Drowning in the East River (18 page)

David looked up at what should have been a sky full of stars twinkling far above his head. The sky must have been overcast. A black blanket shrouding the sky in nothingness.

He ran a hand over his face. Blood was was still pulsing from his nose. Running his tongue over his chapped lips, he could taste an overpowering coppery aftertaste. Wiping his hand on his pants, he pulled his handkerchief out of his pocket and wiped at the blood. It seemed to just smear it more over his face. His eye throbbed behind the socket.

He let out an involuntary cough, hoping to dispel the tightness building in his chest. Putting pressure on the bridge of his nose, he held his head back, trying to stop the bleeding.

"What are you doing here?" Jessica asked, yanking him from his thoughts. She tightened the wrap around her shoulders as she sat next to him on the curb. She looked him over, noticing the mess that was his face. "David, what on earth happened?" She pulled a handkerchief out of the pocket of her skirt. "Hold your head back."

"Nothing," he replied. His voice sounded garbled in his own ears. With his clean hand, he reached down and squeezed her knee. His other hand held the handkerchief to his face.

"I'm not an idiot, darling." Jessica replied. He yelped as she gingerly touched the bridge of his nose, which cracked loudly in his head. She kept her voice quiet as she continued, a soft smile crossing her face. "I assume you didn't walk into a door."

He continued slowly, forming the words carefully through gritted teeth before letting them spill from his lips."I got in the way of my father's fist," David said. His stomach was tied in angry knots, sending uneasy adrenaline pulsing through his body. "I didn't want to bother you... I just wasn't sure where else to go. It's just-- I can't go home."

Jessica paused, looking over her shoulder towards the brownstone. The two story building glowed with life on the chilly evening.

"I can go..." David said, jumping in to fill the protracted silence.

"No, David. It's not that...everyone's home. I just need to make a plan." She scooted closer, pressing her body into his. He wrapped his free hand around her, holding her tightly. She smiled and looked up at him, "Tell me your father looks this bad?"

David sighed, pressing the handkerchief hard enough onto his nose to hurt.

Jessica stood up. She was biting her lip, the wheels in her head turning with possibilities. She stared at the house for a moment before turning to face him. "You know the fire-escape under the bedroom window?"

"Yeah," David replied.

"The Baker family on the floor below us moved to Yonkers. You should be able to stay out there without anyone noticing you." She paused, thinking for another moment. She flashed a relaxed smile, her voice quiet as she continued. "Head over there, I'll be down as soon as I can get away." With that, she turned towards the door.

David stood up and turned towards her. He stopped suddenly, an air of wooziness coming over him. "Jess, I..."

She turned around at his voice. “Yes?"

"Thank you," he replied.

"You're welcome," she flashed another smile. He could see in the hint of disappointment which flashed through her eyes that those weren't the words she expected to hear from him.

Just because it had taken him a while to actually say I love you didn't mean it wasn't true. He ran a hand through his hair as he stood up. He brushed his hands together and rang out his tingling fingers.

He glanced back across the balcony, where the group slowly started to disperse. A sleepy quiet replaced what had been drunken merriment just a few minutes before. Stretching out a kink in his back, a yawn slipped from his lips.

"You're a million miles away," Alexander said. He walked over, leaning against the balcony next to him. "You're thinking about Jess again, aren't you."

"Sorry," David answered. He craned his neck, looking back towards the small group still gathered around the table. "That discussion took me back a bit. Feeling a bit nostalgic."

"You two coming?" One of the girls had stood up, and was waving in their direction. She stopped to push a strand of curly blonde hair back from her eyes. She walked over to them, a drunken bounce in her walk. "We're going to Frankie's villa. She has a new painting she wants to show off."

Alexander glanced in his direction, his eyes glittering with excitement. "Let's go."

David looked back out over the water. "You go ahead and go. I think I need to walk a bit. Feeling a little anxious."

"Are you sure?" Alexander asked, his look immediately morphed into disappointment. "I'm sure Gracie here can help you clear you're head."

"I don't want to spoil anyone's good time," he forced a smile over his face. "Go and have fun.”

Alexander looked to David as he started towards the staircase. "You're sure?"

"Yeah," David replied. "Go."

At that, the girl grabbed Alexander's hand leading him back inside.

David waited a moment, letting them disappear into the distance before he stood up and looked and looked around. He was the last man left on the balcony, sleepy blues music drifted out from inside the restaurant.

Shutting the door behind him, David looked around the room. The tables were sparsely filled with the late night remnants of the evening crowd. The smell of old alcohol hung heavily in the air and mixed with the thick smell of cigarette smoke. David crossed his arms, leaning against the back wall of the restaurant.

The singer up on the stage looked worn and exhausted. She leaned heavily on the microphone stand, her virtually transparent, white dress hung snuggly on her seductive curves. Her hair was carefully curled into tight ringlets, and had been bleached an unreal shade of platinum blonde.

