Thunder and Lightening: Chapter 2Home « Thunder and Lightening Index « Previous

- Chapter 2

Posted: November 13, 2004 - 12:02:23 am

Jerry Smith slammed the telephone down and sat in his chair fuming. His wife had

just come home from shopping and discovered that he had cleared out all of his

clothes and tools. She had asked how he could dare do that to her considering

how much she had supported him, given birth to his two children, and slaved in

the house. She kept asking who was the whore that he had found and had screeched

at him that the neighbors would all know that he left her for some crack whore.

Even though he was angry, his rage was still well under control. Sitting at his

desk, he stared at his hands wondering why he had been cursed with such massive

paws. They weren't good for anything except destruction. Never had he been able

to use them to create something. If he worked on anything for any length of

time, hard rough calluses would form. When his hands were callused, his wife

would flinch in pain when he touched her body.

Looking down at the desk, he realized that he had failed to fax in his order for

replacement parts. If Mike had done that, he would have yelled at him for an

hour. It was his fault today and he just shook his head. Talking out loud, he

said, "It's just not worth getting angry about it."

He faxed in the order pushing the buttons on the fax machine with his fat

fingers. Much to his surprise, the machine didn't jam like it usually did. The

rage inside him seemed almost disappointed.

Stepping out of his office, he went to the back door and looked over his truck.

New tires and brakes made it safe to drive. After Mike came back from lunch,

he'd take it out for a drive and see how it ran. Returning to the counter, he

told Mike, "It's almost lunch time. I'll see you when you get back."

Mike had heard him talking on the phone and was worried that his boss would come

out of the office angry. That Jerry appeared calm was very uncharacteristic and

it made him wonder if the man had lost it somehow. Not wanting to provoke his

boss, he said, "I'll be back in an hour."

"Take your time," replied Jerry as he settled in the chair at the counter. It

was a slow day, which was fine with him. Getting out a pad of paper, he started

making a list of the things that he needed to do over the next few days. He

guessed the first thing he needed to do was find a place to live. While the

office couch was okay for a night or two, it wasn't appropriate for the long

term.

Shortly after Mike left for lunch, a man came in the store and stepped up to the

counter. Having taken a moment to look over his truck, Jerry was at the back

door and heard the noise. Looking around, the guy called out, "Anyone here?"

"Coming," answered Jerry as he headed to the front of the store. Reaching the

counter, he asked, "What can I do for you?"

The man asked, "Are you Jerry Smith?"

"Yes, I am," answered Jerry wondering how the guy knew his name. The guy wasn't

dressed up enough to be a lawyer hired by his wife.

"I've got your car out front. Where do you want it?"

"Put it in the back next to the truck. Don't block the truck though."

"By the way, I put the bumper that was on the hood in the back seat. Your car

must have really hit it hard to bend it like that."

Jerry frowned at the reminder of his actions the previous day. Shaking his head,

"I'm afraid I bent it."

"Sure as hell bent it," replied the tow truck driver with a grin at the

understatement. The bumper was bent into the shape of a horseshoe. He had been

puzzling over the bumper ever since he saw it lying on the hood of the car. He

added, "I have no idea how a car could bend it into that shape."

"I bent it," answered Jerry with an emphasis on the first word.

About to make a smart-ass remark, the driver paled when he finally understood

what Jerry meant. Looking at the huge man, he realized just how strong the guy

had to be in order to have bent the fender. He said, "Oh shit!"

Jerry frowned as he said, "I think I'm going to hang it on my wall as a reminder

of what happens when I lose my temper."

"I'll park your car in the back, just like you asked." The driver backed out of

the building and returned to his truck.

Jerry hadn't meant to scare the guy, but he wasn't going to lie to him either.

After a minute, he realized that he would have to pay the guy for towing the car

and headed to the back of the store with some cash from the register. Stepping

out into the back, he watched the guy back the car next to the truck. The guy

double- checked to make sure that the car wasn't blocking the truck.

Jerry watched the driver remove the tow bar from the car. On the ground was a

trail of oil that had been left by the car while it had been towed. Going back

into the store he searched for something to put under the car to catch the oil.

All he could find was a box, so he filled it with some newspaper to absorb the

oil and threw in a generator that had been returned as defective to weigh the

box down. Returning outside, he slid the box under the car as the driver waited

for him to pay.

Jerry went over to the driver and asked, "How much?"

"Paying cash?"

"Yeah."

"Fifty."

Jerry counted out fifty and handed the money to the driver. Accepting the cash,

the driver asked, "What are you going to do with that old truck?"

"Fix it up and drive it."

