Stockade

Mom.

- Hi, Mom. - Hi.

It's okay.

Bye.

So, please, no candy. Okay?

Bye.

-Hello. -Noor!

Wow, what a surprise!-

Do you like the show?

Someday you'll come to my solo show, I hope.

always fun.

I know, a group show is good.

What's that?

Well, yeah, I'm always looking for ways to make extra money.

Hmm. Okay.

Hey, Judy. How are you?

Uh, thanks again for willing to help out

with all the visa stuff.

So I'm wondering how long do you think

my recommendation letter is going to take?

Uh, my lawyer is asking to submit them ASAP.

Uh, so yeah, please let me know. And thank you.

Bye.

-Oh, hi. Come in. -Hey. Thanks.

-Can I take off my mask? -Sure.

Thanks.

-Sorry about the mess. -Oh, it's not messy at all.

So what happened to your foot?

Oh, God, I fell down the stairs. Almost broke my back.

But thankfully it's just a sprained ankle

-and a ripped tendon. -That must hurt.

Usually when I see those it's a high heel accident.

Well, I don't remember wearing high heels lately,

but you never know.

They wanted me to go on opioids at first.

I said no, but then a few days in I relented.

And now I seriously hope I get hooked.

No, you don't.

-Would you like some tea? -Uh...

-I can make it. -Yeah, no, don't, you sit. I'll make it.

So what's this favor that you want from me?

Ah, yes.

All right, well...

As you can see, I'm not very mobile at present.

So I'd like you to take package up for me to Kingston.

Kingston? Where is that?

Upstate, Hudson Valley.

It's about two hours from the city, not far from Woodstock.

And what is it that you want me to take?

Well, I can't really tell you.

That sounds sketchy. I'm not being a drug courier.

No, no, no, no. Nothing like that.

Hm. So what is it?

Well, I can't honestly tell you.

And that's why I thought of you,

because I always thought of you as a very discreet person.

Well, I'm not going to be discreet

if it's something illegal.

-You know my status. -Absolutely.

I'm in the middle of my artist visa application,

and I'm not risking getting deported for this.

Yes, I'm aware of that. But it's nothing like drugs.

It's urgent, and it's valuable.

You'll go up to Kingston.

A colleague of mine will come round

and pick up the package from you.

He'll bring it back the next day,

and all you need to do is come back to the city

and return it to me.

So I'm spending the night up there.

Yes, I have a place there. You can stay there.

It's not much there, but it's very comfortable.

-Is it safe? -Very safe.

There's an old lady who lives upstairs.

I don't think she'll be there all week. It's very quiet.

Hm.

Great. So how much money are you offering me for this?

Well, let's just say I'll make it worth your while.

How much?

I don't really want to get into the financials of it,

but I'll make sure it makes a huge dent in whatever you pay for rent.

And that's another reason I thought of you.

I know you're tight on funds these days.

But you'll have to travel.

By bus. You are vaccinated, right?

-Yeah, sure. -Excellent.

-Who is it? -Marta.

Marta, you could have called.

-I'm busy. -Oh, I've called many times. Texted, too.

You're ghosting me.

Thought that was a teenage thing.

But I guess with you, teenage behavior is what you're good at.

How's your foot?

Still there.

And who are you?

Marta, Ahlam. Ahlam, Marta.

Please don't make yourself too comfortable.

All right.

Um, Ahlam was one of Dwight's students.

Dwight Malakian. You remember him?

The bad painter. I remember him.

Oh, the good painter, actually.

That's not what you used to say.

What do you think, Ahlam?

Dwight was a-- I mean, he was a very good teacher.

We have different styles. But yeah, he taught me a lot.

You're very diplomatic.

Oh, I forgot. I was making tea.

-Do you want some? -No.

I'm here to pick up a check, Paul.

Are you his new girlfriend?

-What for? -What for?

I've been calling and texting you about this for weeks.

-Are you senile? -I'm not his girlfriend. Uh-uh.

Uh, how do you know, Paul?

I used to be married to him.

Well, I don't know. Maybe I am losing it slightly.

But how much, and what's it for?

Dillon's tuition installment is due,

and it can't be late this time.

Yes, but the last time I called the person, I got an extension.

That's how you handle everything, don't you?

-Yeah. -You're still an adjunct.

What is up with that?

You can't get an extension on incompetence, Paul.

It's not exactly my fault.

It happens to be an epidemic in academia in this country.

But you can publish.

How are you ever going to get tenure

anywhere if you don't publish?

Well, the short stories I wrote seem to be well received.

God, that was like over 20 years ago.

- Oh, 20. - You can't rest on your laurels.

Where's your great American novel?

Do people still write those? Do they even read them?

And why would I write something like that?

- I'm not really even American. - Oh, please.

You've been in this country for over 30 years.

You know what? Why don't you go back to South Africa?

I really think you'll be happier there.

Yeah, happy, happy.

Well, happiness is like the weather.

It's not something you live in pursuit of.

That is a stick or a bone.

- Whatever. - Whatever.

When can I expect the next payment?

Uh, next week or if things go well,

-the week after that. -Oh, the week after that

and the week after that and the week after that.

You know what?

You're hopeless.

-Thank you. Thank you very much. -I gotta go.

That'll do nicely.

How do you like your tea?

I'll do without it.

Okay, but you'll come back tomorrow morning

and pick up the package, will you?

-Yeah. -Great.

Cat position.

Okay.

Ahlam?

-Hi. -Zora.

Hi, what are you doing here?

I live here. You?

Yeah, me too. In Greenpoint.

-Nice. -Yeah, it's a tiny place.

Well, that's New York.

It's so funny how we never run into each other.

-I know. -Where are you going?

-Upstate. You? -Bizarre. So am I.

-Hm. Where? -New Paltz.

Oh, wow.

-What are you doing there? -Wow.

You're curious all of a sudden.

What do you mean?

Well, we were in school for like, what, three years?

-You barely even asked my name. -I knew your name.

And we just never took classes together.

Still, I felt really avoided.

I didn't know you wanted my attention.

So, are you going to tell me what's going on upstate or what?

I'm part of a crew painting a mural in New Paltz.

In Paltz. Hm, uh.

-Is that next to Kingston? -Yeah.

-Is that where you're going? -Yeah, just one night.

Uh, I don't know anybody up there.

Maybe we should hang.

-What, today? -Yeah.

There's this cool Japanese restaurant in Rosendale.

Maybe we can, later on, meet there.

Rosendale. Is it close to Kingston?

-Yeah, pretty close. -How do I get there?

You came all the way from Lebanon,

-and I'm pretty sure you can figure it out. -Okay.

-Get a car. -Yes, ma'am.

There's somebody picking me up in a few blocks.

-I need to go. -Oh, lucky you.

-I'm taking the bus. -Oh, good luck with that.

-Oh, wear your mask. -Okay.

Oh. What's your number?