the type
by John Jeffire
His girlfriend at the time dug the type. College degree in something or other, sweaters he didn’t actually wear but tied around his neck—probably couldn’t throw a spiral or explain man coverage.
“Please, please, have a seat. Make yourselves comfortable.”
They sat down. On the coffee table was a magazine, The New Yorker, which was weird because they lived in Michigan. Next to it was a lop-sided bowl made of different colored glass.
“What can I get you to drink? I mix a killer G and T.”
“He sure does,” the new neighbor guy’s wife said. She wore a jumpsuit that was all kinds of colors and a bright yellow bandana-thingy. He wasn’t sure if she looked hot or ridiculous.
“Sounds delightful,” his girlfriend said, beaming.
He had never heard her use the word “delightful” before. Who used that word? Looking at his watch, he estimated the number of steps to the front door.
He found the magazine, thumbed through until he found a comic. He looked at the picture, two guys sitting at a bar, no color, boring black and white, not even a good drawing. He read the words over several times. No matter how many times he read it, the comic wasn’t funny. The only thing funny about it was how not funny it was.
“Here we are,” the new neighbor guy said, setting down a tray with four drinks. He was proud of the drinks, the lime slices. His wife set out coasters with sailboats on them. Her eyeshadow matched the blues in her jumpsuit and the coasters.
His girlfriend, now his ex-girlfriend, looked around the living room, still smiling.
Eight, nine steps to the door, he remembered thinking.
Seven if I hustle.
Photo of John Jeffire
BIO: John Jeffire was born in Detroit. In 2005, his novel Motown Burning was named Grand Prize Winner in the Mount Arrowsmith Novel Competition and in 2007 it won a Gold Medal for Regional Fiction in the Independent Publishing Awards. Speaking of Motown Burning, former chair of the Pulitzer Jury Philip F. O'Connor said, “It works. I don't often say that, but it has a drive and integrity that gives it credible life....I find a novel with heart.” In 2009, Andra Milacca included Motown Burning in her list of “Six Savory Novels Set in Detroit” along with works by Elmore Leonard, Joyce Carol Oates, and Jeffrey Eugenides. His first book of poetry, Stone + Fist + Brick + Bone, was nominated for a Michigan Notable Book Award in 2009. Former U.S. Poet Laureate Philip Levine called the book “a terrific one for our city.” His short story “Boss” appeared in Coolest American Stories 2022, which won the International Book Awards Prize for Fiction Anthologies. In 2022, his novel River Rouge won the American Writing Awards for Legacy Fiction.