Lucky

1

   
Monday.

    The universally most abhorred day of the week, and for good reason. Nothing particularly good ever seemed to happen on Mondays. You're coming down from a high that the freedom of the weekend gave you, only to be sucked back in to the dull repetitive pattern of daily life and responsibilities.

This is precisely why Mitchell Grassi wished he wasn't so horribly anxious. He wished he was dauntless enough to go out and quit his two jobs at the grocery store and the local coffee shop, as great as all the free lattes were. He wished he would just hike up his skirt and go do something he was passionate about. And what was it that Mitch was passionate about, you inquire? He was passionate about music. From a young age his parents found that he possessed a remarkable set of vocal chords. His little voice had rung out with surprising control and clarity that autumn day in 1995. He had been only three, oblivious to his father's gaze that was fixated curiously on him as he sat in front of his plastic toy. He had held the mock microphone in his chubby little hands and sang a simple nursery rhyme, and much to his father's surprise, was perfectly on key and kept with the rhythm. He grew up and matured, and with him, so did his voice. By the age of eight he performed solos for audiences that would applaud eagerly to his young and astonishingly beautiful voice, and his loving parents couldn't be prouder. He grew up doing musical theatre, and soon discovered (all thanks to a certain curly haired boy in his performance of Once On This Island) that he was taking a liking to boys as well as music. At the age of fifteen he told his parents, friends, and older sister Jessa that he was in fact, gay. He was lovingly accepted and supported and continued with his musical career, feeling safely sheltered in his little suburban home in Arlington, Texas.

But then he graduated, and became what could essentially be considered a modern American tragedy. A marvelous talent squandered from a lack of opportunity. His anxiety did a sufficient job of preventing him from leaving his hometown, so he and his childhood best friend (a small Latina girl by the name of Kirstin Maldonado) both decided to go to the nearby community college and stay rooted close to home.

But sometimes he did wonder, as everyone does. He wondered what would happen if he were to throw himself out there and try to find a steady career in performing. Wouldn't that just be something. Sometimes, if he truly begun to consider it, he would conclude that maybe contentment could find him in a quiet life. One where didn't feel so alone. Maybe, Mitch thought, he didn't have to be passionate about what he was doing, but just who he was doing it with.

    Nonetheless, fantasizing wouldn't change anything for the time being. He was still single, and still depended on the income he received from his two rather unfulfilling jobs to stay in school and pay his bills. He rolled out of bed with a small whine and shuffled burdensomely to his closet, pulling on a pair of jeans and a flannel and trying not to pay too much attention to his somewhat disappointing reflection. He brushed his teeth, fixed his hair, put on a little concealer under his eyes to hide the bags, and then headed out the door. He skipped breakfast.

    "Mitch! I think you're gonna like this, come here!" Kirstie was sat at their favorite table in the corner, the one that got the most sunlight at this time of day. Mitch couldn't help but let a smile reach his full lips when he saw her animated face as she waved him over excitedly, showing him her phone screen.

    The two of them had been friends since they met at the age of ten in a play at a local theatre camp, and were practically sisters. Kirstie was undeniably beautiful, with her sweet smile and clear tan skin, granted to her by her Latina roots. They had actually dated for sixth months when they were younger, before Mitch came out as gay. Her big, soulful, brown eyes were now squinted in excitement as she waited for him to get to the table for their annual morning coffee date together at Starbucks.