The morning gifted Boy with a soothing breeze which carried a few dry leafs from a nearby tree which hovered over the florist's shop.
The group of women who sat just inside the entrance busied themselves with sewing flowers together for a new batch of lei to be sold. The traffic was sparse and the familiar smell that the blacktop has when it has been touched by new rainfall burned into Boy’s nostrils. It let him know that he was alive and still in control of his faculties. Whether he realized it or not he appeared as an anomaly to those who sat in their cars at the traffic light waiting for the colors to change. The district of Mo’ili’ili is mainly comprised of a conservative population and the only time anyone ever wears a coat and tie is to a funeral, to church, or if one is a part of a wedding or a very formal event. Boy, however, wore a coat and tie every day and being a man of Hawaiian descent he most certainly stood out. Approaching his trusty doorman Kealoha, Boy held up a box of doughnuts in a plastic bag for his doorman to have for breakfast. However, Boy noticed a dried stain on the cuff of Kealoha’s coat.
“Are you wearing the same coat from four days ago?” Boy eyed the dried stain closely and ran his thumbnail over it where it flaked off.
“Yes, boss,” Kealoha towered over his employer and his frame was wide enough to block out the sun for Boy if he so desired. But in the presence of the man who plucked him away from a life of crime and drugs, Kealoha appeared as a child receiving a reprimand from his parent.
“What happened? I just had those coats tailored for you three months ago?” Boy was perplexed.
“I tore the sleeve on the first one and then the seam down the middle on the other one. This one I’m wearing is the only one that still fits.” Kealoha looked everywhere except in the eyes of his employer fully expecting a tirade of scoldings.
“Have you put on weight?” This was more a question to himself than it was to his trusted doorman and bodyguard.
“Yes boss,” Kealoha stood with his hands together in front of his tummy looking down at his feet.
Boy let out a sigh and shook his head in disappointment, “This is all my fault I’ve been contributing to the decline of your health by bringing you these doughnuts every morning. I’m sorry Kealoha, I’ll do better from now on.”
Heading to the elevator Boy made his way past the massively sized doorman in order to start his day, but Kealoha called after him, “Boss, nobody has to know about the doughnuts. This could be my last day and I’ll go cold turkey starting tomorrow.”
“Kealoha,” Boy smiled and waved his finger at his doorman. “You know that I’m not afraid of anyone; I am however afraid of your wife. You should be too.”
….……..
OFFICE
The birdcage elevator let Boy out in the lobby of his second-floor office where he walked to the end of the hallway and gazed out of the lone window which looked down on the parking lot in the back of the building. His was the only car there, Rita, Tiny, and Ivan had not yet arrived. His aunt and two uncles were approaching their twilight years and he did not expect them to be in the office any earlier than he was. He knew Rita’s reception room well enough to navigate himself around the coffee table and leather chairs in order to get to his office. Boy’s own office did not require the traditional lock and key to get in. It needed an exhale of his breath on a heat sensor placed at the same height as himself. He hesitated for a second as he stepped forward in order to initiate the procedure because the door was opened just a crack. He reached into his coat pocket where his cell phone rested, his fingers found the red button located just to the right of the home button. He pressed it once and took a step back. The sound of the heavy security door clicking open and then slamming shut shook the walls of the entire building but not as much as the monstrous pounding steps coming up the back stairs. When the heavy security door on the second floor burst open it sounded like a Howitzer had been fired off in the lobby. Into Rita’s reception area came Kealoha with eyes literally aflame and his hands glowing red. Smoke puffed from his nostrils and he growled with each breath he took. He stepped into the darkness of Boy’s office and suddenly Boy heard a shriek and then a scream, “PUT ME DOWN, YOU IDIOT! IT’S ME!”
When Kealoha emerged from the office he offered his boss a sheepish apology and pointed his thumb behind him as he went back downstairs to his post. A second later Tabby walked out of Boy’s office fixing her clothes and her hair which were completely disheveled. Seeing the look on her Father’s face she shrugged her shoulders and said, “What?”
….………
THE REASON
“Hello! You use the same toothpaste every morning when you come in here and blow your breath on that sensor. All anyone has to do is use your toothpaste for a couple of weeks and holy Penn and Teller you’re in!” Tabby could not understand why her father had not figured out the bug in his plan, but as always he saw right through her misdirection. He was going to find out so maybe it was better just to tell him. She let out a sigh and sat on the leather swivel chair next to the picture window that looked down on the South King street traffic. “I’ve been here the whole night,” with her story came the tears which didn’t contort her features the way emotional tears do when they burst forth. It’s because she had become exhausted from fighting the natural process of heartbreak. Boy let out a sigh and looked at Tabby knowing that he could not fully control every event big or small event in her life. There were some things that she would have to learn on her own. Heartbreak was one of them. “I see…I know it’s weird because it’s me but do you want to talk about it? I promise I’ll listen and whoever it is I won’t ki…….hurt them.”
“No….it isn’t like that…it’s the fact that what I wanted…it couldn’t happen. That’s what’s breaking my heart…” It was difficult for Boy to sit there and watch Tabby’s emotions wreck her like an unforgiving storm, all he could do was listen. If he did anything more he knew she would shut him out. “In my religion class, we have a study group that meets almost every night if not three nights a week. You remember I told you this right?”
“Yes,” Boy nodded. “I remember.”
“Well there’s Karen and Coral and Pua and Kyle and Kamuela and this older guy Paul Nakila; like he’s your age but everyone calls him, “Pope.” Not like he’s old and near death but because he’s older and wiser than all of us like he’s got life experience okay?” Tabby saw the look in her father’s eyes and knew that she had to assure him. “He’s not a perv Dad just relax.”
“ I didn’t say anything,” Boy replied with his hands up.
“Anyway,” Tabby rolled her eyes and continued. “This is what happened.”
….………to be continued
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