Harry was chanting something, but Lisa couldn't make out the words that he was saying. "Make out" the words, Lisa thought to herself. That's funny. "Make out" was something that Harry had probably wanted to do with Lisa for five years. She knew that Harry would never get into her pants, but she enjoyed taking him for the ride!

Harry was in his thirties and wasn't bad looking. He had some money that he got from an insurance company when his parents perished in an airline crash and he made some smart investments in the early seventies that increased his fortunes. He was, as Harry himself put it, "comfortably well off." Since he wasn't hurting for money, Lisa allowed him to spend his money on her any way he wished.

Lisa knew that Harry had a thing for her, and she enjoyed teasing him mercilessly. There was an erotic tension in their relationship that they both knew existed, but which would never get beyond a good-night's kiss.

What was Harry saying anyway? Lisa found herself wondering. She noticed that she could see his lips move, but couldn't comprehend what he was saying.

Lisa was sitting, staring at Harry's face as he continued to talk to her, saying something that she just couldn't hear. She realized that she couldn't even hear the sounds around her: everything was quiet. The stillness was wonderful and wrapped around Lisa like a warm blanket, a sensation that Lisa felt was similar to being cradled in a warm sea.

This isn't normal, thought Lisa. They were in a deli, but Lisa couldn't make a move to even lift the Styrofoam cup of coffee to her lips. What was happening? Usually, Lisa was fully in control of herself, and she would never cede that control to anybody. Why couldn't she move?

It's not that Lisa didn't like Harry. She liked him very much. It was just that she loved teasing Harry. She didn't remember exactly how long she had known Harry, but it seemed like she had always played this childish game of "keep away" with him. She could excite him, but she would never allow him to touch her, except under rigidly controlled and proper circumstances. Harry never crossed the line; he was too nice a person to do that.

What was Harry saying, anyway? Lisa couldn't even move her head to see if the anybody else could hear what he was saying. There was no noise whatsoever other than a dull thumping that Lisa realized must be her heart beat that she heard like a faint clock drumming its nearly inaudible beat.

Harry didn't seem concerned with Lisa just staring at him, her eyes not blinking. His lips continued to move unceasingly. Lisa wondered how he did it. He could easily move his lips while Lisa was quite unable to do so. What was his secret? What was Lisa's problem?

How long have they been sitting here like this? Lisa couldn't even move her eyeballs to spy her wristwatch. Harry's mouth was still moving, totally occupying Lisa's full attention. There wasn't anything in the background behind Harry. There was only his moving lips. This wasn't right. Something must be wrong... but what could it be?

From somewhere deep within Lisa's consciousness, she realized that her hands were moving. She must be doing something, but she had no idea what it possibly could be. It was a familiar movement, but she couldn't make out exactly what she was doing. Her hands weren't in her line of sight. Harry's lips were still moving, not seeming to take any notice of Lisa's movement.

A flash of white appeared before Lisa, who didn't even blink at it despite the fact that it had occurred without any warning. Lisa's eyes were still wide open, the brief whiteness replaced by Harry's still moving lips.

Maybe Lisa could try to read those lips. What was Harry saying, anyway? Why didn't her lack of hearing bother her? There... that was a "B" movement. What he just said began with the letter "B" but his lips had moved a few times since then. One letter in the hundreds--thousands?--of words that Harry was saying. Lisa felt a bit disappointed in her failure... There! There was the "B" movement again. His lips made a "B" sound, even though Lisa couldn't hear his voice.

A childhood song that Lisa knew came to her. "B, A, Bay... B, E, Be... B, I, Bicky Bye... B, O, Bo... Bicky Bye Bo B, U, Boo... Bicky Bye Bo Boo..."

No, that wasn't what Harry was saying. He wasn't singing. He may have been chanting, but he definitely wasn't singing. Harry was saying something, but it wasn't that song.

Where did Lisa hear that song, anyway? Lisa tried to think back, and then had a memory of a black and white movie. Which movie? Lisa had no idea, but she suddenly remembered Moe Howard from the Three Stooges. Those three idiots were singing that song to a room full of kids. Was it a teaching song? It seemed that it was, she thought. Why did she remember this, anyway? She hated their stupid slapstick comedy. It was cruel.

