Buck, Charlie Parker, death and Mamet

As Pokey sat in his ticket booth, taking the last of the park-n-ride tickets for the morning, he recalled how he did not like how the day began. Pokey's apartment was near the atrium and as he ate his morning cereal, he heard the massive truck arrive in front of the building. It settled itself in front of the lobby doors, belching and puffing in the morning air. It was bad enough to awaken in the middle of the night by the familar pacing of the upstairs neighbor. Pokey wasn't really clear who actually lived above him. Pokey really only knows those who either have a car in the garage or make an effort to speak with him.
Pokey couldn't fall back to sleep without listening to his music. The record player was too far away from his bed, so he used his cd player. Yet Pokey did not like wearing his headphone in the dead of night. He had once mentioned to his mother that the only way he could fall back to sleep was to play his music. His mother scolded him.
"Pokey, those cords can wrap around your neck and the next thing you know, I'll be arranging your funeral."
Pokey was frighten by the thought of death. Death seems like the strange brush on his shoulder as he went to the roof to feed scraps to the pigeons. He felt this brush the same day he found a dead pigeon on the roof. He only went to the roof because Ms. Keller, the absent-minded old woman in the building asks him from time to time--when she can remember his name, or where she put the bread crumbs. Mostly, the bread crumbs remain in the hall, down the stairs, and some trail down the street only to be sullied by passers-by.
As he left his apartment, the movers were taking-up the entire lobby with furniture of all shapes and sizes. The comingling of stale cigars, fecund wallpaper and something Pokey couldn't name, confused him as he tried to escape into the street. Instead he was trapped at the hall entrance until the elevator arrived and the movers grunted past.
Pokey dashed out the lobby door only to colllide with the other two movers manipulating an ornate setee toward the door.
He adjusts the last of the tickets, brushes off his thermos, picks up a plastic bag, carefully locks his booth, and quickly walks into the shop to see Buck. Pokey was afraid of Leo, but constant as a bass note, Buck's tail would thump when he saw Pokey approach. Pokey awkwardly taps Buck's large, square, brindled head as Buck pokes his head into the plastic bag.
Leo starts from his fitful sleep, sees Pokey, grunts, and closes his eyes again. Once Buck finishes he sits next to Pokey and patiencely lets him continue to pat his head. Pokey absently hums a Charlie Parker tune. After ten minutes, Pokey tells Buck good-bye and heads back to his booth.
Outside his booth, Mr. Mamet is pacing and talking on his cell phone. When he sees Pokey he impatiently gestures for his keys and points Pokey towards the garage. Pokey quickly finds the keys, put on his car gloves, and jogs off to get Mr. Mamet's car. Pokey always wore his car gloves when getting a car. He only wore these gloves when retrieving cars.
Mr. Mamet waived Pokey out of the car, shoves a five into the glove before Pokey had a chance to remove his glove. Pokey stands and stares down into the ruppled bill in his hand. Mamet absently waves at Pokey as he drives off. Pokey is startled that Mr. Mamet is in such a rush. Usually, he waits patiently for Pokey to either put on his gloves or take them off. Pokey wonders if Mr. Mamet was upset by the morning moving truck as well. He walks out to the front of the garge and notices that the truck is still parked out front.
"That's why he's upset." Pokey mumbles to himself. "That truck is in the way." As Pokey turns, he finds his headphones and Duke Ellington's "Mood Indigo" starts. Pokey settles into his booth, arranges the tickets and checks the keys lined on their hooks, closes it and locks them. He puts the key into his jacket. The music mutes the cars that hiss by his window. He settles to watch the day go by.