Misc.

boy stuck 2

With his brother completely focused on reading the piano music in front of him, it wasn't super hard for Alan to slip out the back porch and away from the house. It was still relatively early in the morning, so it wasn't boiling. 

Not yet.

He made his way across the neighborhood. It was another sunny day and the sky was absolutely vacant of any clouds. It made Alan feel small. Dogs barked in the distance and the infinite hum of traffic could be heard, constantly going. Alan loved this time of day. When it wasn't sickeningly hot, and everything was calm. People were still sleeping and no one had anywhere to go. Old people smoked on their front porches and the breeze carried through the air gently, and lilting. After a certain period of time, he found himself at the park. 

The park. What a weird place. 

Like something out of an apocalypse movie. The swing sets were squeaky and rusted, the play set sun bleached and covered in graffiti. And completely abandoned. 

Just the way Alan liked it. 

He climbed up onto the structure and pulled himself up above monkey bars. There, he could survey everything. Alan felt big up there. He lit a cigarette and smoked it silently, allowing the familiar haze to take over his mind. 

He felt suspended between reality and a fairy-tale. In the quiet of the abandoned play structure, it almost felt like if he had willed the ground to move and fly away, it would. Alan looked down and a wave of dizziness swept over him, the liminal ways of the atmosphere becoming overbearing and he got down. Crushing his smoke on the gravel he gathered his bearings and looked up. The wind died down and Alan kept walking, curious to see what else that peculiar morning had to offer. Down the shadier streets. The ones Oscar didn't like him going down, and the ones he himself didn't really like either. But it was morning and no one was about. The scent of weed got caught in the wind and he found the source when he turned the corner. His heart skipped a beat and he stumbled back.

"Jesus." he sighed, looking back at Flip, who was smoking nonchalantly.

"What up kid." the guy asked.

Flip was 21, a gifted kid burnout who got hooked on the wrong stuff when he was 13, and worse things by the time he was 16. He was a gay trans man, but if you outed him to anyone he would kick your ass, because those things had gotten his ass kicked in times prior. Generally though, he was a nice guy and would help you with your homework if you didn't whine, but around these parts you needed to be careful. Especially with what information you gave out to people. He was friends with Oscar, and by extent, Alan. 

"Nothing."

"For Christ's sake don't say that. It always pisses me off when people say that." 

"Say what."

" 'Nothin'. Well, clearly you're doing something. Everyone's always doing something.  You're talking to me. I'm smoking a joint, he's pissing on that tree."

"Wait, where." Alan turned his head grabbing his phone. Flip smacked him in the head.

"Don't do that. Sick piece of shit."

"Fine," he shoved his phone back into his pocket. After a moment of chewing on what Flip had given him he asked. "What do the dead do then, huh?"

"They rot, dumbass. Now what are you doing around here. Oscar texted me last night, said you got in trouble with the cops. Again. You shouldn't be out"

"Neither should you." 

"What the hell is that supposed to mean."

Alan looked Flip up and down. 

"Keep your smart mouth shut." he glowered, getting the joke. "For real though, why are you here. Your brother doesn't like you being around here."

"Relax, it's fine. He can text me if he gets worried. And I told you. I don't know. I got bored and I don't have anything to do so-"

"So you wandered."

" I mean..yeah. Can I?" he reached for the joint.

"Mm. Go nuts." Flip handed it over and Alan took a turn. 

The dog kept barking in the distance. 

"I'm going inside. It's gonna be real warm out here in a minute and I'm not sticking around. You're welcome to come in if you want." he said, opening the door. 

Hastily, Alan finished the joint and followed the older guy inside. There were blankets covering half of the windows and the place was kind of a mess but Flip couldn't care less. He was too tired to fix anything. In the kitchen, he took a dose of something that looked like very fine brown sugar.

"What's that." Alan asked, peering into the kitchen.

"Not for you. You're already messed up enough kid." Flip shoved the bag away. "You hungry? I think I got eggs or something in the fridge. You look. Make yourself something to eat. I'm gonna go clear the bedroom. Make yourself at home." he called behind him.

"Thanks." Alan said, taking a look inside the fridge. There wasn't much. Some juice, noodles that had been made and then put back, definitely expired, take-out that was old as well. Alan gave up and shut the fridge. 

"D'you find the eggs?" Flip called from the bedroom.

"You don't have any." Alan called back.

"Son of a bitch." Flip said. He came back out.

"It's fine. I'm not hungry anyways." 

"Sorry kid. Shit--"

"I'm just gonna go." Alan said.

"Yeah..ok."

"See you!" Alan said, leaving.

"Okay..bye!" 

---

Alan got back home twenty minutes later. Oscar was cleaning dishes.

"Hey. Where'd you go." 

"Out."

"Where."

"I don't know."

"Have you been smoking?" Oscar sniffed.

"It's not that big of a deal. I ran into Flip, don't worry, I'm not high."

Oscar grimaced slightly.

"How's he doing." 

"Good. I think. He's still alive so.." 

"Listen. Can I talk to you?"

"About what?"

"Moving. I've been saving up some money. Can you imagine? Packing up all our shit and leaving the state."

"Yeah...that..that would be great." 

"We could start over. You could finish school. I could probably get a job somewhere and go back to school too." Oscar smiled at the possibilities.

"Okay." Alan nodded, his mind suddenly going a million miles an hour. They couldn't leave. They just couldn't. He knew this place. 

"You'd wanna do that?"

Alan forced a smile.

"Yeah. I'd love it."