Lisa's eyes couldn't focus on anything other than Harry's lips. They were moving, seemingly unaware that Lisa wasn't entirely there right now. "Lisa is not available right now. Please leave a message and she'll get back to you as soon as..." As soon as what? Harry's lips were still moving; he apparently didn't hear the voice mail message inside Lisa's brain.

Lisa thought about the pink message pads at work that were titled "While You Were Out." That's a good description. Lisa is out now. She's out with Harry at a deli. Harry was saying something, but for the life of her, Lisa couldn't make out what he was saying. She couldn't take his message!

A new sensation revealed itself to Lisa. Coolness. A breeze. Somebody must have turned on the air conditioner in the deli. Wasn't it early spring? Why would they need A/C now? It was cool and it was making Lisa's nipples harden. Lisa wondered if Harry would notice. She had seen him looking at her ample breasts in the past, and she had used his fixation on her breasts to her advantage: a subtle wiggle and a quick smile would work wonders. Gifts, flowers, vacations, whatever Lisa wanted. She knew how to play Harry like a well tuned instrument.

Lisa couldn't see Harry's eyes to see where he was looking. The only thing she could see was Harry's lips moving up and down. Occasionally, she could see his teeth as his lips parted. Very infrequently, she could see the tip of his tongue. He was still talking, and Lisa wondered why he didn't notice that she wasn't talking.

Something changed! Lisa was still seeing Harry's lips, but something was different now. What was it? It must be important... any change was important! This was weird... what was different?

Perspective! The perspective had changed. Harry was still talking, but she was now looking down at Harry, not across from him as before. Did he get lower, or did she get higher? Was she still sitting, or was she now standing? Lisa had no way of knowing.

The image of Harry's lips tilted and quickly righted itself. What was that? Another flash of white, but Lisa got a better look at it this time. It looked like a handkerchief... some material. Something small like that and what? A slight stain in the middle... Something familiar, but again... unfamiliar. It was quickly gone. What was it, anyway? Suddenly, Lisa found that whatever it was, it must be unimportant.

Harry's lips were now dead on again. They were both at the same level again. His lips were still moving.

The coolness could be felt even more now. Not just Lisa's nipples, but it was like a breeze was coming up her dress. Was there an A/C duct under the table? That would be a rather poor place to put such a thing. Heating vents, maybe. But air conditioning?

Harry's lips were still moving. Lisa gave up trying to figure out what Harry was saying. The letter "B" had tired her so...

Something changed again! What was it? Oh yes! Harry's lips were no longer there. She was staring at his belt. Harry must have stood up. Maybe Lisa should also stand up, but she was unable to move.

Harry's belt moved, and Lisa could only see pinkness. Something fuzzy and pink. Lisa should know what this is... it's something she should definitely know. It was getting closer to her. What should Lisa do? She could no longer see Harry's lips! She had no idea what was expected.

Open your mouth! That's what Lisa was supposed to do! But how did she do that? Could she open her mouth? Maybe she could ask Harry what he's saying, but she couldn't see his lips. The pink thing got closer and closer and...

Warmth. Lisa could feel warmth! Something salty and warm. It gave Lisa a feeling of happiness. She was feeling something other than the confusion she had, especially now that she could no longer see Harry's lips.

Lisa could see things moving back and forth, toward her and away from her. Back and forth, again and again... Was that hair? Fine, curly hair. Very much unlike the thinning hair on Harry's head. Whose hair was she looking at?

There was a fullness in her mouth. It wasn't the coffee in the deli. This was solid. It was going inside and out... back and forth. She should be noticing something, but what is it?

"I always get stuck around at that point," the man says. We only see his head. "The setup is always easy," he continues. "Two people and the story is from the female point of view. It's an older woman, but I haven't given her age; between twenty-five and forty, I guess."

The man pauses, shaking his head. "Confusion is easy to write. Just do a 'train of thought' thing, like somebody's inner dialog. Not very common. OK, I did it in that other story, but I got blocked there, also. Thirteen great chapters and then, BAM! Nothing."

We see more of the man's face now. He is on the phone.

There is a delay. Nothing spoken, and then: "No. Haven't described the guy much. Good looking and in his thirties. It's not so much about him..."

"Who is this guy?" Lisa says, suddenly finding herself somewhere completely unexpected. It doesn't occur to her that she is now able to speak.

