芒果街上的小屋第一份工

第一份工

　　我才不是不想工作呢。我想的。甚至，我上個月已經去社會安全司拿了我的社會安全號。我需要錢。天主教會高中收費很高，爸爸說沒人會去公立學校，除非你想變壞。

　　我想我會找到一個輕鬆的工作，那種和別的小孩幹的一樣的，在一個零售小店或者熱狗攤上打工。雖然還沒開始找，我想我下下個星期就會找到的。那天下午我回家時，全身都濕透了，因為提陀把我推進了敞口的消防水栓裡——是我自己惹得他這麼做的——還沒來得及換衣服，媽媽就把我叫進了廚房，娜拉阿姨坐在那裡用小勺喝咖啡。娜拉阿姨說，她在她工作的北百老匯大道上的彼得·潘照片沖印店裡幫我找了份工。又問我多大，說明天去的時候要把自己說大一歲，如此這般。

　　於是第二天我穿上那件讓我看上去顯大的海軍藍的裙子，又借了午餐和公交車錢，因為娜拉阿姨說要到下個星期五我才能拿到錢。然後，我就進去了，見到了娜拉阿姨工作的北百老匯大道上的彼得·潘照片沖印店的老闆，照她說的謊報了年齡，果然，我從那天就開始幹了。

　　我做事時要戴上白手套。他們讓我做的是把底片和相片配好，就是對著相片在底片條上找到那張的底片，把它放進信封裡，然後再配下一張。就這些。我不知道那些信封從哪裡來，要到哪裡去。我只是按吩咐的去做。

　　真的好容易。我想我本來不會介意的，可幹了一會我有點累，不知道是否可以坐，於是就看著旁邊的兩位女士，她們坐下來的時候我才坐。過了一會她們笑起來，走過來跟我說可以想坐就坐的，我說我知道。

　　午餐時間到了，我不敢一個人跑到有那麼多先生和女士們看著你的公司餐廳裡去吃，就站在一間盥洗室裡很快地吃完了，結果剩下很多時間，就早早地回去幹活了。然後又到了休息時間，不知道去哪裡好，我就走進了衣帽間，因為那裡有條長凳。

　　我想那時是上晚班或者中班的人來接班的時候，因為有幾個人進來打卡。一個上了年紀的東方人跟我打招呼，我們聊了一會我剛開始上班的事情，他說我們會成為朋友，下次去餐廳可以和他坐一起。我感覺好點了。他的眼睛很和善，我沒那麼緊張了。接著他問我，知道今天是什麼日子嗎？我說我不知道。他就說是他的生日，問我願不願意給他一個生日吻。我想我願意，因為他很老了，正在我想要把嘴唇貼到他臉頰上時，他雙手捧過我的臉，重重地親我的嘴，不放開。

　　It wasn't as if I didn't want to work. I did. I had even goo the social security office the month before to get my social security number. I needed mohe Catholic high school cost a lot, and Papa said nobody went to public school unless you wao turn out bad.

　　I thought I'd find an easy job, the kind other kids had, w in the dime store or maybe a hotdog stand. And though I hadn't started looki, I thought I might the week after . But when I came home that afternoon, all wet because Tito had pushed me into the open water hydrant——only I had sort of let him——Mama called me i before I could even go and ge, and Aunt Lala was sitting there drinking her coffee with a spoon. Aunt Lala said she had found a job for me at the Peter Pan Photo Finishers on North Broadway where she worked, and how old was I, and to show up tomorrow saying I was one year older, and that was that.

　　So the m I put on the navy blue dress that made me look older and borrowed money for lund bus fare because Aunt Lala said I wouldn't get paid till the Friday, and I went in and saw the boss of the Peter Pan Photo Finishers on North Broadway where Aunt Lala worked and lied about my age like she told me to and sure enough, I started that same day.

　　In my job I had to wear white gloves. I was supposed to mategatives with their prints, just look at the picture and look for the same one on the ive strip, put it in the envelope, and do the ohat's all. I didn't know where these envelopes were ing from or where they were going. I just did what I was told.

　　It was real easy, and I guess I wouldn't have mi except that you got tired after a while and I didn't know if I could sit down or not, and then I started sitting down only whewo ladies o me did. After a while they started to laugh and came up to me and said I could sit when I wao, and I said I knew.

　　When lunchtime came, I was scared to eat alone in the pany lun with all those men and ladies looking, so I ate real fast standing in one of the washroom stalls and had lots of time left over, so I went back to work early. But theime came, and not knowing where else to go, I went into the coatroom because there was a bench there.

　　I guess it was the time for the night shift or middle shift to arrive because a few people came in and puhe time clock, and an older Oriental man said hello aalked for a while about my just starting, and he said we could be friends aime to go in the lun and sit with him, and I felt better. He had nice eyes and I didn't feel so nervous anymore. Then he asked if I knew what day it was, and when I said I didn't, he said it was his birthday and would I please give him a birthday kiss. I thought I would because he was so old and just as I was about to put my lips on his cheek, he grabs my face with both hands and kisses me hard on the mouth and doesn't let go.

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