"Looks like you have a lot of work ahead of you. Are you planning to show it or

something?" asked the driver. He had towed a lot of cars in worse condition to

folks intending to fix them up. Most folks never fixed them, but judging by the

business this guy was in the chances were good that it would be restored to mint

condition.

Jerry looked at the truck and realized what it had come to mean to him. He

answered, "That truck is me on the inside. All beat up, rusted, worn down, and

left on the back of the lot to be ignored. Yeah, it'll be a lot of work fixing

us up. When I'm done, I'll probably show it around. However, it is going to

fulfill its function in life too."

"Well, I wish you luck," replied the driver. Shaking his head, he returned to

the tow truck and left.

Jerry went back into the store to wait for customers. He took calls from repair

shops, pulled orders, and piled them up on the counter. The runner came and went

several times, picking up the orders to deliver. The time passed and he started

to get hungry, but Mike wasn't back from lunch. The day before, he would have

been furious. Instead of getting angry, he just went to the back door

occasionally and examined the truck. His eyes didn't see it as it was, but how

it would look when he was finished with it.

Finally, he returned to the counter and sat down. There was a stand of key rings

on the corner of the counter and he absently examined them. There were two that

had lightening patterns on them, but were slightly different. He picked them up

and examined them. Selecting one, he put the keys to the truck on it.

Almost an hour and a half after he had left for lunch, Mike came rushing in

followed by his wife. When he realized that his wife had followed him in, he

turned and half whispered, "Get out of here. You don't want to see this."

Jerry looked up at the commotion and said, "Ah, you're back. Did you have a good

lunch?"

Mike slowly looked over at Jerry and answered, "I'm sorry about being late."

"Hey, I told you to take your time," replied Jerry. Grabbing his list and his

keys, he stood and headed towards the back of the store. He called over his

shoulder, "Watch the store. I'll be back in an hour or two."

Mike watched Jerry walk out the back of the store. Turning to his wife, he said,

"I don't think he's feeling okay."

Jerry headed down the street intending to hit the burger joint where he usually

had lunch. Rather than rushing there to get through the meal as fast as he

could, he took his time and looked around for a change. For the first time, he

noticed a little restaurant called the Crimson Rose Bistro tucked away a little

off the main road. At the last minute, he decided to try the place and turned

into the parking lot. The driver behind him honked his horn and shot him the

finger. Jerry ignored him and pulled into a spot next to a Mercedes.

Getting out of the truck, he looked down at himself taking stock of his

clothing. He was wearing a pair of business casual pants and a white shirt.

Neither one of them was dirty. Turning to the truck, he said, "There shouldn't

be any problem with eating in a place with real silverware for a change."

Entering the restaurant, Jerry was shocked to find that it was filled with

little two and four person tables. The majority of clients were middle-aged

women with two or three to a table. There were two couples, both with men that

looked to him to be a little dainty to be considered men. An attractive young

woman in her late twenties came over to him with a pair of menus in her hand and

asked, "Table for two?"

"One, please," replied Jerry feeling very out of place.

A puzzled expression came over her face as she looked at him. He wasn't the type

of person that came into this kind of place. She led him to a table for two

wondering if it was large enough for him. Seating himself on the small chair, he

dwarfed the table making it look like he was balancing a plate between his legs.

Lifting an eyebrow, she handed him a menu and asked, "Would you like something

to drink?"

Uncomfortable by the surroundings and the attention that his arrival had

provoked, Jerry answered, "Yes, please. I'd like an ice tea."

The pretty waitress smiled and said, "I'll be right back with your tea."

Jerry set both elbows on the edges of the table and leaned forward to read the

menu. The first time through, he thought it was written in French. The second

time he read it, he realized that it was English but he didn't recognize a

single item on the menu. Puzzled, he stared at the menu trying to decide what he

should do. 'What in the hell was Portobello Mushroom? Was it a kind of mushroom

or was it a way of preparing them?'

The waitress returned with iced tea served in a tall thin glass. After setting

it on the table, she asked, "Did you decide what you want yet?"

Taking a deep breath, Jerry gestured with a finger for her to come closer. When

she leaned down, he whispered, "I guess you figured out that I don't really

belong in here."

His whisper was like a normal speaking voice and most of the women turned to

look over at him. Cautious, she answered, "The thought did cross my mind."

"It crossed my mind. In fact, that thought is still ricocheting around in that

empty space called my skull." He waved a finger through the air as though it

were a bullet ricocheting around in a small area.

As she tittered at his reply, he spread his hands as he said, "Last night, I

came pretty close to getting killed. This morning, I decided that I was going to

live life a little more fully. Now, this place is something I would never have

tried before, but I'm going to try it. After all, isn't trying new things part

of living life to the fullest?"

