Repairs

(the tedium of a summer day is suddenly dispelled…)

In Jackson Square his butt cheek buzzes. A distraction! Opiodic relief. He sets down the groceries, thumbs open the phone.

Julie’s agitation is evolving like a Pokémon into panic. “Help…I have to call London in, like, five minutes.”

Her Mansfield monograph won their year’s dissertation prize. She’s led her group to Platinum Plumes in Product Positioning three years running. Just yesterday she coaxed an HVAC man into replacing the dripping toilet’s ball-cock assembly. But sweet-talking a superior? Not her strength.

“First, thank her for noticing the discrepancy.”

His wife exhales. “I knew you’d have the language…”

Finally, a victory.