Read Online Like Grownups Do by Nathan Roden - Free Book Online Page B

how did you know what was going on with that kid?” Jordan asked.
    “I told you, Jordan, I have no idea. Don’t you ever just know things, things that you can’t explain?” Babe asked.
    Jordan continued to stare.
    “Never happened to me. Anyway, he wanted me to thank you; for all of them. I don’t think he’ll call you. He was pretty shook up. It’s just like the movies, you know, or the comic books—you save Gotham City, you save Metropolis, and the citizens are grateful but you still scare the living shit out of them.”
    More nodding.
    “Are you seeing much of Jack?” Jordan asked.
    “Nope. He’s throwing himself into work even more than usual. He says that he wants to keep a low profile for a while because he makes everyone so uncomfortable. No one knows what to say to him. I’m not too worried about him, yet.”
    Jordan stared into space for a few moments.
     
    “You know, Babe. It’s none of my business, other than the fact that we’ve been friends for so long. But, uh, do you think Jack might be…?”
    “Drinking too much?” Babe asked.
    “Yeah,” Jordan said. “What do you think?”
    Babe shook his head.
    “He enjoys a beer like the rest of us, sure. But he can turn it on and off like no one I’ve ever seen.”
    “Yeah,” Jordan said, “he’s always been the poster boy for responsibility. But how much crap is too much? I don’t like it that he’s spending so much time alone.”
    “Maybe it’s time that I push or pull him a little,” Babe said. “If I can pull that off without looking like a psychologist.”
     
    Babe left Jordan’s office at the same time that Millie’s lunch date showed up. Bradley Weyner had been to the office of Research Consultants a few times. Bradley and Millie had been dating about a year, and it obviously drove Bradley crazy that he had no idea what Research Consultants Inc.—and therefore Millie—did.
    Every visit from Bradley turned into a game of twenty questions. He attempted to corner Babe or Tom at every opportunity—trying to get them to give away clues about their business. Babe and Tom hid their feelings about Bradley out of respect for Millie, but neither could stand the man. His quest to unveil their mission statement had been whimsical for a while, but it had escalated to a level that was not only uncomfortable, but confrontational. It was obvious that he had no luck getting information from Millie, and in fact, Millie was losing her patience with Bradley on the subject. She found his behavior to be humiliating.
    Babe and Tom made a game of tormenting Bradley, stringing him along with disinformation to make him think he was about to unveil the mystery. The two of them also enjoyed making fun of Bradley when Millie was not around.
     
    “Here comes Bradley, Babe. Are you ready to be grilled? Are you ready to be grilled by ‘ the weener ’?” Tom whispered.
    Tom came up with the mispronunciation of Bradley’s surname shortly after Bradley’s first visit. Babe and Tom bonded over the last four years in a number of immature behaviors, and the ‘weener’ game zoomed to the head of the list. The game consisted of making new and unusual ‘weener’ references—out of Millie’s earshot—while trying to keep a straight face and trying to make the other man lose it. Babe made his tongue bleed twice after he bit it, because Tom was a worthy adversary.
     
    “Hello, Bradley,” Babe said, offering his hand.
    “Good day, Joshua. How goes life at the war machine?” Bradley answered, breaking eye contact to survey the office.
    “Excuse me? War machine? Tom, do you know anything about a war machine?” Babe asked.
    “Of course I do. It chewed up another toner cartridge. They took it to ‘The Bunker’ for analysis. You want me to check on it?”
    “Would you mind? I haven’t had my new contact lenses calibrated for the retinal scanner, so I’m unable to access ‘The Bunker’.”
    “You guys are hilarious,” Bradley said. “But