Nerdcam Pt. 10

"Oh, it's good to see you. I wasn't expecting company." His speaking was quick and coherent, holding only a hint of the slur and rasp common in men his age.

Stepping back from Anna again, he had adjusted wire rimmed glasses on a prominent nose, and turned his attention to Jack. In an odd moment, the two had stood silently regarding each other.

Jack could see that there was a resemblance in facial features between Anna's father and grandfather, though René Durand's face was weathered and lined and his hair thin and white. He was also a bit shorter -- eye to eye with Anna -- and had probably been less lanky when he was younger. When he finally stuck out a hand to shake, it was confirmed that he was one of those men who became smaller, but not softer, with age. Beneath thinning, age spotted skin, he was wiry, with a surprisingly strong grip.

"René Durand. You must be Anna's fella, er... Jack, right?"

The pause could've been due to the man's memory issues, but could just as easily have been a perfectly normal case of slow recall. Jack figured when he himself was that old, assuming he lived that long, he'd probably be lucky to remember his own name.

"Yeah," he nodded, "René. Like DesCartes?"

"Heh. You found one that reads, eh?" the old man stage whispered at Anna. "That's right. But only, ehm, only in name. Not much of a philosopher, me. Even less of a math-uh-muh-tician."

"Ah, so she comes by that naturally, too." Jack restrained himself from speaking louder, as one usually does around the elderly, having noticed that the old man had shown no signs of having trouble hearing him.

Mr. Durand tapped a bony finger alongside his nose, smiling.

He bid them sit on the edge of his bed, while he settled on the arm of his armchair. He asked Anna how her parents were doing, and nodded at the expected response. He managed to recall that Anna worked at a bookstore, then asked what Jack did. His manner was so conversational and unassuming that Jack didn't feel he was being put on the spot.

"Uh, well, I'm an artist. I draw comics. On the internet." He paused, uncertain whether or not this merited further explanation.

"Ah. On the computer, yes. Moving with the times. That's good. You enjoy it?"

"I do. I'm kind of surprised I'm getting away with it."

Anna smiled while her grandfather gave a coughing laugh.

"Eh? Heh heh. That's the best kind of job."

He stared off for a moment, then spoke again.

"Your parents gave you the things -- for your birthday?"

"Yes, and-"

"Uh-uh," he interrupted, waggling that bony finger, "Don't even mention it. I don't have any use for all that money now... But if I was your age again, I'd spend it like that."

The snap of his fingers was a sharp pop.

They all smiled at this.

"Probably go to... Ireland." he mused.

"Why Ireland?" Anna asked.

"Exactly." her grandfather replied, eyes twinkling. "I've never been there. Travel first, love. Often as not, see... You won't know the best reasons for it until after."

"Sounds good, but I thought you weren't a philosopher." Jack joked.

"Oh, no, no, that wasn't philosophy. You know how you can tell the difference?"

Jack shook his head, smiling expectantly.

"Philosophers, they do... One of two things. Either they say a thing using as many words as possible... Or they use as few words as possible. See. I just use the normal amount."

"Now that you mention it..."

"Now, if I had a philosophy, I guess it'd be... Life is for living, so travel, and try all the food -- ah, after you find out where the bathroom is -- and read good books, and... And be with somebody who makes you wanna wake up in the morning." He finished, nodding, then raised that skinny finger again. "And avoid the government whenever possible. Any government."

This was met with another round of laughs.

"Mm. Anna, dear, there's a pitcher of water and some plastic cups on the nightstand over there. Would you mind pouring me a cup? It's probably warm by now, but help yourselves if you're thirsty."

When he had wetted his tongue, he carried on.

"It would be proper for me to ask more about you two, I guess. I'm not gonna, though. Might not remember any of it tomorrow anyhow."

Anna's expression fell a bit at this. Jack was mildly surprised. Mr. Durand seemed to have a pretty good grasp on his condition, and he wasn't embarrassed or insecure about it, either.

"You two might remember for a while though. Maybe one day write it all down somewhere, or tell your own little ones. Or nieces and nephews. These are stories you wouldn't have heard before." He addressed the last bit to Anna.

So the three of them sat and sipped water while Anna's grandfather, still an excellent storyteller by Jack's estimation, spun out tales from his life. There was one about the time he narrowly escaped a messy end in an industrial accident at a paper mill. And one about how he first met Anna's grandmother at the concession stand at a drive-in movie. There were a couple good stories and several brief anecdotes about his travels within the US and abroad. One story was dedicated to advice on where not to bother going if they ever visited France, and how he had come by the information the hard way.