Tilting her head as though reassessing him, she suddenly relaxed and smiled at

him. Laying a hand on his arm, she answered, "Yes, it is."

"So in that spirit, I have to admit that I don't recognize a single thing on the

menu. Why don't you pick out something for me to try?" He smiled as he made the

request. Her casual touch on his arm meant more than he could put into words.

His honest candor was disarming and the woman found herself warming up to him.

She asked, "What if you don't like it?"

Jerry was quiet for a moment as he considered the possibility and then answered,

"Then I learn something new."

He reached over to the glass of iced tea and removed the straw. The glass was

two inches in diameter and six inches tall. Holding the glass between two

fingers and his thumb, he drained it in one swallow. The waitress had watched

him down the glassful of tea and couldn't resist smiling when he said,

"Interesting. I would never have thought of serving iced tea in a glass that

holds a single sip."

The waitress made up her mind that she actually liked this guy and patted him on

the shoulder. With a smile, she said, "You stay right here. I'll fix you up with

a lunch that you'll enjoy."

In the kitchen, she emptied the water from one of the water pitchers and filled

it with tea. She called over to the chef, "Make a Chicken Caesar Salad, but

super size it."

After the chef had finished, she came out of the kitchen carrying the salad and

the pitcher of iced tea. The salad was three times the size they normally

served. She set the plate in front of him and the pitcher of tea within his

reach. Pointing to the dish, she said, "This is a Chicken Caesar Salad. It has

Romaine Lettuce, Croutons, Parmesan Cheese, and is topped with sliced chicken.

It's the only thing we have with meat and I figured you are probably a meat

eater."

Jerry smiled and commented, "It's a good sized salad. To tell the truth, I kind

of expected the servings to be a lot smaller."

The waitress bent down and whispered, "I asked the Chef to make it big. I

figured you are probably a man that enjoys a good sized meal."

Realizing that it was his large stature at work, a slight frown crossed his

face. Then the idea that she had made the effort to make sure that he was

satisfied with the meal cheered him up. Bursting into a heartfelt smile, he

said, "Thank you. I appreciate that."

She had seen the frown cross his face and wondered if there was a story behind

it, but the smile was genuine and that warmed her heart. She said, "I'll let you

eat."

Jerry refilled the glass of iced tea and drank it down. Grabbing the fork, he

dug into his food. The salad was very different than the typical lettuce with

thousand island dressing that he usually had, but it was good. The chicken

helped fill out the salad in a way that he hadn't expected.

As he ate, he examined his surroundings. There were little paintings of

different kinds of flowers on the walls. The walls themselves were covered with

striped wallpaper in a pattern that mixed strips of pale green, white, and light

pink in a random pattern. The curtains around the windows were made of lace.

Each table was covered with a linen tablecloth and had a small vase with a

single flower stuck in it. The impression the room gave was very feminine and

not the kind of place that he would have chosen to eat had he known what it was

like inside.

The women in the room whispered to each other in intimate conversations, chatted

about stores located in various places, or discussed fashions. He couldn't hear

the details of their talk, but he heard enough to form an opinion about the

women around him. None of them worked. Instead, they lived off the sweat of

their husbands. He never heard one of them express any kind of appreciation for

what their husband did for her.

When he finished the salad, he sat back feeling satisfied and full. The waitress

had done a good job in selecting a meal for him. She showed up to remove the

plate and smiled as she said, "Either you liked it or you really had to work to

get all of it down."

Jerry laughed and replied, "I liked it."

She smiled and said, "I'm glad. Would you like a desert?"

"Normally, I would say no, but I've really enjoyed myself. Sure, I'll take a

desert."

She leaned down and asked, "Do you like chocolate?"

Confused, he answered, "Yeah, I guess so."

She whispered in his ear, "I have this killer chocolate desert. The women in

here won't order it unless there are three of them to share it because it is so

rich. You'll love it."

Jerry looked at the waitress appreciating her efforts to make him comfortable.

Smiling, he said, "I'll try it."

"I'll bring out some coffee to go with it. Do you like it with cream or sugar?"

"I drink it black," he replied.

Jerry enjoyed the desert tremendously. He ate and drank his coffee from the

massive mug that she had given him, not knowing that it was normally used as a

soup cup. He watched as the women slowly emptied from the restaurant. It wasn't

long before he was the last customer in the place.

The waitress sat down in the chair across from him and said, "It's such a

pleasure to see a real man eat. None of the picky questions about fat content,

calories, carbohydrates, or brand names."

Very surprised that she had joined him at the table, he tried to come up with

some sort of comeback. Weakly, he said, "I like food."

