Free On Archimedes Street by Jefferson Parrish Page B

men’s room, he pulled out his dick, peeled it back, and splashed vigorously into the porcelain. He shook off and then rubbed his cockhead with two fingers and brought them up to his nose. Nothing. Just the faint smell of uncut dick, washed a few hours ago. Then he looked around and, finding himself alone, reached back into his shorts. With vague apprehension, he drew a finger over his perineum, behind his balls. Hesitantly, he brought the finger to his nose. He’d never smelled himself in this way before.
    He gave a tentative sniff.
    Dutch. I smell like a diminished Dutch. The muscle at his jaw twitched again.
    “Shit,” he said. “God damn it to hell.”

Chapter 12
     
     
    E D LOOKED down at the Chinese menu with the dawn of recognition. He brought his gaze up to Elwood’s eyes, steely and grim.
    “You mean…?”
    “Yeah, dat’s right. I can’t read. Can’t do sums eeder or any of dat stuff wit’ numbers.”
    Ed was stunned, almost spluttering. Then suddenly everything clicked into place. The way Elwood never looked at street signs but stopped to ask for directions when they were on the way to jobs in an unfamiliar neighborhood. His confusion over right and left. The strictly-over-the-telephone way he conducted the business. The growing pile of unopened bills and trash mail. The way he paid for everything with a debit card. And then he remembered the note. Oh, God, the “Please let me” note! Then slowly Ed began to chuckle, finally giving in to a belly laugh, throwing his head back and roaring.
    “You sunnabitch!” Elwood stood up abruptly, sending his chair flying. He grabbed Ed by the front of his shirt, hauled him to a standing position, and drew back his fist. A gaggle of clucking waiters descended on them, jabbering in Chinese and making little circular gestures with their hands. The blow caught Ed on the cheekbone and sent him sprawling into the arms of the waiters, who hustled him to the front door and shoved him out. Elwood stood rigidly, panting in rage. The waiters gave him a wide berth as he strode out to find Ed and finish pounding him into the pavement. He approached with a menacing glower on his face.
    Ed didn’t try to defend himself. He crossed his arms over his face and said, “Don’t hit me, Elwood. You got it all wrong! I wasn’t laughing at you.”
    “Hell you wasn’t. Jes’ like in school. Dumb Elwood. Teachers puttin’ me in front the class, pokin’ fun. ‘El-woood,’” he whined in a high voice, “‘you mean to tell the class you can’t eben read dis little woid? It an animal you fine ’roun’ the house,’ an’ den I say ‘dog,’ but it was ‘cat,’ an’ the whole class laughin’ an’ laughin’. Every goddam day!”
    Ed dropped his hands, leaving his face unprotected. “She did that to you, humiliated you like that in front of the class?”
    Elwood glared, but something in Ed’s eyes stopped his fists.
    “Jesus, Elwood. I am so sorry. That woman doesn’t deserve the name teacher. It was she , Elwood, not you, who was stupid. Ignorant fucking sadist should be in jail. You are the least stupid person I have ever met. Don’t you realize how many obstacles you’ve overcome on your own, how expertly you navigate the world even with the odds stacked so heavily against you?”
    Elwood glared at him suspiciously. “Den why you laugh?”
    “Because,” said Ed, “God is a fucking joker, or maybe Mother Cabrini is. Did you ever wonder, Elwood, what job I had before I took this one?”
    “Yeah. I wondah, but none of my bid’ness,” he said guardedly.
    “I’m a teacher, Elwood. I’m an expert at teaching people just like you to read and write. A special ed teacher, Elwood. A disgraced one,” he finished.
    Elwood’s face lost some of its tautness. He regarded Ed at length. “C’mon let’s go home,” he said. They got in the truck and drove, again in silence, until Elwood asked, “Disgrace? How disgrace?”
    Ed grimaced. “There was this girl I