Concrete Jungle
“You gotta check this baby out man. Six hundred horsepower, seven-speed sequential gearbox, it just goes man. It’s real bad-ass!” Jason’s face beamed with smug excitement. A waitress strolled towards the table. “Gray Goose on the rocks-- two olives,” Jason ordered. His slicked back hair and chiseled cheeks seemed especially prominent today as he tapped his gold ringed finger against the table.
“Sounds pretty sick, dude,” Thomas replied. He tried to mask his indifference.
“You’ll have to check it out tomorrow bro. It’s too beautiful,” Jason continued.
“Absolutely,” Thomas returned. Jason looked down the bar towards the waitress. He stared at her buttocks and legs.
“Ummmmm, um! I wouldn’t mind gettin’ a round at that babe,” he said. “Ha, ha yeah she’s pretty fine.” Thomas’ chuckle was hollow and meaningless.
Many would envy Thomas McLaren. His brown skin and black curly hair contrasted his bright blue eyes and white teeth. Success in the business world came to him at an early age of twenty-eight. His tall and handsome build made ladies practically throw themselves at his feet. Many of his features resembled his Black father, while his eyes and nose came from his blonde mother. He turned to his Rolex watch, which seemed to be ticking especially slow. While he questioned its accuracy, he didn’t question its ability to relieve him of this uncomfortable lunch.
“Well, look at the time. It was good to see ya, J.T. I got to get to a meeting with a client
in
“Yeah man, come by tomorrow and check out my new car, man. It’s too sick.”
“Yeah I will, bro, take care.”
Thomas quickly walked out of the Bridges Bar and hopped into his new convertible Mercedes. After starting its V12 engine, his cell phone rang. “Damn,” he muttered as he picked up the phone. “Hello? Yeah. Golf tomorrow? Uh, yeah, I can make that. Okay. Alright. See you then. Bye.” He threw his phone into the passenger seat and glanced at the analogue clock on the dashboard. The hands had stopped moving. Thomas shook his head and sped off to his office. His eyes squinted behind his dark Ray-Ban shades as he pressed on his sinuses. His old friend Jason had changed. He was no longer the innocent little boy who liked to play tag and eat candy. He was barely recognizable. Thomas missed the days of playing in the dirt and watching cartoons with his friend.
The hot
“Congratulations? Congrats for what?” Thomas asked.
“For your engagement of course. What else?” his boss responded with confusion.
“Oh yeah? Well tell him I said thank you and I hope all is well,” Thomas replied with a smile. He felt embarrassed after not making the connection.
“Of course,” Kyle replied.
Two pages flew
out of the folder as Thomas slammed it against his desk. He rubbed his eyes and
stared out the window into the golden haze. The silhouette of
He sat there
and wondered how it happened; how he found himself in the one place he couldn’t
understand. He had left his life in
“How was your day honey?” Ally asked him in a sweet voice.
“Oh you know the usual. Saw Jason though.”
“Really? How is he doing?”
“Eh, he’s doing well. He’s trying to get me to come over and check out his new Mercedes.” Thomas’s voice was low and monotone. Ally’s soft brown eyes showed concern. She stroked her long, dark brown hair behind her ear and stepped towards Thomas. “What’s the matter, Tom? You seem distracted.” Thomas stared blankly through her. She took his hands and pulled them to his sides. Her round crimson lips formed an angel like smile. Thomas focused on her pale face and rosy cheeks and forced a smile. Her diamond studs sparkled in the dim houselights. “I’m fine baby. Just a long day.”
“Bullshit,” Ally replied in a flirtatious voice as she leaned up to kiss Thomas. Ally’s lips calmed him. She led him back to their room and shut the door behind them.
*****************************
It was
exceptionally hot this particular day. Thomas left the convertible top in the
upward position and blasted his air conditioning. A grey, brown cloud of smog
hung over the valley. The daily hustle and bustle of commuters crowded the
highway. As Thomas continued through the concrete jungle, he noticed that the
billboard he passed everyday to work had been changed. It no longer pictured the
Thomas arrived
at the dark grey SoCal Insurance building. He took the elevator up to his office
where Kyle was waiting again. His slicked back hair reflected off the
fluorescent office lights. “So golf tomorrow, right? There’s a couple of agents
visiting from
“Uh, yeah, I guess so. I’ll have to check with Ally.”
“Oh yeah, check with the old girl. Damn, marriage is a bitch.”
“Yeah,” Thomas replied through a dry, tortured laugh. But he felt the need to defend Ally. “No, but really I’m happy we are getting married,” he said.
“What? That’s what you say now,” Kyle replied with a loud hoot.
“No, but really.”
“Whatever, man. Alright, well I’ll let you get to work.”