She smiled at him and said, "I bet you would love my roast cooked with potatoes

and carrots. I make brown gravy out of the drippings that tastes out of this

world. I usually serve it with some corn on the cob and occasionally some

spinach."

"I didn't see that on the menu," replied Jerry wondering how he had missed that

dish.

She laughed as though he had made a great joke and replied, "I'd lose every one

of my customers if I put that on the menu. No, I only cook that at home."

"Well, it sure sounds good."

"Thanks," answered the waitress. She was quiet as though she expected him to say

something.

Jerry sat there realizing that the burden of the conversation was on him, but he

couldn't think of anything to say. After an awkward minute of quiet he said, "My

name is Jerry. What's yours?"

"I'm Jenny."

"Well, Jenny. I've really enjoyed lunch today. Usually, I go to the burger place

down the street and grab a burger before going back to the store. I'm very glad

that I came in here for a change."

"Oh, you work around here?"

"Yeah, I'm the manager of the auto parts store four blocks from here." Jerry was

embarrassed to say that after years of his wife telling him that it was a loser

job.

"Don't you hate the paperwork that goes with running a business? I swear, I

spend four hours serving and eight hours doing paperwork," replied Jenny.

Jerry had not realized that she was the owner of the restaurant and his estimate

of her went up another notch. He agreed with her, "You bet. I have a problem

keeping employees, but that is due to my personality."

"You seem nice enough to me," remarked Jenny.

"I have a problem with my temper," replied Jerry. He shifted uncomfortably on

the chair and added, "That's not good for someone my size."

"What's wrong with your size?" asked Jenny. She had always been attracted to big

men. Her father had been a big man and she adored her father. When things were

scary, he would wrap his big arms around her making her feel safe and secure.

"I'm a freak of nature," replied Jerry with a frown as he glanced down at his

massive paws that were called hands.

Jenny looked at her watch and said, "Oh my, I didn't realize it was getting so

late. I've got to clear the tables before the dishwasher leaves."

Jerry looked over at her wondering if she agreed with his assessment of himself

and had changed the subject. When he looked at his watch, he was surprised at

how late it was. He said, "I've got to run by the bank before I get back to the

store. I better go. How much do I owe you?"

Smiling at him, she said, "Don't worry about it. Next time you come back, I'll

charge you double."

He was about to argue, but realized that it was actually an invitation to come

back. Grinning, he said, "I'll take you up on that. I'll be back Friday."

Smiling, she led him to the door where she said, "I'm looking forward to it."

Jerry went out to his truck and sat in the driver's seat happy. The rage had

retreated a great distance. Sitting there reflecting on his lunch, he realized

that he had laughed and joked with an attractive young woman. Patting the

steering wheel, he said, "Well, Thunder. You got new tires and new brakes today.

It looks like I just got me a new friend. We're both well on our way to getting

rebuilt."

He started the truck, listening to the low rumble of the muffler and said,

"Tomorrow, a new muffler."

With a low roar, he pulled out of the parking lot and headed to the bank.

Reaching it, he went in and stood in a line that was shorter than normal. He

realized it was the time of day. Normally, he came in during the lunch hour and

the line was horribly long. He filed away the information for later use.

Reaching the counter, he hemmed for a moment and then asked, "What is the

balance in my savings account?"

After the getting the account information, the woman behind the counter looked

up the amount. Squinting to make out the numbers, she looked at the screen and

said, "You have $12,546."

He took his slip and made out the withdrawal amount an even $3000. That would

leave a quarter the savings each for his son, daughter, and wife. He slid the

withdrawal form across the counter and waited for her to complete the

transaction. Looking at the amount, she asked, "How do you want it? All

hundreds?"

"Sure, that would be fine," replied Jerry as he considered what he had to do for

a long-term solution to the financial issues he faced. After she counted out the

money, he asked, "Could you print up a history of my checking account for the

month?"

The teller frowned and then said, "Sure. It'll take a minute."

The man in line behind Jerry grumbled. Rather than react negatively, Jerry

turned and, smiled as he said, "Sorry about that."

It was hard to tell if it was his size, the gravelly sound of his low voice, or

his manner, but the man stopped grumbling about the delay. Jerry turned back to

the counter to wait for the return of the teller. She returned with several

pages detailing all of the checks that had cleared the bank since the last

statement. He was shocked at the activity that so many pages represented.

Mumbling his thanks, he walked away from the teller looking over the pages. He

almost stumbled when he saw that his wife's tennis lessons were costing him two

hundred a month. Looking down the list, he saw checks for forty dollars made out

to the hairstylist that she went to every week. There was a payment for over

four hundred to AmEx and he didn't even carry that card. There were checks to

dress shops and other stores. He was a loser and she was spending over eight

hundred a month living a good life while he worked? How was it that he had a

weekly allowance of only twenty-five dollars and used most of that money eating

lunch at the burger joint?

