few pointers that only made him suck worse. Jonathan, meanwhile, was competing intensely, bearing down with a look of dead seriousness that Joey hadn’t seen in him before. During one of his longer runs, his father took Joey aside and asked about his summer plans.
“That’s a long way away,” Joey said.
“Not so far at all, really. What are your areas of greatest interest?”
“I mostly need to make money, and stay in Virginia. I’m paying my own way through school.”
“So Jonathan tells me. It’s a remarkable ambition. And forgive me if I’m going too far here, but my wife says you’re beginning to develop an interest in your heritage, after not being raised in faith. I don’t know if that’s at all a factor in your deciding to make your own way in the world, but if it is, I want to congratulate you on thinking for yourself and having the courage to do that. In time, you might even come back to lead your family in their own exploration.”
“I’m definitely sorry I never learned anything about it.”
The old man shook his head the same disapproving way his wife had. “We have the most marvelous and durable tradition in the world,” he said. “I think for a young person today it ought to have a particular appeal, because it’s all about personal choice. Nobody tells a Jew what he has to believe. You get to decide all of that for yourself. You can choose your very own apps and features, so to speak.”
“Right, interesting,” Joey said.
“And what are your other plans? Are you interested in a business career the way everybody else seems to be these days?”
“Yes, definitely. I’m thinking of majoring in econ.”
“That’s fine. There’s nothing wrong with wanting to make money. Now, I didn’t have to make my own money, although I don’t mind saying I’ve done a pretty good job of managing what I was given. I owe a lot to my great-grandfather in Cincinnati, who came over here with nothing. He was given an opportunity in this country, which gave him the freedom to make the most of his abilities. That’s why I’ve chosen to spend my life the way I have—to honor that freedom and try to ensure that the next American century be similarly blessed. Nothing wrong with making money, nothing at all. But there has to be something more in your life than that. You have to choose which side you’re on, and fight for it.”
“Absolutely,” Joey said.
“There may be some good-paying summer jobs at the Institute this summer, if you’re interested in doing something for your country. Our fund-raising’s been off the charts since the attacks. Very gratifying to see. You could think about applying if you’re so inclined.”
“Definitely!” Joey said. He was sounding to himself like one of Socrates’ young interlocutors, whose lines of dialogue, on page after page, consisted of variations on “Yes, unquestionably” and “Undoubtedly it must be so.” “That sounds great,” he said. “I’ll definitely apply.”
Putting too much draw on the cue ball, Jonathan scratched unexpectedly, thereby negating all the points he’d accumulated on his run. “Fuck!” he cried, and added, for good measure, “Fuck!” He banged his cue on the edge of the table; and there ensued an awkward moment.
“You have to be especially careful when you’ve run up a big score,” his father said.
“I know that, Dad. I know that. I was being careful. I just got a little distracted by you guys’ conversation.”
“Joey, your turn?”
What was it about witnessing a friend’s meltdown that made him uncontrollably want to smile? He had a wonderful sense of liberation, not having to interact with his own dad in these ways. He could feel more of his good luck returning with each passing moment. For Jonathan’s sake, he was glad that he immediately missed his own next shot.
But Jonathan turned pissy on him anyway. After his father, twice victorious, went back upstairs, he began calling Joey a faggot in not-so-funny ways and finally said he didn’t think that going to New York with Jenna was such a good idea.
“Why not?” Joey said, stricken.
“I don’t know. I just don’t feel like it.”
“It’s going to be awesome. We can try to get into Ground Zero and see what it looks like.”
“That whole area’s blocked off. You can’t see anything.”
“I also want to see where they film the Today show.”
“It’s stupid. It’s just a window.”
“Come on, it’s New York. We’ve got to do this thing.”