Wednesday, May 25, 2011

no, kirk, no

‘Let’s take the lift next time.’
‘There isn’t a lift.’
‘Yep.’
It’s a long way up, time, height, life.
The man in front of us, the man who opened the street door, is as easy in his frame as an elephant in sweats. He puffs and blows and hauls himself up tread by tread, making it seem like an expedition to find the apex of the planet rather than a trip to the top flat.
Finally, we arrive outside a beaten white door, with the tell-tale signs of previous forced entries. The man stands to the side, too exhausted to make any kind of gesture, his gills flapping, his lank ginger beard waving like a filter-feeder on a rock at high tide.
‘In there,’ he squeezes. ‘Good luck.’
I knock and push at the door.
‘Hello. Ambulance.’
A continent of unmade bed. On it, Dorota, cross-legged in red satin hot pants and a Fairytopia t-shirt. She blinks out at us from a canopy of blond hair.
‘Please. Help him.’
‘What’s been going on then? What’s the problem?’
A man sits on a beer crate facing the bed, nodding forwards and then straightening just as suddenly, like one of those toys where you push in at the base and the whole thing collapses.
‘I don’t need nothing. I didn’t call no-one.’
‘He was eating pills like sweet, goddamn. I give them to man across hall.’
‘Fuck off, did I.’
‘You kill yourself. See what happen.’
‘What have you taken, Norman?’
‘Nothing. Leave me alone.’

It’s like in Star Trek. Captain Kirk, Spock and maybe Mr Sulu, or Bones (I didn’t have favourites; I loved them all equally, for different reasons. I loved the whole goddamned family). The team, fresh from the bridge, landing on the planet of danger, phasers out, paws up, Spock checking his man-bag for readings as soon as he moved from the spot. Picking up an anomaly, Captain. Frowns, quips. Always a glossy shine for the dangers they faced.
I loved them, but even then, small and clueless as I was, deep down I knew I’d never have made it that far. I knew even the Klingons would have been twitchy and calling for more psychological tests.

‘Did you take these pills to hurt yourself, Norman?’ says the Captain, holstering his weapon.
‘Like you care.’
‘We’re paid to care, Norman.’
‘Fuck off.’
‘What have you taken?’
‘Four Fluoxetine.’
‘Four?’
‘I took them before he could take more,’ says the woman, lighting another cigarette and toking on it like a spot-welder.
‘I’ll be needing them later,’ says Norman.
The fat man, watching over us with his foot in the door, takes a step into the room.
‘Don’t think I’m holding on to these tonight,’ he says, waving the blister pack in the air and then dropping it onto the floor. ‘I’m not having Norman banging on my door in the early hours.’
‘He’ll eat them all.’
‘I need my sleep,’ says the fat man. ‘It’s important to me.’
‘Norman?’ I say. ‘Norman?’
‘What?’
My eyes glitter.
Jim,’ snaps Bones.

10 comments:

Derrick O said...

cool story bto

allie said...

i don't think i understand the ending maybe it's the star trek reference i'm not remembering, but i'm lost. i enjoyed the rest of the story though, especially the likeness of an aquatic scene.

BB said...

That was a little bit too much. I can't stand it when people are so selfish they don't care about someone in need of help. His sleep was more important than saving a friend from overdosing? Our society has really gone down a notch.

Spence Kennedy said...

Derrick - Cheers! (BTW - what does BTO mean?)

Allie - It was the first Star Trek series, the one with Wm Shatner. A bit obscure, I know - just a feeling I had - being in the landing party and going into another 'alien' situation.... and how tempting it would be to blast your way out if you had a phaser. Something like that!

BB - They were none of them v prepossessing. Norman had done this loads of time - no doubt his 'friend' across the hall was experiencing sympathy fatigue (something I think I've been guilty of lately).

Prob a harsh post - but it was an overrun, and that always makes me twitchy.

Cheers for the comments! :0)

VM Sehy Photography said...

I loved Star Trek as a kid. I can understand how you would feel like you were constantly on or in another world.

I read it to mean that you are the authority figures attempting to normalize the situation. Not an easy thing to do.

Spence Kennedy said...

I think that's it, VMSP. We get beamed into such long-standing and complicated situations, sometimes it's hard to know where to begin.

jacksofbuxton said...

I love the Eddie Izzard routine about Star Trek,where Johnson from accounts goes down with the landing party,usually with a bulls eye on his top.He's going to croak it.

Plus Kirk always ended up with some woman painted green saying "On earth we call this kissing"

Norman needs new neighbours Spence,what a miserable scrote the fat man was.

Spence Kennedy said...

'On earth we call this a corset...'

And wasn't there that thing where anyone in a red shirt got offed early on?

The fat guy was a total misery. That top floor didn't have much going for it - height, decor, neighbours....

Anonymous said...

bto, I think is a fumble-finger for bro, making the entire phrase, "Cool story bro"

Steve

Spence Kennedy said...

Thanks for clearing that up, Steve. I thought it prob. wasn't Big Time Operator...