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There’s something about libraries that send my heart fluttering. Sorting through history books, crime, and medical, there was always something for someone. I wondered about the kinds of books a man I know would like. He isn’t much of a reader and doesn’t have the tightest grasp on the English language, he still skimmed over my books, reading them softly, the words forming into one incoherent noise the longer he read. He would ask me what this word said if the long pill names fumbled around his brain. Pharmacology was not his forte, rather mine. Though Rocky had taken his fair share of pain killers, I was surprised he didn’t want to know more about the drugs he took after his fights.
I sat quietly at the library, a bag full of study material and far too many printed papers, I was surprised I remembered to print them all out. My bag felt like it weighed five hundred pounds, the thick, heavy books I carried were weighing down on my shoulders. I didn’t think about the fact that I had to walk home with such a heavy load. The long hallways of the library made it feel like I was walking in another world, a place where peace was the norm, where quietness was everlasting. I started to forget the heaviness of my bag as I slipped more books inside my bag. There was something so peaceful not having to worry about cars zooming by your windows, dogs barking, and people scream-talking out their houses. Just pure bliss.
I could hear the bouncy footsteps coming up the staircase just beside the shelf, that cursed bouncy ball softly echoing through the hallway. I knew exactly who it was without even seeing his face. I was happy to see him, yet I wondered why he was coming to a library of all places. It wasn’t his scene, he was the kind of man you’d see singing in a back alley, the kind of man with bloodied knuckles in an old, sleazy gym. I’d been there just a few times to watch him train, just to witness that snarl Mick always talked about, something the other fighters lacked. The snarl, the monstrous, the frightening snarl a man like him shouldn’t be able to manage. He looked so different when he trained, so mean, so violent. The snarl he mastered so well made him look like a devil dog, bearing his teeth to the opponent. To witness him then to have him walk me home… I don’t have the words. He was so different in the ring.
“Hey, yo-” he began, his booming voice made me jump out of my shoes. I don’t think he knew how imposing he was. “Shh!” I shushed him, trying to stifle a laugh. He blinked, catching the bouncy ball in his hand for the last time before slipping it in his pocket. “Be quiet,” I chuckled, holding my index finger against my lips. “Oh, ok, sorry,” he whispered like a church mouse, he still was quite loud but I had to chalk that up to his personality. “What are you doing here?” I asked him, setting my back on my feet. “I was looking for ya, asked Mick if he saw ya but he said you’d be here. You free tonight?” he asked with a brow perk, he was endlessly sure of his Philadelphia charm. “You were looking for me?” I asked.
“Well, yeah. Couldn’t find you at the house.” his whisper became increasingly louder but I knew he tried hard to keep it down.
“Why didn’t you call me?”
“Well, I tried. But youse didn’t answer. So I went to Mick.”
“Rocky, screaming out your window isn’t calling me.”
I tried many times to get him a phone but he seemed perfectly happy screaming out his window at all hours of the night and day. He let out a breathy laugh as he rubbed the back of his neck. “Well, it’s worked a couple of times with ya… but I was wondering if youse was free tonight, maybe take ya out real nice, ya know? Maybe a diner? Movies? I hear Jaws is playing tonight, I like sharks, ya know? They gots a bad rep but hey, so do I, so I guess that’s why I like em, ya know?”
I thought about all the work I had to finish, all the endless papers I had to fill out, exams that needed finishing. “I’m sorry, Rock, but I’ve got a lotta work to do when I’m home.”
He pursed his lips. “If you keep studying like that you’re gonna turn into a… into uhh… well, your brain is gonna burn out! Take a little break. I’m glad ya don’t wanna be a dumb coconut like me but ya gotta take a break sometime, ya know?” He cocked his head to the side, those supple lips turning into a pout. He was hard to say no to, with those stupid puppy eyes, that stupid pout!
“C’ mon, it won’t kill ya. Besides, Butkus is starting to miss ya, even Cuff and Link miss you.”
Oh, of course, he had to bring the turtles in. “Okay, okay, fine. I guess this time it won’t hurt.” I smiled at him, watching the pout on his lips turn into a playful grin. “Need help carrying the bag, bookworm?” he asked, grabbing the handles. “Please, it’s so heavy.” He picked it up with ease, slugging it over his shoulder like it was a bag of feathers. He fixed his hat and followed me down the steps, he always skipped the last 3 steps and landed perfectly on his feet like an alley cat. “Put the bag up here, sir,’ the clerk, Jameson said. He smiled warmly at me. “Did you find everything you needed? Studying hard I see,” he said, scanning all the books. “Yes, thank you. Everything is perfect.” Rocky placed the rest of the books on the table and folded my bag up and rested it under his arm. “So, maybe it’s too much to ask but… are you free tonight? Maybe take a break from all that work. I’ll take you out, show you a real nice time?” he asked, already writing down his number.
Rocky glanced at me with those dark eyes. “I’m sorry Jameson, but I’ve already got a date for tonight,” I gestured to Rocky. He gave him a quick nod of his head, lips parted slightly. He looked annoyed. “Oh, if you ever change your mind,” he slipped his number under the plastic of the book. Rocky took it upon himself to carry the heavy bag for me. The clerk waved as we walked out. I glanced over at Rocky as we walked out, the same pout on his lips from before rested so perfectly. “Are you jealous?” I chuckled. “Me? Jealous? I’m just practicing my pout.” I don’t think he needed practice there…
“Nobody’s gonna replace you, Rock. Don’t worry.”
“I ain’t worryin’, I just don’t want some creepo to be creeping up on my girlfriend, ya know? I’m telling youse, there’s buncha creeps and coconuts who’d snatch you up! Can’t let that happen, ya know?” he threw an arm around my shoulder and purposely threw me off balance just so I’d lean into him.
“Don’t worry,” I tell him. “How can I not worry when I ain’t around?” he quizzed, looking down at me.
“You tell me not to worry about you when you fight.”
“Now, that’s different. I fight ‘cuz I wanna, you don’t ket creeped on ‘cuz you wanna. See the difference?”
He rubbed my shoulder firmly. “Whatever you say, Stallion.”
“Well, why don’t you store your books at my place, I’ll tell Butkus to keep his chops off em.”
That sounded good to me, he just had a way about himself, making everything seem so… so true.
“You wanna grab a bite to eat, I bet youse hungry,” he reached into his pocket and grabbed a few bucks for a bite to eat.
“You know, Stallion, you don’t have a bad rep to me.” I broke out, stepping over the cracks in the sidewalk. “No?” he asked. “You ain’t dumb either,” I added on, looking away from him. He knew more than he let on and I wished he knew that himself. “I’m a punching bag who breaks fella’s thumbs, ya know, that’s a pretty nad rep to have, you know?”
“Maybe I’ve broken some thumbs too, you never know.”
He laughed I’ve never heard such a laugh before. “Oh yeah? Guess I better be careful not to drive ya crazy or you’ll break mine.”
“I don’t think I could do that, you’re too strong for that.”
“Oh yeah? I dunno, you’re pretty tough with your books and all.”
We walked down the street together, so many people knew him and smiled at him, greeting him like a brother. His rep couldn't have been that bad...
He walked with great confidence in his step, bouncy and light just like the ball he carried.
He didn't have a bad rep, I couldn't see it, the people didn't see it, it was all in his head. Too many punches clouded his judgment...
"Crash at my place tonight?" he asked, throwing the bouncy ball on the ground, it flew high up into the air but he caught it in his hands every time. "Sure, why not? Maybe I miss those exotic animals of yours."
"Oh yes, they're rare, only seen in the deepest jungles and I've got the last two in the world."
Rare pet shop turtles... of course.