Thoughts of a Mad Man

Another "MRU" Madlib...

The door opens and Sarah walks in-strides in like she owns the place.





Oh, damn, that is one hot dress she's wearing. My stomach burns and I start to look for a place to hide. I reach down to pick up a coin that isn't there. Slowly, I raise. "Oh, hey. Look at you."





She smiles, that gambler-smile that has no happiness in the eyes. "There you are."








She's going to tear me up. My eyes start to water and my lips quiver. I start counting my breath–square breathing, like the soldiers–but get lost at the first count of four. "Yeah. Here I am."





She makes a scoffing noise and looks down her nose at me.





Stupid. Stupid. I want to cry, want to run for the bathroom. I pull my head down into my shoulders, then slowly drop them and stand. I figure if I'm going to be eviscerated, I ought to take it like a man. "So what brings you here."





Her lips curl in disgust. "I like, need to buy something and stuff."





I look at the register and swallow. "From me."





She shrugs. "Like do you see anybody else in here?"





No, thank god, there was nobody else to humiliate me. "Kind of the point."





"There wasn't a point that needed to be made." She gave me a beef stick and a dollar.





She hates beef sticks, I thought, drawing in a sigh of relief. She's covering just like me. I smirk, but I count to four of an inbreath, and four holding. "Right. Silly me. I'll just get your change."





I scanned the thing. It was actually $1.20, but I could spare the difference. I gave her twenty cents.





"Like, 'thank you and come again.'" She shook her head, leaving the beef stick on the counter and walking away. "I know your job better than you do."





What did I ever see in you, Sarah? I shrugged and shook my head. "No, Dick, don't be like that. Break ups are hard on us all."