"Where the fuck did you come from, and who the hell are you?" asks the man, looking up from the telephone.

"Huh? Who are you?" Lisa asks. "Where's Harry?"

"Harry who?" the man answers.

"My friend. We were having coffee in the deli and then..."

"LISA? That's impossible!"

"Of course, I'm Lisa. Who the fuck are you?" Lisa asks. "Where's Harry?"

The man looks back on his desk. Something seems to be missing. "Where's my story?" the man asks.

"Hold it, buster!" Lisa says. "Who the fuck are you and how did I get here? Where's Harry?"

"Where's my story?"

Lisa realized that this isn't getting anywhere. "Can I use your phone? I need to call Harry."

The man looks at the phone in his hands. "I'm using it." He realizes that things are getting weird. He talks into the phone. "Vinnie, are you still here?"

A pause. "Vinnie, something weird just happened."

"Who the fuck are you, and who is this Vinnie?" Lisa demands.

"Vinnie's my editor... one second," the man answers. "Lisa's here asking for Harry." A pause. "No, not in the story. She's fucking right here!"

"Hey, buster," Lisa shouts. "I ain't fuckin' nobody!"

"Please," the man says to Lisa. Talking into the phone, he says, "Vinnie, you won't believe this. Let me call you back." A pause. "Yeah. Call you right back. Yup. Bye."

"Can I use the phone now?" Lisa asks.

"Sure," the man asks. He throws the handset to Lisa.

Lisa looked at the phone in disbelief. "What did you do? Rip out the cord?"

The man looks confused, but after a moment, he makes a realization. "It's a cordless phone. I forgot I set your story in the seventies."

"No cord? How do you get dial tone?" Lisa asks.

"Press the 'TALK' button. Are you really Lisa?" the man asks.

"How do you know my name? I've never seen you before." Lisa asks. She presses the button on the phone and hears a dial tone. She dials 555-4421 and waits.

"What the fuck is this?" Lisa demands.

"What happened?" the man asks.

"It sounded like a recording asking me for a city."

"You got directory assistance," the man answers. "Did you dial the '555' exchange?"

"Of course. I dialed Harry's number. What was the recording?"

"Directory assistance is automated nowadays."

Lisa looks suspicious at the man. "You can't automate that. Let me call the operator and get the police..."

"Wait a second," the man says quickly. "Let me explain. Up until a few moments ago, you and Harry were both here... a story!"

"Is that a TV?" Lisa asks.

"It's my computer," the man answers.

Lisa looks at the guy as if he has two heads. "You're a lunatic. Where's Harry?"

"I have no fuckin' idea. Are you really Lisa? You're almost how I pictured her..."

"I have been Lisa for all my life." Lisa is starting to get exasperated. "Who the fuck are you?"

"I... um... I... I created you..."

Lisa shakes her head. This man is certifiably insane.

"Really," the man says. "I was writing a story about you and Harry..."

"Who are you, a reporter? Harry and I don't have any kind of relationship. We sometimes go out for coffee, that's all. If you have a problem with that, Harry's lawyers will..."

"I'm a writer. I write... stories. On the Internet."

"What kind of net is that?"

"It's the world wide... oh, fuck it! This is fucking impossible!"

Lisa notices that the man is staring at her. "What are you staring at?" she asks suspiciously.

"I sort of pictured your breasts as a bit bigger," the man says. "Also, you were supposed to be a bleached blonde."

"BLEACHED BLONDE!" Lisa screams. "I'll have you know I've never..."

"Listen," the man says. "You were in a deli with Harry. You saw him talking, but you couldn't hear what he was saying. Am I right so far?"

Lisa looks at the man and her mouth hangs open. "How did you know that?"

"I wrote that! You didn't realize that he hypnotized you. He was sticking his dick in your mouth when I got stuck... you know... writer's block."

"Who was sticking his dick in my mouth! I'm no cheap slut!"

"Harry was. He hypnotized you, which is why you were kind of confused as to what was happening. You were fixated on looking at his lips, remember?"

"I'm still confused. Who are you?"

"Call me Jim."

"Jim What?"

"Jim See," the man answers.

"Sea like in ocean?"

"Close. Anyway, I was writing a story and I got blocked. It happens every so often. Last one was on a great story... but enough about that. I was talking to my editor when you showed up out of nowhere."