Wednesday at the Muliplex
Guillermo moved forward on the line at the theater. Multiplexes were everywhere now, so very different from the Old Grauman's Chinese or the Egyptian on Hollywood Boulevard. He had loved those huge theaters, especially their air conditioning units. Now, jobless, he had nowhere else to sleep. He knew relocating was going to be difficult. He'd have to adjust to another city, find another job. If he tried for morgue assistant at Kings County Hospital, his past might creep up on him. He did not want to be noticed. This was Brooklyn. New sights and sounds, a different kind of night-life. There had to be somewhere he could put his skills to use and get his blood. Vampires have needs.
He had fled Los Angeles while it was still possible, before the Legion caught up with him and his buddies. When the killings began, the vampire community had scattered all over the United States. A few of his brother vamps were glad to take him to live with them. In the name of vampire solidarity, he now had an address, but there was no extra freezer space. For him, it was back to the movie theaters for the day, to sleep until twilight if he was lucky. The sun was climbing high and the shade was minimal.
A young woman jostled him on the line. "Sorry," she said.
"No problem."
"Are you out of work too?"
Guillermo gave her a wry smile. "I guess that would explain why we're both on line to see a movie at 11:00 in the morning, on a Wednesday." He wanted to say more, maybe make a friend out of the woman, but the sun was draining his energy. Even his sunglasses and long sleeved jacket couldn't block out the rays. He turned up his collar. He'd have to get inside soon. The line moved up as patrons purchased their tickets.
"Do you like vampire movies?" the woman asked. Before he could respond, she answered her own question. "I guess you must or you would have picked a different movie." Guillermo looked up at the marquee. "The Return of Dracula," it said. He'd only picked it because the line looked the shortest. "It's a revival. I guess vampires are back in style since Moonlight was cancelled. If only CBS had listened to the fans. I mean – it was the best drama on television; it won People's Choice award. What's the matter with television executives? What does it take to get a fantastic show renewed for another season? It makes me want to cry."
"Really?" Now, he had to introduce himself to the woman. "My name is Juan Lopez from Puerto Rico. What's yours?"
"Penina Spinka from around the corner." They moved up another few steps. Why would there be a line for any theater on a Wednesday morning? Guillermo wondered, when a flash of movement caught his eye. A teen grazed the line, excusing himself for knocking into people. It seemed Penina was fiddling with her purse, searching for her wallet to pay at the ticket window, when the teen noticed she had removed the purse straps from her shoulder. It was an easy grab. "Hey!"
The boy was gone, purse held tight against his chest as he ran across the street. Penina screamed, but the traffic was against anyone catching the thief. Suddenly, Juan Lopez disappeared. She hadn't seen him move. There was the sound of a scuffle from across the street. Apparently someone had dialed 9-1-1 because seconds later, a cop car flashed its lights and came to stop. How had Juan gotten there that fast?
When the cop came to Penina for a statement, she told them all she knew, that the boy had come up beside her unseen. "Lucky for you some good soul was looking this way and saw what happened. He grabbed the thief and held him until we got there. "Here's your purse back, ma'am."
She thanked the cop and was paying for her ticket when Juan appeared again beside her. "I lost my place in line," he told the couple behind them. "Remember, I was right here." No one challenged him. He paid for his own ticket and walked in beside Penina. "Care to sit with me?" She did not shrug away his hand when he placed it on her elbow and guided her in up the stairs to a pair of seats near the air conditioning unit in the back of the balcony.
"How did you get across the street that fast?" she whispered. "I never saw you move." The lights went down and the title emblazoned itself across the screen with special effect smoke and torches. The Return of Dracula, it said. Blood dripped from the red gothic letters while eerie violin music set the mood for the classic feature to come.
"Let me tell you about real vampires," Guillermo said, and pulled her close.