Ohhhhhh. I get it.
“So,” Levi Lee’s first word was punctuated by a gunshot down by Grandy’s, but we both ignored it, “I’m a mime magician, but I’m really bad at magic.”
Levi Lee was stationed in front of Starbuck’s, as was usual, but his green-screen suit was gone, replaced by a tuxedo with tails.
A top hat rested upon his head. I wasn’t sure if I missed the green-screen suit or not, which confused me, so I chose to push that to the back of my mind.
Golden curls peeked out from underneath Levi Lee’s top hat and beads of sweat dotted his forehead, which was painted white—like the rest of his face.
But he smiled. It wasn’t an exceptionally warm summer day, but the tuxedo, top hat, and face paint had to be oppressive.
However, even the heat couldn’t dampen Levi Lee’s spirit.
“Like, you’re bad at magic usually? As yourself? You can’t do it?”
Jeepers Creepers by Louis Armstrong was playing on all of AMOR’s speakers around town.
“Well, no,” he said. “But, like, my magician character is bad at magic. It doesn’t matter if I am.”
“Ohhhhhh. I get it.”
I didn’t get it.
Levi Lee smiled at my statement, so it didn’t matter if I got it. He obviously understood what he was going for—I thought—his art hurt no one, and he was happy. Did anything else really matter?
“But aren’t mimes supposed to not talk?” I asked.
He cringed.
“Yeah,” he said with a full-body sigh. “That will be the hard part. Being a hull was a nightmare, man! Being a mime is going to be so much worse. A hull isn’t a person, so at least I could tell myself—'Levi Lee, you’re not a person.
You can’t talk.’ But mimes are people, so they could talk if they wanted to, right? ”
“Right.”
“I’ve got my work cut out for me, my good man!” Levi Lee crowed.
In the next few moments Levi Lee straightened his bowtie, fixed his tails, tipped his top hat just so, and proceeded to pull a string of tulle scarves out of his pocket, but they kept falling apart.
With mock surprise and horror, Levi Lee tried scooping up the scarves as they drifted to the ground, dropping some, sending some flying off in different directions—generally making a mess of his “magic.”
Watching Levi Lee try another form of art made me wonder if it would take me forever to figure out what my form of art was as well.
From what I’d gathered, he’d been working a long time trying to understand what fit him best. Obviously, performance art was going to be his art, but how that presented was the question.
“What did you do before this?” I asked Levi Lee. “I mean, before you tried your hand at art?”
He took a second to finish his routine with the errant scarves, then stood up before stuffing them haphazardly in his pocket, smiling proudly at me.
“All-around handyman, my man,” he said.
Considering Levi Lee, his young face, his golden curls, and na?ve ways, I had to wonder how much experience he could have as a handyman. He didn’t look much older than me—maybe early twenties?
“Around here?” I asked.
He shrugged and smiled. “Lots of places.”
“You’re not from Possibly?”
“Is anyone from Possibly?” Levi Lee leaned in and winked at me.
“Uh…”
He looked as though he was about to say something else, maybe explain his cryptic smiles and statement, but the words never left his mouth. An exuberant shout from behind me interrupted us.
“Jordan!” Auggie’s voice assaulted my ears.
Levi Lee was already working on another “magic trick” before I had turned all the way around to greet my approaching friend.
Auggie jogged up to us, his white diamond practically glittering in the sunlight, swinging a metal bottle from each hand.
He wasn’t even out of breath when he skidded to a stop in front of me outside of Starbuck’s.
Of course, nowhere in Possibly was far to run, so that probably explained everything.
“Hey,” I said.
Auggie held one of the metal bottles out to me. “Water. I filled them up at Samuel’s.”
“Oh.”
“I was going to get a cone for each of us, but he was super busy. He let me fill up the bottles, though.”
“Uh…”
“We’re going to be walking in the sun,” Auggie said. “Water is good.”
I chuckled. “Oh. Okay.”
“I’ve been out and about on the town,” he continued excitedly. “Getting water, checking the post office for a new letter to Shirlene, and—”
“Was there a new letter?” I asked with equal enthusiasm.
“No,” Auggie frowned, “but I’m sure it won’t be long. Whoever is sending them is too in looooooooove to stop.”
Auggie’s assessment of the situation made me laugh.
“Auggie!” Levi Lee exclaimed. “Check it out, man. Inept magician!”
I turned to look at Levi Lee as Auggie assessed him. He was standing there in his top and tails, displaying his arms widely and proudly with a smile.
“Sweet!” Auggie crowed from behind me. “You’re going to make a mess of magic tricks?”
Levi Lee beamed.
“Exactly!”
