Fishbowl

By: David H
(© 2011 by the author)
Editor: Ken King

The author retains all rights. No reproductions are allowed without the author's consent. Comments are appreciated at...

 Chapter 5 

After that first day of sessions, Elias seemed to have things under control at work.  Kids were responding to his therapeutic techniques quite well; better, some said, than under the previous art therapist that worked at the facility.  A couple of people suggested that it was because he could understand where they were coming from. He understood the importance of that place in a way that none of them ever could.  Unlike a lot of therapists and teachers, he could take the kids outside and still keep the structure that was needed for class.  With a little bit of classroom money that he had, he bought clipboards and would take them all outside to draw.

In his personal life, Elias was letting go, ever so slowly, of those things that had bound him during college.  He joked that he was probably the only person to ever go through college without consuming a single beer or mixed drink, without taking at least one random person home from a bar to fulfill the base human need for physical contact.  He went out, but it wasn’t often.  From the time he started the job, though, he seemed almost happier.  Jenny and everyone in her family noticed that he seemed a little more easy-going than he’d ever been.  Elias was never uptight or anything, but he now seemed more relaxed.  He was still hyper-aware of his surroundings and everyone around him, but it didn’t seem to bother him as much to be out and among people that he didn’t know.

In fact, whereas he didn’t travel… at all, he didn’t immediately turn down an invitation from Caleb to go to New York to see his show at the beginning of September.  When he told Caleb he would think about it, he immediately went to Jenny and told her about the invitation.  She was all about him going.

“You can eat at the nicest restaurants.  You can go see a show.  You can draw Times Square.  Ooh!” she exclaimed as she pitched the idea to him.  “You might even get laid!”  Elias laughed about the last part, for both of them knew that it would never happen.

“I’ll call him and tell him that I’m coming,” he offered, “only if you can get the time off work to go with me!”

“Like I would pass up a chance to go to New York,” she joked as she called her boss and asked him if it was OK.  Her supervisor was cool with it, so Elias had no choice but to agree to speak to Dr. Owens the next morning.

When he did, she was excited about the idea.  Since he’d already volunteered to stay there over the Christmas holiday to give the resident counselor the time off, Dr. Owens had no problem with letting him take a few days here and a few days there.  She told him that while he was there he should eat at a little Indian restaurant in Manhattan she knew and go to the original Macy’s.  Even if he didn’t buy anything, it would be an awesome experience.  With that, he spoke to Caleb and then began making arrangements with Jenny for the trip up. 

*************************** 

On the day he was supposed to leave for New York, he woke up excited.  He took a shower and then started packing a few days’ worth of clothes into a suitcase.  Ashton, who was driving them to the airport, arrived at the house at seven a.m. with Jenny half asleep in the passenger seat.  Elias, more hyper than anyone should be at that hour of the day, made sure that Ashton didn’t mind driving to Montevallo to check his mail and feed the fish.  Ashton smiled and reminded him that he’d driven to Hoover the previous year to do that same thing when he and Shaun went on vacation.  Handing him the key after that, Elias picked up his suitcase and backpack, and the three of them were off.

Driving through the city, Elias contemplated just how beautiful Birmingham was.  The tall buildings were spectacular; Vulcan was still standing sentry over the magical city that iron had built.  He didn’t often go downtown, and he felt like he had good reason.  The place, for him at least, had been a trap at one point, a vicious place where the streets turned him into something that he should never have been.  Sure, he took responsibility for his actions.  At one point, he worked to pay off all the stores from which he’d stolen even the smallest things.  It was almost like a soul cleansing thing to do, an absolution of the highest kind, to repay people that had suffered a loss because of him.  Most thought it was weird, but they didn’t question his motives or intentions behind the actions.

As they were driving up to the airport, Elias was like a little kid as he saw a plane coming in for a landing.  It was something he’d never experienced before, and to see the giant aircraft coming in for a landing was one of the few things that could still prompt him to simply say ‘Wow.’  Jenny smiled as Ashton continued driving toward the upper level of the airport.  Parking in front, he jumped out to open the back of the SUV as Elias and Jenny climbed out of the car.  Jenny was clutching a small pillow with which she always traveled; Elias was taking in the world around him.  As Elias took both of their bags from Ashton, the younger of Jenny’s two brothers told her to have a good time on the trip.  As a joke, he told them not to bring home any guys named Shaun, that the parents couldn’t handle it.  With a laugh, they both hugged Elias and Ashton quickly drove off, complete with the intention of returning to his comfortable bed to sleep for a few more hours.

Walking inside the airport and straight to the Southern Airlines counter, the two of them quickly checked their bags before walking around the upper level for a moment.  Jenny told him that the airport was small compared to some others she’d been in over the course of her life, but it was adequate enough.  There was a McDonalds and a currency exchange place.  There were banks of ATMs representing all the major local banks, along with a combination bookstore and gift shop.  Each of them bought a couple of magazines for the trip before going through security and then sitting there to wait on their flight’s departure.

“So, are you nervous?” Jenny asked.

“Now I am,” Elias smiled as he turned to look at her for a second.  “I’m just kidding.  I am really excited.  This is my first vacation, really.”

