Male Stories
                          The Bookstore

     Tracy squatted and bent her neck to read the titles on the bottom
shelf. Nothing much interested her so she stood, ready to leave. That's
when it happened. From the man at the front counter came a sneeze-
loud, echoing throughout the virtually empty bookstore. She'd heard the
inhaled breath just as clearly as the outward release, the sneeze
working its way up to expel itself out into a pleasant sounding
"HuuhhhCHUMPH!"
     Tracy's ears caught the sound and it triggered the usual feelings
inside of her. Because of the sneeze and the man she knew sneezed it,
she decided to stay a bit longer, moving to the mystery section so that
she could peer over the books on one shelf at the man at the counter. The
man looked young, no more than twenty-three years old, with long,
black-brown hair pulled back into a loose pony tail. His eyes were just as
black, as were his dark features and tinted skin, the perfect,
mysterious, dark stranger. Though his skin a dark peach, his face was
nearly as white as the snow that fell thick outside and the bottom and tip
of his nose were bright red in color. She wondered what had made him
sneeze, whether it had been an irritation in the air, an allergy, a head
cold- that had to be it. She was sure of it a moment later.
     The young man took a handkerchief from his back pocket and blew
his nose loudly, breathing heavily and primarily through his mouth,
wheezing slightly. He sniffed a few times, holding the right side of his
nose closed with his index finger, then tucked his handkerchief back
away and looked back at the computer screen as if he were trying to
ignore his problem. Obviously it was something that had been bothering
him for a while, and no one had allergies that terribly bad in the middle
of January. The only thing it could be was a cold.
     She continued to watch him and noticed after a minute or so that,
even though he seemed to be intently concentrating on the screen, he
was really actually trying to hold back the urge to sneeze. He nose
twitched and his large, masculine nostrils flared delicately. He sniffed
continuously and managed with difficulty but success not to sneeze.
     "Head cold," she whispered to herself with a smile. She'd been
noticing the man for weeks and months, every time she'd been in the
store... it wasn't until now that she seriously thought of the
possibilities...
     She saw him look up from the monitor and stare off straight ahead,
as if in a daze. His eyes closed halfway, squinting with his eyeballs
rolling back slightly in their sockets. His mouth opened wide and he
raised a loose fist to right below his nose, holding it there with his index
finger pressed up against his nostrils to block them. "Huh," he inhaled,
closing his eyes all the way. He held the position a few moments. His nose
wrinkled, mouth widened even more, eyes closed tightly squinched shut.
The sneeze passed. He relaxed with a sigh and exhaling a soft and
relieved, "Ahhhh." It happened identically twice more, the third time it
bothered him enough for him to get out his handkerchief and blow his
nose to try to clear it. Sniffing, he turned back to the computer, leaving
a bent index finger at his nose to try to hold them in.
     Tracy, interested in the man she'd just seen in a whole new light,
decided to work up all the courage inside of her and talk to him. She
grabbed an Anne Rice novel off a shelf and went to the front counter to
pay for it.
     Just as she set it down at the counter, he turned his head to his
side and gave a sneeze. His head tilted back as his lungs filled, and then
snapped forward as his nostrils widely flared and he was forced to
release that which he'd been trying to hold in. "HuhCHUmm! HuhCHUMPH!
HuhCHUCHH!" Three sneezes, each deep and forceful with five or six
second pauses in between.
     "Bless you," she said quietly.
     He nodded a thank you as he sneezed again, catching it in his
handkerchief this time. He sniffed, turning back to her with an almost
dazed expression, though quite embarrassed. "Excuse me," he said in a
deep, nasally stuffed voice.   He took the book and typed its code in to
the computer. "That'll be six fifty-three," he said, coughing to try to
clear his voice, with little result.
     She took a ten from her wallet and set it down on the counter
beside the book he'd just bagged for her.  "Are you all right? You sound
a bit ill."
     He nodded woefully, "I think I've come down with a cold. And what
better day than interview day, right?"
     Tracy, though nervous to talk to him, was too curious not to ask, "A
job interview?"
     He chuckled and regretted doing so a moment later as a hard series
of moist coughs took his throat. "No, for college."
     She nodded, understanding. "You don't look that young."
     He smiled, flattered. "That's funny. I'm the youngest in my family;
everyone treats me like a baby."
