One Night in Brooklyn

The Cafe

As David brought me the drinks we had ordered, we talked about ourselves.

"So where are you from in Germany?" David asked, handing me the steaming cup of tea. 

"Offenbach, it's a few miles outside of Frankfurt." I said, blowing gently on the tea to cool it.

"Where are you from?" I asked him, looking over at him, he wasn't looking at me; so I took a moment to gaze at the way his hair curled against his temple, because of the wetness from the outside air. We were sitting outside on the little deck. He traced patterns on the wood table, he answered without looking up. 

"York, South Carolina; it's a pretty little town rather close to the North Carolina line. What about your parents, what did they do and where were they from?" His callused finger tips scraping the top of the table and he continued to draw an invisible picture. His lashes masking the beauty of his eyes. He looked up and caught me staring. I blushed and looked away,

"Well, my mama was British from Royston in the Hertfordshire county in southern England; she was a housewife, doing odd jobs of sewing, and kept the books for my father's business. She was killed in an accident last year." I stop and sigh, trying to keep the tears from welling up.

"I'm sorry," David said, stopping for a moment to stare into my eyes, I gave him a small smile, "what of your father?" He asked.

"My father was born in Hofheim, which is a little ways outside Frankfurt, he was an experienced welder and was hired to work in a tank factory in the war, he then worked in his own welding business. He made decent wages, he was also killed in the accident." I sighed.

"How did they meet?" David asked softly.

"Well, one day in April, he was traveling into Frankfurt for supplies for his father's farm. He went into town and at the supplies store, a young woman was struggling with her stuff and my father helped her and she was my mother, Ellie Williams. My father fell hard for her, she was his age but six months younger. He found out she would be in town with her father, who had a friend in Frankfurt, for the summer. My father, Johann Allwein, spent the rest of the summer courting Ellie. He asked her father two weeks before they were going to head home for Ellie's hand in marriage and her father agreed. What about your parents?" I asked after rambling on about my parents.  

"Well, my father is Eugene Harrison from York, he worked as an accountant and during the war was a gunner on a B-24 and a B-19 bomber planes. My mother is Mary Douglas now Harrison also from York, a part-time cleaning lady for businesses and teaches at the west side grade school, I don't recall the school's name."

"How did they meet?" I ask the same question he asked me.

"Well, my father was finishing up his shift working in the bank when his brother, Uncle David," He said,

"The one you're named after?" I asked

David nodded, "Uncle David asked him to go get a drink with him. My father and his brother went to a little tavern and my father met a beautiful girl sitting alone, she was getting off of her shift as a waitress there. They talked for a long time, two years later they were married, another year later I was born and they named me after Uncle David because without him they wouldn't have met." He continued his tracing on the table, "What about you, what do you do?"

"Well," I said, "I work on short story column in the New York Press."

"A writer." He said, not looking up from his drawing, I was getting really curious.

"Yes. Umm... David, what are you doing?"

"My favorite hobby." He said, looking up, a small smile tugging on his lips.

"Which is?" I said, raising my eyebrow.

"Drawing." 

"Really?"

"Yes, I don't get to do it often since I work long hours at the factory."

"What are you drawing?"

"You." I was speechless for a second or two.

"Are you a good drawer?" I ask,

"My apartment isn't far from here if you want to see some of my work." David offered, he slapped a hand over his mouth, "I am such a idiot, you must think I just want to take advantage of you, I'm so sorry, I didn't for it to come out like that. Ple-"

"David." I said sternly, he clamped his mouth shut,

"Yes?" He asked nervously, like he just blew his big chance or something.

"I would love to come over and see some art, as long as you promise not to do anything that will make you regret you were ever born." David nodded and broke into a smile, he stood offering me his hand.

"Well then, will you, Ms. Allwein, accompany me to my apartment on the strict basis of seeing artwork only?"

"I would love to, Mr. Harrison." I said taking his hand.