The Wanderers (10 page)

"I'll pay for the whole thing." Dougie made a big deal of extracting a quarter from his jeans. "He's my best friend, and I'll pay for him any time." Maxie failed to be stirred and gave Dougie a nickel.

Outside, they walked across the street to Big Playground. Dougie nudged Scottie with an elbow.

"What?"

Dougie pulled a dirty magazine from the front of his pants and gave it to Scottie. "I took it when he wasn't lookin'."

"Wow!"

"You din't see me take it either, you..." He stopped himself from calling Scottie a jerk. "It's yours."

"Wow."

"You like that, hah? You like them big titties there?" Dougie snickered.

Scottie giggled idiotically as he stared at a seminaked girl with big jugs.

"You wanna go up onna roof and look at the pictures?" Dougie suggested in a nasty whisper.

"Yeah, O.K."

"C'mon."

They trotted through the projects to a building they'd never been in before near the park, Scottie chortling and giggling, Dougie silent. They took the elevator to the top floor, then took the stairs to the roof. Dougie pushed the big iron door with his shoulder.

The roof was square, bordered by a jail-like four-foot-high iron grill. The ground was covered with a carpet of gravel, and the gravel was usually covered with a fine layer of black cinders that floated up from the mouth of an incinerator chimney. The only two structures on this flat terrain were the chimney and the huge iron door that led to the stairs.

The boys felt a delicious sense of terror because sneaking onto a roof was the most forbidden thing they could do in the projects. Any second a big black porter could kick open the iron door or dash from behind the chimney in his dark blue work uniform and drag them down seven flights of stairs and over to the housing police. Scottie whooped and hollered as he ran to the iron grill and looked down to the impossibly small street.

"We're on toppa the world!" he squealed.

"How 'bout that?" Dougie stared serenely across the sea of dirty buildings. Scottie ran around the roof making noises of nervous delight.

"Hey, Hite! C'mere wit' that magazine." Dougie squatted on the gravel. Scottie sat down next to him, and they thumbed through the pages, Dougie making cracks, Scottie drooling and laughing. "Hey, Hite, look a' that ass!"

"Yeah!"

"Hey, Hite, watch!" Dougie lifted the magazine to his mouth and kissed the winking girl's behind.

"Wooo!" Scottie waved a limp wrist meaning shame-shame.

"You do it."

"Nah." Scottie giggled in embarrassment.

"C'mon, g'head." Dougie shoved the magazine into Scottie's face. Scottie tried to twist away, then gave the magazine a quick peck. He redoubled his noises, approaching hysteria. Dougie smiled contemptuously. He held the magazine in front of his own face, the nudie photos facing Scottie, and spoke in a high-pitched voice, "Oh, Scottie Hite, you naughty boy! You kissed my tushie!"

Scottie waved weakly in helpless, salivating, embarrassed laughter. Dougie got up and started chasing him around the roof with the pictures and squeaking, "Oh, Scottie! Kiss my tushie!"

Scottie, howling and wiping his chin, stumbled away from Dougie. Suddenly Dougie stopped and tossed the book over the iron grill.

"Ah, this sucks ... let's go downstairs," and as Scottie stood bent over with laughter, Dougie trotted over to the iron door and turned the knob. Nothing happened. He yanked and pulled but the door was immobile. White-faced, he ran to Scottie. "The door's locked! Whada we gonna do?" He started whining in terror. Scottie started whining also, his eyes big and wet. "Whada we gonna do! Whada we gonna do! Whada we gonna do!" He grabbed Scottie by the arms and shook him.

"Whada we gonna do!" Scottie echoed weakly.

"ANNNNNNH-NNN-NNNH," Dougie sniffled, starting to cry.

"MAAAA! MAAAA!" Scottie ran over to the iron grill and bleated in dull oxen terror to the empty street far below.

"Scottie! Scottie!" Dougie ran to him eyes glistening. "I got it! I got it!" Scottie's face was coated with tears, his breathing labored, his lips shivering. "Scottie! Lissen! We ... can ... jump!" Dougie's lips were shivering too.

"What!" Scottie gasped in horror.

"We can jump! Look!" He pointed to Scottie's sneakers. "We got P.F. Flyers! We'll bounce up like kangaroos! Like on 'Terrytoon Circus'!"

Scottie, sensing salvation, nodded excitedly. "Yeah!"

"We'll be safe!" Dougie shouted.

"Safe!" screamed Scottie.

Dougie climbed the iron grill and crouched on the top rail. "C'mon, Scottie!"

