Martoons

Today: Thomas has a run-in with Wide Eyes.

Cast of characters

Thomas

Wide Eyes

Coffee Lady

Scene: Coffee Shop Max (Coffee Lady’s place of work)

*

As Thomas ascended the stairs and got up to the landing outside Coffee Lady’s café, he could hear two persons embroiled in an argument inside.

He stopped at the door and delayed entering, trying to determine if his dropping in would be appropriate.

“Come on baby,” said an unaccented waygook voice, “just once – on the house. Tonight – after hours – just you and me, away from the madness. I’ve been coming here for weeks now.

I always pay you big money. I just want to redeem some of my ‘frequent flyer’points.”

“No!” said a firm female voice, clearly Coffee Lady’s.

* Is this waygook going to take Coffee Lady’s ‘no’ for an answer? *

Thomas carefully eased the smoky glass door open an inch or two just so he could stick his eyeball in the crack for a quick visual report of the soapy turmoil from within.

The cafe was empty, except for one Korean man sitting in a booth near the counter, with his back to the entrance.

Unmistakably it was Mr Go’s foreigner buddy and he pulled out a cigarette.

“Well, at least give me a light,” Wide Eyes called out.

Coffee Lady didn’t respond, likely not understanding the expression, and busy with arranging a tray for her next delivery.

“Coffee Baby, Tam-bay, tam-bay (cigarette),” Wide Eyes ordered.

She clued-in this time but only reluctantly made her way over to his booth and ignited his cancer stick.

She hated smokers and every time she lit up a client’s tobacco product, silently prayed to her Buddha and imagined that the smoke was from a magic lantern, and out of it would appear her Prince Charming.

He’d rescue her from this dismal job of serving cups of joe to pig-headed Korean men and squeamishly rendering other services, which violated her privacy, dignity and latent sense of intelligence.

*Does Coffee Lady already have a Prince Charming in mind?*

Suddenly Wide Eyes got up from the booth and headed to the exit.

Thomas jerked back and eased the door closed.

But it was too late for him to escape.

His newly-nourished lightning-quick mental capacity and sharpened instincts kicked in: He’d simply stand in the landing as if he’d just arrived and had no wherewithal of what he just witnessed.

Wide Eyes reached the exit and began to open it, but stopped and turned back – with the door ajar – for his final comment.

“I know why you’re holding back, Coffee Baby. You can’t be loyal to two masters. And I understand that.

“But I assure you, you’re other master is leaving town. Probably tomorrow – Meesta Thomassa – he say bye-bye.”

*How would Wide Eyes know Thomas is leaving?*

Wide Eyes waved mockingly like a little child.

“Then it’ll be just you and me babe. The way it should be. That’s fate.”

Thomas was baffled as he stood in the landing listening.

Coffee Lady didn’t respond to Wide Eyes’ final salvo.

She was an existentialist and didn’t believe in fate.

Only silence ensued.

Then the door opened fully and Thomas instinctively braced himself, realizing he was the last person in the world Wide Eyes would want to see on this landing.

Thomas found himself involuntarily clenching his fist.

This guy might take a swing at me.

*Are Thomas and Wide Eyes the type to fight each other?*

*

Tomorrow: Damion concocts a devious scheme…