Unfinished Symphony by Jeffrey Allen White (good non fiction books to read .txt) 📖

/> Looking around the lot, he wanted to scream but as it was, he was without transportation, his pants were stained with mayonnaise and pickle juice and he missed seeing a women, the only other women he ever lusted after besides his wife.

Sitting on the concrete barrier that held cars in from going too far, he put his head in his hands and just tried to compose himself.

After several minutes, he called home to tell the kids he would be late and would be home in awhile. He would get the spare keys and walk back again to the parking lot to retrieve his car, and the now mayonnaise and pickle juice covered groceries.

“Don’t ask me why, Kimberly.” He said with measured temper. Don’t ask me why.”

Ken then walked the four or five blocks back to his apartment to finish his quest for food.


Chapter 6

Laura was on her way home from work and remembered she had to pick up some cat food. She had adopted a kitten when she first moved in with Maryanne. It was a little orange Tabby and Laura found it on the steps to her building. Mewing and looking very lost and out of place.

She had put up a sign advertising a found kitten but after two weeks with no calls, she decided to keep it herself. Laura took it to the vet and they gave the little orphan all the necessary vaccinations. Other than being a lost kitten, it was very healthy and they became fast friends. She could identify with this lost kitten in the big city.

The kitten’s name was George. Maryanne thought it looked like a George and Laura agreed. So now, George had a new family. Maryanne bought it his own basket and Laura found a bowl in the store that matched their kitchen.

George was out of food. He had grown so much in the last few months; she forgot to increase her bag size when she shopped. He had his last bowl of food this morning and Laura planned to stop on the way home to get him his food.

The traffic was heavy tonight. She had had a hard day at the office. Working for four different lawyers was more than she could handle. However, she tried.

One older gentlemen lawyer, the head lawyer, a woman lawyer and two gay lawyers who were living together. This was New York City and well there is something for everybody, she thought. Although they were extremely nice to her, they expected a lot from her.

Laura was happy that she had landed a job right away. Her divorce from Jim was quick but still painful. He, of course wanted to represent them both in court to make matters simple but Laura hired her own attorney. She did not want to have anything to do with Jim after he left her for that paralegal he was working late at night with.

Laura knew something was going on but she did not want to admit it. She ignored the late nights, excuses and broken plans. Laura accepted it as being the wife of a successful attorney with a lot of business. Jim had been playing night court with that paralegal all along and after several months announced to Laura that he was moving out.

Jim confessed to his new love and left her that very night. Her world ended or it seemed to. She spent the next several weeks hiding from friends and family. Then one day she called her cousin Leslie in New York and decided maybe she should change locations and start all over.

Laura had been married ten years and was now all alone. Maybe the move to a big city would be good for her. She packed up and drove to her cousins in Connecticut, staying there only a week before she found a job in the city. A receptionist in of all things, a lawyer’s office.

Her father always told her that life had a sense of humor and to be prepared for its irony. She never realized what he meant until Jim left her and she moved to New York and went to work for her ex husbands profession.

Laura had answered an ad for a roommate with another girl and they hit it off. She had her own bedroom and bath and was close to work and well just about everything in New York.

She did not bring much with her. What she received from the divorce, she sold most of her furniture and with a cash settlement from Jim bought her a trophy of the now defunct marriage. A brand new red MG. It was totally out of character for her, she knew but when Jim saw her driving around town in her new little car, his mouth fell open. She tooted him and his new ambition and left soon after for New York.

She lost twenty pounds, got a new haircut and bought all new clothes. After all, she was in New York now and her mid west conservative look just did not fit in with her new image and life.

These last few weeks have been good, all except for work where the caseloads were stacked in the halls and the phone never seemed to stop. The four lawyers used her for almost every imaginable duty. From copying depositions to typing trial transactions, she felt she was being over burdened.

The lawyers did give her a nice raise after ninety days but the workload continued to pile up. She was glad to get out at five every night. At least they did not make her work late or weekends. Laura would never stand for that anyway.

The light turned red and she stopped her MG and idled at the light. The car next to her rolled down their window. “Hey baby. Where have you been all my life?” a man yelled from inside an aged light blue Mazda.

Laura ignored him and drove through as the light turned green. She really did not mind it. In fact, she felt more beautiful and alluring then she had in years. Her lost weight and changed appearance gave her a newfound air of self-esteem.

Up ahead, she noticed an Albertson’s on the left side. She put on her blinker and made the turn into the driveway narrowly missing a speeding taxi that missed her by inches.

Laura stopped well inside the parking lot and took a deep breath. “Welcome to New York”, she said and parked her car.

Laura managed to get a cart and proceeded to buy her George his dinner. She also picked up some salad dressing and tea bags. Maryanne was a coffee drinker but Laura drank tea. She picked up the huge box of Lipton tea bags and steered her cart to the checkout avoiding all the cookies and junk food she craved. Her new figure attested to her new sense of being. She was now in control of her own life and destiny.

The checkout line was moving fast and she was glad as not only was George at home starving probably but she was also.

She was receiving her change and noticed a man staring at her in the next checkout. She pretended not to notice. Laura thought he was very attractive and had a nice body. She left the store then and walked quickly to her car carrying her plastic bag of groceries. She saw that there was another exit in the parking lot that opened onto a side street. She decided this was a better route for her to take especially with the near miss a few minutes prior.

As she pulled out onto the street, she thought she saw that attractive man again. He was running with several bags of groceries but she looked again and he was gone.


Chapter 7

The kids were leaving for their respective weekend event. The boys on their nature camp and Kimberly spending the weekend on Long Island with friends.

Ken took them to school, kissed them good-bye, and went home to the apartment. The night before had been a disaster. Not only did he lock his keys in the car and stained his clothes and trunk, he missed meeting that woman in the grocery.

He knew that the little red MG was hers. It had to be. She pulled out as he was fumbling with his bags of groceries. If only he was a few seconds earlier and that, he did not drop everything.

He had been thinking about what Mac and Leslie and even Carl was telling him. That he should get out and meet someone. However, that meant he had to date someone. Ken felt he was betraying Katie. He also felt he was still young and God knows he needed another adult to talk to occasionally.

Ken had stopped and brought home some bagels and cream cheese from the deli on the corner. Since he was alone, he would live a little and not get the light cream cheese.

The day was warm and the sun was bright. A nice breeze off the sound. Ken stood on his balcony eating his bagel and admiring the city panorama that was one of his apartment’s selling points. Katie would make him dinner and they would eat outside. They would toast the sunset or sunrise depending on the time of day. This is where Katie told him that she was expecting again after Kimberly.

They did not think she could as she had been through a lot of chemo and radiation when she was younger. Katie thought it was a miracle she even had Kimberly. She was so happy to find out she was pregnant again and the fact that they were twins made it even better.

The boys were born without many problems that are associated with multiple births. They were very healthy and an ideal weight. They were identical. Katie felt it was God’s way of making up for her illness.

They had been happy here, the kids were great and they had settled into a nice life. Then last year their world came crashing in with the reoccurrence of Katie’s cancer. They did not seem to get out here on the balcony as much after that day. Their world became smaller and more confined.

Ken finished his bagel and tossed the paper into a can on the balcony. He went to the railing and searched the city. “Well, I guess it is just me here alone now.” He said. Ken looked down the avenue straight through to the downtown area. The sounds and the hustle of the cars and people made him envious. They all had a destination, a purpose. Ken no longer felt he had any place to go.

Three months ago, Ken started to write some music. He had this idea to write a piece and maybe have it actually published and played by a professional symphony. Perhaps even the one he was in. He