Show talf R I 1 I 1 CORNER SEAL OF APPROVAL by JOHN 11 HOSE he had been away a long time but armands appeared much the same to him even to the apartment across the street which he nearly by passed in his bitterness A S looked much the 1 same even after seven years the long lunch counter on the right extended the full length of the room the polished fittings of the soda fountain gleaming in dual rows as they reflected themselves in the mirror behind the counter to the left were the red leather booths half way back was a wide doorway leading to the dining rooms and dance floor beyond I 1 looked farold for old ak peter the clean up man who was the favorite of the high school kids who frequented the place but he was not in sight A new soda jerk polished the spotless surface before me and the girl who took my my order was also a newcomer A chocolate malted I 1 said and strolled to the jukebox in the far corner while the little mixer hummed I 1 punched the numbers at random and fed the music box a couple of coins coms back on my stool I 1 saw that ar mand was sitting at the little alcove table overlooking the entire room it started to rain belting down hard little torrential streams poured from the awnings just as they had the first night we came to armand s her guardian angel she d called him he had to meet and approve all her new friends for years they had been neighbors and armand was a kind of paternal friend since her own father had died As the old boy gave me the once over that night she had laughed gaily and silly or not I 1 felt pretty swell when he came over and treat ed us she told me he gave his seal of approval by treating if he liked you I 1 was in I 1 ordered another malted for the sake of the memory and looked up toward the ittle 1 alcove armand had detached himself from his chair and with no small amount of effort was waddling along behind the counter I 1 waited thinking of that other night when she had been at my side the scent of her had been everywhere her soft hair cas cading gently to her shoulders the 71 oft if 10 1 va e A Z the scent of her had been everywhere her soft hair cascading gently to her shoulders the big brown eyes long lashes her soft white skin and her pouting lips ups vividly but carefully painted to en tice the likes of me he always sat in this spot or perched on a stool in the cashier cashiers s cage he glanced up and smiled like a fat little buddha come to life he didn dian t speak I 1 thought he t remember me but then I 1 am the only customer in the place he must have smiled at me he remembers me all right I 1 thought but doubtless doesn doean t relish the memory I 1 turned away I 1 couldn coulden t help but stare out the window her apart ment was just across the street third floor front the windows over looking the street were dark being so near her set the butterflies hop ping in the pit of my stomach I 1 returned to the fountain and sipped at the malted seven years how do people mark the passage of seven years to some it a the span of a witch s curse on a broken mirror the return of the locust the end of the itch pil gr images to mecca sabbatical leaves for teachers each has his own way of reckoning seven years or a century I 1 glanced at armand to mm him it probably meant another chin more money to her I 1 bad had no idea big brown eyes long lashes her soft white skin and her pouting lips vividly but carefully painted to en tice the likes of me the old guar dian than and I 1 looked at each other tor for a long minute I 1 wondered if he was remembering finally he smiled so he hadn haan t forgotten it s been a long time mr ander son sol he said in his ingratiating rumble I 1 T STUCK out my hand replying it a been a very long time AT ar mand hodve you been not bad not bad he shrugged A bit older a trifle wiser I 1 can t complain his eyes wandered across the street as he left unsaid the answer to my unasked question are you back in town to stay he added as a kind of afterthought that all depends I 1 said and wondered about that wiser busl busi ness she certainly must have told him all about me but he sounded friendly enough I 1 watched as he glanced again toward the front I 1 knew he was looking ep up at her apartment windows I 1 tried to sound casual as I 1 asked anita been in lately he stroked his handful of chins and seemed to be making a decision before he an I 1 fidgeted and sipped at the malted he stood me for a long minute then he said she was in last night he said As a matter of fact we were talk ing about you mr anderson he picked up my empty glass and forced it down over the automatic washer I 1 nodded too busy thinking about what he said to even reply properly so they had been talking about me what did that mean I 1 was certain neither of them knew the real story behind my sudden departure I 1 d had to go in a hurry no one knew except john and peggy As tar far as the others were concerned I 1 was just a guy who had taken his firm for a few hundred dollars they probably figured id been lucky to escape prison that I 1 had been covering for john was nobody s business I 1 didn dian t ap prove what johnny had done but peggy was my sister with three kids and another on the way johnny knew his salary wouldn t be able to stand the stretch instead of laying his problems before his boss and asking for a raise he lost bis his head he d d the foolish thing others had done it before I 1 got him out of the mess but no one knew this but the three of us so I 1 figured any conversation about me wouldn t be compliment ary unless they d discovered that iwasa I 1 gasn wasn t just a cheap thief I 1 wondered she lived at the same place armand was friendly toward me what did it all add up to but did they know these things about peggy and john did they know that the money had been te paid or were they like the others did they suspect that I 1 was just a bum I 1 guess I 1 might just as well forget about the whole thing and go some place to start all over again I 1 took one last look toward her apartment picked up my coat and asked the girl tor for my check ar mand had stepped to one of the booths to greet some folks who had come in just as the ram started I 1 waited for him bun at the cashier cashiers s booth at the end of the counter I 1 was disgusted and showed it I 1 guess finally armand shuffled over to the cash register and took ane check the girl had given me that s all right mr anderson he said this is my treat good luck I 1 muttered my thanks and went outside to stand under the awning wondering where to go in the gloomy downpour then it sud denly dawned on me armand had treat treated edl his seal of ap approval I 1 was still mr big across the street that s what he was trying to tell mel me armand had let me know that in Us his quaint unobtrusive way I 1 looked again at the apartment win dows there was a light there now she was homel I 1 didn dian t even look up and down the street but dashed out into the ram this was it the thing I 1 id d waited a million minutes for this made up for every lonely night every remark handed out by those who didn dian t know I 1 was going home I 1 could say all the things that had been bottled up inside me lor for so long I 1 could tell her now how much I 1 loved her bow how I 1 had longed for her I 1 glanced back as I 1 entered the building armand was peering out the door his round face pressed against the glass a wide smile spread across his countenance as I 1 waved merrily before climbing the stairs to the third floor front |