Until I Saw Your Smile by J.J. Murray Read Free Book Online Page A

less than five minutes.
    â€œYou want a refill to go?” she asked.
    I can’t tell her that I’m broke. “One cup of this coffee will last me all day.”
    â€œOkay,” she said. “Don’t be a stranger, now.”
    â€œI won’t.” He slid out of the booth. “Are you open tomorrow?”
    â€œEvery day of the week from six in the morning to eight at night.”
    â€œI may see you soon.” He nodded. “Good-bye, Angela.”
    â€œGood-bye, Matthew.”
    Fortified by sugar and caffeine, Matthew walked a few blocks to Bedford Avenue to see his landlord about the rent. As he entered the cramped office, Carly the receptionist barely looked up from a copy of the New York Post .
    â€œI’m a little late with my—”
    Carly rolled her eyes. “See Larry.”
    Matthew walked around several desks to an open door and Larry Long lounging behind his desk. “Hey, Larry. Matt McConnell. Over on Havemeyer.”
    Larry shuffled a few manila folders, opening one. “You’re not normally late. Tell you what. I’ll waive the late fee if you sign up for another lease.” He spun the folder around. “It will, of course, include a rent increase.”
    Matthew scanned the document. Two hundred more bucks a month. Is he crazy? My lease is up in seven weeks, and I can’t afford two grand a month for a one-bedroom. “I’ll pay the late fee, Larry. Nineteen-eighty, right? You still take debit cards, right?” He held out his scuffed debit card.
    Larry sighed and took the card. “You’re not going to find a better deal, Mr. McConnell. Unless you want to move to Bushwick.”
    I’m avoiding Bushwick for the time being. “I’ll manage.”
    Larry left the office and returned a few minutes later with the receipt. “Trust me, Mr. McConnell. For what you’re getting and that location, I’m being reasonable with the increase. You’ll be getting an official notice in the mail next week.”
    Matthew took the receipt. “Sure. Great.”
    He spent the rest of National Freedom Day restocking and cleaning his apartment. He hit an ATM to get cash to buy cheap towels, cheaper bedding, and the cheapest microwave he could find at C & H Appliances over on 4th Street. He replenished his condiments and bought some actual food at Melo’s. He carefully crammed the soiled bedding into garbage bags and put them in a Dumpster.
    He stood in front of his closet for the longest time. It hadn’t really been his closet since Joy had moved in. Look at all those colors. Joy liked color. I liked her colorful body, the way her knees and elbows were just a little darker than the rest of her smooth, shapely legs and arms, the way her eyes seemed to change color according to her moods, the frisky way she’d wake me every morning. I wish she were back here with—
    No. Let’s be rational about this. I don’t wish she were here. She left me. It’s over. Throughout our relationship, I was the rational one. Joy is the irrational woman who wouldn’t speak to me after she had an erotic dream where she “caught” me making love to another woman. “You cheated on me,” she had said. “It was a freaking dream you had, Joy,” I had said. “You still cheated,” she had said, and she had kept her silence for a week.
    That still has to be a record for a Honduran woman.
    He sighed.
    At least I get my closet back.
    He bagged Joy’s clothes and shoes. I’d hate to have these sit outside until garbage collection on Monday, and I don’t want them to sit around here either. I really shouldn’t throw them away anyway, so ...
    He took them to the Salvation Army Thrift Store on Bedford.
    It took him three trips, each trip feeling shorter than the last. The bags themselves even seemed to get lighter.
    When the worker at the thrift store asked if he wanted a receipt for