It had been a long time since I was invited to a party so when Zoe, Henry the grip's girlfriend, asked me to a small to medium sized gathering Saturday night at her house in Echo Park, I accepted.
"Can I bring anything?" I asked.
A wrinkled puckered down her forehead as she grinned, "How about some humus?"
A peculiar specificity I thought, but agreed.
Greg washed his paint brushes, filling my sink with color, as he told me about his approaching date Saturday; Mike, over the phone, told me he had to do research for some deviant behavior crap; and Andrew's mother was in town tying him and Eric in knots. Finally, I realized, that me, myself, and I were going to the party. I wasn't going to know anybody so I didn't want to go alone, until finally I thought of Shirley - then quickly unthought of Shirley.
The rest of the afternoon at work I pondered why I dismissed her so quickly when at first I thought it would be fun hanging out with her on a Saturday night.
Greg is painting a huge peachy ass on my bathroom floor. He's accentuating the natural dimples in the wood floor with red shadows including them in the painting as butt pimples. I stand in the doorway.
"What's the big deal Fran, you like her. Ask her out."
"I don't want to ask her out, I just want to go to a party with her. That's all."
"So what are you talking to me for?"
"Greg, you know what I'm trying to say. I don't want her to get the wrong idea. I don't want to hurt her or anything."
"You know, I got to tell you this so please don't be offended, but it seems to me Shirley is a lot more aware of the shit going on around you than you are. If you ask me, which you are, I think she knows exactly what she's doing. She wants to go out with you, so she's hanging around. I know it and you know it, but the big idiot question is are you just going to let this go by and dissipate into the LA smog or are you going to check it out? Maybe, just maybe, see if you could have a relationship based in friendship, you know, go out with her because you like hanging out with her and not because she's a famous comedienne or someone who's always going to leave you. Also, I think--"
"I got it." I start to walk away then turn back, "Hey Greg, when did some brilliant insightful guru take over your body?"
"No, it's just me," he said, thickening the butt's peach fuss.
I lay on my bed cradling the phone. "Hi."
"Hey, you're lucky you caught me. I was just on my way up to my mother's to take her out for a walk."
I thought of my mother for a moment and missed her, but then quickly reset my attention on Shirley. I did invite her to the party and she accepted. When we hung up I felt nervous, suddenly unsure whether it was because I wanted to go out with her or that I simply just didn't want to be alone.