Ma' he wants to marry me

Ma' he's awful nice to me

Ma' he's almost breaking my heart

If you peek in, can't you see

I'm goin' to weaken

Ma, he wants to marry me,

Be my honey bee

Ma I'm meeting with resistance

I shall holler for assistance

Ma, he's kissing me…

David scanned the crowd that was left in the restaurant. His eyes were drawn to a couple near the back of the house. A boy and girl, barely into their twenties, were curled up tightly in the far back of the booth. She leaned heavily against her beau's shoulder, her eyes squeezed shut in drunken exhaustion. He kept a secure arm around her shoulder, holding her tightly to his body. His fingers toyed lightly with the stem of the champaign flute in front of him. He swayed lightly with the music floating lazily over them.

Feeling himself hovering near the point of sleep, David stood up and moved towards the doors which opened to the street.

The sounds of the sleepy nightclub faded into the peaceful silence of the city streets. Despite being in the middle of the city, the ocean waves were the loudest audible noise.

The boards creaked under their feet as they slowly moved down the boardwalk, the almost frenetic sights and sounds of Atlantic City whirled around them at a dizzying pace.

David dropped his hand to his side, snatching Jessica's hand up in his. The sun was just starting to drop underneath the horizon. The street lamps lining the boardwalk flickered on as they slowly weaved through the Saturday night crowds.

Jessica glanced down at Thomas, who had a look of wide-eyed wonder as he paddled along next to her. "Come here, Tommy," she said, scooping him up into her arms. She hugged the baby tightly to her chest. "You're going to get trampled little one." She followed his glance, as Thomas stared after the bright lights of Nino's Saltwater Taffy Shop.

Thomas poked at his mother, pointing at the shop.

"Do you want to go look?" Jessica asked.

Thomas nodded excitedly.

"Can we, Father?" Jessica asked, meeting David's eyes.

David looked around, "Of course," he stammered.

They turned and moved in the direction of the taffy shop. Jessica gently set Thomas onto the pavement, "Go ahead, darling." He put a gentle hand on his shoulder and guided the little boy toward the massive window. Thomas ran, overwhelmed with excitement as he thrust his nose right up against the window separating him from the thick stacks of round, brightly colored candy. Behind the counter, two burly men were pulling a thick strand of lemon yellow taffy.

David turned to face his wife, who's eyes were glued to their son. The smile which had crossed her face as she watched him was almost angelic. She turned to face him, wrapping her arms around his waist. "I almost hate to say this, but I want another one."

"You do?" David asked, honestly surprised to hear the answer.

She shook her head, "Um-hmm." She pulled his cap off his head and rustled his hair before planting a gentle, but decisive kiss on his lips. "I love you, and I'd kinda like having another little you running around."

"I love you too," David replied. He kissed her, before shifting his eyes back to where Thomas was trying to push his way through the candy store window.  "It sounds like you're getting the short end of the stick, though."

David stumbled into the hotel room and dropped into bed, sleep overtaking him before his head hit the pillow.

CHAPTER ELEVEN

"I can't keep doing this, David," Alexander said, looking over at him. He clasped his drink tightly between his fingers. Alexander forced out a centering breath as he took another puff of the cigarette.

"What?" David asked, letting out an involuntary cough. He pulled his shaking hands back, protecting the glass in his hands. He ran his tongue over his chapped lips as he continued. "Excuse me? Where is this coming from?"

"I understand being depressed," Alexander replied, setting the cigarette down. He turned in his stool and looked over at David. His eyes were hard and exhausted, lacking the soft and playful edge they always had. "Believe me. I do. It's just... Jessica wouldn't want you to live your life this way."

"I know that," David replied. He leaned forward, running his hands through his hair. "It's doesn't feel that easy. I can't just snap my fingers and magically feel better." His words came cautiously, feeling as though he would loose control of his crumbling composure. "I keep hoping that one day something will just snap, and I'll come out of this fog I'm wandering around in."

"You have to pull yourself out," Alexander said, his voice had a hard edge to it as he continued. "I've seen how much you're sleeping right now."

David looked around the diner, collecting his thoughts. "If you had my dreams, you wouldn't sleep either." David said, biting his lip. He took a handful of nuts off the counter. "It feels like they're just getting worse."

The truth was, he was lucky when he could sleep a few hours a night.

"What the hell, David?" Jessica asked. She turned around from where she was bent over the stove. She braced a hand against her back. A frying pan of something greasy was simmering on the boiler.

"What?" David asked, slinging his jacket over one of the dining room chairs. With the heat, and the baby, she had been having vicious mood swings.

"Is it true?" She snapped. She dropped a container of flour heavily onto the counter. She began scooping cups into the frying pan, sending puffs of flour into the air around her.