HE SMILED

He was singing in the subway as we approached. I put my hand in my back pocket felt for change and took out what was there and looked at the coins in the palm of my hand.
He had an inflatable toy resting on a soft toy just in front of him. There was a dark cloth to one side had a few coins.
We stopped and I said, ‘You mind if I give you change?’ meaning more coppers than pieces of silver.
He sang, ‘I saw you dancing in the moonlight…’
‘Did you?’ I said and he laughed but only stopped singing to say, ‘Thank you,’ when I dropped the coins onto the cloth then walked on into town.
After lunch in café Amore on our way into Broadmead I said, ‘They treat the customer right, he’s trained them well, is part of why I like eating there, that and a panini is about enough this time of day.’ Then I told the story of buying the NC10…and she said she knew what I meant.
‘It’s him again,’ she said, pointing to where the buskers play outside Tesco.
‘Oh yes,’ I said and looked away when I caught his eye and he smiled. I thought he recognised me from earlier and was embarrassed that I wanted him too. ‘You think he recognised us from earlier?’ I said.
‘Yes, I think he did,’ she said, ‘he smiled.’