Supermarket - Bobby Hall Page 0,40
room, next to a mop bucket, throwing a banana peel into the garbage can.
“Whoa, uh . . . hey, Frank.”
“What’s up, floater?”
“Hey, I forgot to ask, how did it go with Rachel?” I said.
“Oh, man, I called her and told her to meet me for dinner on Thursday and she was super into it.” He smiled. “I’m fucking her then, I bet.”
“Sure, okay, whatever, dude,” I said. “Hey, Frank, I was wondering if you would tell me more about . . . how you would rob the store.”
“Why?” he suspiciously asked.
“Oh, I’m just curious. Your imagination is wild, dude,” I added with a laugh, trying to seem like I was only interested for fun. Frank paused and then began spilling out words.
“Well, the .357 Magnum Smith and Wesson in my locker would be a go-to for the job, I mean, with—”
“WHAT?!” I said. “You really do have a gun in your locker?! What’s wrong with you?”
“The question isn’t what’s wrong with me, my dear Flynn, it’s what’s wrong with the sick fuck who walks in here with a tool forged for death and a taste for revenge. I don’t know if you’ve realized, but this world is fucked up, man! And if we’re at work and some fucking psycho walks through that door, one of us has to be prepared, you know what I’m saying?!”
Again, it was one of those moments where Frank’s insane logic somehow kinda made sense. I glanced at the clock. FUCK! It was 5:45, and I was supposed to meet Mia in fifteen minutes. I asked him if we could postpone the tale of how he would rob the store for another time. With that, I went to the break room, clocked out, put my apron in my locker, and headed home.
Once I got home, I realized I had forgotten to feed Bennett in the morning, so I put a cup of dog food in his bowl. I grabbed his blue leash, clamped it to his collar, and took him for a quick walk.
I loved walking Bennett after work because it gave me time to decompress and think about my day and how it related to my novel. I would write notes, sketching out scenes and dialogue. For how boring work was, it was at least serving its purpose of giving me good material for the book.
Bennett stopped to piss. I waited for him to finish his business and tied him to the bench. My nose was in my notebook like never before, jotting down things about Rachel, Frank and our conversation on the roof, the revolver in his locker, and his crackpot notions of robbing the store. While writing, I heard a very familiar voice.
“Hey there, handsome.” I looked up, and Mia was a few feet away, heading my direction.
I grinned from ear to ear.
“What are you doing?”
“Oh, I was just walking my—”
I looked down and . . . there was the end of the leash, but no dog. Bennett was gone! My stomach dropped.
“Bennett?! Bennett!” I yelled. “Oh, no, he must have gotten loose from his collar when I wasn’t looking!”
“Oh my god, Flynn, I’m sorry!” she said, examining the end of the leash that still had the part that clips on the red collar. It was perfectly intact. “I wonder how he slipped out?”
“I don’t know, but let’s look for him, quick!”
We spent the next hour searching everywhere. I had wanted a dog my entire life and when I finally got one, we instantly bonded. Bennett was my main companion. He kept me sane. He really was a best friend. And now he was gone! I felt helpless, but there was nothing more to be done, so we decided to head back to my apartment with the hope that he may have returned.
When we reached my front door, any optimism I had vanished. Mia held my hand sweetly as I opened the door, and we made our way up the stairwell and into my apartment. After sliding my key in the hole and twisting the knob, we were in.
“Look, I know this sucks,” Mia said. “But I’m sure he will come back soon. And you might not want to hear it, but worrying won’t do you any good, baby.”
Looking into her beautiful brown eyes, I knew she was right. Just then, she peered over my shoulder to my record collection.
“Oh wow, Destroyer!” she said, moving toward the couch and my records. “I love him. He’s so weird and different.”
I told her I felt