Small Steps (Holes 2)

Kaira showed him her empty hands, but he gave her a pen.

She signed the napkin.

“Thanks. Thanks a lot. My niece will love it. Now will you do one for me?” he asked, handing her another napkin.

“Sorry about that,” Kaira said once the guy left.

Armpit shrugged.

“So what were you about to tell me?”

He wasn’t sure it was the right time anymore. Everyone in the café seemed to be looking at them.

“About the concert?” Kaira prompted.

Armpit took a breath. “Okay, here’s the thing. You know the letter you sent me?”

Kaira laughed. “Yeah, I think I remember it. Talk about embarrassing!”

“Right. So will you write me another letter? One that’s not so embarrassing?”

Kaira smiled, then leaned close and whispered, “Maybe it will be more embarrassing.”

“No, that’s not what I meant. I mean write one sometime this weekend. You don’t have to mail it. Just write it in your handwriting and give it to me.”

“Why?”

“There’s this guy who wants to buy it for a hundred and fifty dollars.”

“What?”

That came out wrong. He wasn’t used to drinking coffee, and it felt like his brain was racing off in different directions.

“Let me explain.”

“Yeah, I think you better.”

“See, I didn’t get the tickets from a scalper. Well, technically I did, but I didn’t buy them.”

“You’re not making any sense.”

“See, I have this friend. And he was scalping tickets. We bought twelve tickets for your concert. I paid for the tickets, and he sold them, and we split the profit.”

“You’re a ticket scalper.”

“My friend is. Was. And he’s the one who gave me the phony tickets.”

“Your friend?”

“But now there’s this other guy who will tell the police unless I sell him your letter. So I was thinking if you wrote another letter that wasn’t too embarrassing, I could sell him that one, and my friend won’t go to jail.”

“Why don’t I just write you ten letters? Then you can make a thousand dollars!”

“You don’t understand. It’s not about money.”

“No, you don’t care about money. Just want to keep your friend out of jail.”

“Right.”