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Edward
Julia was being uncharacteristicallyquiet and staring up at the ceiling lights. I had just fucked the life out this woman and it appeared her mind was already elsewhere. Knowing her, it was probably back on work and money.
“You seem like you’re off in some deep thought Julia. What are you thinking about?”
“Ummmm…..lunch. I was thinking about getting something to eat. I’m pretty hungry.”
It was obvious this girl wasn’t thinking about food at all. Her naked body was tense and she was grinding her teeth like she usually did when she was focused on business. I decided to play along with her little fib.
“You’re hungry?! My foot-long Italian sausage wasn’t enough for you babe?”
“Ha Ha Edward. You are just full of sophisticated humor aren’t you?”
“Lighten up a little! We can’t all have one-track money-obsessed minds like you… Thankfully.”
“Money-obsessed?! For your information if it wasn’t for your childish……”
I knew that would get her. But I cut her off in mid-sentence by planting a long hard, unyielding kiss squarely on her mouth. A kiss that politely said, “Shut the fuck up darling!”
“Julia let’s drop the subject for now. Get yourself cleaned up and dressed and then we can go grab some lunch. Meet you in front of the restrooms in thirty minutes!”
As we walkeddown Montgomery Street in the direction of North Beach, Julia was obviously disappointed in the fact that we weren’t taking the company limo.
“I just thought it would be fun to take the car Edward. In case you’ve forgotten, I’m always walking or taking public transit. It would be nice to ride in style for a change.”
“Ride in style? Why be so pretentious? The weather is too beautiful to ride in a car. Plus it’s only a twenty-minute walk to the restaurant.”
Julia’s exaggerated sigh told me it had just dawned on her where I was taking her for lunch.
“Did you say a twenty-minute walk? Let’s see……where oh where could we be going AGAIN? I wonder…….North Beach..… San Francisco’s Italian neighborhood……hmmmmm it’s a mystery alright. What’s the name of that restaurant you like over there again? It’s on the tip of my tongue…...oh yeah……..is it by any chance…….ARMANI’S?!”
I was starting to wonder if Julia’s middle initial “S” stood for sarcastic instead of the name Sharie.
“Of course we’re going to Armani’s. Can you think of any better place to eat in this entire city?”
“I’m not saying any place else is better than your family’s restaurant but there are many other wonderful places to eat in San Francisco besides that one you know.”
“Nobody’s gonna give us better service than my cousin Anthony though!”
“I guess you’re probably right about that. Plus you can’t beat a free meal!”
“Julia do you really think I give a shit if it’s free or not? What a ridiculous thing to say! Who cares? You can’t put a monetary value on fucking fantastic food like that anyway!”
“Oh really? Well that’s news to me! In fact I think most restaurants put such a high price on their food that plenty of people who live in this city can’t even afford to eat it!”
We turned onto Columbus Avenue as we passed the iconic Transamerica Pyramid building and headed into the heart of North Beach. Julia was still carrying on and rattling off grim statistics about homeless people, hungry people, and sick people. I decided to tune her out and simply enjoy the old-world charm of the vibrant neighborhood streets.
It was one of my favorite city strolls, especially where the avenue ran by Washington Square. Sometimes I’d just stretch out on one of the park benches and soak in the local color: Bohemian artists selling paintings, kids flying kites, dogs chasing Frisbees, and old men chewing on cigars, arguing in Italian over their bocce ball game. But today I had to walk more swiftly in order to keep up with Julia’s hurried pace.
The heavenly aromas of fresh bread and cappuccino wafting out of DeFalco’s Bakery instantly caught my attention. Meanwhile an enchanting old woman sitting on the steps of the majestic Cathedral next door squeezed music out of a small accordion for two girls skipping rope on the sidewalk. It was almost like going back in time and it truly overloaded my senses in much the same way that Italy always did.
But Julia seemed oblivious to the romance of it all. She was completely uninspired. I was tempted to buy her a colorful bouquet of flowers from a street vendor but I figured they’d be wasted on her. Why bother? She’d probably just say it was a waste of money! I wondered how I could get her to appreciate the simpler things in life.
As we neared the restaurant I was compelled to stop and drink in the most rewarding sight of all: Beautiful San Francisco Bay shining in the afternoon sun at the bottom of the hill.
“There it is! I never grow tired of seeing it! Isn’t it spectacular Julia? What a fabulous city we live in!”
“Yep that’s the bay alright. It’s pretty hard to avoid it since it pretty much surrounds the whole city!”
