Chapter 6 - A Friend

Have you ever had a friend? I haven't.

I was supposed to have done everything in the white room I grew up in. Everything every myth depicted a god doing, and everything a man has done. Or at least get close to it.

But there were a lot of things that just weren't possible there. One of them was making friends. And despite having read and observed a lot of friendships, I've never felt what it was like to have one.

I suppose it felt a little like how I felt around Nancy. Like I wasn't alone anymore.

Can I trust her? Yeah, not to be nice, but she wasn't a bad person. Unless you asked Percy, or Grover, or the cab driver who picked us up from the bus station, or any of the pedestrians...

Nancy dragged me into a small apartment. I expected something dirty or grimy, something like what Percy's Step Dad made him live in. Nope, there wasn't even the smell of marijuana. Rather, it was lavender. Not just from somebody smoking lavender, there was that too, but the whole place was filled with the smell of flowers. The walls were white, so were the carpet and furniture. Not bleach white like my old "room", but a neutral white. The floors were dark wood.

The only thing that betrayed Nancy's background was the minuscule size. It was small, even compared to other New York apartments, with hallways that made it difficult to bring in my small suitcase.

Nancy's mom was in front of the TV, doing Yoga. She looked just like her, except a little less scrawny. Her eyebrows bunched together when seeing me.

"Hello, Ms. Bobofit."

"Are you my daughter's boyfriend?"

"Just a friend."

"And you're a boy."

"Yes."

Nancy stood angrily and quietly to the side. Ms. Bobofit got up and walked up to me. She was a full head shorter than me but wasn't intimidated. She looked me up and down. I tried to look at Nancy because the angle gave me a direct angle into her mom's cleavage. Nancy frowned at me.

"Look at me." Her mom yanked my chin down.

"Violence is not necessary ma'am."

"That's Sarah or Mom to you."

"Yes, Ma-" I blocked her slap.

"You're feisty and stubborn. I see why she likes you."

"I forgive you this once because you're Nancy's mom and this is your home. Do not attempt to hit me again, Sarah."

"Hmmm. Well, welcome to the family, Sem. I don't know what you see in her, but as long as you don't knock her up in the next two years, my daughter's yours." She's too stubborn to control. I guess she is like her daughter.

"Are you done, Mom?" Nancy asked.

"For now. I called around and found out a few places where your little hill might be. We can go look for it after I make snacks for the road."

Nancy guided me to her room. It was overflowing with things, all neatly organized by category or price. There were bins of stolen cosmetics. Purses too expensive for Nancy or her mom littered the shelves. It was impressive.

I sat on her bed while Nancy changed in the closet.

"How much did you tell your mom about me?"

"I just sent her some pictures of you and the card. She's a masseuse and yoga instructor. A lot of her clients have land. I thought she might be able to help."

"And all the stolen goods? What do you do with them?"

"It saves us a lot of money if we want to look nice. And it helps my mom not have to take jobs she doesn't want to."

She burst out of the closet in jeans and a green shirt that complimented her eyes.

"How do I look?" She posed.

"Like a pretty shoplifter."

She flashed a smile.

"Sorry about my mom."

"It's fine. You two are a lot alike."

"What about your mom? What's she like."

"I have two of them. They adopted me a few years ago. They're very strange. One is very sweet, peaceful, and elegant. The other one is very chaotic, she'd like you."

"Do you know who your original parents are?"

"I'll tell you about that later." I tap her nose."For now, I think I'm going to close my eyes if that's alright."

"No problem. I'll go hang out with my mom."

Nancy left and I got into a meditation position.

I wasn't in Nancy's room anymore. I wasn't me. I was a cab driver dropping Percy off. Then I was dragged into a new body. The body of one Gabe Ugliano, Percy's Stepdad. He was frightfully easy to possess.

I held a hand of cards. Around the table sat several other guys. Poker and potato chips littered the table alongside cans of beer. The television blasted ESPN. The other guys were about as fat, grubby, and bald as me.

The door opened and Percy walked in.

"Welcome back," I said.

Percy was stunned. "Where's my mom?"

"Working."

Percy walked off and the other guys looked at me strangely.

"What?" I barked. Gabe's personality was finally settling back in.

Gabe was losing the match. He loved money.

I easily looked through his friend's eyes and cheated through the whole match, and subsequent ones as well. I resisted Gabe and tried to make it less obvious.

Percy's mom came home in her red-white-and-blue uniform that she wore at the Candy store in Grand Central. She almost made the horrid wretch of the apartment smell normal. Sweet vs. Bitter.

She had a few white hairs in her long brown hair, but she didn't look old. She was sweet and kind. It was an honest question from anybody about what she was with Gabe. A question even Gabe had.

I had the strongest urge to ask her to make bean dip.

"Percy made it back," I said.

She rushed out of the room to him. I could hear them talking about leaving to go to a cabin on Montauk beach.

A few games later and she and Percy came out all packed up ready to leave again.

"We're leaving." She said,

I grabbed Gabe's keys and our earnings and handed both to her. Gabe fought every step of the way.

"Try not to spend it all. Don't push my baby too hard, she needs an oil change." I said.

"What about our game?" One of the guys said.

"We played enough." I turned to Percy and Sally. "Stay safe."

I waddled off to Gabe's study, aka Percy's bedroom, and stayed there until everyone left. Then I pulled myself from Gabe's grasp into the back of his mind.

"What did you do to me?" He shouted.

"You've got exactly 3 days until they come back and for you to turn your whole life around, Gabe. Otherwise, you'll be dancing naked on Broadway. Do I make myself clear?"

"Who are you?" He shuddered.

"Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes."

"Good. I suggest you clean this place up and open a few windows first."

I yanked myself completely free from Gabe and appeared back in Nancy's room.

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