Free The Early Stories of Truman Capote by Truman Capote Page A

cause Frisky wouldn’t care what I talked about—would’ja?”
    The woman laughed a deep, somehow sad laugh. “I guess maybe that’s the reason Jamie’s so crazy about Frisky.”
    Teddy cuddled the dog up against his leg.
    “Does Jamie run with him in the park, and play Indians and things?”
    The woman stopped smiling. She turned her gaze away toward the reservoir. For a moment he thought she was angry with him.
    “No,” she answered, “no, he doesn’t run with Frisky. He just plays with him on the floor, he can’t go outside. That’s the reason I take Frisky for walks. Jamie’s never been in the park—he’s sick.”
    “Oh, I didn’t know.” Teddy’s face flushed. Suddenly he saw Miss Julie coming up the path and he knew she would be angry if she saw him talking to a stranger.
    “I hope I see you again,” he said, “tell Jamie hello for me. I’ve got to go now, but maybe you’ll be here tomorrow, huh?”
    The woman smiled; he thought again how nice and pretty she was. He rushed down the path toward Miss Julie, who was feeding crumbs to the pigeons. He looked back and called, “Goodbye, Frisky,” The woman’s wavy hair shone in the sun.
    II
    That night he kept thinking of the woman and of the little boy, Jamie. He must be very sick if he couldn’t go outside. And, while Teddy lay in bed, he saw Frisky over and over. He hoped that the woman would be there the next day.
    In the morning Miss Julie awakened him with a shake and a sharp command. “Come on, you lazy bones! Get out of that bed this minute or you won’t go to the park.”
    Immediately he jumped out of bed and ran to the window. It was clear and cool and with the fresh smell of early morning. It would be beautiful in the park today!
    “Yippee, yippee,” he yelled and ran wildly into the bathroom.
    “Now what do you suppose has got into that child?” Miss Julie said, looking after the flashing Teddy in utter bewilderment.
    When they reached the park, Teddy slipped away from Miss Julie while she stood talking with two other nursemaids. The long curving pathways of the park were almost deserted. He felt completely free and alone. He dodged through some underbrush and came out by the reservoir and there, just ahead of him, he saw the woman and the dog.
    She looked up when the dog started to bark at Teddy.
    “Hello, Teddy,” she greeted him warmly.
    He was pleased that she remembered him. How kind she was! “Hello, hello, Frisky.” He sat down on the bench and the dog jumped on him, licking his hand and nudging against his ribs.
    “Ouch,” Teddy squealed. “That tickles.”
    “I’ve been waiting for you almost ten minutes,” the woman said.
    “Waiting for me?” he said, startled and sick with joy.
    “Yes,” she laughed. “I have to get back to Jamie sometime before the day’s over.”
    “Yes,” Teddy said hurriedly, happily. “Yes, you do, don’t you? I’ll bet he misses Frisky while he’s out here in the park. I know I’d never let him out of my sight if he was mine.”
    “But Jamie isn’t as lucky as you,” she said. “He can’t run and play.”
    Teddy fondled the dog; he pressed its cold nose to his warm cheek. He had heard that if their noses were cold, dogs were healthy.
    “What’s Jamie sick with?”
    “Oh,” she answered vaguely, “something like a cough, a bad cough.”
    “Then he can’t be very sick,” Teddy said brightly. “I’ve had plenty of coughs, and I’ve never stayed in bed more than two or three days.”
    She smiled a little. They sat in silence. Teddy cuddled the dog in his lap and wished he could jump up and run with him across the great green lawns marked “KEEP OFF THE GRASS.”
    Presently she got up and gathered the dog’s leash in her hand. “I must go now,” she said.
    “You aren’t leaving, are you?”
    “Yes, I’m afraid I’ll have to. I promised Jamie I’d be right back. I was just supposed to go down to the cigar store and get him some comic magazines. He’ll be