“That’ll be awesome,” Auggie said. “We’re going to go ghost hunting—well, the first step—but I’ll come by and see your act soon.”
Levi Lee smiled and nodded, as if everything Auggie had just said wasn’t totally batshit crazy, as if it was the most normal thing he’d heard all day.
“Great! That’ll give me time to practice.”
Auggie and Levi Lee exchanged a quick, but enthusiastic, fist bump, and then Auggie was racing away, leaving me to chase after him.
Him racing away from Starbuck’s confused me since the two of us were supposed to meet there to start our backwards walk around downtown.
As he raced between the pirate ship and The Pueblo towards Liberty Lane, I had to wonder if he had changed his mind.
When he continued across the tram tracks and then across Liberty Lane, waving at Jasper, Earl Dean, and Officer Hanning on the way, I mimicked his actions and continued my chase.
When we ran alongside AMOR and popped out across the street from Bend of the Road Graveyard, things started to fall into place.
Apparently, we were going to start where we’d end up. Or, at least, that’s what I assumed.
“You ready?” Auggie asked as he slid to a stop.
I stopped abruptly, nearly tumbling over from the grass and into the road.
“What?”
“We have to walk backwards around town thirteen times,” Auggie said with a frown. “Remember?”
“Of course, I remember.” I nudged him. “You just confused me the way you took off from Starbuck’s. That’s all.”
“Oh. Okay,” Auggie said. “So?”
“Yeah,” I said. “Why else would I have met you?”
“My dazzling personality, obviously,” Auggie took his turn nudging me.
I stole a glance at that white diamond.
“It was definitely for the ghosts.”
Auggie cackled, which made me smile and my gut flutter. I liked making Auggie laugh.
“So?” I asked. “What do we…”
Auggie nodded, switching to the business at hand.
“Easy enough,” he said. “Or, from what I’ve been told, of course. I’m just a gossip.”
I rolled my eyes.
“But we just turn around,” Auggie turned with a flourish as he spoke, and I followed his lead, “and then we walk. Backwards. Around downtown thirteen times. Starting here and ending here.”
I stood there, thinking about the backwards trip around downtown Possibly, and I couldn’t help but wonder if I was coordinated enough for the task.
Thirteen times, walking backwards, around Possibly was a bit of a walk.
It wasn’t far but it was at least a couple miles.
Walking backwards wasn’t all that difficult, of course, but doing it for so long increased the odds I’d stumble.
Not that I was particularly clumsy—I was good at running like hell—but I’d never tried to be coordinated backwards.
“I’m going to fall,” I said. “But whatever.”
Auggie chuckled. “Stop being so negative.”
“Okay.”
“Let’s go,” Auggie said with another nudge to my ribs. “We want to see ghosts, after all.”
Lurching to keep up as Auggie suddenly took off at a fairly rapid pace backwards, I managed to stay on my feet as we headed west.
“Actually,” I said, looking down at my feet, “I’d rather we didn’t see ghosts.”
“Oh, yeah?” Auggie asked. “Scared?”
He was teasing, but he wasn’t wrong.
“Well, yeah,” I said. “But if we don’t see ghosts, you owe me two milkshakes. Remember?”
He chuckled. “And when I’m right, you have to work harder on finding your art.”
“Yeah, yeah.”
Auggie and I fell into a rhythm as we marched backwards down the street along the graveyard.
We managed to turn to the left towards Liberty Lane without a hitch.
By the time we had reached The Pueblo, and neither of us had so much as stumbled, we fell into an easy banter.
Both of us wanted to discuss Amos’ selection of music for the day.
Jeepers Creepers was a little too on the nose as background music for our mission, which we both agreed on.
I quipped that Auggie had probably slipped a request to Amos that morning, but Auggie denied all responsibility.
Not wanting to risk ruining our fun day, I let the topic die.
As we walked, Auggie gave me more backstory on the businesses and citizens of Possibly proper.
As we walked towards The Pueblo, Auggie explained that the three buildings in a row with Blooms were empty.
They were still waiting for some Possibilian to come up with a business plan and utilize their sweet location downtown.
We walked backwards past Mystic Molly’s tent where her sign proclaimed: “Bottle Caps Today!” Auggie had to explain that Molly could read the future in practically anything. Bottle caps. Dice. Toenail trimmings.
I didn’t ask any questions.
When we walked to the south end of town and made our way around Grandy’s, Auggie waved to the town philosopher as he sat on his cinderblocks and pondered…God knows what…but Grandy just stared off into space. Auggie wasn’t fazed by the rebuff.
“He’s obviously onto something now,” Auggie said excitedly.