Red - Part One, Chapter Six

Inked: An incident with the copy machine brings Hara and Lee closer. Answers: Nick thinks Lee has a thing for Hara, even if Lee won't admit it.

The Youngest Player Goes First

 

Whirrrrrrrrr…

            “Good morning to you too.” Lee said to the copier, gazing down on it, disgruntled. The copier seemed to get bigger and bigger every year, mostly due to the fact that the copier broke and was replaced with a larger one every year.

            “This year’s model,” Lee murmured as he opened the top of the copier, “does everything short of make coffee.” He placed he application squarely in the lines indicated on the ruler bordering the glass and carefully closed the lid. “Standard features include time dial, scanner, fax, and email, in addition to copy, staple, and sort.” He pressed the start button and waited. The machine continued to whirr placidly for a moment before Lee heard the sound of paper being taken out of the tray, inked, and dried before his copy was delivered out the right side of the machine. It beeped politely, as if asking for more copy jobs. Lee grunted, lifted the lid, removed his paper and replaced it with another, then closed the lid again. He pressed the start button and leaned back on the table in the center of the room, watching copies come out of the machine. Lee yawned and rubbed his eyes.

            “I really wish you made coffee. I could go for a cup.”

            “Me too,” said a voice behind him. Hara came around the side of the table with a stack of papers and leaned next to him on the table.

            “Glad to know I am in good company.” Lee smiled.

            “Always. What are you up to?”

            “Safety forms for workshop. Plus some other personal odds and ends.”

            “You can do that?”

            “No, but if you want to do it, it is possible.”

            “I see.”

            “That and I usually help the secretary with stuff and she ‘pays’ (he put this in air quotes) me in copies.”

            “Good deal.”

            “What’s all that?” He gestured to the stack of papers she was holding.

            “Office forms.”

            “You work in here?”

            “Yeah. My second class is office representative.”

            “How did you swing that?”

“I asked nicely. I guess with all the guys in here, they like having a girl around.”

“You have a point there.” Lee got up from his perch and gathered the neat stack of copied papers from the paper tray and then retrieved the original from the top. He turned to leave but then observed Hara staring blankly at the time machine copier, unsure of where to start. Lee grinned, set the stack on the table and went to help her.

“It’s like a time machine,” she said mournfully. “How do you know how to work it?”

“You have to take a special seminar. That was one day of my life I’ll never get back.” Lee smiled.

“Seriously?”

“About the day I’m never going to get back, yes. About the seminar, no.”

“So the day you lost has nothing to do with the copier?”

“No, not really. The day is more like an accumulation of all the hours that I am never going to get back.”

“That’s a bummer.”

“Have you ever had hours you felt you were never going to get back?” Lee asked leaning back on the table.

“Sometimes, but not often.”

There was a long pause as they listened to the copier spit out papers into the copy tray. After a moment, it stopped and Hara sprang up from her perch and gathered the papers and original. Stacking the original on top of the copies, she set them on the table and proceeded to make the next set.

            “So I put the original between these two lines and press start?”

            “Yes. But do you want the same number of copies?”

            Yeah.”

            “Then just press the start button.” Hara did, and then joined him on the table again.

            “See? That wasn’t so hard?” Lee said as the machine beeped. He got up, looked at it quizzingly and then opened the paper tray door. Hara covered her face in her hands.

            “I broke it.”

            “Hardly. It just ran out of paper, that’s all.” Hara peeked at him through her fingers meekly. Lee’s heart skipped a beat.

            “Yeah,” he recovered, turning and taking a new stack of paper and setting it neatly in the tray. “See? No harm done.” He turned back to her, shut the drawer, and pressed the start button again. The copy machine whirred back to life and continued its copy job. Hara took her hands off of her face and breathed a sigh of relief. Lee leaned back up against the table, his heart pounding against his ribcage. Hara looked over at him.

            “You look tense.”

            “Reloading a paper tray always takes a lot out of me.” She raised an eyebrow.

            “I mean, you have to make sure you don’t have too much and that it’s all laying flat in the tray so the paper won’t jam…what’s so funny?” Hara let a giggle escape and she had covered her mouth to muffle any more laughter.

            “Nothing. I completely believe you.” Lee’s eyes narrowed and he frowned at her.

            “You try it sometime.”

            “Okay, next time it runs out of paper I will refill the tray.”

            “Okay then,” Lee nodded, “you can.”

They sat and waited until the second set of copies were finished and Hara was just starting on the third when the machine beeped again. They both peered at the display screen, on which the message “LOW TONER” was flashing.

            “It’s out of toner?”

            “Yeah, the ink it uses to make the copies.”

            “No, I know what toner is, I just didn’t think it ran out of it that quickly.”

            “I guess it depends on the toner cartridge.” Lee grunted as he opened the front of the copier. Sure enough, the toner was mostly empty.