Featuring prominently were the food, people, weather, and excitement of each vignette. The storytelling was interrupted during a lull when there came a knock at the door. The three had lost track of time. Normal visiting hours had ended some fifteen minutes past.

"Just a couple minutes to say goodnight to my grandchildren." Mr. Durand half turned to nod.

"Of course." The middle aged woman smiled, gave them a little wave, and backed quietly out.

"Thanks Angie."

"Angie?" Anna raised her eyebrows.

René shook his head, smiled.

"Nice young lady. Most of them are. They humor me because I'm agreeable, and I recite Shakespeare and Pablo Neruda for them."

He rose, steadying himself with a hand on the back of the chair. He gestured as he straightened up.

"Give an old man another hug before you go."

Anna stood and hugged him tight, then gave a demure smile as he squeezed her shoulders and kissed her cheek.

"Love you, runt." The hint of tears glittered behind his spectacles.

Before adding "Love you, Gramps,' and moving to the door, she paused and whispered in his ear, taking more than a few seconds. He looked faintly surprised, then laughed, saying only, "Good for you, kid."

Jack stepped up then, with his curiosity apparently written on his face.

"You'll have to ask her. It was good meeting you, Jack. Thanks for making the trip."

"You too-"

"'Gramps' will do from you kids."

"Gramps. The stories were good. I'll remember."

The old man nodded.

"Stop in if you're ever in town again, but... Don't feel bad if you don't make it. Like I said, you two should be busy living. Take care of each other."

"Will do. You take-"

As they again shook hands, something like folded paper was pressed into Jack's palm.

"She'd refuse it, after the check." the old man said quietly, with a wink, "Waste it on something fun."

Later, in the car, Jack had asked Anna about what she had whispered so secretively.

"Well... A secret, or I wouldn't have whispered, right?" she teased before going on, "I told him that you reminded me of him, some. And that you treat me well, aside from being as sarcastic as everybody else in the family. And uh, about you putting the glow in the dark shit on your ceiling."

"Oh." Jack had felt some vague embarrassment, shrugged it off, then revealed the twenty dollar bill, "By the way; he knew you wouldn't take this, so he gave it to me. Said to blow it on something fun. His words."

"Huh. Sounds about right." Anna had nodded, not particularly surprised.

After thinking briefly, Anna had noted that it would probably just about cover a good meal for the two of them. And she knew where there was a local pizza place on the way, which just so happened to be in a strip mall along with a barber shop and a used bookstore. Between pizza and a stop in at the bookstore -- Black's Books -- they ended up spending more than the twenty, but it was a good time and a pleasant break from driving.

Back in the present, Anna finished looking through Jack's sketches and handed the book back.

"Still planning on coming in to help after hours?" she asked.

She was staying late after closing at work for the next few days so that she could get a good inventory of what they had in the back rooms. Sort things for future convenience, and figure out what could be listed on the online store.

"Sure. Is anybody else gonna be there?"

"Mm, probably not. I didn't wanna ask anybody else to agree to work off the clock. Also, I kinda like being there all alone sometimes. Then you can make believe it's the end of the world, and there's nobody to bother you. Just all the books you can read. My kind of adventure."

"All alone, huh?"

"Well, I'd be glad to have you around," she allowed, nibbling on a square of cheese, "even all the books you can read is gonna drag sometimes if you don't have somebody to be sarcastic at, and, like, trade surprise blowjobs once in a while."

"Priorities." Jack chuckled. "It does sound like a nice way to spend the post apocalypse. Coming back to reality for a moment, if I may..."

"If you must."

"Did you have plans, or should I bring something to eat?"

"I see why guys like having a stay at home wife." Anna joked.

"Keep cracking wise. Don't be surprised when there's horseradish hidden in the next pizza I make." Jack smiled.

"Sacrilege." Anna declared, pulling a face. "But anyway, no, I didn't have any special plans, so it'd be really nice if you brought something."

She rose and stepped around to bend and give him a quick kiss.

"Thanks, Nerd. I think I'm gonna go do my PC gamer girl thing for a bit. You gonna sleep here tonight?"

"Sure. I'm gonna work on these sketches a little more. I'll get the lights out here and join you when I'm done."

