WHENEVER HE COMPLETED MISSIONS, as he called them, Tommy avoided exposing himself. Going out on the streets was not the ideal program for him. If there was nothing really necessary to be done, he would just relax, eat something, watch TV and spend time with his wife, Katherine. When he could, he went to shooting ranges, sometimes a little martial arts.
Nothing too impossible, I just want to be like Kat... — he would say at each training session.
Katherine would just grumble, annoyed by her husband's tastes, and reply:
— You have to stop watching those movies!
Tommy was not as good a conversationalist as Katherine. Short and usually direct sentences were his way of talking to her on a daily basis. Nothing stopped him, however, from having good and long conversations, with humor and sometimes a certain romanticism, quite surprising. He was not one to make eloquent statements and set up beautiful situations to win over his beloved, as seen in the movies.
Expecting a date at an expensive restaurant, followed by a Chardonnay and adorned with a beautiful bouquet of red roses given by him would be frustrating, to say the least.
But between their usually comical and relaxed conversations, sometimes a striking, courageous and sincere word or phrase would emerge, always direct, which would stay in the young woman's mind for days, like the taste of a sweet that is still in her mouth. Simple but true statements that made her, amidst so many laughs and smiles, fall in love with him little by little.
At work, however, he took on a more sarcastic and mocking tone. With negative expressions even for good answers, he was capable of complaining about the simplest things in life with a smile on the corner of his mouth. He certainly became more like his mentor, Carl Benedetti, with each passing day.
The two worlds did not mix in his mind. Whenever Katherine asked him how his day at work had been, he would just take a deep breath and say:
— It was good...
— It was hard... or:
— I could have a better job...
She suspected what he did, but avoided asking, and Tom didn't say anything so as not to expose his wife to unnecessary things. He was an intelligent man, but too carefree about the world. He lived each day at a time and could navigate the most controversial situations with the humor of a child.
Katherine was a little more romantic. She carried strong moral values with her and looked outside herself more than her young husband. A passionate librarian, she always carried books with her wherever she went, but she could never finish reading the ones on her bedside table. In their conversations, to provoke him, she sometimes used more complex words than the common usage, in order to confuse him and have fun with his misunderstanding expression.
After laughing moderately, she would say:
— You're so cute, Leo.
Aware of their differences, in the end, the two complemented and accepted each other, even though they had such different lifestyles.
THE MORNING AFTER THAT dangerous job, Carl Benedetti unexpectedly appeared at her door.
— Good morning, Mr. Benedetti! — Katherine said as she opened the door.
— Any day that I'm up is a good day for an old man… — she replied in a tone of lamentation, almost like a charming way of talking that he used to do all the time.
Right after that, he always came up with a bit of humor.
— You don't have to call me sir, my lady never wanted to be with me, she ran off with another sailor.
— Oh, come on! — she said, smiling. — Just shave and smile and I'll find you several single librarians for you to meet!
After a few laughs, he replied:
— Only you can cheer me up every now and then! I'll accept you any day, but please forget the beard! — Carl was almost like a father to Leo, even though they had only been together for a few years. They remained close even when they were off the streets.
— Come in, old man!" Leo said, coming from the bathroom, still holding the bath towel in his hands.
— This old man can still beat you up if he wants to, kid! — Carl replied to his provocation.
— Then let's check it out! — Tom threw the towel over his shoulder and gestured as if he was preparing for a fight.
Carl just sat down on the couch, sighed tiredly and ended the game:
— It's better not to, I don't need to prove anything to you, I've had my desire for it for many years!