"We're late," she said. "They started without us, Jack."

Helen laughed. "We had one when Carl came in. We haven't lightedthe water pipe yet. We were waiting until you got here." She stood in the middle of the room, looking at them and grinning. "Let's see what's in the sack," she said. "Oh, wow! Say, I think I'll have one of these corn chips right now. You guys want some?"

"We just ate dinner," Jack said. "We'll have some pretty soon." Water had stopped running and Jack could hear Carl whistling in the bathroom.

'We have some Popsicles and some M&M's," Helen said. She stood beside the table and dug into the potato-chip bag. "If Carl ever gets out of the shower, he'll get the water pipe going." She opened the box of snack crackers and put one in her mouth. "Say, these are really good," she said.

"I don't know what Emily Post would say about you," Mary said.

Helen laughed. She shook her head.

Carl came out of the bathroom. "Hi, everybody. Hi, Jack. What's so funny?" he said, grinning. "I could hear you laughing."

"We were laughing at Helen," Mary said.

"Helen was just laughing," Jack said.

"She's funny." Carl said. "Look at the goodies! Hey, you guys ready for a gla.s.s of cream soda? I'll get the pipe going."

"I'll have a gla.s.s," Mary said. "What about you, Jack?"

"I'll have some," Jack said.

"Jack's on a little b.u.mmer tonight," Mary said.

"Why do you say that? "Jack asked. He looked at her. "That's a good way to put me on one."

"I was just teasing," Mary said. She came over and sat beside him on the sofa. "I was just teasing, honey."

"Hey, Jack, don't get on a b.u.mmer," Carl said. "Let me show you what I got for my birthday. Helen, open one of those bottles of cream soda while I get the pipe going. I'm real dry."

Helen carried the chips and crackers to the coffee table. Then she produced a bottle of cream soda and four gla.s.ses.

"Looks like we're going to have a party," Mary said.

"If I didn't starve myself all day, I'd put on ten pounds a week," Helen said.

"I know what you mean," Mary said.

Carl came out of the bedroom with the water pipe. "What do you think of this?" he said to Jack. He put the water pipe on the coffee table.

"That's really something," Jack said. He picked it up and looked at it.

"It's called a hookah," Helen said. "That's what they called it where I bought it. It's just a little one, but it does the job." She laughed.

"Where did you get it?" Mary said.

"What? That little place on Fourth Street. You know," Helen said.

"Sure. I know," Mary said. "I'll have to go in there some day," Mary said. She folded her hands and watched Carl.

"How does it work?" Jack said.

"You put the stuff here," Carl said. "And you light this. Then you inhale through this here and the smoke is filtered through the water. It has a good taste to it and it really hits you."

"I'd like to get Jack one for Christmas," Mary said. She looked at Jack and grinned and touched his arm.

"I'd like to have one," Jack said. He stretched his legs and looked at his shoes under the light.

"Here, try this." Carl said, letting out a thin stream of smoke and pa.s.sing the tube to Jack. "See if this isn't okay."

Jack drew on the tube, held the smoke, and pa.s.sed the tube to Helen.

"Mary first," Helen said. "I'll go after Mary. You guys have to catch up."

"I won't argue," Mary said. She slipped the tube in her mouth and drew rapidly, twice, and Jack watched the bubbles she made.

"That's really okay," Mary said. She pa.s.sed the tube to Helen.

"We broke it in last night." Helen said, and laughed loudly.

"She was still stoned when she got up with the kids this morning," Carl said, and he laughed. He watched Helen pull on the tube.

"How are the kids?" Mary asked.

"They're fine," Carl said and put the tube in his mouth. Jack sipped the cream soda and watched the bubbles in the pipe. They reminded him of bubbles rising from a diving helmet. He imagined a lagoon and schools of remarkable fish.

Carl pa.s.sed the tube.

Jack stood up and stretched.

"Where are you going, honey?" Mary asked.

"No place," Jack said. He sat down and shook his head and grinned. "Jesus."

