My Dinosaur Era Chapter 24

 

breakfast done, back in the room, ginny in the shower

still can’t convince her to go to the guggenheim today

it’s sunny, she want to walk around, sit by the river

stuff her face with more pintxos, drink more beer

I lie back on the bed, allow my eyes to close

I’ve stopped seeing petula in the darkness

the swirls bring me flashes of last night

patrycja’s mouth on mine, a table full of empty glasses

purple lights on the ceiling of the bar, that feeling

the one where you are drunk enough to take on a new persona

though you’re still in touch enough to know it’s not real

even lying still here this morning

I am the dance

I am the frenzy

I am the chaos unburdened into the night

I am the freedom of my rumpled spirit

unfurling itself into the ether

big breath, let it out, puff away the fear

ah yeah, it’s going, goodbye old friend

 

are you ok, timmy, I hear ginny say

I open my eyes, my face still smiling

ginny is stood there with a towel wrapped around her

her face looks different, no goth make up eyes, hair stuck to her cheeks

yeah, I’m good, I say

you looked like you were dancing in your sleep, she says

mmm, I kinda was, I say

do you still feel drunk from last night, I think I am, she says

hard to say, I feel good, I feel light, I say

I feel better after that shower, I thought I was dying at breakfast, she says

you seemed to perk up once patrycja appeared, I say

oh, because I am in love with her, right, she says

you should see yourself around her, I say

oh, shush, you child, she says

she’s smirking, saunters back into the bathroom

I smirk too, ginny in love, well I never

I feel like I am in love too

 

in the hotel lobby, its whiteness startles me

the sun is illuminating the white floors violently 

a clock behind reception tells me it is eleven am

time has become so small now, it barely registers 

ginny said she’d be down in ten minutes

however long that is 

she’ll be longer than that, it’ll seem longer at least

I wander around the lobby, sit at the empty bar

I swivel on the stool to face the counter

patrycja appears, her party trick, emerging from nowhere

hey, timmy, she says

hi, patrycja, I say

my voice feels weak, small, I clear my throat

I would like to make you a drink, she says

sure, I say

she reaches for a wine bottle, not the good stuff from the back cupboard

it feels too early for wine, I do not protest

she turns away with the glass, returns with a larger one

here, this will be good for you, she says

I notice how smooth her face is

no idea how old she is but she hasn’t even started aging yet

what is it, I say

kalimotxo, she says

what’s that, I say

red wine, coca cola, you not had before in bilbao, no, she says

I don’t think so, I say

a ridiculous concoction, the liquid pops a couple of bubbles at me

I take a sip, sweet and sour

take a gulp, taste so good, I drink half in one go

see, good, she says

yeah, I say, real good, I say

this is good for helping you get ready for a new day, she says

I thought I was ready, but yeah, this does the trick, I say

she smiles, stands with her hands on her hips

proud of her work

where is ginny, she says

just coming, still getting ready, I say

where will you go today, she says

I want to go to the museum but she doesn’t want to, I say

too sunny, go walking, sit outside, talk, eat, be happy, she says

that does sound good, I say

maybe I find you later, she says

yes, please do, I say

though I realise she is not seeking permission

just telling me how it is

 

behind me I hear the loud footsteps 

bam boom, cutting through the mid morning calm

patrycja leans forward on the counter, watching

I swivel on the stool

ginny in hopelessly short shorts

heeled doctor martens that make her almost not tiny

regulation giant shades

black vest top

a thousand bangles on each wrist

hey, she says, to patrycja, ignoring me

hey, says patrycja

hi ginny, remember me, I say

shut up, timmy, she says

I shake my head, laughing, finish my drink

put the glass on the bar

patrycja gone as quickly as she appeared

ginny, looks over her glasses at me

where the fuck did she go, she says

she does that, just pops up out of nowhere, I say

huh, oh well, what the fuck are you drinking, she says

kalimotxo, red wine and cola, I say

wow, that is vile, timmy, jesus, you fucking animal, she says

it’s good, I say

no, no it is fucking not, she says

I jump off the stool, put my arm around her

come on, let’s go, I say

don’t walk too fast, timmy, these stacks are murderous, she says

are you trying to look taller or something, I say

no, why would I do that, she says

oh, dunno, no reason, I say

come on you plum, let’s go fuck up this city, she says