Homeless

 I need to preface this with a story about the story. As I hadn't written anything new this week I took a dive into the archives and found this story that I'd written about 10 years ago according to the date stamp on the file. Anyway I read through it to make sure it was OK and I got to the end and there in parentheses was one sentence that summed up the ending. Either I didn't like the ending or couldn't be bothered to finish the story for some reason. I believe it was the former, because I wasn't thrilled with what I'd left myself to work with. So I wrote the ending to this story today and the beginning 10 years ago. A first for me. (a bit longer than most of mine, I hope you like it.)

Homeless

 

    Andy Reese had just been to a funeral, nobody he really knew, just a friend of the family. His parents had died in a car wreck and he’d been going to friends of the family funerals ever since, he guessed as repayment. 

    As he approached the lane that led to his trailer, he saw bright lights and flashing red beacons. A policeman waved him over as he tried to turn into the lane. Andy pulled to the shoulder and got out. It was then the acrid smell of smoke hit his nose and he saw the glow of the fire.

“My trailer, I’ve got to get up there.” he said.

The policeman stepped forward and asked. “Sir, are you the owner of that trailer?”

“No, but I rent it and all of my stuff is in there.” There was just a touch of panic in his voice.

The policeman continued unperturbed, “I will need some information from you, can I see some ID please.”

“Sure,” he said as he fished his wallet from his back pants pocket, “but …”

“Are you the only occupant of the trailer Mr. Reese?” he asked as he was looking at my ID.

“Yes, but what about my trailer, I’ve got to get up there.”

“Mr. Reese, the fire department is doing all they can, it’s pretty isolated up there and was burning for some time before the neighbors saw it and called 911.” As the cop said this he headed back to his car saying over his shoulder, “could you just wait in you car for me please.”

Andy went back to his car and slumped down in the seat, sitting there in shock and disbelief. The cop came back a few minutes later and said,” Your license checks out. Where were you today?”

“I’m just getting back from a funeral”, Andy said. Before the cop could reply Andy pleaded, “When can I get up there and salvage my stuff?”

The cop just shook his head and said, “Son, I don’t think there is going to be anything left.”

     At this point Andy just folded his arms on the steering wheel and laid his forehead down. Before he knew it great streams of tears were running down his cheeks. He found a couple of fast food paper napkins in the glove box and blew his nose and wiped his eyes. This was no time to fall apart; he needed to figure out what he was going to do. He took stock of what he now owned. One good suit that he was currently wearing, dress shoes, about $27.00 in cash, a gym bag with workout clothes and sneakers, lastly he had a bag of dirty laundry from the week, that he planned on washing tonight. Last time he checked he had about $200.00 in his checking account. He also had about that much stashed away in the trailer in case of emergency. That almost made him laugh, the tears came again instead. Funny he hadn’t cried at his parent’s funeral or any of the funerals since, but now he was crying over a stupid trailer. That wasn’t entirely true, it was more than a trailer, a big chunk of his life was in there. It was also dirt cheap because it belonged to a friend of his father.

    That all happened in the early summer and now it was the end of October. Things had just unraveled since then. Andy lost his job due to down sizing, his unemployment had run out and he was living in his car. He was getting by on food stamps and recycling aluminum cans. When Andy thought of the future it was no longer full of possibilities, in fact he no longer looked more than a day ahead. There was one exception to this, for two weeks he’d had his eye on a coat at Good Will.

    Today was the last Saturday in October and Andy was out in front of Good Will waiting for the doors to open. He peered through the windows and could see the coat still on the rack way back in the men’s department. He’d been in once and tried it on and it fitted him like it was tailor made. When he had looked at the price tag it was forty dollars and beyond his meager means. That was why he was at Good Will now; the last Saturday of the month is half off the price of all clothes. He thought he could swing twenty dollars for a heavy wool overcoat. Andy had scrounged aluminum cans from the break of day until it was too dark to see for two weeks the get the extra twenty dollars.

    By the time the doors opened there must have been twenty five people waiting. Andy was in the forefront of the crush of people getting into the store. He weaved his way through the scattering of people and clothes racks the where the overcoat hung. It was charcoal gray, thick and had a high collar that you could turn up against the wind and cold. Just as Andy put his had out to grab it, the coat disappeared on the other side of the rack.

    Andy dashed around the rack to see an older gentleman with his coat. The older man began to shrug the coat on. Andy came up behind him and said “Let me help you.” The older man thanked him and walked over to the mirror to admire himself in his new coat. Andy stepped up to him with another coat draped over his arm and said, “ That coat looks a bit tight across the shoulders for you, it’ll be worse once you get a suit coat on.” The elderly gentleman looked at Andy and then back at his reflection and said, “you might be right.”

    Andy said, “I was going to get this herringbone coat, but it’s a bit big for me. Would you like to try it on?”

“That’s kind of you young man.”