Helen laughed.

"What's funny?" Jack said after a long time.

"G.o.d, I don't know," Helen said. She wiped her eyes and laughed again, and Mary and Carl laughed.

After a time Carl unscrewed the top of the water pipe and blew through one of the tubes. "It gets plugged sometimes."

"What did you mean when you said I was on a b.u.mmer?" Jack said to Mary.

"What?" Mary said.

Jack stared at her and blinked. "You said something about me being on a b.u.mmer. What made you say that?"

"I don't remember now, but I can tell when you are," she said. "But please don't bring up anything negative, okay?"

"Okay," Jack said. "All I'm saying is I don't know why you said that. If I wasn't on a b.u.mmer before you said it, it's enough when you say it to put me on one."

"If the shoe fits," Mary said. She leaned on the arm of the sofa and laughed until tears came.

"What was that?" Carl said. He looked at Jack and then at Mary. missed that one," Carl said.

I should have made some dip for these chips," Helen said.

"Wasn't there another bottle of that cream soda?" Carl said.

"We bought two bottles," Jack said.

"Did we drink them both?" Carl said.

"Did we drink any?" Helen said and laughed. "No, I only opened one. I think I only opened one. I don't remember opening more than one," Helen said and laughed.

Jack pa.s.sed the tube to Mary. She took his hand and guided the tube into her mouth. He watched the smoke flow over her lips a long time later.

"What about some cream soda?" Carl said. Mary and Helen laughed.

"What about it?" Mary said.

"Well, I thought we were going to have us a gla.s.s," Carl said. He looked at Mary and grinned.

Mary and Helen laughed.

"What's funny?" Carl said. He looked at Helen and then at Mary. He shook his head. "I don't know about you guys," he said.

"We might go to Alaska," Jack said.

"Alaska?" Carl said. "What's in Alaska? What would you do up there?"

"I wish we could go someplace," Helen said.

"What's wrong with here?" Carl said. "What would you guys do in Alaska? I'm serious. I'd like to know."

Jack put a potato chip in his mouth and sipped his cream soda. "I don't know. What did you say?"

After a while Carl said, "What's in Alaska?"

"I don't know," Jack said. "Ask Mary. Mary knows. Mary, what am I going to do up there? Maybe I'll grow those giant cabbages you read about."

"Or pumpkins," Helen said. "Grow pumpkins."

"You'd clean up," Carl said. "Ship the pumpkins down here for Halloween. I'll be your distributor."

"Carl will be your distributor," Helen said.

"That's right," Carl said. "We'll clean up."

"Get rich," Mary said.

In a while Carl stood up. "I know what would taste good and that's some cream soda," Carl said.

Mary and Helen laughed.

"Go ahead and laugh," Carl said, grinning. "Who wants some?"

"Some what?" Mary said.

"Some cream soda," Carl said.

"You stood up like you were going to make a speech," Mary said.

"I hadn't thought of that," Carl said. He shook his head and laughed. He sat down. "That's good stuff," he said.

"We should have got more," Helen said.

"More what?" Mary said.

"More money," Carl said.

"No money," Jack said.

"Did I see some U-No bars in that sack?" Helen said.

"I bought some," Jack said. "I spotted them the last minute."

"U-No bars are good," Carl said.

"They're creamy," Mary said. "They melt in your mouth."

"We have some M&M's and Popsicles if anybody wants any," Carl said.

Mary said, "I'll have a Popsicle. Are you going to the kitchen?"

"Yeah, and I'm going to get the cream soda, too," Carl said. "I just remembered. You guys want a gla.s.s?"

"Just bring it all in and we'll decide," Helen said. "The M&M's too."

"Might be easier to move the kitchen out here," Carl said.

"When we lived in the city," Mary said, "people said you could see who'd turned on the night before by looking at their kitchen in the morning. We had a tiny kitchen when we lived in the city," she said.

"We had a tiny kitchen too," Jack said.

"I'm going out to see what I can find," Carl said.