Lydia stands in her usual spot. Next to Margo’s Nails. In front of the check-cashing place.
In the window of Margo’s there’s a neon sign: French manicures-Oo la la! Lydia watches the pink chasing lights. A French manicure is so pretty. So classy. Expensive, too. Maybe one day, she thinks.
It’s a fine summer night and Luther is restless. He needs some distraction. Certain kind of distraction. Curvy and blond.
Luther says hey. Lydia says hey. By the light of the streetlamp, he thinks she looks good. She holds up five fingers. He knows that means fifty. He nods his head. They walk to a pay-by-the-hour motel.
The Benbow Inn is around the corner. Lydia lives in Room Fourteen. The place smells like mildew, fried onions and curry. She locks the door. Luther watches her take off her clothes.
Burn scars. She’s covered with them. There are raised red marks from her head to her toes.
Meth lab. It exploded, she says.
At night, on the street, he thought she looked good. In the dark, he thought yes; in the light, he thinks no.
If you were Luther, what would you do?
a) Make chitchat. Ex. Some weather we’re havin’. How ‘bout them Bears.
b) Ask if she has a “friend” she calls “Daddy”. A guy friend. A big one. Ask his approx. weight and height.
c) Close your eyes. Think of Valerie Bertinelli. Or Heather Locklear.
d) She’s a burn-covered meth-head Benbow Inn- hooker. ‘Nuff said.
The correct answer is d. Or c. Or some combination of d and c.
For Extra Credit:
Luther turns out the light. Thinks of Heather, and Val. Afterwards, he excuses himself. He goes to the bathroom, leaving his pants on the back of a chair.
If you were Lydia, what would you do?
That’s right. You’d get that French manicure now.