Andy helped him off with the first coat and into the herringbone coat. It was actually a little bit better fit and did make the old guy look dapper. Andy said, “It looks great on you and it’s only $15.00 with today’s discount.” That was enough to clinch the deal. After many thanks the old guy tottered off to buy his new coat.

    Andy took his coat to the register, paid for it and headed to his car. He had the coat over his arm and kept hearing something crinkle like a piece of paper. When he got to the car he went through all of the pockets and found nothing. He patted the coat down, there it was again, crinkle, crinkle. He finally narrowed down the piece of paper in the lining of the coat. He had felt a hole in the right hand pocket and slowly moved the piece of paper up to the hole. When he got it out it was a crisp twenty dollar bill. He laughed, the coat had been free.

    Andy noticed there was something written around the border of the otherwise pristine bill.

    It said, “If you bought this coat and found this bill, today maybe your lucky day.” then there was a phone number. Andy turned it over a couple of times in his hands looking for any other writing, but there was nothing. He was intrigued, maybe things were looking up. 

    Andy tracked down a payphone and dialed the number, after the second ring a woman answered.

“Grandville White and Associates, how may I direct your call?”

Andy didn’t know how to answer, so he said, “I found this twenty dollar bill in a coat I bought and it had this phone number on it.”

The receptionist on the other end said, “Please hold for Mr. White.”

“This is Grandville White, I hear you found my twenty. Would you be free for lunch today? I’m buying. Do you know that little diner just off of Maple?”

“Uh, yeah, I know the diner, but what's this all about?”

“Meet me at the diner at eleven-thirty so we can avoid the lunch rush, I’ll explain everything then, and if nothing else comes of our conversation you at least get a free meal. Oh, and wear the coat so I can recognize you.”

“Alright. I’ll meet you there Mr. White.”

     Promptly at eleven-thirty Andy stepped through the door of the diner. He’d used the remainder of the morning trying to make himself presentable. He’d gone to the YMCA and showered and shaved and put on his one and only suit. The shoes were a bit scuffed, but that couldn’t be helped. He’d also pulled his long hair back in to a pony tail away from his face.

   The moment he walked in the was a gentleman sitting at a booth and he waved him over. As Andy approached the man stood and stuck out his hand and said, “Grandville White, it’s a pleasure to meet you, And your name is? I’m sorry I forgot to ask on the phone.”

“My Name is Andy, Andy Reese.”

“Well Andy, have a seat, here let me take your coat for you.”

Andy said, I’ll just keep it on thanks, I’m not sure how long I’ll be staying.”

Andy was still trying to figure this guy’s angle.

“Fair enough. Let’s order and then we can chat.”

   Andy looked over the menu and when the waitress came he said, “I’ll have the club sandwich, fries and a Coke.”

“I’ll have the same.”, Mr. White said before the waitress had time to ask.

So with their orders in it was time to get to it, what ever it was.

Mr. White began, “I may have a job for you if you’d be interested.”

“What would this job be doing exactly?”

This guy looked legit, but notes on twenty dollar bills was hardly the way to conduct business.

“First tell me about yourself, what you’ve done, what your dreams are, how you came get the lucky coat. Tell me everything.”

Then Mr. White just sat back and folded his arms and waited.

     For some reason Andy who for the most part was reserved, opened up to this man. He told him about his parent’s deaths, about the fire, about the laundry list of jobs he’d had in the past. About how he scrimped and saved to get this coat.

     By the time he’d finished, the food had arrived and they both dug in and said no more until the last french fry was gone.

    Andy said, “That was good, it’s been a long time since I’ve had a proper lunch like that.”

     Mr. White finally spoke, “You have had a time of it haven’t you young man. From some of your resume it sounds like you’re an all round handyman. That’s what I’m looking for as well as an occasional driver, and gofer. If it’s something you'd be interested in the pay is only three thousand a month, but we also provide health insurance.”

     After living on the streets for months, three thousand a month sounded like a fortune until Andy thought of the current rental prices in the area. He could find a dive some where, it was better than living in his car.

     Mr. White spoke up again interrupting Andy’s musings, “I forgot to mention you’ll need to live on the grounds. There is a gardener’s cottage that you can have, it’s small just two bedrooms and a bath. It’s a stone cottage with a slate roof, so it’s basically fireproof. I am the trustee of the estate that the house is on and have free reign on hiring and firing. You can take the job just to get back on your feet and then move on, but if everything works out after ten years you will be vested with a retirement plan and employment for as long as you are able to work.”

     Andy wasn’t sure what to say, he had a lump in his throat and tears were beginning to gather in his eyes. He managed to croak out, “Thank you so much, I’ll take the job, but why me?”

     “Well Andy, fate dealt me a crummy hand to begin with too, and somebody helped me out a long time ago, this is just my way of paying it back and fate chose you, not me.”