Birdy by David Hardt

Author:David Hardt [Hardt, David]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Paul Adelhardt
Published: 2023-12-16T16:00:00+00:00

sixteen

We Caught the Scent

Rita stared down Cabby as he opened the back passenger door of his cab. “What?” he asked.

“Seriously?” Rita walked past him and opened the front passenger door. “We were just locking lips.” She proceeded to get in. “Like I’m sitting in the back.”

Cabby opened his door and got in behind the wheel. He held a hand up. “I didn’t want to come off presumptuous.”

“Presumptuous.” Rita laughed. “You were about to jump me on my kitchen floor.”

Cabby avoided a rebuttal. “So, do you know the way to Barfield?”

“No. All I know is, it’s way the hell up Maine.” Rita got comfortable, she folded her left knee on the seat and leaned against the door. “It’s a quarter to one and Bridget left before I got out of bed.”

“Lock your door, I don’t want you falling out.” At 12:45 Cabby and Rita headed off. He reached the end of her street. “Go left and we cut through Dover, go right and we take Pond Road.”

“We’d always take Pond to Maine,” Rita said.

“Do you think Bridget and this boy have a good lead on us?” Cabby turned right.

“Yeah.”

“Do you know this boy she’s with?”

“I know she’s got a friend that’s a boy.” Rita turned away. “I’m a frigging absentee guardian, Claire was right. What kind of aunt am I anyway?”

“Hey, don’t start wallowing in self-pity, you’re turning over a new leaf”—Cabby liked the prospect of helping Rita, supporting her, and being there for comfort, and love. Call it corny, or sappy, Cabby since he was a boy romanticized being the “knight in shining armor,” the “friend that’s got your back,” or the “shoulder to cry on.” In the spring of ’72, Cabby found his theme song in Bill Withers’ hit “Lean on Me.” He went as far as trying to learn it on harmonica. Though Cabby was not musically inclined, nor was that the best choice of instrument for the song. The vibe didn’t translate well, and he found himself out of breath for the lyrics. He did commit the song twice to his recorded personal playlist cassette. Irrefutably a good soul even though he may not have had soul musically. He got choked up over acts of selflessness and seeing others triumph against incredible odds. For Cabby there was no greater purpose than the gallantry of sacrificing for those you love—“and I’m going to stay by your side through the thick and thin.”

“Shit. There’s a lot of thick and thin here,” Rita warned him.

“Is that too much for you?”

“Ah… no. I was thinking for you.” Rita studied Cabby behind the wheel. He seemed so natural at driving, she imagined auto manufacturers had him in mind when they designed the car. “Did they tailor this cab to your measurements?”

“I make it look easy… Huh?”

“Like you were born to drive.” Rita laughed. “So, what kind of car is this anyway?”

Cabby smiled. “It’s a ’61 Studebaker Lark Cruiser.” He patted the dash. “Fully restored.”

“It’s cute, like you.”

“You think so?”

“Yeah, but strong, steady.”

“I’m your man.

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