“I know…”

“And to see Caleb again… Jenny… the two of you are so much alike that it’s not even funny.  You are both amazingly nice people; you’re both completely forgiving of my past; you’re both so protective of me.  Oh!  And the two of you both really enjoy the company of a hot man!”

“I like him already!” she noted as their flight was being called to the gate for boarding.  “Oh!  By the way!  When I told Mom and Dad that we were flying on American, Dad took our confirmation numbers and called to upgrade our seats to first class!”

“What?  Why?”

“Um… Because I asked him to!  As early birthday presents for both of us!” she said as she took his arm again and the two went up to board the plane when first class was called.

“Jenny!” he said as she walked off.  Quickly, he grabbed his back pack and followed her toward the counter.  A few minutes later, they were in comfortable, wide, cushy seats.  “Remind me to thank your parents when we get back,” he said after they had been there for a moment and he’d been able to relax for a second.

“Will do,” she said as she took her pillow and cuddled up against his shoulder. 

As she fell asleep, even sleeping through the announcements that were made at the beginning of every flight, Elias found himself awake, alert, and ready to experience every single moment of the flight, of the trip.

As Jenny slept, he thought about all the places to which he’d always wanted to travel.  New York, with its fine galleries and many exhibitions was certainly one of them.  He was going to be there long enough to go to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the American Folk Art Museum, and, the icing on the cake, at least for him, the Guggenheim.

He thought about Caleb, about how he was the closest thing to a brother he’d ever had.  The baseball, the protection, the patience, and the compassion that this man had shown, despite his initial resistance to the attention, all of it made him feel like he belonged, like he deserved the life that he’d never had.  He credited this man with a lot of his recovery and a lot of the good things that had happened over the years, despite the fact that life had gotten in their way and they’d not talked for a while. 

As the plane was landing in New York, Jenny woke herself up and smiled at him.  “I am so excited!”

“You and me both!” he said. 

*************************** 

A bit later, the plane was landing at JFK.  Landing, for Elias, was worse than taking off, but it wasn’t very bad.  Getting off the plane, though, was an interesting experience as it seemed everyone around them was frantically rushing to get someplace else.  Unlike Elias, none of them was taking in their surroundings, making no attempt to really know what the colors of the terminal’s walls were or the way the metal on the train between the terminals felt as he gripped it tightly with his left hand while holding Jenny’s hand with his right.

In the terminal where they’d be picking up his luggage, Caleb was waiting with a sign on which he’d written “¡MANO!” with a huge black marker.  Luis, his boyfriend, was standing there, watching him as Caleb scanned the crowd for Elias’s tall self.  Since they had become friends on Facebook, both Caleb and Luis knew what he looked like. 

“There he is,” Luis called, pointing in the direction of the stairs that led up from the train.

“MANO!!!!” Caleb yelled over the groups of people.  One person gave him a nasty look, to which he responded with a little bit of attitude that had been both tempered and finely tuned over time in the city.

Elias saw him and smiled, squeezing Jenny’s hand and leading her to where two Latin men stood.  Caleb was the shorter of the two, standing at 5’5” while Luis was a good six inches taller.  As they walked up, Caleb was already fighting back his emotions.  Elias had already given up and was crying as he smiled.  Caleb held out a fist made with his left hand before saying anything to him.  Elias did the same, “Mano.”

“A mano…” Caleb said as their fists touched.

“Boom!” they both said as they opened up their hands and moved them away.  A second later, Caleb lost it and extended his arms to take him into an embrace.

“I’m so glad we found each other again…” Caleb whispered. 

“Me too…” Elias said.

“I’m Luis,” Luis introduced himself to Jenny.

“Jenny.  It’s nice to meet you.”

“Likewise.  So has yours been talking about the other as much as mine has?” he asked.

“More than you know!” Jenny smiled.

“You look so good!” Caleb told Elias as they pulled apart, as Luis and Jenny turned their attention back to the guys.

“You do, too,” Elias said.

“And you!” Caleb turned to Jenny.  “I’ve heard a lot about you!  But let me tell you that Elias didn’t tell me that you were as beautiful as you are!  In fact, I’ve got a dress in the collection that I’m showing this weekend that would look… amazing… on you.”

“You’ll have to show it to me later!” Jenny noted as the four of them turned to collect the bags that Caleb and Elias had brought with them.

That evening, the four went to dinner at a nice restaurant in Manhattan before Caleb and Elias playfully argued about the sleeping arrangements for the evening.  Elias said that they could stay in a hotel; Caleb was insistent that they stay with him and Luis.  Elias tempted him with a view of the city unlike what he would see from a hotel room, plus the breakfast would be better, since Luis cooked something every single morning.  In the end, Caleb won out, and even though he had to pay for a night in the hotel anyway, he really was happy in the end that they chose to stay with them, as the view was even more breathtaking than Caleb had described.

Something about being away from home helped him sleep that evening, and the next day as he woke, Jenny was already up and planning their day.  They were hitting museums all day before taking in a show that evening.

