Touch
Darrell stumbled to the kitchen,
desperately hoping there was coffee. There wasn't. In desolation he
put some water in a coffee cup and raised it to his lips. He downed
three swallows of aromatic nectar of the bean before he remembered
he'd expected water. He set the cup down with shaking hands. He
sniffed. Yes, this was that ambrosia Prometheus had given to man.
The special: grits, eggs, and bacon (or
sausage). A dollar less than eggs and bacon alone. So even though
he didn't eat grits, it was worth it. Today he asked for water
instead of coffee.
"You flyin' this morning?"
Rashika said, "why else you don't want coffee?"
"An experiment," he replied.
When she turned away he took a sip. He gulped the rest so she
wouldn't see the coffee. It was the perfect temperature.
"How was the experiment?"
"I'm makin' it."
Coke turned. Also, orange juice, milk,
and vinegar, but not liquid paper. A shadow fell across him.
"Bored, Stevens? I can't think of
a better reason for drinking liquid paper. And if you ARE bored,"
his boss continued, "I can find something for you."
Darrell hastily screwed the lid back
on.
"Back to work and quit fooling
around."
"Yes sir."
By the time the apartment door closed
behind him that night, Darrell had drunk so much converted coffee his
hands were shaking. He wanted water, but it seemed that wasn't going
to happen. He started to examine the horse's teeth in earnest and
came up with some hair-raising questions.
Just what would happen if he cut
himself and absentmindedly sucked on it? If he watered the bushes
and drank from the hose would the entire municipal water supply go
mocha? What if he got seawater in his mouth at the beach? Was
kissing too close to drinking? How long could he live without water?
He could drink broth, it turned out, if
he did it with a spoon, so he didn't have to resort to intravenous
fluids. The problem of kissing was only theoretical until he met
Sara. Standing in line at the juice bar she struck up a conversation
with him. One thing led to another. On the third date she grabbed
him by the ears and took the kissing question out of his hands. She
lived. She settled the ocean question by dunking him. Finally, he
stopped at a drinking fountain and took the plunge. He had to know.
Publ. Daily Cabal 2007
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