Fifty Nine

"Now what did you mean about Nina."

Gary unrolled another Britney poster and replaced the sold one on the wall. "Geez Des, relax. I was just spinning you out. I've got my fingers in other pies... so to speak." He winked at me.

"So why does she come in here?"

Gary pulled a pencil from behind his ear and sat on a stool that seemed to have been chewed by a large animal. He pulled out a tattered exercise book from under the cash register and wrote down his five dollar sale.

"The cash register too advanced?" I asked.

"That's only for official sales."

"Of course."

He stashed his record book and put the pencil back behind his ear. "Nina's got a secret and I'm pretty sure you don't know about it."

"What?" I knew there was a reason for the bag dresses. Maybe she was pregnant. Maybe she was a guy...

"You wanna sit down?"

"Just tell me."

Gary crossed his legs like he was contemplating the half life of the nuclear winter his bomb would wreak upon my world. "If you're sure."

"Tell me."

"Ok. There's no easy way to say this. She's, she's into LRB."

"What?" I'm thinking trancs, acid, speed, LSD, I dunno the acronyms for new fangled drugs.

Gary couldn't keep the smirk from his face.

"If you're talking about Little River Band I am gonna feed you those posters."

Gary laughed. "You should've seen your face."

"I thought she was pregnant or something. Maybe that would have been better. LRB? Are you serious."

Gary nodded. "Afraid so."

"Glen or John?"

"Both."

"Argh, man!"

"I warned you."

"Well now that you've had your fun, I've got a problem for you. A real problem."

Gary leant forward. "Spill."