Total pages in book: 79
Estimated words: 73556 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 368(@200wpm)___ 294(@250wpm)___ 245(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 73556 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 368(@200wpm)___ 294(@250wpm)___ 245(@300wpm)
Roman nodded and tried to look as non-pathetic as possible.
“Yeah, yeah, I’m here… I think so… It definitely hurts…” Tony paused and looked into Roman’s eyes once again. “Is it still swollen or anything like that?”
“Yeah, a little bit,” he said. “I think it’s fractured,” he managed to muster, trying to block airflow from his mouth as much as possible.
“Okay, yeah… I’m sure he has dental insurance, Genesis…”
“Anthem dental insurance. PPO Platinum,” Roman offered.
“He said Aetna, I mean, Anthem. PPO Platinum he said… Okay… I’ll tell him…” Tony kept talking for a bit to his sister as Roman fought the urge to grunt when each wave of agony rolled through his entire skull and squeezed.
He felt his phone vibrate in his pants pocket, but didn’t bother to look at who was calling or texting. If it wasn’t God or the tooth fairy, he didn’t give a damn. Instead, he closed his eyes and pretended he was on a beach somewhere.
“…Got it. Thanks!… Get yo’ ass out of here,” Tony joked then jumped to his feet. Roman’s eyes fluttered as he came back into the here and now. “Genesis said the dentist can probably squeeze you in today, buddy, but you have to go right now. She’s doin’ me a favor. I just sent the office address to your phone. You best get a move on.”
Roman stood, grabbed his coffee, then tossed his free hand around his friend, offering a weak hug.
“Thanks. I appreciate you pulling some strings for me, man.”
“You’d do the same for me.”
“Let me tell… let me tell you something though…” Roman swallowed, pushing through the pure anguish of it all. “If they mess up my mouth, I’m blaming you.” He pointed a shaking finger in his friend’s direction.
“I’m sure you will, but you don’t have much of a choice now, do you? Gummy Jim. Shoulda kept yo’ ass out of jail, or slept with one eye open. We’ll reschedule our visit, okay? Soon as I get back in town, we’ll discuss it. I’d love for you to come by for dinner. It wasn’t all in vain though. At least I got to see you for a few minutes.”
“Yeah… I missed you, bro. It was nice seeing your face. We’ll reschedule.” Roman patted his friend’s shoulder, then headed out the door…
CHAPTER TWO
The Day I Met a Beautiful Tooth Fairy
Mama had these old porcelain salt ’n pepper shakers she’d keep on the kitchen table. One was a little man dressed in a tuxedo. His nose was chipped. Paint missin’. He was the groom. The other was a little yellow-haired, rosy cheeked lady dressed in a white dress and bridal veil. She was the bride. They were a wedding gift given to her, by her now dead mama. Grandma Blue we called ’er up until she died when I was nine or ten years old. Mama said it was one of the few things her mother ever bought her, being as how she was raised in a family of thirteen, and money was tight. One day my mama and daddy got to fightin’ in front of me and my brothers, Dakota and Jordan. Mama was screamin’ and Daddy was yellin’.
Daddy called her a whore and Mama slapped him ’cross the face. Picking up that pepper shaker from off that table, he threw it at her. She ducked. It hit the wall instead, and it smashed to pieces. Mama started crying then fell to her knees, picking up the little jagged edges. White dust littered all around, as if the thing had not only shattered, but turned to ash. I stood there, frozen. One of my brothers was crying, the other ran off. I just stayed immobile, staring as if it was some movie I couldn’t turn away from. I had emotions I couldn’t understand. Sadness. Anger. Confusion. Worry. Mama and Daddy fought all the time, but I’d never seen him throw nothin’ at her before. This was a first.
Daddy stood there, too, not sayin’ a word. His black hair was all over his head, and I remember him running his fingers through it over and over again, looking mighty upset. Miserable, too. Mama was on the floor sobbing. I couldn’t make out everything she was saying. Her fingers were coated in pepper specks as she tried to clean up. She got cut in the process. One of them damn jagged edges. A little blood seeped out of her finger in the form of a perfectly shaped dot. I remember how it stuck out against the bits of salt and pepper and her light skin. I was standing close enough to her to fixate on this. The blood mixed in with the pepper. Hurtful seasoning. Made me think of the Louisiana stories Daddy would tell me and my brothers about some lady he said knew Voodoo from when he lived there for a few years, before he’d met Mama.