            “That’s kosher. Is there a box with toner in it around here somewhere?”

            “Probably. You work on getting that out and I’ll look for the replacement.”

            “Okay then.” Lee rubbed his hands together and unscrewed the cap at the top of the cartridge. He then carefully slid it back from the cap and took it out of the machine.

            “Find some?”

            “Yeah,” came a muffled voice. “It’s right here.” Hara carefully maneuvered around a stack of boxes holding a large oblong plastic tube of toner. She glanced at Lee expectantly.

            “What now?”

            “Well, I have usually found that reading and following the instructions is the best course of action.”

            “Reasonable enough.”

            “Okay,” Lee squinted at the tiny font written on the label of the toner, “it says here that we have to remove the cap and put it in. There is something that will poke out the safety seal in the machine attachment.” He straightened, took the cap from off the new toner and put it on the old cartridge, and set it on the table. Hara passed off the new toner to Lee who tried to put it in the machine. He was successful in getting the cartridge in, but ink began leaking out as he tried to screw it in. Hara knelt quickly in front of the machine, cupping her hands under the drip to keep it from getting on carpet. When Lee was finished, both of their hands were covered in ink. Lee sat down where he was on the floor, knees bent in front of him next to where Hara was kneeling.

            “Well, that was fun.” Hara laughed.

            “Not really.”

            “Not even a little?” she grinned at him.

            “Well…” He looked over at her. “Yeah, I guess it was a little fun.”

Hara leaned over, put her left hand on Lee’s right cheek, pulled him closer and kissed him on the left cheek. “I knew you’d agree.” She smiled and got up carefully off the floor. Pushing the start button with her elbow, she started out of the room but then realized Lee was not following her.

            “I think we should wash our hands.” she said emphatically. Lee’s softened expression instantly dissolved and he stood up.

            “Yeah, that would be good.” He smiled and they walked toward the bathroom.

“…And then take the square root which makes the answer…Mr. Gallagher?” The teacher looked up at Peter, whose attention was occupied by a slim brunette sitting three seats in front of him across the aisle. He could have cared less what the square root of 198 was, but the teacher DID care, and that was what mattered.

            “Mr. Gallagher?” Peter looked up at the teacher, slightly bemused.

            “Yes, sir?”

            “Will you please stop mentally undressing Miss Sanchez and give us the answer to the problem?”

            “42.”

            “42?”

            “42.” The teacher raised an eyebrow.

            “Mr. Gallagher, you gave that answer for every question.” the teacher sighed heavily.

            “And one of these times, I will be correct.”

            “Then I am so inclined to inform you that this is one of those times. Congratulations, Mr. Gallagher. Your inability to pay attention to me has finally paid off.  Next time you will not be so fortunate.” Fortunately for Peter, the bell rang, signaling the end of the period. He quickly gathered his things and followed the mass of students through the door and out into the hall where he met Nick standing outside.

            “Were you right this time?” Nick asked, occupied with picking something out of his fingernails.

            “Yeah, finally.”

            “How long have you been doing that?”

            “Staring at girls or giving ‘42’ as the answer to everything?”

            “The latter.”

            “Since mine eyes were opened to the truth – the answer to life, the universe, and everything is 42.”

            “You’re an idiot.”

            “It was thoroughly checked.”

            “You’re still and idiot.”

            “Why is your reasoning behind everything I do result in the conclusion that I’m an idiot?”

            “Because 90% of the time, you are.”

            “Not true.”

            “Need I remind you of the ‘Miroku Is My Hero’ incident?”

***

CHRISTMAS, 2003

“Okay, present time!” Margaux sang gaily and she swept through the door.

            “This is so juvenile, why are we still doing this?” Peter grunted as Marguax handed him a shirt box.

            “Because it’s fun.”

            “For you maybe, not for some of the rest of us.”

            “Peter, she didn’t have to get you anything. Be more grateful will you?” Nick asked as he opened his box. He carefully unfolded the tissue paper and laughed, holding up a t-shirt that bore the legend “Protect Your Right To Eat Donuts” with a picture of Vash eating donuts. “Margaux, I love it, thank you.” Margaux smiled and they embraced. Lee opened his box, unfolded the tissue paper and held up his shirt, which read “Everyone Loves A Norseman.” Lee laughed. “Thank you, Margaux. It’s great.”

Margaux smiled as she embraced him. “I thought you’d enjoy that.” The three of them turned to Peter, who sat rigid on the couch.

            “I’m not opening it.”

            “Oh, please. Give me a break.” Nick said incredulously.

            “It’s probably got anthrax in it.”

            “I highly doubt that.” Lee said, sliding his shirt over his head.

            “It doesn’t have anthrax in it. Now will you open it?” Margaux asked. Peter grunted and reluctantly opened the box and unfolded the tissue paper. A look of horror came over his face as he lifted the shirt out of the box: “Miroku Is My Hero” with a picture of the monk touching an unknown woman. Lee snickered and Nick suppressed his laughter.