He sat down in the truck and considered his circumstances. It was unusual that

he wasn't angry at the injustice of what he saw on the print out, but he didn't

even notice his atypical reaction. Instead, he just felt numb at the realization

that he had been a chump.

After sitting there for a few minutes, he smiled and started up the truck. He

drove back to the store and parked his truck in the back. Getting out, he

entered the store and dropped the papers on his desk. Going to the register, he

returned the hundred he had taken earlier to pay for the tow truck. Mike watched

him moving around the store, noticing the smile on Jerry's face. He couldn't

recall seeing Jerry smiling.

Jerry turned and noticed Mike watching him. He remarked, "I had a great lunch

today. I tried that little place up the street."

"What place?"

"The Crimson Rose Bistro."

Mike stared at Jerry for a full minute before he replied, "That's a chick's

place."

"Yeah. I discovered that. I'm going back Friday."

Mike shook his head wondering what he had found to eat at that place. He had

gone with his wife there once and couldn't find a single thing on the menu to

eat. The wife had loved the place, but they had never returned to it. He

replied, "Okay. If you like that kind of place, I see no reason not to go back."

Jerry smiled at the discomfort of Mike. He understood the man was thinking that

he must have lost his mind to go to a place like that. Instead of following up

on the conversation, he asked, "Does your wife work?"

"No. She's thinking about going back to work now that the kids are going into

school."

Jerry asked, "Do you think that she would like to try handling the inventory

here as a part-time job? She could work when the kids are in school and bring in

a little money. You'll be able to go out to lunch together more often."

Mike, who had just been talked into staying here until he found another job,

stared at Jerry. Cautiously, he answered, "I'll tell her about the offer."

Grabbing the pad of paper on the counter, Jerry replied, "Good. I guess I had

better get to the inventory and see what we need to order."

Wandering off to the back of the store, he walked down the isle examining the

shelves to see what was getting low in stock. As he worked, he realized that it

was about time to modernize the operation of the store here. Of course, since

this was a chain he'd have to get permission from his boss to make the changes,

but he didn't expect that to be too difficult to accomplish.

After getting the list together of the items he would need, he went to his

office and filled out the order forms. A knock on the door interrupted his

thoughts. Looking up, he saw Mike standing at the door. Rather than getting

irritated, he asked, "What's up?"

"It's closing time."

"Okay. Lock up the door and I'll see you tomorrow. Mention my offer to your

wife," replied Jerry as he returned to his work.

Mike walked away from the office confused by the new Jerry. Jerry didn't notice

and as soon as he finished filling out the order form, went over to the fax

machine. Carefully putting the paper in the feed, he dialed the number and

waited for the fax to break down. It functioned perfectly. Satisfied, he put the

forms into a folder and filed it in the file cabinet where he kept the order

records of the store. Shaking his head, he realized too much of the record

keeping for the store was manual.

Returning to his desk, he attacked the pile of paperwork. He had reports to fill

out concerning hours worked by each employee, sales figures for the previous

week, and forms that covered other aspects of the business. Normally, he'd gripe

about every form that he had to fill out. So much of the information was

redundant. Half of the forms consisted of filling in the store details such as

its address.

Normally, he did this work during store hours, but with the shortage of

employees he had to watch the counter much of the time. At least today he didn't

have anything else to do except work. There wasn't even a television set here

for him to watch until he went to sleep. Working with an unusual diligence, he

finished all of the paperwork for the week before heading out for dinner.

Dinner was a simple affair, eaten at a chicken place. They had a buffet and he

could usually make a considerable dent in it. It was one of the cheapest dinners

that he could find. This evening, he took his time and enjoyed the food despite

the fact that it was typical fried chicken. Tonight, he kept his thoughts

private, 'This was a pretty nice day. How did that happen?'

Taking another bite of chicken, he thought, 'I know why. I took my time today,

meet a nice lady, put some money in my pocket, and did my work.'

His plate empty, he returned to the counter and refilled it. A little boy

stared, open mouthed, at the amount of food that he piled on the plate. Rather

than apologizing, Jerry looked down at the boy and said, "I'm big."

The little boy looked up at him and said, "You're huge."

Jerry laughed as he carried the plate back to his chair. Compared to the little

boy he was huge. In fact, compared to everyone he was huge. As he sat down, he

thought to himself, 'Perhaps it is time that I accept the fact that I'm huge and

stop apologizing for it.'

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