And Lennie's eyes and mouth flew open at the same time, and he let out a yell. 'My-ra! Myra, come quick, Myra!'
There was a heck of a clatter as Myra dropped something in the kitchen. A stack of dishes, it sounded like. She ran in, scared out of her wits, looking like she expected the house to be on fire.
'What? What, what?' she said. 'What's going on? What's the matter, Lennie?'
'They was huggin' and kissin', Myra!' Lennie pointed at Rose and me. 'I seen 'em, huggin' and kissin'.'
'Why, Lennie,' I said. 'How can you say such a awful thing?'
'You was too! I seen you!'
'Now, you know that ain't so!' I said. 'You know god-danged good an' well what happened.'
'Just what did happen?' Myra said, looking kind of uncertainly from Rose to me. 'I'm-I'm sure there must be a, uh, mistake, but-'
Rose started crying again, burying her face in her hands. She got up, saying she was going home because she just couldn't stay another minute in a place where people said such awful things about her.
Myra put out a hand to stop her, and said, 'Nick, will you kindly tell me what this is all about?'
'They was huggin' and kissin', that's what!' Lennie yelled. 'I seen 'em!'
'Hush, hush, Lennie! Nick?'
'T'heck with it,' I said, sounding mad. 'You can believe any god-danged thing you want to. I tell you this, though, this is the last god-danged time I try to comfort anyone when they're feelin' bad!'
'But… oh,' said Myra. 'You mean that…?'
'I mean that Rose got to feelin' real bad again,' I said. 'She started cryin' and I told her to just lean against me until she felt better, and I sort of patted her on the shoulder like any decent fella would. Why, god-dang it!' I said, 'I did the same god-dang thing a while ago when you were right here in the room, and you said that was fine, I should take care of her! And god-dang, look how you're actin' now!'
'Please, Nick,' Myra was all flustered and red. 'I never for a moment thought that, uh-'
'It's all my fault,' Rose said, drawing herself up real dignified. 'I guess I can't blame you for thinking such terrible things about me, Myra, but you should have known that I'd never, never do anything to hurt my very best friend.'
'But I do know it! I never had any such thoughts, Rose, darling!' Myra was practically bawling herself. 'I'd never doubt you for a moment, dear.'
'They're story-tellin', Myra!' Lennie yelled. 'I seen 'em huggin' and kissin'.'
Myra slapped him. She pointed to the door of his room, chasing him toward it with a couple more hard slaps. 'Now, you get in there! Get right in there and don't let me see you again tonight!'
'But I seen-'
Myra gave him a crack that practically knocked him off his feet. He went stumbling into his bedroom, blubbering and spitting, and she slammed the door on him.
'I'm terribly, terribly sorry, Rose, darling,' Myra turned back around again. 'I-
'I th-think I'd better go home,' Rose wept, but she didn't sound real determined. 'I'd be too embarrassed to stay after this.'
'But you mustn't be, dear! There's absolutely no need to be. Why-'
'But she does,' I cut in, 'an' I don't blame her a god-dang bit! I feel the same way myself. Why, goddang it, the way I feel right now I get sort of self-conscious even bein' in the same room with Rose!'
'Well, why don't you get out of the same room then?' Myra snapped. 'My goodness, get out and take a walk or something! No sense in you acting the fool, just because poor Lennie did.'
'All right, I will get out,' I said. 'That god-danged Lennie starts all the trouble, and I get drove out of my own house. So don't you be surprised if I don't hurry back!'
'I'll be pleasantly surprised if you don't. I'm sure neither Rose nor I will miss you, will we, Rose?'
'Well-' Rose bit her lip. 'I hate to feel responsible for-'
'Now, don't you trouble yourself another minute, darling. You just come out in the kitchen with me, and we'll have a nice cup of coffee.'
Rose went with her, looking just a wee bit disappointed, naturally. At the kitchen door, she glanced back at me quickly, and I shrugged and spread my hands and looked sort of mournful. As if to say, you know, that it was too doggoned bad, but it was just one of those things, and what could you do about it? And she nodded, letting me know that she understood.
I got a pole and fishing line from under my bed. I came back out of the bedroom and called to Myra, asking her if she could pack me up a lunch because I was going fishing. And I guess you know what she told me. So I left.
There weren't many people on the street that late at night, almost nine o'clock, but practically everybody that was up asked me if I was going fishing. I said, why, no, I wasn't, and where did they ever get an idea like that?
'Well, how come you're carryin' a fish pole and line, then?' this one fella said. 'How come you're doin' that if you ain't goin' fishin'.'
'Oh, I got that to scratch my butt with,' I said. 'Just in case I'm up a tree somewheres, an' I can't reach myself from the ground.'
'But, looky here now-' He hesitated, frowning. 'That don't make no sense.'
'How come it don't?' I said. 'Why, practically everyone I know does the same thing. You mean to say you never took a fishing pole with you to scratch your butt with, in case you was up a tree an' couldn't reach yourself from the ground? Why, god-dang it, ain't you behind the times!'
He said, well, sure, he always did the same thing himself. Fact is, he was the first fella to think of the idea. 'All I meant was that you shouldn't have no hook an' line on it. I mean, that part don't make sense.'
'Why, shore it does,' I said. 'That's to pull up the back-flap of your drawers after you're through scratchin'. God-dang,' I said, 'it looks to me like you're really behind the times, fella. You don't watch out, the world will plumb pass you by before you know it!'
He scuffed his feet, looking ashamed of himself. I went on down the street toward the river.
I told one fella that, no, I wasn't going fishing, I was going to fasten on to a sky-hook and swing myself t' the other side of the river. I told another fella that, no, I wasn't going fishing, the county was putting a bounty on flying turds and I was going to try to look onto some, in case they cleaned out the crappers when the train went by. I told another fella-
Well, never mind. It don't make no more difference than it made sense.
I got to the river. I waited a while, and then I began moving up the bank until I was about on a line with Amy Mason's house. Then, I started cutting back toward town again, dodging any house with lights in it and taking cover whenever I could. And finally I got to where I was going.
Amy let me in the back door. It was dark, and she took my hand and led me back to the bedroom. She flung off her nightgown there, grabbed me and held me for a minute, her lips moving over my face. She began to whisper, wild crazy things, sweet wild crazy things. And her hands fumbled with my clothes, and I thought to myself, god~danged, there just never was no one like Amy! There just ain't no one like her! And
And I was right.
She made me know I was.
Then, we were lying side by side, holding hands. Breathing together, our hearts beating together.
