Convoluted (Book 1)

Chapter 11-Christopher

The past few days I've been in a deep depression. I called in at work and told them I needed some personal time. I haven't done that since Vanessa's last miscarriage. The room was dark. I wasn't eating, and I didn't see the point of living anymore, except for the discovery of the positive pregnancy test. I didn't know if it was old or new, but I put it on my list of things to find out. I was sitting on the couch doing my normal bum routine, when Fred walked through the door.

"Dude, have you been any where while I've been gone?" he asked as he placed a shopping bag on the counter.

I didn't bother to answer. He could tell from my appearance that I had let myself go.

"We're going out now!" he shouted.

"Where?"

"First stop, the barber shop."

My hair hadn't been this long since my college days.

In some ways I was envious of Fred. He didn't have a wife to bicker with. He was a bachelor with a nice apartment and the latest BMW. But, what I loved about him the most was the fact that he was humble and always willing to help the next person out.

After we both took a shower and threw on some clothes we were on our way to the barber shop.

"I appreciate you getting me out of the house," I said as we sped down Sunrise Boulevard.

"It's cool, I hate to see you like this."

"I know."

I was so down in the dumps that I didn't realize how beautiful it was outside. The sun was high in the sky and though it was hot, there was a nice breeze. In the distance I could see the high-rise buildings; we were getting closer to the beach.

"What are you going to do about Vanessa?" he asked.

"I'm not sure. I know I have to make this right with her and Kim."

"Why Kim? She ruined your marriage."

"I did that. She just let her emotions get the best of her and now she's in the hospital."

"Seems like she was out to get revenge."

"It's not like she knew where Vanessa worked. All she knew was that she was a nurse."

"How much did you all talk about?"

"Enough. We're actually pretty good friends. I guess it wasn't just about the sex."

From the day I met Kim I convinced myself that I could have sex with her and leave it at that. I wouldn't go far as to say that I had feelings for her, but I did care about her.

"We're here," he said as he backed up into a small parking spot.

The barber shop was near Fort Lauderdale beach. We had been coming here since we were teenagers. Every other weekend we would catch the city bus to the beach, get a haircut and try to get girls. People called us pretty boys and I can agree with them. We were always rocking the latest clothes and shoes, pursuing the most popular girls at school. I smiled reliving some of the memories.

The bell rung overhead as I pulled the door open.

"If it's isn't the pretty boys!" my barber John shouted out, "you all coming in here making us old men look bad!"