"BARGAINING"
by Colleen Neumann
“You know this is against the rules, don’t you?”
Before replying, Charlie respectfully removed his hat. As a child, his mother told him to remove it upon arrival. He was also glad he wore clean underwear.
“Well, actually, I don’t. I’ve never done this before. Surely others have asked the same favor, and it really doesn’ seem like a big one. I mean, in the grand scheme of things, whats a couple of weeks?”
Peter was annoyed, but spoke patiently to the newcomer.
“I’m the one who has to keep the books on who comes and goes, friend. They’ll question my motives, and wonder why you’ve been given permission to return when I said no to another guy just last week. Broke my heart, but it’s my job.”
Charlie had been planting flowers at high noon when the mysterious fog rolled in taking heat and garden with it. Now he felt chilly and more than a little lost.
“Look. What if I made you a bargain? Offered you something, anything you wanted.”
“Listen, I don’t want anything. I’m perfectly happy. Except when someone won’t let me complete an assignment.”
“I will let you finish. I have no intention of stopping you. All I want is a little more time so my wife and I can take our cruise. Please. Surely there’s something I can bring you. Flowers? Chocolate? Coffee! What about a nice double latte with a sprinkle of cinnamon?”
Peter’s contemplative silence made Charlie hopeful. At home with his wife, this was a good sign.
“Coffee?” Peter arched a brow. “I haven’t had a good cup in a long time. The one draw back to this job is that I don’t get out much. All newcomers are brought to me.” He percolated the offer. “Coffee, eh?”
“A double latte with a sprinkle of cinnamon. Would you like biscotti with that?”
Charlie’s purred description sounded like an erotic invitation.
Peter clucked his tongue, but the thought of coffee was so tempting. Sometimes the little things made all the difference. Besides, it got chilly outside the gate, and on occasion the Big Guy took him for granted. A double latte was Peter’s favorite.
“All right. Oh, I’m gonna have hell to pay for this. And yes, I want biscotti, too.”
“Oh, you won’t regret this, friend. My wife will be so happy. We’ve been waiting a lifetime to take this trip. See you later. And thanks.”
Charlie’s waving hat faded into the fog, and Peter called after him.
“Yeah, just make sure you bring the latte. And get it from that cafe on Elmwood and Vine.”
He felt guilty for such a specific request, and a worried moan seeped into the silence.
“Oh, I’m gonna have hell to pay for this.”
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Colleen Neumann is a University of Maine graduate, and currently lives in western New York after leaving Maine, California, Florida, Montana, Missouri, New Hamphsire, and Europe. Running away is no longer an option. Her fiction and poetry have appeared on-line and in print at WordsDance, Wayfarer, Moondance, Gator Springs Gazette, and All Things Girl. She is a member of Zoetrope Writers Workshop
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PREVIOUS WORK
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