Albany Park by Myles (Mickey) Golde

slowly, squeezing his arm.
    ”Listen, I have to call my brother. I was supposed to meet him.”
    At the Park’s pay phone inside, he quickly dialed the bowling alley and told Donna to forget about tonight; that he had something important to do with his brother. After promising to call or see her in school the next day, he hung up quickly.
    Outside, Shirley was waiting. Reaching for her hand and holding it gently, he intertwined their fingers like they had done a thousand times before, and led her from the park in the direction of the Siegal’s apartment.
    The September sun was slowly descending as they walked. The fountain in the circular turn around in front of the park had been switched off only a day before, signifying that summer was over.
    Stretched in front of them was a long block of two-flats on standard thirty-foot city lots, with an occasional larger parcel or three-flat to break the pattern. On both sides of the street were large oaks and elms blending with a few catalpas and evergreens swaying in the light fall breeze.
    A few kids were out playing with more sitting on the stoops, talking and laughing as the day wound down. Autos of varied styles and makes were at the curb in front of most of the buildings. All were dark colored pre-war models, showing some bumps and wear. A couple of old trucks could also be seen, including one with a faded, but colorful sign advertising “Joe’s Fruits and Vegetables”. There were no new cars because auto production had stopped during the war.
    They walked slowly not talking, as if each step was an effort, holding hands with their heads down, cautiously glancing at one another.
    Approaching the twenty-four-flat building on Central Park, where Shirley lived in the front apartment on the third-floor with her folks and older sister, Vic’s right foot began to throb as he thought of the many hours they spent kissing and fondling each other in the dim light of the vestibule before she ran up the stairs. Now he wished he could go back in time.
    Once inside, Shirley turned to Vic and tried a weak smile while looking straight into his eyes. He stood with his hands at his sides, feeling awkward, not knowing what to say. He dropped the gym bag and lowered his face to hers, lightly kissing each of her closed eyes, the tip of her nose, each cheek, then her ear lobes and neck. Then he brushed his lips lightly against hers and hugged her close.
    Hearing an apartment door open above, she looked up, sadly saying, “I’ve got to go now. Please be there for me. I need you and I love you.”
    He watched her start climbing the stairs and softly said, “Good night, Shirley.”
    He could still feel her touch and smell the familiar fragrance of her hair.
    Exiting the building, he ran to the alley, doubled over and threw up behind a telephone pole as tears streamed down his face. Straightening, he leaned against the pole and wiped at his nose, eyes and mouth, trying to compose himself. He crossed his arms over his stomach and stood there, trying to think. It was several minutes before he started slowly putting one foot in front of the other on the way home.
     

Chapter 5  
    “Is that you Shirley?” Molly called from the kitchen as she heard the front door open.
    “Yeah, Mom, it’s me.”
    From the kitchen radio, H.V. Kaltenborn droned on, “The Defense Department announced plans to bring home a million servicemen from Europe in the next twelve months; with more to follow from the Pacific as soon as General Mac Arthur provides the president with his plans for the occupation of Japan,”
    “Did you hear that Shirley?” Molly tried to talk over the running water, not hearing the bedroom door close.
    In the bedroom, Shirley shed her shoes, removed the two fuzzy white bears propped on the puffed up pillows as she slipped under the pink comforter. She didn’t bother turning on the overhead light or the reading lamp on the night stand as the afternoon faded into darkness.
    Mrs. Siegal