            “Aw, I thought you’d like that, Peter. It says so much about you.” Margaux smiled. Peter said nothing, but sat on the couch seething for the rest of the evening.

***

            “Were you in on that?” Peter asked.

            “Partially.”

            “And to think that all this time I was blaming Tom Robinson and it was really Bob Ewell.”

            “If you say so, Atticus.”

            “Are you mocking me?”

            “That’s a given.”

            “I never fail to please, do I?”

            “Only when it comes to girls.”

            “Speaking of girls, who are you taking?”

            “To what?”

            “The Renaissance faire?”

            “Hadn’t thought about it.”

            “Seriously?”

            “No.”

            “Permission to be shocked?”

            “Granted.”

            “Color me amazed. Nick hasn’t thought about the Renaissance faire.”

            “No, I’ve thought about the Renaissance faire, but not about who I’m taking.”

            “Ah. It all makes sense now.”

            “I have, however, thought about who Lee is taking.”

            “Who?”

            “Me.” Marla said, coming up behind Peter, who jumped and clutched at his chest.

            “Jesus, Mary, and Joseph!”

            “Hello to you too.”

            “Lee isn’t taking you, Marla.” Nick said looking up from his fingernails. “He’s taking Hara.”

            “He is?”

            “Yes.”

            “Did he ask her?”

            “We’re going to encourage it in any case.” Marla glared up at Nick and he flashed a grin at her.

            “Come on, Mini Cooper.” Marla continued to glare at him.

            “As a favor to me?”

            “Why?”

            “Because I think Lee deserves to have something good happen to him.”

            “What are you talking about?” Peter interjected.

            “Lee has waited a really long time for someone like Hara, and I really think he deserves to have things work out with her.

Peter raised an eyebrow. “Work out?”

            “Work out as in be in a relationship with her.” Nick said.

            “Is he capable of that?” Peter asked.

            “He hates Marla with every fiber of his being, so we know he’s normal, if that is at what you are getting.”

Marla folded her arms. “I resent that.”

            “It’s the truth.” Nick said.

            “Well, when you say it so bluntly it sounds worse than it really is.” she continued.

            “That’s only because you refuse to grasp the reality of how much Lee hates you.” Nick said matter-of-factly. “Now,” he continued, “you will please stay out of the matter of who Lee is taking to the Renaissance faire or God help me I will…” and he whispered something in her ear that made her eyes go wide with horror.

            “You wouldn’t dare.” Marla said slowly.

            “I would dare.”

Marla thought about this proposition for a split second before consenting. “Fine then. Consider me out.”

            “That’s what I thought.” Nick smiled and returned to picking at his fingernails.

            “Well, not that we know who Lee is taking, what about me?”

            “You can take Marla.” Nick said absent mindedly. Peter gawked at him. “I’m not a dating service.”

            “Then why are you helping Lee and sticking me with Marla?” Peter whined.

            “Because now that we know he doesn’t have gynophobia, and because I am his friend, I feel inclined to help.”

            “Inclined to help who with what?” Lee asked as Nick and Peter entered the classroom. Marla waved flippantly and continued down the hall, clearly disgruntled.

            “You with Hara.” Nick said as they took their seats.

            “Lee, you have ink on your face.” Peter said. Lee smiled to himself and got out his books.

            “I know.”

            “How did you do that?”

            “Hara kissed me.”

Nick raised an eyebrow. “And you got ink all over you?”

            “She’s not an octopus.”

            “I wasn’t implying she was. I’m just missing how kissing leads to ink stains.” Nick said getting his books out.

            “We were changing the toner in the office copier and it got all over our hands.”

            “And?” Peter motioned for him to continue.

            “And she got me to agree with her that it was fun getting all inky and then she kissed my cheek.”

Nick pulled Lee toward him and embraced him fiercely. “My little Melee’s growing up! I’m so proud!”

            “I’d like to continue to move forward in life, but to do that I need you to let go of me.” Nick let go of him. “That was embarrassing.” Lee said.

            “NOTHING about that was embarrassing.” Peter said sarcastically.

            “Not as embarrassing as this.” Nick said reaching towards Peter. Lee had stopped paying attention so he never saw what was more embarrassing than Nick smothering him. He touched his cheek and smiled, thinking of Hara.

Reviews

[Ian]

HOLY CRAP!!!!!!!!!!!!!! THIS STORY AND ALL ITS CHAPTEES ARE AMAZING! HURRY UP AND FINISH THE BOOK! AHH! SO BEAUTIFUL I CANT STOP THINKNIG ABOUT IT!

[Harish Jackson]

The answer to life, the universe, and everything is most DEFINITELY 42.

42, however, is most definitely not the square root of 198. The answer's cloer to 14...

A tasty chapter, as usual.