thought all that through already. “That’s no problem at all.” I walked over to the bed and tugged on the sheet I had hung from the wall, and pulled it across the bed to a hook on the opposite wall. “I forgot to show you the room divider.”
“And when we’re in bed together?”
She had a devious twinkle in her eye when she asked that, but that was the first thing I worried about when I decided to invite her to live with me. I pulled the comforter back on the bed to show her that we each would have our own sheet and blanket, thereby providing some modicum of privacy. I didn’t tell her that I had bought the extra sheet and blanket at a flea market. I thought I’d spare her that much. After all, they weren’t silk or satin and I was sure that would be problematic enough for her.
The first night, we sat on the bed and had a snack of tuna and crackers and the kitten gobbled up the crumbs afterwards. The bed was actually the only place we could sit because it was too cold to sit on the fire escape outside. We reminisced about that wonderful trip to San Francisco, and I pointed out to her that she had committed her second random act of kindness, but she looked away, and picked up the kitten.
“I uh, well, I didn’t actually plan that the staff would attend the party.”
“I know, but they didn’t know that and now they have a better regard for you, because of you kindness.”
“You knew? Why didn’t you call me on it?”
“For the reasons I just told you, the staff think you’re wonderful now. It’s a big step in changing your reputation.”
“Well, it was kind of cool, having them thank me for a great time and for the first time, mean it.”
“It’s a great feeling, isn’t it? It’s sort of like getting high without the drugs getting in the way.”
“Yeah, that’s right. We should get high all the time.”
She grinned and I knew she was joking around. After playing a few rounds of gin rummy, I was getting tired so I asked if she was ready for bed. The first problem we ran into, as roommates, was that when one of us was ready for bed, the other one had to be also. I didn’t have a television to watch and no chairs to speak of so you either laid in bed and read or you sat on the floor and played with the kitten.
Since it was the first night, we both went to bed at the same time. I pulled the sheet I was using as a curtain
, across the bed and undressed on my side of the room while she did the same on her side. She chose to wear a T-shirt and panties, and I put on my flannel pajamas with the polka dots. I felt like I was wearing granny panties compared to what she was wearing to bed. Finally when she was ready, I pulled the curtain back and we crawled into bed.
“Oh, by the way, thank you for wearing your T-shirt to bed instead of sleeping nude, and I snore… very loudly.”
Turn-about was fair play.
*
I barely slept a wink all night. I have to admit, it’s already starting to be a difficult transition for me. First of all, when I was Blackie Blackstone, I never got to bed before one A.M. As Melinda, going to bed at ten P.M. was way too early. Second of all, that bed had a lose spring that was stabbing me in my kidney, every time I moved. And thirdly, every time I did finally dose off, the kitten woke me up again by playing with my hair, or sticking her tiny little nose in my ear and purring so loud it startled me.
Then there’s sleeping next to a beautiful woman and remembering she’s just a friend, so no touching allowed. I have no siblings, and never shared my bed with anyone that I wasn’t having sex with, so this was a completely new and somewhat disjointed feeling I was experiencing.
It seemed like hours before the sun finally peeked between the drab buildings and even longer before Chris woke up.
“Good morning, sleepy head. It’s about time you woke up.” Normally people would say that to me because I usually slept in until noon.
“Good morning, roomy. Did you sleep well?”
“Not a wink.”
“Oh, I’m sorry. Was it because everything was different from what you were use to?”
“It was a whole bunch of things, including this crazy kitten of yours. Did you know she has a kinky side to her?”
“Oh, do you mean the way she likes to sniff your ear just as you’re falling asleep and then wakes you up with her purring>”
“Yes, that’s it exactly. So she’s done that to you before?”
Chris set up and stretched, a long stretch that ended with the cutest little squeal.
“She had been, until you moved in.”
I could hear the teasing in her voice so I teased back, “Well then, I think tonight I’ll hide a little tuna in your ear and let Blackie see that you smell even better.”
Chris rubbed her ear and said, “You wouldn’t dare… would you?”
I just grinned at her and got out of the bed. “Dibbs on the bathroom,” I announced, and bounded off.
“Don’t use up all the hot water!” She bellowed at me.
I let the water run for a long time and finally, it was hot enough to tolerate. The shower was small, like everything else in that apartment, with the base no wider than one of those steel tubs, and the shower curtain was circular and hung from a round rod attached to the ceiling. The shower head protruded from the ceiling as well and pointed one direction, down. As different as it was, the shower did its job, and I stepped out onto the bathmat and dried off. It was harder to dry off because there was less room to stretch and bend. Okay, this will take some major getting use to. When I was finally done, I realized that I had not brought a change of clothes in with me. At home I would just walk around nude and not think twice about it.
I cracked the door a tiny bit too asked Chris to bring me some clothes and then I realized there would be no way to dress in here unless I stand on the toilet and bend over to keep from bumping my head on the ceiling.
I hollered out the door, “Chris, help. How am I supposed to dress in here?”
“It’s okay, you can come out here and dress.”
Okay, if she doesn’t mind my being naked then I don’t. I walked out feeling surprisingly modest until I saw that she had put the curtain back up. With the light coming in from the window, I could see her silhouette through the curtain,, standing beside the bed.
“It’s going to be a beautiful day today, I wish we had time to get out and enjoy it.”