Scottie hoisted himself up to Dougie. Both boys grasped the top bar. Crouched, they looked like swimmers waiting for the starting gun. Scottie's eyes were shut tight. Dougie looked at him.

"O.K., now when I say three we jump, O.K.?" Scottie started sniffling again but wouldn't open his eyes. "Ready? One ... two ... three!" Dougie jumped backward onto the gravel but Scottie pitched himself clumsily off the roof. About four stories down he started to scream. Hearing a WHAP like a splattering coconut, Dougie ran to the rail. Looking down he saw Scottie sprawled on the pavement like a bloody Howdy Doody with cut strings Dougie pressed his face between the cool bars of the grill and stared off to the park After a while he trotted back to the iron door, opened it, and disappeared down the stairs.

T
HE GUYS
were hanging around Big Playground with nothing to do. It was Thanksgiving, and almost everyone went away to see relatives. It was getting too dark to play basketball and it was too cold anyway. Richie sat beside Buddy on the bench. Perry and Joey were idly throwing rocks through the mesh fence.

"You wanna go to White Castle?"

"Got no dough."

"I'll lend you a quarter."

"You
owe
me a dollar."

"No, I don't."

"Who bought the Tango last night?"

"O.K. I'll lend you a quarter and I'll buy you a pack of cigarettes."

"See that shit?"

"Hey, you wanna go elbow titting?"

"Too cold."

"Bronx House is havin' a dance."

"Got no dough."

"We can hang aroun' outside."

"An' freeze your titties off."

"You wanna go to Eugene's house?"

"He ain't home."

"Let's go elbow titting."

"What the hell."

They started walking down to Allerton Avenue in search of girls. The street was deserted, and all the stores were closed. A block away they spotted two women walking toward them.

"Who goes first?"

"Perry."

"I went first last time."

"Joey."

"Nah, I don't wanna."

"G'head. Just pretend it's your mother."

"At least my mother
got
tits."

"Yeah ... three."

"Two more than your's got."

"Least they ain't hairy."

The girls walked past them while they were arguing.

"See that shit?"

"Fuck it, you guys are pussies. I'll go," Buddy said. Richie helped him off with his jacket. "C'mon, c'mon." Buddy jumped up and down to keep warm. They were now standing out of sight in a storefront. A fat woman was walking down the street toward them.

"Get'er, Buddy."

Buddy put his hands in his pockets, his elbows stuck out from his body. He winked at the guys and walked slowly toward the fat lady. When he was five feet from her, he cut in front of her path, bumping into her. As they stood facing each other, figuring out how to pass, Buddy moved left and rubbed his right elbow across her left tit. He mumbled "sorry" and moved right rubbing his left elbow across her right tit. He was trying the right elbow again when she caught on and belted him with a beefy forearm. He fell down. She cursed him in a foreign language and marched away. The Wanderers were on their asses laughing. Passing them she shouted, "You bois a' peegs! Feelty peegs!" Perry started grunting. Then they all got down on their hands and knees and grunted their way to Buddy's prostrate form, crouching around him like hyenas.

"Hey ... I tink dis feelty peeg he got knocked down." They crawled around him, grunting and sniffing.

"Hey, peeg, I tink maybe you should get up now." Buddy raised his hands, curling them into clutching claws, squeezing invisible flesh.

"Oh, my lovely titties ... oh, my
lovely
titties!"

"I think dis peeg he want seconds."

They stood up and helped Buddy to his feet.

"You wanna go again, man?"

"Believe it! Except maybe this time I go for a smaller size."

They retired to the storefront. Buddy put his jacket on. A few minutes later, a girl walked toward them, and Buddy was on the move again. The closer he got, the more he liked what he saw. She was about sixteen and had jet black hair piled high on her head. She had a nice figure, as much as he could see, and her face was Cunty Italian—small dark features, dark eves, high cheekbones, and a lot of eye makeup. He was so involved in checking her out he almost forgot to cross her path. When he did, it was so abrupt that she bumped her nose on his chest. He stood there looking at her, intoxicated by her Juicy Fruit breath. She looked up at him quizzically. He realized that he wasn't moving his elbows, and he started twisting them back and forth ineffectually like the pumper in a washing machine.

"What's wrong with you?"

"Huh?" He stood in front of her doing the twist with his hands in his pocket.

"You gotta go to the bat'room?" She walked around him. He started after her, his tongue thick in his mouth, and caught up to her.

