Free Hot Water Music by Charles Bukowski Page B

weren’t easy to get in 1933 and besides, Eddie’s father couldn’t work. He’d been an aviator in World War I and had been shot down. He had wires in his arms instead of bone, and so he sat there and drank with Eddie’s mother. It was dark in there where they were drinking but Eddie’s mother laughed often.
    Eddie and I made model airplanes, cheap balsa wood jobs. They wouldn’t fly, we just moved them through the air with our hands. Eddie had a Spad and I had a Fokker. We’d seen “Hell’s Angels” with Jean Harlow. I couldn’t see that Jean Harlow was any sexier thanEddie’s mother. Of course, I didn’t talk about Eddie’s mother to Eddie. Then I noticed that Eugene started coming over. Eugene was another guy with a Spad but I could talk about Eddie’s mother to him. When we got the chance. We had some good dogfights—two Spads against a Fokker. I did the best I could but usually I got shot down. Whenever I got into a real bad spot I’d pull an Immelman. We read the old flying magazines, Flying Aces was best. I even wrote some letters to the editor which he answered. The Immelman, he wrote me, was almost impossible. The stress on the wings was just too great. But sometimes I had to use the Immelman, especially with a guy on my tail. It usually tore my wings off and I had to bail out.
    When we got the chance away from Eddie we’d talk about Eddie’s mother.
    “Jesus, she’s got some legs.”
    “And she doesn’t mind showing them.”
    “Watch out, here comes Eddie.”
    Eddie had no idea we were talking about his mother that way. I was a little ashamed of it but I couldn’t help it. I certainly didn’t want him to think of my mother that way. Of course, my mother didn’t look like that. Nobody else’s mother looked like that. Maybe those horseteeth had something to do with it. I mean, you’d look and see the horseteeth and they were a bit yellow and then you’d look down and see those legs crossed high, one foot flicking and kicking. Yes, I had horseteeth too.
    Well, Eugene and I kept going over there and having the dogfights and I’d do my Immelmans and my wings would get ripped off. Although we had another game and Eddie played that one too. We were stunt flyers and racers. We’d go out and take big chances but somehow we always made it back. Often we landed in our own front yards. We each had a house and we each had a wife and our wives would be waiting for us. We’d describe how our wives would be dressed. They didn’t wear much. Eugene’s wore the least. In fact, she had a dress with a big hole cut right into the front of it. She’d meet Eugene at the door that way. My wife wasn’t quite that bold, but she didn’t wear much either. We all made love all the time. We made love to our wives all the time. They just couldn’t get enough. While we were out stunting and racing and risking our lives they’d be in those houses waiting and waiting for us. Andthey just loved us, they didn’t love anybody else. Sometimes we’d try to forget about them and go back to the dogfights. It was like Eddie said: when we were talking about women all we did was lay on the grass and we didn’t do anything else. The most we would do, Eddie would say, “Hey, I got one!” And then I’d roll off my belly and show him mine and then Eugene would show his. That’s how most of our afternoons went. Eddie’s mother and father would be in there drinking and once in a while we’d hear Eddie’s mother laugh.
     
     
     
    One day Eugene and I went over there and we hollered for Eddie and Eddie didn’t come out. “Hey, Eddie, for Christ’s sake, come on out!” Eddie didn’t come out.
    “Something’s wrong in there,” Eugene said, “I know there’s something wrong in there.”
    “Maybe somebody got murdered.”
    “We’d better look in there.”
    “You think we should?”
    “We’d better.”
    The screen door pulled open and we walked in. It was as dark as usual. Then we heard a single word:
    “