“There’s room for everybody, and you’re the guest of honor at our party, Lulu"
Like a red-eyed caterpillar, the light-rail slithered out of a cloud of snowflakes and slowed down at the Davidka station. The doors opened and Lulu stepped in, pulling his overloaded stroller in after him. In his right hand he held the remaining half of the sandwich Raizele had given him, taking a bite from time to time. His half-full bottle of whisky was stowed in a safe place among his bundles. In 30 or 40 minutes he’d be in Pisgat Ze’ev, and in Mordechai’s house he’d be comfortable for the night, and maybe tomorrow night too. Mordechai had a big basement, and he’d repeatedly invited Lulu to come and stay over whenever he needed.
But he’d better call first. “Excuse me,” he said to a teenager standing by the door. “Could you let me make a call?”
The boy looked up from his phone, gave it a tap, and held it out to Lulu with a blank expression. Lulu started searching his pockets for the paper with the short list of his friends’ phone numbers. For some time already he’d been thinking he should make several copies of it and put them in all his pockets, so he wouldn’t have to search like this every time….
The boy was starting to tap his foot impatiently, and the train was at City Hall by the time Lulu finally found the ragged list. Now he had to dial the number. How did you dial a number on these phones without buttons? He tried tapping here and there on the screen, and various things appeared, but nothing suggesting a telephone dial.
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