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<h1><a href="http://www.greenlogomedia.com/projects/therawman/">The Raw Man</a></h1>
<p>Story by Chris L Keller, &#169; 2002</p>
<p>Concept by Chris L Keller, &#169; 2011</p>
<p>Hosted by <a href="http://www.greenlogomedia.com">Green Logo Media</a></p>
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<p>Below an air conditioning vent, the azalea dangled in the corner of the half-empty dining room. Cold air blew forth from the vent, which caused the potted shrub to spin through the restaurant's lurid air permeated with stale cigarette smoke and greasy plates of fried food. A small amount of light filtered through windows, barely enough to ensure the leaves remained alive, and despite the wilted appearance, the buds continued their efforts to bloom.</p>
<p>Surrounded by patrons who ate patiently at tables a man and woman sat in a booth adjacent to a window. On the busy street outside, people traveling in cars combined with reflections of those seated inside. Above the din of the dinnertime banter, the woman listlessly studied the features of her companion's reflection on the window. Passing cars erased his face for a moment before it materialized a moment later. </p>
<p>Endlessly through the traffic, his features ebbed into view, faded and once again came into focus.</p>
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<p>"Don't turn around, but the man sitting behind us just picked his nose and wiped on his sleeve," the man said. "Probably one of those guys who holds a sign at road construction sites. He decides when to stop one side and let the other side go. He must have left his vest in the car though."</p>
<p>"I wonder if he gets to take the sign home with him," he continued. "I'll bet when he's at home and gets bored he goes out into his street and directs traffic."</p>
<p>The woman glanced over her shoulder and briefly looked across the booth at a bulky man shoveling his meal into his mouth. An audible click of the air conditioner's thermostat, that stopped the flow of cool air into the dining room, diverted her attention to the azalea, which slowly came to rest.</p>
<p>"Are we ready yet?" the woman asked.</p>
<p>"What's wrong, what, I'm not funny anymore," he said.</p>
<p>"It is about you after all," she said.</p>
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<p>"Well is it about us? Is something wrong? What can I do to fix it?" he asked.</p>
<p>The waitress stopped by the booth, tightly across her chest hung an apron stained with remnants of her tasks and food brought to customers. The man stared widely as she asked if they wanted to order.</p>
<p>"Miss, could I have the turkey sandwich with Swiss cheese if I could, and could you make that on toast, but not too brown, <p>Yeah and some French fries before the sandwich, but could you make 'em crispy please. I don't like soggy fries. And to drink I'll just have water, but could I have a bigger glass?"</p>
<p>"Certainly," the waitress said as she turned to the woman. "And for you?"</p>
<p>"Could I just have an order of wheat toast...with butter please?"</p>
<p>"Is that all you want?" he asked. "To eat?"</p>
<p>"Just toast please Miss." the woman said.</p>
<p>The man's reflection loitered on the glass longer, left for passing cars to alter and twist in a mad dash of combinations before it realigned.</p>
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<p>The woman watched it as he nervously became entertained with a napkin on the table.</p>
<p>"We have fun together? I thought we've had some fun. Remember that morning when we got up early and bought bread?" he asked. "We went down to the river and fed ducks and you ran towards that big group of them, you remember?"</p>
<p>"Yeah and they all flew off. 'Whack, whack, whack' they squawked off into the sky, making noise but not really doing anything, just whack, whack, whack" she said.</p>
<p>"YES - wasn't that fun? We squawked like ducks all day. Remember when we went to the grocery store and squawked in aisles to find each other. People must've thought we were nuts. I told you, we have fun together," he said.</p>
<p>"The plant hanging in the corner up there is dying," she said. "It should be budding by now; I wonder who would hang back here, inside a restaurant of all places."</p>
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<p>"What are you talking about?" he asked.</p>
<p>"What are we going to do now?" she asked.</p>
<p>"What? Do now?"</p>
<p>"Nevermind."</p>
<p>As the waitress brought the couple their food and exchanged words with the man, the air conditioner clicked on and caused the azalea to spin again, but in the opposite direction. The woman looked at the plant and then looked deeply into the man's reflected eyes.</p>
<p>"You can't fix it Paul. You have to do things differently," she said.</p>
<p>"What more do you want from me? Don't I make you laugh and feel good when we're together?"</p>
 "Are things going to change or do we keep up this routine. Am I going to feel this way in a month from now? Two months from now?"</p>
<p>"This is who I am," he muttered. "I'm sorry if I'm not perfect but this is who I am."</p>
<p>"I need more out of us. I deserve more out of us, out of you."</p>
<p>"If you don't like it, you don't have to see me. We don't have to go out." he said.</p>
<p>The man reached into his lap and tossed the napkin onto his half-eaten sandwich.</p>
<p>"If you'll excuse me, I have to use the bathroom," he said.</p>
<p>The man left the booth and walked towards the lobby. The woman glanced at the plant and again at out the window.</p>
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<p>"Will there be anything else?" the waitress asked as she slipped the check onto the table.</p>
<p>"How long has that plant been up there?" the woman asked.</p>
<p>"A couple of weeks I think," the waitress said. "That one's about dead. Our manager buys new plants every month or so. He says it keeps the place looking fresh. Seems like a waste to me."</p>
<p>"Is there anyone I could talk to about taking it home with me?"</p>
<p>"No, he's not here today. You'd be better off just buying a new one, but as far as I'm concerned if you want it, you can have it," the waitress said as she looked down at the man's plate. "Is he finished?"</p>
<p>"Yeah, I think so," the woman said.</p>
<p>The woman walked over to the corner as the air conditioner clicked off and took the azalea down from a hook in the ceiling.</p>
<p>Plant in hand, she returned to the booth, gazed out the window at traffic on the road, and saw the man in his car, looking in the restaurant at her as he drove past.</p>
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<h1>The End</h1>

<h2><a href="index.php">Head back to the beginning</a></h2>
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