start, turning tricks, I mean?”
Wednesday chewed her piece of meat and winked at me. “Sure. I got me a brand-new Firebird. I’m carrying a two-hundred dollar purse, and I’ve got a nice bank account building up. When I get enough dough saved up, I’m high-tailing it to Miami. That’s where it’s at, Miami!”
I nodded and used one of Jack’s sayings. “Sounds like a plan. Hey, do you do your own hair?”
Wednesday nodded. “Sure, why?”
“It looks really cool. Would you do mine?”
Wednesday smiled. “Hey, that sounds like fun! How about tomorrow?”
I felt the sparkle in my eyes as I agreed to meet my new friend.
***
I slept until noon the next day and took care of the motel chores in the afternoon. At five o’clock, I knocked on the door of Room 8. Wednesday’s eyeball looked at me through a small crack in the door. She stuck her hand out, pulled me into the room, and slammed it shut.
“Hey! I didn’t know if Jack was with you. I don’t want Ray to see this place.”
The walls of Wednesday’s room were covered in a collage of posters and pictures cut from magazines. Posters of tropical islands looked down from the ceiling over her bed. My eyes jumped from one piece of the puzzle to the next. The collage felt energizing, as if the walls held a magical power.
Not wanting to break the spell that it cast over me, I whispered, “This is really cool.”
Wednesday sat cross-legged on the bed. “Yeah, well, see why I don’t want Ray in here? That’s why I do my own cleaning.”
I sat next to her and said, “Ray thinks that you turn tricks here.”
Wednesday laughed. “Huh, shows how much he knows, that dumb junkie. Nobody comes in here. This is my secret, and you’re the only one who has seen it.”
I looked up at the pictures of sprawling mansions with huge swimming pools and beautiful models dripping in diamonds. “It’s really nice.”
Wednesday jumped off the bed and threw her arms out. “It’s more than nice; it’s visualization! I see it. I want it. I make it happen. That’s visualization!”
I nodded at the images that filled the room. Wednesday held out her hand. “Come here. I’ll show you.”
She led me to the bathroom where a large poster of her car was pinned over the toilet.
She pointed. “See that? I didn’t get that poster after I paid cash for that car. I saw this poster on the wall when I rode with Carlos to the car dealership to get his car fixed. I sweet-talked a salesman into giving it to me. Then I came home and hung it in here. I looked at it every day, twice a day, and said, ‘That’s my car.’ Exactly one year later, that car was mine.”
I nodded. “Cool.”
“Hey, do you want some coffee?” she asked, as I followed her back to the bedroom.
“Yeah, I like it with a bunch of sugar and cream.”
Wednesday poured two cups of coffee from a percolator sitting on top of a small fridge. I looked around the room, noting the nice comforter, refrigerator, coffee pot, and color television that didn’t come with it.
Wednesday continued to dig through the refrigerator, calling back, “I have sugar and milk. I have some glazed doughnuts, too, if you want one.”
I smiled. “Sure! It’s been ages since I had a doughnut.”
Wednesday turned up her nose. “Only problem is, they’re dated today. So I think we’ll have to eat the whole box.”
I laughed and said, “That’s fine by me!”
Wednesday and I sat on her fluffy white comforter with the box of doughnuts between us. She cocked her head to one side as she
Wednesday chewed her piece of meat and winked at me. “Sure. I got me a brand-new Firebird. I’m carrying a two-hundred dollar purse, and I’ve got a nice bank account building up. When I get enough dough saved up, I’m high-tailing it to Miami. That’s where it’s at, Miami!”
I nodded and used one of Jack’s sayings. “Sounds like a plan. Hey, do you do your own hair?”
Wednesday nodded. “Sure, why?”
“It looks really cool. Would you do mine?”
Wednesday smiled. “Hey, that sounds like fun! How about tomorrow?”
I felt the sparkle in my eyes as I agreed to meet my new friend.
***
I slept until noon the next day and took care of the motel chores in the afternoon. At five o’clock, I knocked on the door of Room 8. Wednesday’s eyeball looked at me through a small crack in the door. She stuck her hand out, pulled me into the room, and slammed it shut.
“Hey! I didn’t know if Jack was with you. I don’t want Ray to see this place.”
The walls of Wednesday’s room were covered in a collage of posters and pictures cut from magazines. Posters of tropical islands looked down from the ceiling over her bed. My eyes jumped from one piece of the puzzle to the next. The collage felt energizing, as if the walls held a magical power.
Not wanting to break the spell that it cast over me, I whispered, “This is really cool.”
Wednesday sat cross-legged on the bed. “Yeah, well, see why I don’t want Ray in here? That’s why I do my own cleaning.”
I sat next to her and said, “Ray thinks that you turn tricks here.”
Wednesday laughed. “Huh, shows how much he knows, that dumb junkie. Nobody comes in here. This is my secret, and you’re the only one who has seen it.”
I looked up at the pictures of sprawling mansions with huge swimming pools and beautiful models dripping in diamonds. “It’s really nice.”
Wednesday jumped off the bed and threw her arms out. “It’s more than nice; it’s visualization! I see it. I want it. I make it happen. That’s visualization!”
I nodded at the images that filled the room. Wednesday held out her hand. “Come here. I’ll show you.”
She led me to the bathroom where a large poster of her car was pinned over the toilet.
She pointed. “See that? I didn’t get that poster after I paid cash for that car. I saw this poster on the wall when I rode with Carlos to the car dealership to get his car fixed. I sweet-talked a salesman into giving it to me. Then I came home and hung it in here. I looked at it every day, twice a day, and said, ‘That’s my car.’ Exactly one year later, that car was mine.”
I nodded. “Cool.”
“Hey, do you want some coffee?” she asked, as I followed her back to the bedroom.
“Yeah, I like it with a bunch of sugar and cream.”
Wednesday poured two cups of coffee from a percolator sitting on top of a small fridge. I looked around the room, noting the nice comforter, refrigerator, coffee pot, and color television that didn’t come with it.
Wednesday continued to dig through the refrigerator, calling back, “I have sugar and milk. I have some glazed doughnuts, too, if you want one.”
I smiled. “Sure! It’s been ages since I had a doughnut.”
Wednesday turned up her nose. “Only problem is, they’re dated today. So I think we’ll have to eat the whole box.”
I laughed and said, “That’s fine by me!”
Wednesday and I sat on her fluffy white comforter with the box of doughnuts between us. She cocked her head to one side as she
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