“Clarity”
Looking out of the taxicab window at the seemingly icy façade of my eastern New York apartment building, I contemplated the subject I had acquiesced to a date with. I handed the cab driver a bill, and instructed him to take me to Appannato, a popular Italian restaurant that caters exclusively to men of my social standing, on Broadway. Amidst the honking and loud noises of New York, it is extremely easy for one to become distracted from the task at hand, and this must have been what happened to the driver at this moment, for I was subjected to several minutes of unproductive idling before he checked for a clearing into traffic and began to pull slowly from the curb. Such insolence highly angers me. One should know that when you have such an insignificant job as a taxi driver that the agenda of important men like myself should be of utmost importance.
I liked to think of the bright lights and expensive billboards of downtown as a consequence of my success in New York. Overseeing one of the most powerful and far-reaching advertising companies in the Northeast at a time when New York was experiencing exponential growth, my father created a financial empire and essentially passed it to me for financial security. Even though I only oversaw the success of the business built by my father, I attributed its prosperity to myself. Success is counted sweetest when you see it for yourself, and as I glanced from the left window to the right window in the back seat of the cab, a small smirk crossed my face. Quite suddenly, the taxi came to an abrupt halt, bringing me back to the moment at hand.
The green neon sign reading Appannato written in sprawling letters dominated the edifice where the high-class Italian restaurant was located. Glancing nonchalantly at my Cartier watch, I noticed that I was running late, but that was okay. Everything worth having at all is worth waiting for, and my date tonight would surely understand that. Searching for her countenance outside on the dark sidewalk and not immediately seeing her, I decided to enter the foyer and I found her standing there rather impatiently, clutching her bag with a tight fist. This kind of reception is clearly not what I expected, and in response, I stepped ahead of her, allowing her to catch the door for herself. Apparently, she didn’t appreciate my company as much as other women would, as a date with a man of my stature wasn’t something one acquired regularly. I didn’t have time for the traditional courtesy she was expecting, and she would clearly learn this.
We were seated in the back of the restaurant in a secluded cove reserved for the most important clientele. That was why I liked Appannato; they knew how to treat people. As the host courteously pulled out the chair for my date, I sat myself and ordered a glass of the most expensive wine. Putting aside her impatience at my tardy arrival, out of respect I was sure, she began to make small talk about the weather and such unimportant topics that usually provide the foundation for a successful date; however, I didn’t give a damn about any of those things, and I tried to convey this by the manner of my random glances around the room. To tell the truth, I felt sorry for her, and that was one of the reasons I was obliged to participate in this pointless date. She just didn’t possess the power and mental ability to make her small advertising agency as successful as mine, and her stupidity at thinking I would go on a date with her and reveal my secrets, which everyone wanted to discover, precipitated the smug look that crossed my face. Some people simply lack the intelligence that my success has given me, and that was not my problem. It was not my job to make anyone successful.
After an inconvenient date with an incompetent individual, I was more than ready to be home. I hailed the first taxi I saw come down Broadway, glistening with freshly fallen rain. Before climbing into the taxi, I looked down the street and noticed that the heavy fog caused by the recent shower had lowered visibility considerably. Immediately upon entering the cab, I noticed a familiar rosary hanging from the rear view mirror. I had seen it before, right before being dropped off at Appanato. I found the occurrence strange, but my preoccupation with whether or not the driver was competent enough to drive me home through the fog drove the thought from my mind. I dropped a fresh bill into the center console, and we soon approached the freeway. Crossing the Hudson River, the fog became thicker, the visibility virtually zero. Almost immediately, the cab breached the heavy railing and our cab soared through the air into the cold water. My mind went blank and I left the world forever. The headline published in The New York Times the next day read, “Obscure businessman known for false contracts and embezzlement dies along with cab driver in taxi that plummeted into the Hudson River.”
By: Chase Krebs
