Coda 02 -A to Z

if he took a swing at you?” I grin at him. “Sensei say, ‘Big like door, swift like glacier’.” He actually cocks his head at me in puzzlement. “What?”
    I shake my head at him. “Never mind, man. It was a joke. A wasted one, apparently.” Still cracks me up that Zach can’t ever seem to keep up. But I also know we probably haven’t seen the last of Tom. “He’s gonna cause you all kinds of trouble. You know that, right? Won’t take him long to realize there wouldn’t be sound on that tape, even if the damn thing was actually on.”
    “Yeah, I know.” I can tell he doesn’t want to think about it yet. “What was he talking about, Ang?”
    “Nothin’.” But I know from the look he gives me he’s not gonna drop it. I don’t want to tell him that Tom thought we were lovers. Afraid he’ll see that I wish it was true. “That day you came in late, he was just bein’ an asshole, that’s all. Said if I didn’t put out for him, he’d tell you that I offered to do it for money.”
    Zach looks horrified. “I wouldn’t have believed him.”
    “I know, Zach.” I don’t want to talk about it anymore. I reach under the counter and pull out a box of movies. “Check this out. Forgot to show you earlier. Bought these from the kid across the hall in my buildin’. Said they came from his uncle. Bunch of old pirate movies. Gregory Peck. Burt Lancaster. Whole bunch of Errol Flynn. I never seen half of these. I gotta make room for them on the shelf.”
    “You bought them for the shop?”

    I’m not sure why that surprises him. “’Course, man. What else?”

    “How much did you spend? I should reimburse you.” “Don’t worry ’bout it.” Truth is, the kid didn’t know what he had. Sold me the whole box for twenty bucks.
    “Thanks, Ang.” I’m surprised by his voice. Like he’s really touched. And when I look up, the look on his face is like he wants to hug me. It makes me feel like I’m gonna melt away and be happy doin’ it, too, just ’cause he felt somethin’ for me at that moment. I know it’s nothin’ like what I feel for him, though. I hate bein’ so crazy in love with him. Be easier if I could reach inside and turn it off. I can’t stand that I just wait for these moments when somethin’ I do makes him happy. “Are we going to watch one of them tonight?”
    “You just assume I’m comin’ over?” I’m just tryin’ to get my balance again.
    “Only if you want to.”
“No.”
“No, you don’t want to come over?” Did I say that? “No, I got another movie picked out for tonight,” I tell him. “So, you are coming over?”
    Sometimes it’s like we’re not even speakin’ the same fuckin’ language. “Isn’t that what I just said?”
    So after closin’ A to Z, we go to his place. Stop on the way to grab some takeout Thai food. He’s a wimp and has to order everything mild. He thinks the stuff I eat is so spicy hot it should come with a waiver of liability. He actually said that once, but he was laughin’ when he said it. Just smellin’ it makes him sweat. Makes me laugh.
    Once we’re settled on the floor around the coffee table, me with a beer and him with a glass of wine, I put the movie in.
    “Is this another ‘cult classic’?” he asks me. He asks that every time. Ever since I made him watch THX 1138 . He didn’t get that one at all. Since then I try to keep things a little more mainstream for him.
    “No, this one’s modern. V for Vendetta . You seen it?” He looks right in my eyes and smiles, and I swear my heart doesn’t even beat for a second. “Of course not.”

    I can’t help but grin back. “I think you’ll dig it.”

    ’Course I’m right. At the end, he looks over at me and says, “I liked that one.” He sounds amazed.
    “I picked it for you. It’s all ’bout standin’ up for yourself. ’Course there’s more to it than that. It’s about tyranny and what happens when people give up freedom for security. But it’s also ’bout decidin’ to fight for what you want.” I look over at him. Look into those amazin’ blue eyes. “You gotta decide what you want to fight for, Zach.”

Zach…
    L IFE went on, for a little while, at least. Business at the store had picked up over the last few weeks, and I knew I had Angelo to thank for it. He knew everybody’s name and what kind of movies they liked. They always asked for suggestions, and he always gave them. The fact that people could actually find what they were