Today I decide to hang out at McDonald’s for the afternoon.
No one seems to mind me even though I take up one seat and half a table,
and I purchase nothing.
The people behind the counter never see my face.
I walk through a side door cloaked in a hat and sunglasses.
Then I sit down, take off my hat and sunglasses, and flip open my laptop.
I logon to their free Wi-Fi and do all kinds of shit on the internet.
Sometimes I write a few emails. But most of the time I stick to doing shit.
Invisibly.
The air conditioner dries any moisture on my body. The pores on my face shrink until
they’re barely visible.
An emaciated kid walks by my table. He stands in front of the counter and scratches his stick arm.
His nails are long and toxic.
He asks for a cup. He only wants a water.
I watch him walk over to the soda machine and fill his cup with geometrical ice
and coke.
“Excuse me!” belts a tiny woman from behind the counter. “You asked for water. If you want coke you’ll have to pay one-dollar-eight-cents.”
The emaciated kid is nonplussed. His bottom lip hangs ajar, chunkily.
He scratches his stick arm and slowly puts down the cup and waits for the next customer to place an order.
Then he slowly walks out the door.
Invisibly.