Remembering the Park by Michael Seale (Chapter 5)

 Chapter 5

Tom stood alone at the entrance. He hated entering an old folks’ home, especially one like this. But he had to see her again. He had waited again in the park, hoping they both would come again. Neither should up. The nurse from the other morning stomped past him without a word. She didn’t look up. He wondered how someone so mean could work in a place like this. Perhaps the work had made her that way. It was sad not only for her, but for the surrounding others. Who would want to work with her? Who would want to be in her care, is a better question, he thought.

A younger woman walked past. She looked as lost and as confused as he felt.

“Excuse me?” he asked. “Can you help me? I’m looking for someone.”

“Yes, one minute, I’ll be right back.”

Tom waited for five. The woman walked towards him again. Her eyes wide.

“I’m so sorry. I forgot all about you.” she said, blushing.

“Don’t worry about it. I’m looking for Marie, she is… she is a nurse here.”

“And you are?”

“Tom… Johnny,” he smiled. The younger woman looked confused again. “She’ll understand.”

Tom waited as the younger nurse went behind the desk and called someone. He could only assume she was calling another station or Marie directly. Tom could have just wandered around the halls, there was no reason that he would not be allowed too. There were other families here, they were obviously not residents. Children with parents, probably the grandchildren of one of the lost residents. Most of the children he saw seemed subdued, as if they knew that in this space they should be. They barely left the sides of the parents, almost hiding behind the legs of their parents even as the older generation reached for them. Tom watched this all. It saddened him. Once these were all bright and loving people and now they were mere shells of themselves, able only to hold on to memories from long ago. One little girl ran to her grandmother and jumped into her arms. The older woman laughed for a moment, then tears filled her eyes.

“What’s wrong, granny?” the little girl asked.

“I… I… don’t know,” she said, her voice only a whisper. Tom read her lips more than really hearing her.

“That’s okay,” the smiling girl said. “Sometimes I cry and I don’t know why.”

They hugged and Tom realized why the woman had cried. She didn’t know who the little girl was. It was written across her face. She stared at the girl, searching for something, a name perhaps, a place, a connection, and found none. The mother of the little girl saw it as well. Tears streamed down her face. She crouched before the pair, her back to Tom. He had no chance to hear what she said, but he knew. She introduced the small child to her grandmother once again.

The nurse was back. Marie was on the second level, she told him. He made his way towards the elevator, watching the small family. The woman looked up at him and gave him a sad smile. She must have assumed he was also here to visit a relative. Tom smiled back quickly and then lowered his eyes.

The second floor was more or less the same as the first, except instead of a small restaurant, there was the common room and instead of therapy rooms, there were small “apartments” for the residents. The smell was also the same: urine and disinfectant. Marie stood at the desk talking with another nurse.

“Hi,” she said, a smile spreading across her face.

“Hi back.” he replied. Suddenly he was at a loss, not knowing what to say.

“Is it Tom or Johnny today? You scared our little trainee good. She asked if she should call security, giving her two names, confused her good.”

Tom laughed. “Its Tom today. I came to see you, actually.”

“Oh?”

“I… uh…” his words left him again. He smiled sheepishly. “God, I am awful at this.”

Marie smiled but didn’t help him. It gave her a good feeling, watching him squirm. She reached for his arm, placing her hand on his forearm.

Tom started again. “I wanted to ask you, if you wanted to get a cup of coffee later.” He finally managed to ask. “I have to be at work at five. I thought if you had a break or something we could…” He trailed off.

“I would love too,” she said.

They sat outside the large brown brick-stone building; the grounds were well maintained, benches and tables here and there, placed throughout the flowered paths that wrapped their ways around in meaningless stretches. He had bought two latte macchiato and a small chocolate cake to share. The sun shone down on them, the day warm and bright. At first the conversation stalled, but soon they found their rhythm. It was as if they had known each other long, but in reality they were complete strangers.