     "How old are you?"
     "Twenty-one next week."
     She nodded. "That looks about right, actually. I'm twenty-three
myself." She took a deep breath and let it out as easily as she could,
"Perhaps we could have a drink sometime?"
     Shrugging, "I'd love to... but I don't get off this whole week until
midnight."
     "Midnight?" she exclaimed incredulously. "You're going to be here
until 12? But you're sick!"
     He sniffed and wiped his nose. "I need the money. And Uncle Gu-
my uncle who owns the place is gone for a few days, *sniff* so I have no
choice; there's no one else to look after-" he stopped as he felt another
sneeze coming on. He clenched his teeth and put his handkerchief under
his nose, trying not to let it out rudely in front of her. But it was strong-
too strong for him. He deeply inhaled the first part of the sneeze with a
great "HUH!" and stopped. "Damn I hate that. I can still feel it buu-
Huh!" Again, it backed away; there was no sneeze. He blew his nose
loudly, fluids running from him as freely as the sneezes should have. He
looked up at her with apologetic eyes. "Excuse me. I'm so sorry."
     "Don't be sorry," she said, shaking her head. "What you really
should be is home in bed. Can't you let yourself off early?"
     He shook his head. "They're fumigating *sniff* at my house and I
really can't let the boss down."
     She took up her purchase, change and receipt and headed for the
door, turning back around before leaving. "My name's Tracy."
     "Nick," he answered, just before sneezing one of the loudest
"huhSHUSHHH!"'s Tracy had ever heard.
     "Take care, Nick." She slipped out the door, watching over her
shoulder through the glass of the store front at his form as he sneezed.
He was graceful, flowing, but helpless against them as they pulled and
urged him to sneeze. He had to obey; he had to sneeze, and she had to
watch and love him for it.

                     *          *          *
     She would have thought it to be closed and locked without
attendant and clerk, but it was not the case. Though it was twelve thirty,
Nick was still there, sitting at one of the tables in the place, head turned
down, chest rising and falling slowly as strong snores sounded from him.
She closed the door behind her and went to him, squatting beside so that
she could look him in the eyes when he came to. "Nick?" she called softly,
seeing his eyes open immediately in alarm.
     "Tracy," he just barely remembered her name. "What are you doing
here?"
     She'd thought up the answer every minute that day and assured
herself on the car ride over that she could really say it. "I was worried
about you. I wanted to make sure you were all right tonight."
     "Tonight?" he repeated. "What time is it?"
     "Past midnight. Why are you still here?"
     He sniffed, rubbing his finger under his nose.  "Fell asleep."
     "But you can't go home, right? You said earlier they were
fumigating."
     He nodded. "There's a back room here I can sleep in-"
     She would hear none of it and, though it took all her courage to do
it, made the offer she so wished he would accept. "You can come to my
place for the night. I live in a cabin out by the river, nice and quiet and
with good central heating."
     He chuckled, causing him to cough. "I don't even know you! And
you don't know me at all."
     "We don't need to. It's not like we'll be sleeping together, you
know. Just want you to have a warm place to sleep tonight when you're
not feeling well."
     He froze a moment, finger under his nose. "Huh!" he inhaled, his
face going into the typical pre-sneeze face, eyes shut tight, mouth
opening- "HuhCHUMMPHhh!"
     "Come on, what do you say? I'll make you some hot tea and you can
get a nice, warm sleep in a bed for a change."
     Unable to resist such an offer in his state, he agreed to it. "Fine,
I'll gooohuuh... huuuhh... HUHCHUMPH!" he pulled out his handkerchief
and buried the lower half of his face into it as he sneezed in a fast and
perfectly even triple, the sounds of the sneezes muffled by the cloth.
"huhMMMPH! huhMMPH! huhMMPHH!" he blew his nose and looked up at
her with apologetic eyes. "Excuse me. I'm sorry."
     She took his arm and led him out slowly, with him leaning on her for
support. "It's all right, Nick."

                     *          *          *
     "huuhh-huhCHHHmmpphh!" he sneezed, long and drawn out, as he
fell back against the mound of pillows that supported his sitting form.
"Excuse me," he mumbled, dropping tissues into the trash can beside the
bed and taking some new ones from the box.
