Have You Seen Luis Velez?

Raymond skips his study hall class to call on the next Luis on his list. He follows a young couple to their apartment and realizes the young man is a Luis. When Raymond explains what he is doing, the couple share a wary look. They invite Raymond into their apartment. They explain that this man, Luis M. Velez, read about the death of another Luis M. Velez several weeks ago. This Luis says: “It hit me like a baseball bat. Like I was reading my own obituary” (113). Luis explains that his namesake picked up a woman’s billfold off the street and tried to return it to her. She shot him six times. He tells Raymond that the deceased Luis was married with two children with a third on the way. The woman who shot him is facing criminal charges. Dismay seizes Raymond. He realizes he must share this news with Millie.

Raymond has deduced that the deceased Luis lived in the apartment he had visited twice before. He returns to it and writes a note to Isabel, Luis’s wife. As he stands before the apartment door, a neighbor steps into the hall to ask why he is there. When Raymond mentions Millie, the woman knows who she is.  The neighbor calls Isabel and says Raymond wants to speak to her. Isabel tells Raymond she wants to meet Millie and they agree to meet in front of the apartment building.

Isabel calls Raymond on his mother’s landline that evening. His mother assumes it is his new girlfriend, remarking to Ed that Raymond is clearly in love: “When he came home today he was just ruined. Just destroyed. I’ve never seen him look so down” (123).

Isabel and Raymond go to Millie’s door. Raymond introduces Isabel. Millie’s delight swiftly turns to despair when she realizes Luis must be gone. The three stand in silence, crying. Raymond realizes for the first time that he is not self-conscious, attributing it to no longer being self-focused.

Isabel and Millie discuss the way Raymond sought Luis, ultimately bringing Isabel to her door. He does not share the harrowing aspects of his search with them. Isabel tells Millie how much Luis loved her, especially appreciating how Millie holds no biases against anyone.

After Isabel leaves, Millie goes to bed, lying with her clothes on. Raymond voices concern about how she will deal with Luis’s death. Even though she is obviously distraught, Millie is circumspect enough to express pity for what the shooter must be feeling.

Raymond’s friend Andre Skypes him. Raymond cuts the calls short, not wanting to discuss trivial things while still feeling the emotional weight of the day. He realizes he is not the same person Andre knew.

On his way to school, Raymond lets himself into Millie’s apartment and finds her lying in bed, wearing the same clothes she wore the previous day. He prepares food for her. They debate whether or not Millie is going to eat. Raymond insists that she eat, saying, “people need food to live. And the food doesn’t care if you really wanted it or not. It nourishes you either way” (144). Raymond says that Millie is the only person who really sees him as he is. Millie responds:

I think it’s possible that what our eyes tell us is only a distraction. Not that I wouldn’t take them back if I could. […] But I also like the things I’ve learned to see without them. (145)

Raymond and Isabel email one another about their concerns for Millie. His mother persists in thinking he is writing a new girlfriend.

Raymond goes to his father’s apartment for his regular bi-monthly weekend stay. Neesha, his stepmother, says she has a book club meeting and tells him to order pizza for himself and his father. Malcolm, Raymond’s father, comes home several hours later from his dental practice. They watch TV and eat with minimal conversation.

Raymond and his father go to Sunday brunch at the restaurant where Raymond took Millie. His father asks about his new girlfriend. Raymond explains that Millie is 92 years old and that he has become her caretaker. Their conversation takes on a new depth that surprises Raymond. His father encourages Raymond to work on his relationship with his mother. Raymond orders another omelet to take to Millie.

Raymond discovers that Millie has not eaten and cajoles her into eating a portion of the omelet. They have a deep conversation in which Millie says that nothing in life is permanent. She voices appreciation for her long life, especially since longevity was denied to so many others she loved. She says: “People gripe about growing older—their aches and pains, how much harder everything is—as if they had forgotten that the alternative is dying young” (158).