Page 11 of The Jerk in Apartment 1B

“You could start as soon as tomorrow,” the man says.

“I don’t know. I should probably think about it.”

“You could always quit if you don’t like it,” Sara says. She’s starting to sound like my mom, acting like she knows what’s best for me.

“I should introduce myself,” the man says, putting his hand out. “Frank Catonelli. I own the place. My family opened it over seventy years ago.”

The man looks about seventy, or maybe he’s in his sixties. It’s hard to tell. He’s short and round, and mostly bald, with just a little white hair on the sides.

I shake the guy’s hand. “I’m Trina, and this is my friend, Sara.”

“Trina just moved to the neighborhood,” Sara says. “She’s only a block away so this job would be perfect.”

“Which building?” Frank asks.

“That one,” I say, pointing to it.

He nods, smiling. “You’re going to like living there. Have you met the boys?”

“What boys?” I ask, glancing at Sara.

He laughs. “I’ll let them do the introductions. Anyway, let’s go inside and I’ll tell you about the job. Right now, I need someone for nights, but I might have some hours open up during the day.”

“Yeah, I’m not really—”

“Trina, you could at least let him tell you about it,” Sara says, again sounding like my mom.

I know she’s only trying to help, but I’m exhausted and sad and not in the mood to do a job interview right now. Despite that, I follow Frank inside the store to what looks like the employee break room. There’s a long counter and a fridge and a round table with chairs.

“Have a seat,” Frank says, pointing to the table.

A half hour later, after a brief interview and a tour of the store, I agree to come back tomorrow at five for training.

“You got a job!” Sara says as we leave the store.

“And dinner.” I hold up the sack.

When Frank found out we hadn’t had dinner, he filled a sack with deli sandwiches, chips, and some cans of soda.

“That was really sweet of him,” Sara says as we head to the subway. “He seems like a nice guy. I think you’ll like working for him.”

“Hey, what do you think he meant when he asked if we knew the boys?”

“I don’t know. I didn’t see any kids around, but maybe they live on a different floor.”

“I think he meant guys our age, not little kids. You know how old guys are… they think anyone younger than them is a kid.”

“I can’t believe I just took a job at a grocery store. I can’t even cook.”

“You don’t have to cook to work there. And think of all the people you’ll meet. Maybe you’ll meet your dream man while stocking bananas.”

“Yeah, maybe,” I say with a tired sigh.

“Hey.” Sara comes in front of me. “I know it’s not what you wanted, but you did it. You got an apartment and you got a job. And you did it without any help from Asher. You should be proud of that.”

She’s right. I should be proud, although I didn’t do it on my own. Sara was a huge help. Without her pushing me to come here tonight, I’d still be homeless and without a job.

Now it’s up to me to figure out the rest. Where I go from here. What I do. And how to move on, knowing the life I’d planned with Asher isn’t going to happen.

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