     Tracy entered with two mugs of tea, handing him one and sitting
down on the edge of her bed with the other. "How are you feeling?" she
asked.
     His cheeks were as red as his nose; his flushed face grimaced. "The
same."  He sipped the tea and tried a smile, not succeeding. "I want to
thank you."  He put a tissue to his nose and, closing his eyes, took in a
slow breath, his face changing from control to helplessness as he was
forced to sneeze, "HuhCHHMPHhhh!"
     She nodded, feeling wonderful that she could help. "It's the least I
can do, Nick."
     The phone rang and she almost regretted not investing in an
answering machine. Since it was a little past one in the morning, she
figured it must be important, so she got up and crossed the room to
answer it.  "Hello?"  Just as she did so, Nick was caught by a horribly
intense coughing fit.
     She strained to hear the voice on the other end of the phone over
his coughs, and could only make out soft mumbling.  "Hello?" she asked
again, not able to hear any response. Tracy covered the mouth piece with
her hand and hissed, "Keep 'em quiet now." Nick nodded and clamped a
hand over his mouth, holding back the coughs as his body shook with
them.
     Back on the phone, the mumbling had ceased and there was
complete silence. Then, as if spoken by a voice in the distance, she heard
the soft but distinct words, "Let's move out, cousin Tony!" Then there
was a click and dial tone, and Tracy was left on the phone with herself,
confused and a little scared.
     "Who *sniff* was it?" Nick asked as she sat down on the bed again.
The coughs had left him as quickly as they'd come.
     She shook her head. "I don't know... they, um, hung up. All I heard
was mumbling and someone talking to some guy called cousin Tony."
     Nick's eyes grew wide and a scared expression passed over his
face. "They found me."
     Tracy jumped up, scared. "What do you mean they found you?
Who's they?" What had she gotten herself into? Why had she insisted
upon helping a man she knew nothing about? Who was this man and how
much trouble was he in?  "Please, please don't tell me it's the police."
     He sniffed and cleared his throat. "It's not, though they may be
after me, as well. They have too much to do without tracing my steps,
though; I'm not that important to it all." He suddenly couldn't believe
he'd told her. What if they found out how much she'd just been told?
They might kill her for it... but he couldn't help it; he couldn't stand
putting her in danger and not telling her the truth; either way, she
might end up dead.
     Tracy bit her lip and shivered as a cold chill ran up her spine.
"Who's cousin Tony?"
     "Cousin Tony," he explained plainly. "Is the son of my uncle."
     "Oh, that helps!" she exclaimed, still not knowing more than she
had at first.
     "My uncle is... huh... huhCHHUUmphh!" he sniffed and stopped his
answer to tend to his nose a little. When done, he continued with a
different approach, "Tracy have *sniff* you ever heard *sniff* of
Giuseppe Gondolson?"
     She nodded, her heart pounding. "He's a mob boss. I hear his name
in the paper all the time."
     "His son's Cousin Tony."
     She froze in fright. Stammering, "Your uncle is... is... the leader of
the mafia?!"
     He sniffed. "He is, yes."
     She was frightened, confused, every emotion that she definitely
did not want to be. "Then why do you work in a bookstore?"
     He chuckled and held back hard coughs. "Since when does the
mafia run a bookstore, you mean? *sniff* It's not a bookstore, Tracy. It's
a front for-"
     "Stop!" she said, backing away from the bed. "Don't tell me! I don't
want to know!"
     "It's alright, Tracy!" he insisted, his stressed voice cracking. He
sniffed and ran a tissue under his nose. "They're probably just
concerned with where I am. It's only Cousin Tony; if... if... huh... huh...
HUHCHUUMPH! Excuse me *sniff* If it had been Quintan, then you'd have
cause to worry, he's the force behind *sniff* Tony's brains."
     By this time, Tracy was scared to death. "Um, Nick, I don't know
these people, so I don't have cause to say but if Cousin Tony was on the
phone with me and someone yelled out his name after the command 'Let's
move out' who would be the logical person to be there?"
     Nick realized it had to have been Quintan. "Oh shoot. Yeah, now we
huhCHUmphh! *sniff* have a problem. They must have thought you
kidnapped me. And I was coughing... oh shoot. We have a big problem."
     Tracy's mind was spinning. "They're your people, right? Just tell
them what happened, they'll believe you."