Tom confessed he had waited the day before in the park, hoping Marie would show up. That made her smile, what she didn’t tell him at the very moment that Tom was waiting for her, she was dumping her boyfriend. Dumping, that is such an awful word, she thought. Why wasn’t there a better term, a better word? In a job you were either fired or let go, depending on the circumstances. Why did it have to be so harsh when ending a relationship? Dumping or breaking up, they were both so negative. Perhaps she just let Manuel go. She didn’t want to think of it as dumping; he had been a good a boyfriend, it just was he was no Tom.

The coffee break lasted a quick twenty minutes. The time had flown by, Tom wished he had more.

“I have to go back,” she said. “This was nice.”

“Yes, yes, it was.” he replied.

They stood and strolled between the flowers back towards the brick building. The smell of freshly cut grass filled the air, a lawn mower droned on.

“How’s Charlie?” Tom asked.

“I’m not supposed to give out information about residents.” she said.

“I understand, but you know I am his son.” he said with a smile. “Johnny.”

She smiled, “He’s not good, he is deteriorating faster and faster.”

Tom winced at the news. He hated to think about losing the old man. “Could I come to visit him or could we meet in the park again?”

Marie rolled her eyes at the thought of Agunda. “The head nurse has forbidden, Mr. Davis to leave the building.”

“What? You mean the woman with the stick up her ass, that I met the other day.”

Marie laughed a bit too loud. “You said it, not me.” she smiled.

“Why don’t you come by tomorrow? I’ll make sure that we can at least go for a walk around the grounds with Charlie.”

“Sounds good.”

Tom was off. He had to rush to get to his job if he didn’t want to be late again.

The kitchen was loud and hectic. Tom moved with an unhurried grace behind the line. His movements practiced and effortless. The team worked furiously, the chef calling out orders, replies of “yes, chef,” in unison answering him. The flames danced under the pans, water boiled and rolled. The smells intermingled, creating an intoxicating aroma that was quickly sucked into the fan above. Yells of “behind!” “hot!” went unanswered. Mutterings from the team were audible over the clang of the work at hand. Plates of steaming food left the kitchen in the arms of the service team.

Tom worked in the busy kitchen, cooking and prepping food. He loved the pace, the stress, the adrenaline. Tom had worked in several kitchens, always part time and always, the weekend shifts. In the kitchens he could release the creative spirit that plagued him. For him, it was a plague. He felt driven, like he was destined for something more than the next. Whatever that means, he thought.

His thoughts returned to Marie. The way she smiled, her high taunting laugh, the sparkle her eyes had. She enamoured him. Their coffee had been short, but he knew there was more to come.

“Tom? Tom?” the chef shouted over the noise.

“Yes, chef?” Tom replied looking up.

“You ready with the sides for table four?”

Tom cursed himself under his breath, “One minute out, chef.”

“Don’t let my food die in the window, get your head on.” he replied.

Tom cranked the burners on his stove top, rushing the risotto and spinach. Not letting his mind stray from the task at hand. The rest of the night continued without a glitch. After the last tickets were cooked, the cooks powered down and headed to the alley for a beer and a cigarette.

“Where were you tonight?” the chef asked Tom.

“Sorry, I…” he started and stopped again. What should he tell the chef? That he had been daydreaming about the nurse that he had had coffee with the day before. That he felt for once in his life drawn to someone. No, these were not things that you spoke about to these guys. He didn’t think he knew anyone he could speak to about this. “It won’t happen again.”

It was well past midnight when he got home, still thinking about Marie. Something Charlie had said to him popped into his mind. Her way was effortless. That’s how Charlie had described his wife. Effortless. That was the perfect word for Marie. Effortless. He let the word roll around his tongue. He liked the way it felt. He had liked the way it had felt when she had touched his arm. Her warmth. Soft caress. Effortless.

His phone beeped.

The screen glowed. “You awake?”