He lay in bed, letting his thoughts drift. The sun was on its way up, and that weird illumination shone in around the curtains. Images flashed through his mind, and he thought he might have had a crazy dream... but he couldn't quite bring it to the surface. The book he'd been reading lay next to him on a pillow. He picked it up, glanced at its cover, and dropped it to the floor. Maybe if he concentrated, he could fall back asleep, and stay in bed forever....

His door opened, his light flashed on and his blankets were yanked away. As he shivered and squinted, he saw two domineering figures standing over him. "Come on, Tyler," his mom said. "It's time to go."

But I'm so tired and the ceiling is so interesting to look at. 

So he rubbed his eyes and asked, "Do we have to go right now?" 

She stood with her arms crossed over her chest, and his dad stood behind her, like in case she needed backup. "Yeah, I want to," she said. "You can finish sleeping in the car." And they left the room. 

So he got out of bed and went to take a whiz. When he left the bathroom he re-crossed the hall to find his duffle bag unzipped on his bed, and his mom rushing back and forth to his closet, stuffing everything he owned inside. He watched her for a minute, and then scratched his face and said, "I really can do that myself."

She pulled a t-shirt off a hanger and folded it into a square. "Well, I told you to do it last night...."

If I'd known you were going to be such a maniacal dictator about leaving at six in the morning then maybe I would have. 

"Just go get ready," she said. "Take a shower and get ready."

So he wove around her and grabbed some clothes, and got a towel from the closet in the hall. The bathroom door was open, and he caught a glimpse of himself in its mirror. He wore nothing but those gray sweatpants he'd cut off at the knees, and as the light hit his pecs, he turned to flex his muscles. You don't get a body like this overnight.... He had, however, been born with the genes that gave him a hairless chest but little blond curls all over his stomach. His dad stood at the end of the hall, so without glancing away from the mirror he asked, "Do you think there's a gym in Poplar Bluff?"

"I don't know, Tyler. Just stop admiring yourself and go get ready."

Mm-kay. 

After he showered he got dressed, and made himself presentable. Leaving his towel and dirty sweatpants on the bathroom floor, he went back to his room to find his dad waiting nervously while his mom zipped up his bag. He grabbed his hearing aid from the top of his dresser, stuck it in and adjusted the volume. Glancing around his room, he realized, "I need to stop by Jake's house."

His mom was silent for a minute, and then said, "I thought he broke things off with you."

"Yeah, he did, but I think he has some of my stuff." 

"Oh." She lifted his bag off the bed, and his dad took it and left the room. 

So he went to the kitchen to shove some food into his face. He thought he'd left his phone on the counter, but it wasn't there, and it wasn't on top of the fridge. He threw his orange peels in the trash and found it in the living room, above the fireplace, rather poetically stuck between his senior portrait and his very own copies of those papers he'd had to fill out in court. The screen was black and the phone was dead, so he found a cord and plugged it in. Flopping sideways onto the couch, he lay back and closed his eyes....

Just as he was drifting off into dreamland, a hand on his ankle jarred him out of his sleep. His mom stood beside him, with her purse on her shoulder and her sunglasses perched on her head. "Come on," she said. "Dad's out in the car...."

"I'm waiting for my phone."

She started to say something, but then slumped against a chair and gave up.

Patience is a virtue. 

A little while later he got off the couch and wrenched the device from the wall. He looked at his screen to find no messages, no missed calls.... His mom opened the door, and the heat of the summer day blazed into the room. He followed her out to the porch and, as if to punctuate the entire situation, she reached around and locked the door behind him. 

The car idled in the driveway, and his dad sat behind the wheel, doing his best to preserve the patriarchal structure of society. Tyler crossed the yard and got into the back seat, and his mom sat in the front. They each slammed their doors, and the car backed into the street. 

************

"Do you know where Jake lives?"

As they reached the corner stop sign, they turned onto a busy road, and morning traffic surrounded them. His dad glanced at his mom, as if to silently ask what to do. She ran her fingers through her hair, contemplated the idea, and then said, "As long as he's only going to stay for a minute...." She turned her head. "Are you only going to stay for a minute?" 

"Uh-huh." 

She pointed. "When we get up to Midland, turn left."

They got to Midland and turned. When they reached a rather ramshackle block of apartments, Tyler directed his father across two lanes of traffic to the parking lot. "Just stop here," he said, and unclicked his seat belt. His dad drove a few feet more, and then hit the brakes. Tyler got out of the car, slamming his door behind him. 

He wove between a couple of cars and walked up a concrete path. Entering a tiny courtyard, he made his way around a crumbling fountain. When he got to Jake's door, he stopped where he was and rapped on the wood. The scent of coffee was in the air, and the sound of the morning news penetrated the thin brick wall. 

Across the grass, a woman emerged from her apartment, accompanied by a few little kids. They followed the path around the building and out of sight. Tyler turned and knocked again, and Jake's door flew open. His former boyfriend stood before him, looking all sultry in a suit and tie. He saw Tyler and froze, one hand gripping the wooden frame. 

"What do you want?" 

Tyler smiled. "Did I leave my jacket here?" 

Jake's arm relaxed, and he stepped to one side. "Yeah," he said. "It's in the bedroom. But hurry up, I have to leave." 

Tyler moved around him and walked through the kitchenette. The living room contained two bargain-store chairs, a homemade cardboard shelving system... and the biggest, most expensive TV Best Buy had ever sold. He stepped into the next doorway and looked at the unmade bed. Every cell of his being remembered the sensations of Jake's body on his. His muscles flexed, and he could almost re-feel the polyester sheets twisting beneath his back. God, he really was going to miss him.... His fake-leather bomber jacket was draped over a chair. He grabbed it, folded it over one arm, and left the room. 

Back in the living room, he examined a towering stack of CDs. Might as well take something to listen to in the car.... Janis Joplin's greatest hits and a live Jimi Hendrix album sat on top, so he picked them up and tucked them into his arm. And the Beatles.... He flipped through their entire catalog, as Jake stood in the doorway, waiting impatiently. 

"I thought you were headed down South."

"Yeah, I am," Tyler said. "I'm leaving...." His gaze moved across the shelves, and landed on an Albert Einstein figurine. "I think that's mine too, isn't it?" He picked it up, and also grabbed a scented candle, while Jake's expression changed from annoyed to tolerant to bored. 

Tyler crossed the room, and Jake followed him to the door. They stood in a sunbeam, and Tyler turned to have one last look at his brown eyes and scruffy beard. "Come here," he whispered. He grabbed Jake's tie, and pulled him close. "This is the last time you're ever gonna see this cute face."

Jake froze, looking into his eyes. Then he grabbed the back of his neck, leaned forward and kissed him, very rough and for a very long time. When it finally came to an end, Jake let go and looked away. "Get out of here," he said. 

Tyler turned and left. 

He went back to the car, opened the door and threw his stuff into the back seat. He sat down and snuggled into a corner. The car pulled out of the parking lot, and they were on their way.