*

It was still early -- for Jack -- when woke the next morning. He immediately knew that there was something wrong, but it took a few seconds for his brain to gear up. Starting to move without thinking it through brought to his attention one relevant fact. There was a crick in his neck.

Rolling his neck gingerly, he lifted his head, finally realizing that he was sitting. Cracking his eyelids he found that he was still sitting at the table in Anna's kitchen. With a weak groan, he wiped sleep from his eyes. After which the first thing he lay them on was a sheet bearing a note written in permanent marker.

'Dummy,

I let you sleep bc you obviously needed it. Zoning out

and losing track of time is one thing, but falling asleep

at the table is what they call a warning sign. If you wake

up sore, that's what you get for making me sleep alone :(

-Anna

PS: There's coffee. Have a good day, I'll see you later,

Love you, B-bye'

The coffee helped wake him up. A hot shower helped work out the stiffness from sleeping slumped over the table. From there it was a more or less average day. He made a point of going out for a short jog around lunchtime, but the rest of his time was mostly spent in his room, at work on his art tablet.

In a flash of foresight, he had set an alarm on his phone, which went off at 5:30. He cut off the alarm and worked a few more minutes. Reaching a natural stopping point, he saved his work and powered down the tablet. On his way out to the kitchen to grab a drink, he considered what to bring over to Shelf Indulgence for supper.

A little over an hour later, he stood outside the back entrance to the bookstore. In accordance with safety protocol, the door was locked, so Jack dug his phone out and sent Anna a succinct text.

'Food. Back door. That's what she said.'

Shortly, Anna opened the door. She stood in the way and gave him an expectant look.

"Can I come in?"

"I dunno. Let's see what you brought me before I let you in the back door." Anna quipped.

Jack handed over a big white paper bag, the top crumpled over. Scanning the side Anna saw the by now familiar logo of Ellison's sandwich shop. Surprised by how heavy the bag was, she opened it to find two smaller bags and two bottled drinks.

"Hmm. Dr. Pepper and... A lemonade."

"Figured I'd cover the bases. I'll drink whatever you don't. Same with the food. There's a cheesesteak and a turkey club -- pickles and jalapenos. Fries, green beans and, uh, they were doing some kind of fundraiser for something or other, so I got a big brownie to split."

"Okay," Anna said, moving back from the door, "I guess you can come in."

She led him over the ancient, threadbare rugs that were almost worn through to the cement slab floor, through the narrow, winding passage between walls of boxes to the 50s holdover formica sorting table. They each pulled out a metal tube-framed chair facing each other and sat.

As Anna was laying out the contents of the main bag, Jack emptied the smaller bags. Without bothering to say anything, he discreetly moved half of the fries from one flattened bag onto the other and slid the latter over in front of himself.

"I'll take the lemonade, if you really don't mind." Anna decided. "And the turkey club, which, this is what I ordered that first time, isn't it?"

Jack nodded, already munching on a few fries.

"Not bad, Nerd. Here, you can also take half of- Wow. Really on point with the food situation, huh?"

Jack smiled and bobbed his eyebrows.

The two ate quietly for a few minutes before Jack chugged down some Dr. Pepper, discreetly burped, then asked;

"Not worried about customers?"

"Meh. Jerry's working 'til close. I told him to yell if he needs a hand."

"Does Jerry know how to yell? He seems more like the walk over and stand off to one side until you ask him if he needs something type." Jack tested his cheesesteak again to find that the cheese had cooled from molten magma to merely scalding.

"Hey, he's gotten a lot more sociable since we let him spend half his time working on the online store." Anna smiled. "Which, granted... Seems kinda, what's the word -- counter intuitive. But it's like he forgets to be nervous when he's talking about that stuff. Mr. Lintz calls it Jerry's 'wifi mode.'"

"Hmp." Jack smiled and nodded.

"Learn anything today?" He asked after eating quietly for a bit.

They had found that they shared a preference for companionable silence over the more mindless and inane sorts of small talk, but there were a few innocuous conversational gambits they would employ from time to time. Sharing random bits of errata -- usually concerning their shared interests; sci fi, fantasy, horror, gaming, art, etc -- which they had learned, was one. And when they didn't have anything in mind to share, one would ask the other if they had learned anything that day.

Jack had started it, explaining that a passage in T H White's The Once and Future King had long stuck in his head. It was about Merlin advising that the best thing for being sad is to learn something. Jack generally enjoyed learning random things, and sometimes the sharing spun off into interesting conversations.

