The day my boss called me
into his office to let me know I had been let go was such a blur. I was only
partly there. The rest, well most, of me was walking through a forest in A’s
most recent story. I had already decided that I didn’t have anything more left
for me in this place, and figured it would be good to go try life in a
completely different setting. And where better than America’s own largest port
of sin, the crescent city, New Orleans.
I called the number listed
at the bottom of the letter. Howard sounded very relieved to have anyone call. It
seemed that he needed to be across the country with his estranged wife for
reasons he would not disclose. He wouldn’t be able to afford keeping his
apartment for the next three months to the end of the lease. He also wouldn’t
be able to handle the large legal fees. Strangely, for all the things he was
not, he was a man of his word. If he said he would pay someone, good deal or
not, he would pay. It’s rare to find people like this nowadays. It seems most
people just make promises and let them go.
I looked out the window at
the quickly approaching tarmac. My muscles were tensing up as hard as they
could. I closed my eyes and tried desperately to push all thoughts out of my
head. I felt and heard the skidding sound of tires meeting runway. I was
finally able to release the armrests and open my eyes. It seems so silly to get
all worked up over something I have completely no control over. The plane will
land or crash irrelevant of my actions, I’m pretty sure.
We had finally landed at
Louis Armstrong Airport. The plane taxied into the terminal and I found my way
to the cabstand. Most people would have found their way to the baggage claim,
but I had no use for this futility. I sold everything I owned. I was on a
one-way trip. The full extent of my possessions were the clothes on my back,
and a small courier bag with all my money I had and the four manuscripts I had
received at this point.
A very old man leaned up
on his cab and stared at me intently. He wore a faded plaid short sleeve shirt
of green and blue, had denim jeans that looked like they were recently pressed.
When he realized that I was looking at him, he mouth crooked into a half smile.
I walked up to him. “Need a ride?” he asked with a raspy voice.
“Certainly do.” I
responded.
“Where to?”
“Say’s here I’m headed to
the 2400 block of Royal Street in the… Marigny?”
“It’s pronounced Mary-knee,
and I can get you there for a good price.”
“Sounds good.”
“Don’t look like you got
any bags, what you in town for?”
“Searching for something.”
“Well I hope you find it.”
-V-
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