Frustrated, Thomas went into his office and stared at the clock again. The hands were frozen. “Damn thing,” he murmured to himself as he sat down to his computer. There he sat again, alone and directionless as he stared at the blank computer screen. Kyle poked his head in the doorway. “Just got off the phone with one of the agents; George. He’s taking us on his yacht instead of going for drinks. This guy is loaded, man.”
“That’s cool Kyle, better than drinks,” Thomas replied.
“You betch-your ass it is,” Kyle replied as he chuckled. “He’s got a Maserati too.”
“Wow, this guy is something.” Thomas was amused by Kyle’s excitement as he described George’s wealth. He began to find him hysterical. “This guy really impresses you, huh?” he asked sarcastically.
“Well, yeah I mean, aren’t you?”
“Not really,” Thomas replied with a smile stretched on his face.
“Oh come on man, you know you wish you had a Maserati. Don’t be jealous,” Kyle chuckled.
“It’s a cool car, no doubt, but you don’t have to be on his nuts for it,” Thomas replied. A new level of sarcasm broke over him. He could hardly believe the tone he took with his boss, but it exhilarated him. It was almost as though he was breaking through an invisible cement ceiling.
“Excuse me?” Kyle exclaimed indignantly.
“Well, I mean come on! Some asshole has a fancy car and a nice big house and you talk about him as if he were some damn god or something!” Thomas’ voice was loud and uncontrollable. He felt a delicious freedom permeate him.
“Hey, you are way outta’ line Tom! What the hell is wrong with you anyway?”
“That’s what I ask myself everyday! That’s just the goddamn question, isn’t it? What the hell is wrong with me? Why don’t I give a shit about people’s fancy cars or big houses or exclusive vacations? Why don’t I shiver at the knees when I see Tom Cruise or Scarlett Johansson walk by? You know why? Because I don’t give a rat’s ass! That’s why! They aren’t anybody! And their crap doesn’t make them anybody either!”
“Thomas, go home. You need a frickin’ vacation,” Kyle replied.
“I don’t need to go home. I don’t need any goddamn vacation either!”
“I’m telling you to go home Thomas!” You aren’t well.”
“Are you calling me crazy? Go to hell!”
“Thomas, I don’t know what the hell is wrong with you, but if you don’t get your shit together I’m going to fire your ass right here, and right now!”
“Screw you! I’ll save you the trouble!” Thomas’ eyes were bloodshot. He could feel a rage he had never felt before. All of his anger had built up to this one moment. He turned away from Kyle, walked into his office, grabbed a few items and headed for the door. As he walked, something was not right. The wall before him seemed too still, almost dead. He peered up and noticed the clock had stopped moving. The second hand stayed motionless, hovering beneath the glass exterior. Thomas closed his eyes and exited the SoCal Insurance office building.
He marched up his house stairs. “You’re home awfully early aren’t you? What time is it?” Ally asked with perplexity.
“I’ve had it Ally. I have to get the hell out of here!” Thomas raged.
“What? Tom what are you talking about? And what is all that stuff in that box?”
“
“What? You are
crazy!” She exclaimed with a chuckle. “So I was thinking we would have the
“Dammit Ally
I’m serious! Let’s move. Let’s leave.
“What do you mean Thomas? What happened? You have a great job; we have a beautiful home, friends, family not too far. Why would you want to move? What the hell is going on?”
“You just don’t get it do you? I’m tired of all this! I’m tired of the ‘keeping up with the Jones’s’ and the flashy cars, the competition, the golf. I’m tired of this superficial world!” Thomas felt like he was beginning to get through to Ally. His heart raced and sweat dripped down his forehead. Time was accelerating in his mind.
“You can’t be serious! Our lives are here! I’m happy! Why aren’t you happy? I love you and I want to be with you. What about us? Is what we have superfi-“
“Oh, come on Ally, don’t make this about us.”
“But it is about us! I mean what the hell am I supposed to think? Why didn’t you tell me anything? Why did you hide? Ally began to weep. Sparkling tears began to flow from her round innocent eyes.
Thomas was silent. He simply stared at his loafers and headed for the door. A large tear rolled down his left cheek. He stepped into his convertible and sped off. He drove straight and fast, not turning down any side streets. He was as aimless as his motives. Thomas looked at his wrist to check the time and noticed his watch was missing, so he glanced down at the car’s dashboard clock. Simultaneously, the engine abruptly died and the sleek Mercedes drifted to a stop. He stared down at the three-pointed star in the middle of the steering wheel, gazed up at a nearby tree, and then looked down again. He shook his head, stepped out of the car and walked in the direction of his home, leaving his Rolex watch under the leather seat, with the door wide open.