Julio and Romiette

(working draft)

- 1 -

He walked up to the bar and ordered a Shiner Bock.

We don't HAVE Shiner Bock.

Then I'll just have a Coke.

Pepsi OK?

He just turned and walked away.

Outside, the cab that brought him there was still parked out front so he got back in.

Where to?

I don't care, just get me the hell away from this fuckin place.

You know I have to start the meter over, right?

Is that supposed to be a rhetorical question?

That was the exact moment the rain started.

- 2 -

The last time she felt exactly like this, she was thirty three years old. That number - thirty three - feels to her like a life-landmark of sorts, helping her chart the progression of life and all its happenings. Seems like at least once a day, an opportunity to compare what is in front of her to thirty three presents itself, and without the landmark, she wouldn’t understand the significance nearly as well.

She didn’t sink quite this low very often, but often enough to know what happens when she does. The first few years were the worst: many nights wasted flipping through the 57 channels knowing full well there was nothin’ on. The last ten or so she had kept busy enough with her career that there were only a couple of nights filled with despair, But this was certainly shaping up to be one of them.

She had two choices: stay at home or get out. On second thought, there’s only one choice.

The depression breeds a certain amount of laziness so she hadn't changed out of her "work clothes" yet. She wore something cute today because that guy from their distributor was coming in and she wanted to make an impression. A quick check in the mirror and out the door she goes.

She reaches the bottom of three flights of stairs just in time to see a couple getting out of a cab across the street.  Just lucky, she guesses.  A quick little whistle and a raise of the arm to get the cabbie's attention.  A rain drop hits her arm.

nights filled with despair. But this was certainly shaping up to be one of them.s itself, and without the landmark, she wouldn’t understand the significance nearly as well.

- 3 -

It’s startling how suddenly the hard rain came on, and how hard it came on; so hard it's no wonder a cab driver would have difficulty hearing - he has to ask "where to" twice.

“Delilah’s – Lincoln at Diversey.  Please."

- 4 -

It's about 9:15. You've been at Delilah's for a few hours, drinking and playing pool with friends. You have to go to work in the morning, so it's time to leave. You're hoping it will be easy to get a cab. Especially in this torrential rain.

Two cabs pull up at the same moment. You think you're going to be able to take the one in front - the one the man is in, but the girl has already gotten out and the man is fumbling for cash to pay his fare so you make a dash through the raindrops for the second cab.

In one of those ziggy-zaggy I-don't-know-which-way-you're-goiong moments, you nearly run flat into the woman. "Geezus! Watch where you're going" she yells above the roar of the rain.

You dive into the cab just as she reaches the door of the bar, turns and yells "ASSHOLE!"

The man from the other cab was right behind her. He stopped dead in his tracks, pointed at himself and yelled back to her: "ME?"

"No, not you! oh maaan, I'm sorry! C'mon - let's get in outta this rain"

- 5 -

Later that week, one of the friends that was with you at Delialah's will tell you about the couple that came in right after you left: "I noticed she was all apologizing about something and he looked stunned and she grabbed him by the hand and they proceed to sit down."

You will interrupt: "You mixed tenses"

"Huh?"

"You went from past to present."

"Whatever - I know what I'm doing.

Anyhow, I didn't notice anything about them until a little bit later"

"Please tell me this is going to get more interesting"

"Back the fuck off, Turbo."

"I'm listening"

"So I didn't notice anything about them until a little bit later. All of a sudden, he YELLS at the waitress that he wants another Shiner Bock and the girl jumps up and (in a very loud voice) calls him Nick Danger (which he didn't seem to understand) and then she yells something about not having a real boyfriend since she was thirty-three, calls him 'ASS-hat' and storms out the door!"

"And?"

"Like a whirlwind, he follows her out - we all look at each other like 'what the fuck was THAT all about' and go back to talking."

"AND?"

"A few minutes later there were all these sirens, right?"

"AANNNDDD???"

"They both commited suicide! Right in front of the bar! A double suicide! The guy shot himself and then the girl picked up his gun and shot HER self!!!"

You will wish you hadn't had to go to work that next day.