To see works of art that he’d read about or seen in books was amazing.  At so many points over the course of that day, Elias lost himself in its admiration.  It was important to him, but really only for the sake of the work being the creative representation of the artist’s mind.  He could feel the emotion in each of the pieces he saw, whether it be happiness, sadness, or love.  He could imagine what must have been growing their heads as their brushes ran against the canvasses or their hands became sullen from the clay or metal or stone.  The beauty of the works themselves made him feel in some way like he knew their creators.

That evening, Caleb, used a network of connections that he had developed over years of being and working in the city, to get the group tickets to see Nathan Brady’s revival of Hello, Dolly!  They dressed nicely, with Elias in a coat on loan from Luis, and Jenny in the dress that Caleb had told her about upon their arrival.  After dinner, they arrived at the theatre only to find that there was a throng of people outside dying to get in.  With a little bit of attitude, though, the group walked into the theatre and presented their tickets to the usher who then showed them to their seats.

The seats were 10th row center in the middle section, but along the edge of the row.  Having a quick escape was something that neither Elias nor Caleb had completely gotten over.  They still had a great view of the stage and of all the action that unfolded before them.  When the musical started, and as it continued, Elias lost himself in the world of Dolly Levi and all the other characters.  While it wasn’t exactly his type of art, he still appreciated the costumes, the music, and the staging.  It was a chance for those people on the stage, for a few minutes, to live in someone else’s shoes. 

After they left, they found a taxi that, at Caleb’s request, took them around the city so that Elias could look at all the buildings and the people.  While they were stopped at Times Square in the traffic, Elias repositioned himself to look at all the lights and flash, the shining example of The City that Never Sleeps. 

*************************** 

The next day was filled with activity as they ran around to get everything ready for the show that evening.  By the time the hour was upon them, Elias and Jenny were seated among the industry’s elite and other people who were just interested in the promise of a new designer.  Luis joined them just as the lights in the room were lowered, with the exception of a few ambient lights on the stage in blue, Caleb’s favorite color. 

As dance music started to play, a spotlight highlighted Caleb’s name on the back of the stage.  The first model appeared and confidently strutted to the end of the stage.  With a little bit of attitude and a whole lot of sexy, she stood there for a moment before turning and walking away.  For an hour or so, they watched as people around them enjoyed Caleb’s designs.  At the end of the show, Caleb walked out on the stage as all the models paraded his designs around again.  He stood at the end of the stage for a moment and accepted the applause of people around him.  As the music faded so that it was just faintly playing in the background, a sound technician handed Caleb a microphone.

He first said a few words to the group about a business deal that he’d made with Bradley’s International, a company that operated department stores under several different names in North America and Europe.  He explained that he was taken aback by the fact that they wanted to let him open a store just for his designs, as well as a special line of ready-to-wear clothes for both men and women.  “Of the many demands that I made before agreeing to this deal,” he then explained, “one of them was to make sure that… a very special place and a very special group of people got something that they deserved.  Only a couple of you here have ever heard of the Baur Center. It’s a school in Alabama for kids, like me, who had never gotten a fair shake in life.  When I ran away from my foster home, I lived on the streets for a while before I found my way to this place.  Like all the other students who have ever gone through its doors, I was accepted in with open arms and given the tools that I needed to succeed, to be here with you today.  So, as part of my deal with Bradley’s, they are going to close their store in Birmingham two days a year for the next ten years, and they’re going to give each student there $1,000 per visit, to buy whatever clothes and shoes they want or need.”

Only Caleb and Elias truly knew the importance of that contribution.  Both of them, having grown up on second-hand clothes and shoes, really appreciated the first pair of jeans they were able to buy for themselves and the first kicks that someone else hadn’t worn out before they got them.  Elias, in fact, still often wore his jeans.  They were warm and comfortable, and he was happy that the kids were going to get to experience that.  Elias was probably the first to stand and applaud him as a smile spread widely across his face.

That evening, as they got back to Caleb and Luis’s apartment, the two were chatting excitedly about it all.  Luis and Jenny didn’t really understand it, but they loved listening to them talking with such animation.  At one point, they both climbed from where they were sitting, went into their respective rooms and returned, attired in different pants than they had worn earlier. 

“Those are the jeans you were wearing the night we met!” Luis noticed.

“Yes!” Caleb said as he turned and gave them a show.

“They’re like a glove!  Love it!” Jenny said.

“Me… too…” Luis looked and naughtily grinned at her as they both laughed.

“ELIAS!!!” Jenny yelled as if it were her place.

“So, what do y’all think?” he asked as he stepped from the guys’ spare room.

“I think you need a man to give you some attention,” Jenny said.

“You’re hot!” Luis said.  “Almost as hot as my baby,” he mentioned, looking at Caleb.

“Thank you,” Elias reluctantly accepted the compliment as they sat to enjoy their first jeans and the company of the others. 

*************************** 

Elias and Jenny returned to Birmingham the next day after shopping for souvenirs for Jenny’s family.  He could see, though, a difference in that place, as if those few days away had given him a fresh set of eyes with which to view not only the place, but his life.  When he got back to Montevallo that evening, as he unpacked and got clothes into the wash and such, he was more than eager to tell Max all about it.

To be continued...

Posted: 10/07/11