‘Hi, I’m David,’ another David said, approaching the two.
‘Hey, I’m David!’ said the first David, laughing. Albert smiled when the two looked at him.
‘I’m Albert.’
‘This is Albert. So you’re really named David, huh? That’s incredible! I bet there are other David’s, too. I bet we’ve got a good percentage. Hey, are you left-handed, too?’
‘No, I’m right-handed.’
‘Well, that’s fine. I bet there are a lot of left-handed people here. More than ten percent, I’d guess. Ten percent of the regular population is left-handed, but I bet it’s a higher percentage in this crowd.’
‘Could be.’
‘Man, this is really something, isn’t it, David?’
‘Sure is. I was toward the back at the beginning. I saw all the cars go through that first light and I said to myself, “Hell if I let this pass me by!”’
The first David let out a hearty laugh of approval. ‘That’s right! That’s exactly right! Boy, David, you got your head on straight.’
‘Well, I’m going to go meet some more of the folks,’ the second David said.
‘I’ll join you. Man, this is really something!’
The two Davids left, leaving Albert by himself. Albert watched them join the big group of people, who were laughing and yelling and seemed to be having an all-around good time. The night air began to chill Albert. He suddenly became very tired, and thought about curling up in his backseat.
The blaring of horns from a group of approaching cars made Albert jump. The group of drivers turned to greet the new arrivals. The lead car was driven by a loud man, who parked his car and immediately began shouting things that even Albert--who was quite a distance away--could hear.
‘Hello, my brothers and sisters! Welcome to the Wonderland! Welcome to the Wonderland!’
Albert drew closer to this man, drawn to his charisma. Likewise, the rest of the drivers had gathered around him, making conversation. Albert could hear him squawking occasionally, like a goose. Albert was intrigued. He tried to get within earshot, which wasn’t hard because the man was quite loud.
‘No, I thought about it the whole drive. That’s right, I’m rejecting all of it. Well, almost all of it. As much as I can. I’m through with the politics, the television, everything, including language. Obviously, it’s still useful, but I’m phasing it out of my system, starting with my name. You can call me--‘
And there was the squawk: ‘Onk!’
A gentle laughter washed over the crowd. They were amused at his new name.
Someone said, ‘What’s that prove?’
‘It doesn’t prove anything. Onk! just isn’t a word I know, in my language, so I’m using it to describe myself. It means just as much as my name did before. It’s arbitrary. Useless. I defy it!’
Onk! was a tall, lanky black man wearing a dress shirt and a tie. He looked like an office worker. His teeth were big and very white and his eyes were big and his pupils were jet black. His gestures were wide and careless. He was a real character. He smiled at Albert when the two met eyes. Albert was too shocked to smile back.
Onk! was the one who led the first group into the gas station. Wait, this comes later.
Groups of cars kept pulling into the clearing, greeted by loud roars of rejoicing and greeting. Many people introduced themselves to Albert, who was keeping to himself, but close enough to the crowd to hear what was going on. He met no more Davids.
It was well into the night when the first car exploded. As the blast echoed throughout the night, Albert joined the onlookers to find Onk! and a group of about two dozen men dancing around the flames licking out of the mangled carcass of the former SUV. Soon enough, another car was rolled up for sacrifice and the team began making preparations for another explosion.
continued in part 4
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