This is a new piece, a part of a longer work, we'll just call it "Harold, Part II":
Well, now I know where she works, at Carlyle's department store. It was really easy to find out. I just waited in my car and followed the bus she took, and then followed her to the store.
At lunch time, I walked over there, it's only three blocks. I walked all around the store and found her at the perfume counter. Isn't that perfect? So I went up to the counter and acted like I was looking for a bottle of perfume. She waited on me, and she was even nicer than I thought she'd be. I ended up buying a bottle of Shalimar for Aunt Gibby, just to be nice back to the girl.
Her name is Claire. It suits her, delicate and pretty like she is. Her wrists are so slim, they look like they could break if she picked up a stone. Her eyes are blue, too, and she has freckles on the bridge of her nose, she’s like a fairy with her creamy skin and freckles and red hair and blue eyes, and her tiny hands and wrists and I bet all her body is tiny and breakable like her wrists, I bet
I better stop that right now. I shouldn't feel that way about Claire. It's wrong of me.
III
Boy, am I a big dumb bunny! I took Stanley to Carlyle's, cause he wanted to buy some perfume for his new girlfriend, a real dog and a slut to boot, and Claire waited on us.
Stanley's my friend, and I can't be mad at him, and besides he's a real good looker, what with that black hair and those grey eyes. So I guess I shouldn't be too surprised that Claire liked him better than she liked me. She was still real nice to me, said Hi, Harold just like we were old friends, but when I introduced Stanley, her eyes went all misty and moony.
Of course, Stanley was a real flirt with her, saying he wanted a bottle of Chanel for his girl, but maybe he'd save it for Claire, she was so much prettier than Annie. And Claire giggled, you know, the way they do. I didn't think she'd be that way.
So when we got back to the bookstore, I told him I hadn't liked the way he'd acted with Claire. I told him that I thought she was a real nice girl and he should leave her alone. And then he acted real sorry, said that he didn't know I liked her. He slapped me on the back and said If you like her, why don't you invite her to the club Saturday night? I said Oh no, I couldn't but he laughed and said he'd do it for me. If you like her, then you should have her, pal he said, and then he left the store. When he came back, he said he'd invited her and that she'd be there.
IV
Well, we were all at the club last night. It was crowded and there was a band, and we were drinking beer. Stan told me to ask Claire to dance. We started with a real fast song, and as she danced the little beads around her neck jumped around. She danced kinda wild, with her hair flying around, and then the little bumps on her chest came out.
When that song ended, she went to Stanley and pulled him onto the floor. It was another fast song but they danced real close, like it was a slow one. Stanley sure didn’t seem to mind. But I did, it just wasn’t nice, the way she pressed against him.
When we left, we went for burgers. Annie decided not to come cause she had to work in the morning. We got a booth and Claire sat beside Stanley. Which was nice, sorta, cause I could look at her.