     "It's not them I'm worried about so much, Tracy." Sniffling and
shivering at the cold of the winter night's air, he got up and pulled up
the sweatshirt she'd given him to change into. He'd been wearing an
expensive-looking suit before, so Tracy had found a sweat suit his size
to change into for sleeping. Apparently, he hadn't changed entirely for
as he pulled up the sweatshirt, a holster and gun appeared against his
chest. He took the gun and popped open the chamber. Seeing it was filled
with bullets, he clicked it back in place and gripped it tightly in his
sweaty hand. "Oh Shoot," he muttered. Nick looked around the room for
the first time since arriving. It was a plain bedroom, bookcase and
laundry hamper, dresser on the side near a closet, two windows, two
doors leading out to the main room and the other to the bathroom. "If
shooting starts *sniff*sniff* get under the bed, Tracy," he whispered.
     She began to ask another question but all questions where lost on
her tongue and swallowed by her mouth when she heard the front door
to the cabin slam open and loud voices come closer.
     "Orteaga!" one yelled loudly and she heard Nick sigh as if in relief,
then stifle a cough.
     He went to the bedroom door and opened it, gun tight in his hand
but arm relaxed at his side. "Bloody entrance, Cousin Tony! Gonna give
me a heart attack!"
     Tracy, peering out from the bedroom saw four men facing Nick, all
dressed in expensive suits like the kind Tony had been wearing and with
typically proper hats. The two on the side seemed to be preoccupied with
looking around the place, holding guns out and pointing them about in
all directions. The middle two watched Nick, one silent, with his arms
crossed, the other tall and soft-faced. "Nick," the tall one said. "You look
like Hell."
     The cross one added. "What are you doing here?"
     Nick sighed. "I can't spend a night at a woman's house without you
guys coming?"
     The tall one started to talk. "Nick-"
     Nick wouldn't let him get a word in. He pointed back at Tracy. "She
invited me over to her place because I'm not feeling well and I accepted.
I certainly wasn't going back to my place since those rats blew it up last
week!"
     Cousin Tony moved his hand with the gun in it and Tracy jumped
back with a gasp, but Tony only turned the back of his hand flat against
Nick's forehead to feel its temperature. "You are sick, aren't you?"
     Nick nodded.
     Tony sighed and patted his cousin's hot cheek. "You still should
have stayed at the store."
     "She offered and I couldn't resist. You would have done the same,
Tony." He felt his nose tickle and he held his hand up in a fist, sneezing
into it twice. "huhCHUMph!" A moment's pause. "huhCHUMphh!" He
sniffed and wiped his nose with his sleeve. "Excuse me."
     Tony sighed again. "My father won't like it, but I understand,
Orteaga. Let the woman take care of you if she wants to. Have your night
with her if you want to, but you know it'll be your last."
     Nick closed his eyes with a sigh. "Where are they?"
     Quintan shrugged, stating "Nobody's seen them since midnight,
since you disappeared. That's why we thought they got you."
     Nick smiled and sniffed. "As if they could get me, Quint?"
     Quintan smiled back, "You never know, Orteaga; you're too young
to know it all."
     They paused a moment, hearing complete silence. Their eyes all
widened and Nick turned around, pointing Tracy toward the bed. She
dove under, covering her head as if it were an earthquake.
     A few clicks were heard as they popped the safeties off their guns
and prepared. Nick felt his nose tickle and he knew this wasn't the time
for it; this was the worst time of all times for it. He put his finger under
his nose and held his breath as he felt it build up, bigger and bigger, his
nostrils flaring and his nose from the bridge down twitching. Cousin
Tony saw him, and shook his head but Nick couldn't help it, couldn't
control it. He struggled with the urge for half a minute then, realizing
the futility in it, raised his arm and put his nose in the crook as he gave
a smothered "huhchhh!" He sniffed and looked up just as three men
appeared in the doorway, wearing suits and holding semi-automatics.
Nick's nose still tickled fiercely and he sneezed again, into the crook of
his arm, "huhCHHH!" 
     Tony stepped forward from their group to face the three. "Long
time since we saw your ugly face, Mercetti."
     The man in the middle grinned. "Same to you Gondolson. Still doing
your father's dirty work for him?"
     Tony narrowed his eyes. "Giuseppe Gondolson sends in the best.