“Why can’t we?” I asked as I slipped into my jeans.
“Because there’s too much to be done, to prepare for the big meal.”
“There is?” What’s to prepare, you show up and then start eating.
“Oh yes. Most of the preparation is in the peeling. I used to help my mom, even after we were rich, peel potatoes, onions, oranges and carrots, and then boil eggs, and after that, the turkey neck so she could make giblet gravy. Then I’d help her with the dressing, crumbing up the stale bread into a bowl, adding some orange bits, celery and onions, and while the turkey and dressing were baking, we’d make the deviled eggs, mash the potatoes, bake the sweet potatoes with marshmallows on top, cranberry sauce, fruit salad, green bean casserole, the broccoli, orange, and olive salad, and last but not least, the dinner roles. And that was just on the big day. The day before, we made pies, chocolate cream, pumpkin, and walnut pies. My favorite part was licking the spoons afterwards.”
“Wow, I didn’t know all that work went into the Thanksgiving meal. My job was just to show up and eat.”
“Well, your job today will be at the peeling station, scraping the skin off the potatoes.”
“Oh joy, can’t wait.”
*
Norma was ready for us when we walked in early that morning. The turkey was thawing in the kitchen sink, the innards already removed and simmering in a pan. She had started peeling potatoes but I took that chore from her and gave it to Melinda, and then I began peeling the onions. I tried to insist that Norma leave the work to us, she enjoyed cooking, and wanted to be a part of it all. So I asked her if she would mind breaking up the hard bread for the dressing. I sat her down at the table and gave her a bowl to put the bread in.
The best part about all that work was that the three of us talked like we were family and it was a very comforting feeling. I was really missing my parents today, and I had a feeling the other two were missing people in their lives too. Holidays are always the hardest time to be away from loved ones.
“So, Melinda, are you ready for tomorrow?”
“What? Oh, you mean my first day as a waitress? Sure, how hard can it be?”
Norma chuckled and said, “Do you know what tomorrow is, dear?”
“Friday?”
Now it was my turn to chuckle, “It’s Black Friday, Melinda. The restaurant will be inundated with exhausted shoppers with sore feet and frustrated tempers. By the end of the day, we’ll be the ones with sore feet, and none the richer for it.”
“It’s that bad? Maybe we should wait until after the holidays to do this?”
I laughed and shook my head at her, the holidays were the perfect time for her to test her resolve.
“When Chris told me what you were trying to achieve, Melinda, giving up your money to live in poverty, I thought you were so brave, and I had no doubts that you would succeed. But dear, that will only happen if you believe in yourself.”
“Norma, if I can peel a potato, I can do anything.” Melinda said as the potato squirted out of her hand and across the table. She growled and stabbed it with the potato peeler and tried again.
Norma looked over at me and we both smiled knowingly.
After hours of preparation our feast was finally ready. We would eat buffet style around the coffee table. Before we took our first bite, I asked if we could hold hands and go around the table, each saying a prayer of thanksgiving. Norma went first.
“Like pennies from heaven, I am thankful for these two beautiful young women who dropped into my life, sharing their friendship with me. Their potential has not been realized yet, and I pray that I will be there to see them achieve it.”
She’s going to make me cry. I went next because Melinda was stalling for time, “Lord, your blessings come in many guises and I am thankful for the blessing of Norma’s wisdom, her friendship, and her history. I am also thankful for the blessing of my childhood and ask a special blessing for my parents today, I miss them dearly. And I am thankful for Melinda who has added so
much to my life with her friendship. Bless her in the days to come, God, and let her emerge triumphant.”
It was Melinda’s turn and we looked up at each other for a second and then she took a deep breath, closed her eyes and said, “Uh, God, hello, it’s Melinda. You’ve probably forgotten me by now, it’s been so long since I talked with you but uh, thank you for both these women, they are worthy of your love, and uh, thank you for giving me this second chance. Don’t let me screw it up, okay, God? Uh, thanks.”
Melinda looked at me sheepishly and I patted her hand. It was the perfect prayer.
Just as Melinda began to carve the turkey, there was a knock at the door. Norma, who had a cautious look on her face, told us that she was not expecting anyone, so Melinda, with the carving knife still in her hand, opened the door and asked what they wanted.
“Um, my name is Ben Steward, and my mother’s name was Rebecca Steward. I, um, I think my grandmother lives here?”
Norma clapped her hands together and cried, “Benjamin! Benjamin, is that really you?”
“Yes, grandmother.”
Melinda stood to the side and let him in, followed by a woman and two children, a boy and a girl.
“Benjamin, let me look at you! You’re exactly as I’ve picture you, all these years.”
“Grandmother, you’re just as beautiful as I remember you.” He said graciously. “Let me introduce you to the family. This is my wife, Loretta, and our two children, Billy, who’s fifteen and Norma, whose thirteen. Norma has a little cold, so I wouldn’t get to close to her if I were you.”
“Of course I will,” Norma put her hands on the girl’s shoulders as Benjamin explained that she was named for her. Tears ran down her cheeks as she pulled both children into a hug, and then the entire family was hugging.
Through my tears, I looked at Melinda, who was crying as well. I nodded towards the door and Melinda followed me out, to give Norma and her family some privacy.
“Wasn’t that wonderful?” Melinda gushed, “Oh, my God, I’m in tears.”
From Riches to Rags Page 14
