Wallpaper J

             BACKGROUND

 Jonah Domb was an accident.

 By the time he was a teenager, his two older brothers had already moved out of their home on Kensington Street. Afterward, his mother began popping a cocktail of “candy” stored in her Pez dispenser, giving her the energy to head into the backyard to paint in her matchbox-sized studio.

Despite her efforts, her canvases remained blank.

STORY

It is Jonah’s high school graduation night. He stands behind the house curtain in his school’s auditorium, seeing only his mother but not his father.  

JONAH: “Why am I surprised he isn’t here?”

Jonah takes a deep breath before walking on stage to get his diploma. He feels numb, once it lands in his hand. When he reaches the other side, his only friend gives him a high-five.

MARCUS: “Party at your house later, Jo . . . nah.”

JONAH:  “Do I get a choice in the matter, bro?”

BACKGROUND

After 18 months of unemployment, Jonah’s father was suddenly too busy as president at his brother’s company, Green Rhythms. His uncle launched indie-folk artists on vinyl records made from recycled ocean plastic. On his first day at the company, his father was assigned to listen to a 23-year-old eco singer at a local watering hole. She was known for performing in an environmental fashion: the nude. Upon seeing her act, his father immediately signed her and asked her out.  

     STORY

Seated on a large rock in his backyard, Jonah watches Marcus and his friends through his house’s glass walls. They are playing the “Never Have I Ever” drinking game in his living room. Each time, Marcus takes a chug from his beer glass, he gives Jonah a thumbs-up sign. Regardless of the noise, his mother remains asleep in her studio’s hammock.

Jonah then notices two female classmates doing unmentionable things in his kitchen. As he stares unfazed, Marcus comes out with a baggie in his hand.

MARCUS: “Now, I know why you’re out here!”

The girls keep fooling around.

JONAH:  “Huh.”

MARCUS: “I found your dad’s stash of weed . . .”

JONAH:  “He never returns my calls but leaves party gifts behind.”

MARCUS: “Come on inside . . . Julia Harris is in there. She keeps asking me about you. She’s had a thing for you since kindergarten . . . Have some fun tonight and forget about your screwed-up family.”

JONAH: “I’ll be in soon.”

He does not go in; instead, he goes for a walk. He returns home at dawn.

BACKGROUND

Thereafter, Jonah isolated himself. He became a person people overlooked. Surprisingly, he graduated with a bachelor’s degree in graphic design and earned a meager living creating album covers for his uncle. 

From Monday to Friday, Jonah would make himself a berry-mixed smoothie and some bacon before heading out to work; he’d return to his studio apartment at 6:00 p.m. in the gentrified part of town to read graphic novels. Dinners like all his other living necessities were pre-ordered and delivered to his doorstep on SingleMaleFoodDelivery.com.

But there were some adventurous soirées in which he would recap his day in his journal. The entries were brief.

On Sundays, he attended his mother’s family brunches. He always seated himself in the corner seat of the large dining room oak table squished against the wall, avoiding eye contact and conversation, causing his nephews and nieces to nickname him, “Wallpaper J.” His family hardly knew anything about him, and he hardly knew anything about them.

 

#

     STORY

Jonah’s mother does not recognize the phone number of the incoming call.

MOTHER: “Yes?”

JONAH: “Mother, can I bring Tasha over for brunch next week? It’s my 25^th birthday.”

MOTHER: “Who are you? Who is Tasha?”

JONAH: “It’s Jonah. Tasha is my girlfriend. I’ll come early. This will allow you to meet her before the rest of the Domb clan arrives.”

MOTHER: “These crank callers are enraging!”

She hangs up the phone.

BACKGROUND

Tasha was the new intern at his uncle’s company, and she suffered from panic disorder. Working on his melancholy slowly, she managed to lure Jonah to her weekly anxiety and depression support group. After the meetings, they would go for coffee next door to Sue’s Vegan Café. One night, Jonah walked her home and was invited in, leading to his third sexual experience.

 

#

STORY

Mother opens her bedroom window and removes the screen. She draws the curtains closer together and peeks outside. Once she sees Jonah turn the corner, she pulls the trigger, and he falls to the sidewalk.

MOTHER: “I just can’t stand that madman coming here . . . Who the hell is he?”

She closes the window and feels proud of herself for eliminating her pest.

BACKGROUND

The Domb’s nosy neighbor across the street, who had witnessed the scene called the police. Meanwhile, Tasha was buying flowers for Jonah’s mother a block away. She arrived at the house to witness her boyfriend being placed on a stretcher and taken away in an ambulance. She then passed out and another ambulance had to be called.

Jonah died on arrival at the hospital.

His father and brothers were the only relatives who attended Jonah’s funeral organized by his granny.

His mother and Tasha were both receiving psychiatric treatment at different kinds of facilities. The Domb’s neighbors also never made it to say their goodbyes to Jonah, who they had thought was the only “normal” in the family.

They were all busy speculating how and where his mother acquired her handgun.

And when they heard that his father was moving back into the house with his new young wife, they started gossiping about his aberrant values.

STORY

A local reporter learns about the story and shows up on the Domb’s lawn. She catches one of their neighbors, leaving to walk her dog.

REPORTER: “Can you tell us something about Jonah?”

Neighbor: “No comment.”