He's too powerful to have to do his own."
     "Too old and tired you mean," the man corrected with a sneer. "Why
are you here?"
     Tony nodded in Nick's direction, "Protecting one of our own from
the likes of you."
     "Where's the woman?"
     Nick stepped forward, "She's not in this."
     The man narrowed his eyes at Nick, "I talk to Gondolsons alone,
boy. Your father wasn't good enough to be any of the sort. And neither
are you if you need four men to come protect you."
     Nick felt the tickle hitting him hard but tried even harder to
suppress it. He wanted to defend his father, argue that his mother was
enough Gondolson for them both, but he couldn't open his mouth without
feeling like he had to sneeze, so he kept it shut and dealt with his
tickling nose as Tony did it for him.
     "My aunt was more Gondolson than the family put together and if I
hear one more word contrary..." he warned, raising his gun and pointing
it directly to Mercetti's heart.
     Mercetti looked around, then decided it wasn't worth it. "We'll let
you live this night, boys, but tell your father that we know where the
shipments are coming from now, weasel. nd next time maybe we'll see you
with the cops to back us up." He then snapped his fingers and left, the
two men following in step, loyally behind.
     One of Tony's men slammed the cabin door closed. And Tony turned
to Nick. "Think you could have handled that better?"
     Nick nodded. "The fools are... huh... huhCHHUMph! Excuse me.
They're gonna go check out the docks and find Alexander now."
     Tony grinned. "Alexander's in the Bahamas with a woman on each
arm and a new identity."
     Nick shrugged. "They found a lead from someone."
     "That someone," Tony said, softly, "got a bullet in him for
squealing; he ain't gonna be talking anymore."
     Nick grinned, rubbing his nose with his finger to try to rub away
the ever-present tickle. "You do good work, Gondolson."
     Tony patted him on the back. "So did you, Orteaga."
     Nick stepped back, startled, eyes wide. "Did?"
     Nodding, Quintan said, "You're out of this now, kid."
     Nick shivered, afraid and for the first time in his life, truly feeling
like the scared boy they all saw him as. "What? I'm out of the family? I
can't be out!" He hated to but knew he was desperate enough to beg.
"Please, Tony, you gotta talk to your dad for me!"
     Tony patted him on the back. "Not out of the family, Nick, the
business. You're going to college. Phone call came tonight. I tried to
reach you at the store but there was no answer."
     Nick's flushed face lit up with joy and he would have screamed for
happiness had the coughs not taken so much of his voice already.
     Tony felt his cousin's forehead again. "Get some rest, Nick. They
won't be back to bother you and we won't either."
     The four left and Nick turned to face a still scared but more
collected Tracy. "Did you hear that? I got into the college."
     She smiled angelically and nodded. "Congratulations."
     He sniffed and looked into her eyes, hazel with green surrounding
the irises. "I'm sorry you had to go through... throu-huhCHUUMPHhh!
Excuse me- through that. I didn't think. I shouldn't have put you into
such danger."
     "I'm a little shaken up but otherwise I'm fine, Nick. Don't worry."
     There was a moment of silence. "I really like you, Tracy."
     She smiled and replied softly, "I really like you, too, Nick."
     They leaned into each other, slowly, going to kiss on the lips- when
suddenly Tracy pulled back and cupped her hand over her nose. Her
eyes closed and she turned her head to give a short and high-pitched
sneeze, "Atish!"
     Nick went quickly into the other room and grabbed a tissue for her,
handing it to her so that their fingers touched.
     She took it gratefully and blew her nose. "Excuse me," she said
softly, realizing how fatigued she suddenly felt. "Do I feel warm to you?"
she asked.
     He felt her forehead, then his own, then hers again. "I can't tell.
Why? Did you catch my cold?"
     She nodded hesitantly. "I think so... Atish!" she sneezed again, into
the tissue.
     Nick bent down and kissed her on the lips. She looked up at him,
startled but glad. "I've been waiting to do that ever since I met you this
morning, Tracy," he confessed.
     "Come on," she said, nodding her head towards the bed. "Let's get
ourselves in bed."
     Nick grinned and sneezed suddenly, not given time to cover his
mouth, but it didn't matter since she was already sick. Together they
snuggled under the covers, keeping each other warm on the cold winter
night, and passing each other tissues as needed for their sneezes.