he liked visiting the apartment
complex Gary lived in particularly at
night the swimming pool lighting was
left on until 10 PM when the pools were locked downClosed a pretty good fuckin indication that the pools
were closedLights out!
he liked arriving after dark because
of the coolblue light painted the courtyardsthe walls of the units bled
softly up into the atmosphere
on the
pool patios or sitting on benches in the manicured courtyards were good places
to blow a joint despite Gary crawling up
his ass telling him he gets caught the police would want to know who he was
visiting
That’s a fucking leap! Why would
I have to be visiting anyone? The fence's at six feet, keeps the small kids out,
the drownable ones, easily jumped by me and teenagers who wanna skinny dip or
fuck in the pool.
Wha?
Yah. I’ve swam with them; and I
might have had sex with an underage teenager after we blew a joint. If she was
underage she didn’t fuck like she was underage – I’d use that as a defense against
a paedophile charge – She fucked like a pro! Why aren’t you charging her with
prostitution—really make the county, the system some doughHuh?
Jesus, Joe. You come around, you
don’t go down to the pools, not if you’re stopping by me.
Fuckin uptight, Gary, man, fuckin
uptight; maybe you ought to come down to the pools with me, blow a joint, get
blown.
I’m telllin’ya, man, kids today are way ahead of the curve. Mommie,
Daddy’s off to work, kids turn on the cable, throw on porn, they’re curious
like we were, except our access was tamped – they’re products of their
generation – can’t blame them. Me. I’d finger their parents and society.
Really need
smut on cable?
Gary. I’m outside for a
cigarette.
Don’t go down by the pools.
Yah, I’m taking a walk. Hate to
fuckin’ stand outside yer place smoking a cigarette. Not cool. And smoking supposed to be
cool, dig?
Yeah. I’ll dig you a six foot
hole somewhere down the line.
You didn’t see Woody Allen’s
Sleeper?
I did. he deadpanned
Hey, you can lie to me. We ain’t
sleeping together.
Go on. Have your cigarette . . you’re just having a cigarette, right?
Wanna blow a joint?
No. I was thinking we’d catch a flick, I’ll make
popcorn while you’re gone. Then we can sip some drinks, a flick, popcorn.
I like the way you think.
I wish you thought.
Easy, Gary, I got lotsa bees
buzzing in my skull.
Insects. Not thoughts.
That was an analogy.
Keep your anal to yourself . .
have your cigarette, Joe, we’ll give it a go when you get back. I was thinking
Gozu, Japanese crime horror.
We should get high.
On me.
Gozu, popcorn, drinks, high on
you?
What are friends for? Scored some
hashish. I gotta smoke that with somebody, not alone, difference between grass
and hash.
Deal! I’ll be back.
walking past one of the lighted
blue pool Joe thought he caught motionmovement in it real stealthy
agile brown
maybe a chica slender jet
black hair
impossible to be Japanese
though
that would be a treat
he entered through the gate the
while looking for a shadow or movement he saw neither
maybe he just wasnt seeing what lies beneath the
surface sowha if it was a pool whanot a transmission an image hiding its real self
the bees were busy maybe anticipating the hash he was getting
ahead of himself
it was only water
he jumped in
and underwater freed of gravity a liquid sky he did rolls and somersaults and twists flying had to feel like thisthough lighter and able to draw a breath
and underwater he transformed
into an otter
and as suddenly he was aware of another otter in the pool a female he thought but then he wondered if it was a different otter or if he hadnt split in
twocloned that he was also the second
otter but feminine
they played they complimented each other
in their headlong rushes at each other they veered at the last possible moment to avoid collisions he recognised that the
second couldnt be him he was erratic awkward she wasnt she was sublime
she
wasnt him
then at a sudden he wasnt in the
pool
he was not an otter
though the imagery of the playfulnessfeeling
of elation stayed with him
he wandered back to Garys place
middle of the night he left
Gozu was a mindbender
the hash enhanced it but it didnt need any help
Gary told him to use the spare
bedroom Chill.
Nah, man, wanna sleep in my own
bed tonight. Thanks though.
You’re your own man. Ya cool to
drive?
Three hours of bullshit after the
Gozu, I’m fine, a little edge, but little.
You’re sure.
Yah. I’m sure.
Be cool, brother.
You too, Gary. Thanks.
Joe went out to the pool again
no uplights
no coolblue water dark reflecting the fourfive lamps above it
the water trembled for no
apparent reason
the filter and machinery beside
the pool were still just an electrical
whisper filtration on a timer
standing above the water he saw
dark shadows moving in it under the
surface shadows which seemed to enlarge
the pool making it deeper maybe hiding among reefs that looked like
submerged waves starkly aeratedsolidified frothy and curling
he caught three large fish
he squatted in the grass beside
the concrete apron gutted and skinned the
fish
he cut them into steaks
and
walked back up to Garys place
he filled the Weber with fresh
charcoal and began a fire
the rising sun stole the beauty
away from the high flames then the smouldering coals
he rapped on Garys door
when Gary answered Joe asked Barbecued fish for breakfast?
Gary said Sure. Why the fuck not? I got some fresh fruit
we can have with it.
they wrapped the extra steaks in paper
and put them in the freezer
Joe didnt say he caught the fish
in the pool
Gary didnt ask
Joe asked him if he wasnt curious
about the fishabout breakfast fish
Man, I don’t look a gift horse in the
mouth.
0837, Friday,
20 3. 20
1622, Sunday,
28 6. 20
