I’m at the Gap in Westwood with Casey watching her look at clothes.
She says, “Do you think I should get a Gap credit card?”
“Sure.”
“I mean, I think you get ten percent off and you can use it like a normal credit card. Should I get one?”
“Yes.”
“I don’t know if I should though. Should I?”
“Do it.”
“I’ll think about it. I need to look around some more. If I find something that I like, I might get the card, too. I’m going to try some things on.”
I wait until she takes an armload of clothes into the dressing room and then walk across the street to the record store where Alyna works.
She’s not in the store, but a kind of overweight middle-aged guy with glasses and a crew cut is. His name tag reads STEVIE—MANAGER.
I say, “Excuse me.”
“How can I help you?”
“Do you know Alyna?”
“Yes, I do.”
“Do you know when she works next?”
“Yes, I do.” He points at his name badge. “I am the manager.” He laughs.
“Right. So when is she supposed to work next?”
“Are you a family member?”
“No, I’m—a friend.”
“Then I’m afraid I can’t tell you.”
“Why not?”
He points to his name badge again. “Like I said, I am the manager, and as the manager I have a duty to my employees. I can’t just go around giving out their personal information to every stranger who asks for it, now can I?” He laughs again.
“It’s not personal information.”
“I’m sorry, I can’t help you.”
“Well, can I leave a message for her?”
He thinks about it. “I suppose that would be all right.”
“Do you have a piece of paper?”
He gives me a promotional flyer for Justin Timberlake’s new record.
“And a pen?”
He gives me one.
I write down something short, and put my phone number next to it. I fold it up, write Alyna’s name on the outside, and hand it back to Stevie.
He unfolds it and starts reading it out loud. “Alyna, I bought the Tori Amos record from you a few days ago. We kind of had a conversation about it. I was wondering if you might want to get dinner sometime. Call me.”
Stevie looks at me, then rips the paper in half and tosses it in the trash.
“What’re you doing?”
“You said you were her friend, which is clearly not the case. I try to create a safe and comfortable work environment here and I will not have my employees harassed during the course of their workday.”
“Are you kidding?”
“Sir, if you do not wish to make a purchase, I’m afraid I’m going to have to ask you to leave my store.”
“It’s not your store, Stevie.”
I leave without incident, pissed.
I slip back into the Gap just in time to wait for another thirty minutes before Casey comes out of the dressing room and buys a sweater with her new Gap card.
As we walk out of the Gap, Casey says, “Hey, let’s go in that music store. My No Doubt CD got stuck in Jen’s CD player and she scratched it trying to get it out. I need a new one.”
“You go ahead. I’ll be next door looking at video games.”
I browse the used section while I’m positive Stevie is next door drooling over my girlfriend’s tits and taking way too long to help her find her No Doubt CD.
That night as Casey and I are in the sixty-nine and I’m staring into her asshole, I wonder if Alyna will be working at the record store tomorrow. I wonder if my ripped-up note will still be in the trash can by the front desk. I wonder if she might see her name on it and pull it out. I wonder if she’d even remember who I was anyway.