Ukies--28. Two Timer?

Two Timer?

Again I had seen Olena with strange guys on the Lower East Side, once on Avenue B and once on Avenue C and I knew that something shady was going on, but what?

It was a harsh winter that year; snow almost every week and a frigid cold that didn’t seem to let up. Going to and from school was more than enough, no one wanted to hang out anymore, except Olena, I guess…

I had seen her over time in the Village and played her game of picking her up, as if we were strangers and didn’t know each other, and I kind of liked it too. Sometimes we’d sit in Sheridan movie house and kiss like lovers and twice she had given me a hand-job (accidentally, I’m sure), which had me feverishly jerking off even more when I was alone from her.

Sometimes in class I’d stare off into space dreaming of Olena while she sat at the other end of the room until the nun would smack my head and scream, “I’m talking to you!” which would send my classmates into roars of laughter at how stupid I really was.

But that day I followed Olena after school to Avenue C, staying a block behind her, and the cold kept people off the streets, so it was easy to see her in the distance. Surprisingly, a guy stood out in the cold, just as I had seen another guy stand last week on Avenue B. Was this another of her game-playing lovers that I was finally getting aware of? But they didn’t spend much time together and parted as quickly as they met. She turned about and was walking back in the direction I was coming in.

Damn! Maybe if I lowered my head she would not see or recognize me? How would I explain what I was doing in the area? I saw her boots coming closer. “Kolya?” I heard her say. “What the fuck are you doing here?”

We looked at each other, the puffs of air coming out with out breathes. “Going to my grandmother’s house,” I lied. “Why the fuck are you here?”

Even in the cold there was a pleasant smile on her lips. “Marijuana,” she whispered and winked, looking around her. “God, I’m cold!” and she shivered, and looked at me as if expecting me to come closer and hold her.

I didn’t, but looked at her somewhat relieved, somewhat nervous that she was doing drugs that were used by Puerto Rican junkies, but what the hell did I know about it anyway. “OK,” I said, wanting so much to hold her.

She stared at me, then shrugged and trailed off down the street. I walked a block then took another street back home.

Damn, it was cold as hell! But I should’ve held her anyway, I knew that then but didn’t….Home seemed farther off than it was….

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