Anna looked thoughtful while they finished eating. While she began tucking away some left over veggies, something came to her.

"Oh yeah. I went down a little rabbit hole lookin' up stuff on Christopher Lee. He was the guy-"

Jack's smile returned.

"Yeah, I know who Christopher Lee is."

"Was." Anna corrected.

"Aw, man. I keep forgetting people are dead. Now you better tell me something I don't know."

"Well, did you know he made heavy metal albums?"

"Yup. Even did a metal Christmas album." Jack nodded.

"Go figure. Forgot I was dealing with a Supernerd." Anna rolled her eyes. "Okay, what about the fact that he had to go on a quest?"

Jack blinked.

"Is this a Lord of the Rings thing, or..."

"Nope. At the time, he wanted to marry some chick, but her dad made him jump through a bunch of hoops to get his blessing. Did a background check on him and all this stuff. And he said that Lee had to get the permission of the King of Sweden."

"Really? I did not know that." Jack admitted. "The actual King? And I suppose being Christopher Lee, he did it."

"He did." Anna confirmed. "He had quite a life. They should have put him in those beer commercials. He's definitely in the running for most interesting man in the world."

"I'll have to look into him some more sometime. Now about dessert."

From the bottom of his bag he pulled a dark square of something which turned out to be an over-sized brownie. Removing cling wrap, he tore the moist treat in two and held half out to Anna.

"Okay, now break it again." Anna suggested. "Seriously, is this part of an evil plan to make my ass bigger?"

Jack smiled a particularly evil smile.

"If that's how it works, take the whole thing."

Anna shook her head, smiling despite herself.

"I'll take the half, with the understanding that you're now obligated to help me work off the calories." she stipulated.

"Fair enough."

Anna took her half in hand and looked at it for a long moment before taking a small bite. If she were going to eat sweets, knowing she would later feel compelled to get some extra exercise in, she was going to get the most out of them.

While they enjoyed dessert Jack gathered their used napkins and wax paper and things and deposited them in the old metal trash bin perched in the corner atop a box so old it was beginning to warp and split at the seams.

"So... We've got some time before you close up. And Jerry's watching the front." Jack said.

"Mmhmm." Anna finished her brownie, making him wait.

"Table's not particularly sturdy, but we could-"

"Nope. Jerry could come back to ask for help. And anyway, we've got a lot of work to get done."

"It was worth a try." Jack shrugged.

"You still have to help me work off those calories, though, Nerd. Try again later." Anna stepped over to a shadowed alcove between two tall stacks of boxes.

"Oh. Cool. So," He rubbed his hands together, suddenly highly motivated, "What are we doing first? Sorting? Cataloging?"

From the dark alcove Anna pulled several empty boxes. These she spread on the floor around the table.

"So each of these is labeled with a genre. We start taking boxes from the back wall and sort the books into these. As these genre boxes get filled, we label the new -- old -- uh, you know, the one's we've emptied. We can keep going until we get the one wall sorted." She gestured at the back wall, where the tops of the stacks loomed near the ceiling. "Then tomorrow it'll be Jerry's job to go through them and pull a quarter or so to list online. And we don't wanna re-stack them to more than, like, chest high, so... It's gonna be one of those 'you have to make the mess bigger before you can clean it up' situations."

Jack nodded as she explained.

"We can start by having your tall ass take a chair over there and bring down the stuff up top." She added.

"Ah. Adventure time." he commented.

"Try not to hurt yourself."

"Thanks Beautiful." He commented, lifting a chair and moving it into position. "I'll try not to pull an Anna."

As he climbed onto the chair he heard Anna clear her throat behind him.

"I would complain, but..."

"History is not on your side on this one." Jack chuckled.

"Yeah. Look, just don't be that guy. If they're too heavy, say something and I'll bring a chair over and, well, try not to pull a me."

"Yes Dear."

So they spent the next couple of hours bringing down boxes and sorting books. There were a couple of sneezing fits brought on by the layers of dust which had accumulated on the upper boxes, but no falls, hernias, or back injuries. When they finally took a break to close up and see Jerry off, the stacks of boxes along the back wall were half as tall as they had been. Also, there was a stack of books a foot high sitting on one corner of the table, to which they had both contributed. Volumes they thought promising enough to set aside to buy for themselves.