"Uh ... what's wrong wit' me?" His mind worked feverishly. She stared at him.

"Uh ... what's wrong wit' me? Uh, nothin'"

"You O.K.?"

"Uh ... yeah." He had a brainstorm. "Except I just got jumped by two guys."

"What!"

"Yeah. Uh ... they jumped outta a Cadillac down by the park and jumped me ... I fought 'em off but they sapped me with a blackjack." He held his forehead and shook his head dazedly. "I'm sorry I bumped into you ... I'm a little dizzy." He leaned against a parked car and suffered. "Lissen, do you wanna have a slice of pizza wit' me? I gotta talk to somebody," he said.

"I think you oughta see a doctor."

"Nah ... I'll be O.K."

"I still think you should go."

"Nah ... this ain't the first time it happened ... I'm O.K. What's your name?"

She laughed out loud. "What kinda line is this?"

"It ain't no line! I swear to God!"

She looked at him amused and started down Allerton. He walked by her side past an astonished group of Wanderers. Suddenly he remembered he had no money. He grabbed her arm. "Wait here, I'll be right back." He ran back to the Wanderers, obscured from her sight. He grabbed Richie. "Lissen! Gimme that dollar now!" He shot a quick glance to see if she was still waiting for him. She was.

"Buddy! What's happenin', got your elbow stuck?"

"Lissen." He grabbed Richie by the front of his jacket. "Gimme the dollar or I'll tear your fuckin' heart out!"

"All I got is half a buck." Richie was shook by Buddy's panic.

"Give it here." He leaned backward to check on the girl and at the same time stuck his hand out, wiggling his fingers impatiently. Richie laid it on him and Buddy was off like a shot. "Thanks for waitin'."

"You lose your wallet?"

"Yeah."

The Wanderers watched them walk down the street, looked at each other, and walked up three blocks past bars and gas stations to White Castle.

Buddy and the girl walked into a pizza shop by the park and sat at a littered table munching on dripping slices.

"What's your name?"

"Despie."

"Despie ... like in Despinoza?"

"Yeah. What's yours?"

"Buddy."

"What's that short for?"

"Mario ... Where you live?" he asked, scooping up some cheese.

"Up by White Castle."

"Hey ... do you know Fat Sally?"

"No."

"Do you know Eugene Caputo?"

"No."

"Do you know ... Toby Becker?"

"I think so."

"He's my best friend."

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah, we was in ninth grade together."

"You go to Olinville?"

"Yeah. I graduated."

"Where you go now, Evander?"

"Nah, Tully."

"Do you know Phillip D'Allessio?"

"What grade?"

"Tenth."

"I'm in twelfth."

"Do you know ... Donna Palombo?"

"No."

"Do you know ... Marie Gueli?"

"Yeah, she's in my English class. A real skank."

"She's my sister."

"Oh..." He turned red.

She laughed. "I'm only kiddin'. Where you live?"

"The projects."

"Do you know Barry Jacobi?"

"No."

"He's my boyfriend."

Buddy's heart dropped into his gut. "Oh yeah?" he said weakly.

"Well ... we broke up."

Resurrection.

"Yeah, he was seein' another girl on the side."

"I would never do that," he said righteously.

"He begged me to go back with him but I got my pride, you know what I mean?"

Buddy nodded solemnly. "I had a girl friend who was two-timin' me. I dropped her like a hot potato. I got pride too."

"Pride's important."

"Yeah ... you gotta hold your head up high."

"Yeah."

"I saw this movie once where this guy is bein' tortured by the Japs, but he won't give 'em any information. Everytime they tortured him he just started singin' 'The Star-Spangled Banner.'"

"Wow! What happened?"

"They killed him."

"That's pride."

"I would never give out information to the Commies if they was torturin' me," said Buddy.

"My father was a marine," said Despie.

"Mine was in the navy," said Buddy.

"Do you like the Four Seasons?"

"Yeah ... my brother knows Frankie Valli."

"A friend of mine met Dion."

"I got Smokey Robinson's autograph."

"I once went up in an elevator with Murry the K."

"Jackie the K's a real piece. No offense."

They walked outside and up Allerton toward Despie's house. Buddy put Despie to a test. She carried a pocketbook in her left hand, so he walked on her left. If she moved the pocketbook to her right hand she was leaving her left free for handholding. At first she didn't, so he casually brushed his knuckles against the back of her hand. The third time he did this, she hoisted the pocketbook strap over her right shoulder. A block later they were holding hands. When they passed White Castle they bumped into the Wanderers.