A Popsicle and Responsibility

A Popsicle and Responsibility

On this impossibly hot July day, Melinda Adams was eating a popsicle outside the convenience store. She worked there part-tine and the owner Mr. Tam noticed that when the pretty girl worked business went up one-hundred percent especially with men. Being nobody’s fool, he made sure to schedule her at a time when the boys got off work at the cement factory and stopped by for something to eat and drink.

Some of the men were married others had girlfriends, but it didn’t matter. They were all willing to chat, flirt and blush in front of her. Business spiked when the shift was over. For at least half of the men, the convenience store was completely out of their way, but all of them made it a point to stop in not to miss any action.

Melinda was simply a very beautiful girl. She was the type of female that made heads turn, hearts swell and knees buckle all at once. A strawberry blonde with the most innocent freckled face that looked like it belonged on a doe. Her smile was radiant and when she walked the movement of that perfect body was poetry in motion.

The boys all drooled over her. Although, she was no dummy, the girl feigned innocence when they flirted with her. Although popular with the guys, most of the young women her age detested Melinda. It was a jealousy thing.

It was a Wednesday and the shift was over at the cement factory and the nearly empty parking lot filled up quickly. Mr. Tam looked out the screen door and smiled. The till was going to get a workout.

The men poured out of their pickup trucks and souped up street rods and spotted Melinda.

“Hey, Melinda, I like the way you eat a popsicle.”

She laughed because some of it had broken off and had landed on her right breast. It would provide many with fantasy material for some time.

“It is so hot that a popsicle seemed like a good idea. I didn’t think it would melt so fast.”

“If you want another one, I’ll buy it.” Bruno smiled.

A tall, muscular man, with a handlebar moustache he was rather handsome. At the cement factory, he was a foreman and the other men all liked him. When someone new started he greeted them with a firm handshake and a hearty smile.

“I run this place and I run it fairly. All I care about is that you show up on time, do your job to the best of your ability and get along with the others as much as possible.”

He treated them like men.

At break and lunch, all the men teased Bruno.

“Hey, boss, is today the day you ask Melinda out on a date?”

“Naw, he’s too much of a pussy.”

While he was the foreman, it didn’t mean that the others weren’t going to tease him.

“I respect the young woman and will not make any unnecessary advances toward her.”

All the men laughed.

“What are you stooges laughing at?”

So every day after work, the men headed out to the convenience store and ogled Melinda. They bought gas and all kinds of stuff putting money in Mr. Tam’s pocket. While paying for the goods, it was the perfect opportunity to flirt with Melinda.

“I am not sure if I want another popsicle. Anyway, my break is over and I have to go.”

She went back inside.

“Bruno, you had your chance.”

“Yeah, instead of a popsicle you should have offered her something else.”

The men all laughed.

“Yeah, keep laughing you stooges.”

Dean Hargrove and his buddies were cruising around in his souped up Dodge Charger looking for something to do. If trouble came their way, then they could handle it.

“She works in there.” Bennie smiled at the others.

“You sure, Bennie?”

“Yeah, I saw her standing out there the other day eating a popsicle.”

“Did that turn you on, Bennie?”

The others snickered.

“Yeah, but not as much as your sister’s bra and panties hanging on the clothes line.”

“Hey, asshole, I told you don’t talk about my sister like that.” Wyatt didn’t look very happy.

“Well, then keep your pie hole shut.”

“Now what sister are we talking about?”  Dean smiled.

“Doesn’t matter,” claimed Wyatt.

Dean smirked as he pulled into the parking lot that was still full of pickup trucks and muscle cars. The Charger fitted in with the rest of the heat.

“Look, it’s the meatheads from the cement factory.”

“My uncle used to work there.”

“I hate that place,” cringed Dean. There was hate in his eyes that warned of an approaching storm.

Nobody said anything.

“Is everyone ready just in case the monkeys want to play?”

They all smirked at each other.

The teens slowly emerged from the car like lizards escaping the underneath of a boulder.

The factory cement men turned around and stared at the teens who did their best duck shuffle trying to appear cool.

“This is what happens to you when you don’t study in school,” said Dean as he led his boys into the store. The gang all chuckled like they were so superior.

Bruno and the men all looked at them and shook their heads.

“Punks.”

Dean and the boys were in the store for a long time.

“How can a high school nerd jerk afford such a boss machine?”

“Maybe his daddy bought it for him.” Mac laughed.

Bruno nodded his head smiling.

A couple of the boys had sauntered over to check out the Charger.

Dean walked out first being the leader and all.

“Hey, cement head what do you think you’re doing around my car?”

Jake looked at the little runt and smirked.

“What did you call me?”

“Cement head. You work in the cement factory don’t you?”

“We all do. You think I’m a cement head?” Bruno didn’t look very impressed.

Dean looked at Bruno and didn’t flinch.

“Maybe, I do. What are you going to do about it twirl your moustache?”

His buddies laughed.

“How about I twirl your head off your skinny neck?”

Bruno had moved over so that he was standing almost in front of an approaching Dean.

Dean didn’t really stop until he was about five feet from Bruno.

The men lined up behind their respective leaders.

Bruno and Dean eyed each other.

“I don’t like anyone messing with my car.”

“Nobody was messing with your car. A couple of the guys were just looking at it.”

“Yeah, well they need my permission to just look at it.”

“Do they need your permission to beat your ass?”

“You think because you work a day job you’re tougher than us?”

“That’s just one thing that makes us tough. The fact that we hold down a regular job is what makes us men.”

“Is that right?”

“You spoiled little high school punks don’t understand what it’s like to wake up at five o’clock in the morning sore and not wanting to go to work. But you drag your ass out of bed because you have to take care of your family. It is called responsibility. A man who takes care of his family properly is what makes him a man.”

“We have our own responsibilities.”

“Like taking out the garbage?” Jake smiled. 

Dean shot him a glance.

“Hey, dudes, how about you just back into your car and leave?”

“Nobody tells us to leave. We leave on our own.”

Bruno nodded his head and the men all left.

“Yeah, walk away because you’re scared.”

Bruno turned around.

“We aren’t walking away because we are scared. We are walking away because we put a hard day of work in. Now we are going to our families and spend some time with them. That is the responsibility part that I was talking about.”

“Oh, yeah is that right?”

“Yeah, that’s right. Now that chocolate bar you stole out of the store is irresponsible.”

Dean’s face turned the colour of wet cement.”

“I don’t know-

“You can either return it or not. Don’t worry, I’m not going to rat you out as you punks call it. That is something you would do. You laugh at us? You think you’re badasses compared to a bunch of middle-aged men who work to support their families at an unglamorous job? Then have it your way.”

They cement workers all left.

Dean stood embarrassed. His friends had nothing to say. They didn’t dare look at him.

He could feel the stolen chocolate bar in his pocket.  

“Hey, Dean let’s go man.”

Just then Melinda walked out of the store and smiled at the boys.

Bennie smiled back.

Slowly, Dean walked over and talked to her in a low voice making it hard to understand what he was saying. Then he pulled the chocolate bar out of his pocket and handed it to her.  

He turned around and they all got in the Charger and left.

Melinda looked at the chocolate bar and smiled. Then she pulled out another popsicle and started to eat it in the sweltering heat.