“I know where Roots 101 is. Never been inside. Guess I need to check it out.”
“I’d urge you to do so if you’re open-minded, and truly willing to learn. It’s really amazing. I also teach a monthly class that focuses on African American history, particularly in Kentucky, Indiana, Illinois, and Ohio at a couple of the local libraries. I am now on a committee to help fight against the removal of important books in schools that have been dubbed racially charged.”
“I heard somethin’ about that a few weeks ago. Like, ‘To Kill a Mockingbird.’ I read that in school. That’s crazy to me. This censorship is going too far.”
“It is. That’s just one of hundreds of books on the chopping block. Who in the hell tries to remove ‘The Catcher in the Rye,’ and ‘A Raisin in the Sun,’ from the school library?”
“You ever heard of ‘Maus’?”
“Of course. It’s about the Holocaust. Written by Art Spiegelman in 1980. It, too, has been on the chopping block several times over the last two decades.”
“I read that cover to cover.”
“You like to read?”
“Sometimes. My favorite teacher was a history teacher. She got me interested.” He suddenly felt a rush of warmth flood him. The conversation almost felt like déjà vu—or as if he was supposed to be there, right then, with her. He’d run away from his house, run from history, and now, he’d found it again.
The woman was truly in her element now, rambling on about various books that should be kept in the schools. Many of the titles he’d at least heard of. Impressive.
Funny how memory stores this stuff away. I had forgotten about some of these books. She’s really into this conversation, too… Look how she’s moving her body, all excited as she talks about it. Smart people can be annoying though. They think they know every damn thing. Hell, I’ve been accused of bein’ that way, too. A know-it-all. She’s kind of funny, too. Definitely easy on the eye… Me and this woman may have some things in common after all. Damn if Melanie’s sneaky ass wasn’t right…
“Sounds boring, huh?” She chuckled, dragging him from his deliberations.
“Nope. Sounds exciting, actually. I don’t know much about what you do. This is a good start, but I’d like to hear more about it when my head isn’t swimming in beer, and you’re not in a stiff suit and looking down and dejected.”
“Did Melanie tell you my business?” She huffed, visibly miffed.
“Nah, she didn’t do that. You looked like you had a lot on your mind tonight is all.” She leaned against her car, and he followed suit, both hooked on each other’s gazes. After a while, she placed her fingers along his arm, trailing them across the leather of his jacket. He wanted to kiss her but decided to practice restraint. This wasn’t the time.
“You smell good, too, Axel. Like good quality cologne, leather and earth. I like your hair.”
“Yeah? I’m glad you like it.” He reached for her cheek and caressed it gently with his thumb. She leaned into his touch. It felt natural. Fluid. Normal. “I gotta get ready to go, but I want to take you out sometime soon.” He cocked his head to the side, and she smiled back at him, her cheeks deepening in color.
“Okay. I guess we should exchange numbers. I have… Wait. Oh my God!”
“What?”
“I know where I’ve seen your face!” She jumped about, waving her finger in his face. “On TV! You had to shoot some guy, right?” Her eyes did that thing they did when she was surprised, or speechless—got big and glassy.
“Yeah. I figured you already overheard that when I came in and Melanie was talking about it.”
“To be honest, I was only half listening. I was too busy thinking how sexy you were. What a time to zone out…”
“It was self-defense.”
“I remember you explaining that on that television.”
“So, does that change anything?”
She looked at him for a long while, as if deliberating it.
“No. A person has the right to defend themselves, their life. I’m sorry all of that happened to you. Are you all right now?”
“Yeah, I’m fine.” He slipped his phone out of his pocket and noticed Melanie had in fact texted her number. He asked English to send it anyway, and he did the same for her. When she got into her car, he closed the door for her. The parking lot was becoming bare, and a slight chill hung in the air.
“Drive safe. I’ll be callin’ you soon,” he said as he backed up from her ride.
“Okay. It was nice meeting and talking with you tonight, Axel. See you later.”
“Yeah. See you.” He waved as she pulled out of her space, then drove away. After she entered the stream of traffic onto the street, he pulled his phone back out and texted Melanie.