upset him, opened the door wider. “Come on, Enrique. That’s not it. I told you, I don’t drink.”
Enrique wanted to be angry, but the submissive manner in which the young man answered helped to remind him why he was there. He took a step back and changed his posture to a more relaxed position. With a deep breath he continued. “Look, Chance, I’m sorry, okay? I’ve been worried as hell about you today. Not only that, but Alyssa and Julie are both pissed at me for being an ass last night.”
Test exhaled deeply and relaxed his shoulders as he nodded his head. “Nah, I’m the one that was an ass. It wasn’t your fault.”
The conversation stopped for a moment and the two of them faced each other uncomfortably. Test, forgetting that he was standing in the open doorway wearing nothing but his boxers, slid bashfully back behind the door. His embarrassing discovery caused Enrique to laugh, breaking the tension of the moment.
“So do you think I can come in or what? It has to look bad…” said Enrique as he looked up and down the walkway, “…what with me standing here talking to you while you’re half naked and all.”
Test wanted to, but couldn’t find the humor in anything. He remained motionless in the doorway, staring at Enrique intently and thinking of the last twenty four hours events. He was already tired of explaining and answering questions.
“I really need to get some sleep, Enrique. Can we do this another time?” he asked with a tense jaw.
Enrique’s frustration immediately covered his face, but then manifested into a tight lipped smile.
“I’ll tell you about it at work tomorrow--that is if I still have a job?” asked Test.
“Of course you have a job,” answered Enrique promptly.
“Then please…just let me be right now?”
Test held out an open hand to Enrique as a gesture of forgiveness as well as thanks. Enrique took it and gripped tightly.
“Don’t be late,” said Enrique with firmness in his voice.
Unable to look him in the eye, Test replied. “I won’t.”
As Enrique turned and walked to his truck, Test backed into his room and closed the door. He walked to the curtains, peeked through them, and carefully watched as Enrique pulled away.
His head was pounding, and he could feel every muscle in his body burn and ache. With his adrenaline fading, the stiffness of his joints became more apparent. He gingerly moved to the bed and took a seat on its edge. The clock on the nightstand told him that it was five o’clock. Beside it, the message light on the phone was once again blinking. Test couldn’t believe that he had slept through the phone ringing next to his head, but it was apparent that he had. And then he remembered the dream.
Quickly, his pulse accelerated, and in the dim light of the room, he grew fearful. He had dreamt of the farm in Nebraska before, but the dreams had always been snap shots of the farm as he knew it when it was his safe haven. This dream had felt different. He remembered the man standing beside the truck; his eyes strangely familiar, as if he’d seen him before. And then his mind put it together. It was the same man that he had seen across the street waiving to him the morning before. For a moment he felt sick, almost to the degree of needing to vomit. Sweat began to bead up on his forehead as he took a series of deep breaths until the sensation passed.
“Damn,” he said aloud. “That was so real.”
Suddenly the phone rang, causing him to flinch harshly. He winced in pain as he climbed across the bed and reached for the phone.
“Hello?” he asked with his voice crackling, still shaking from the pain.
“Chance?”
The soft voice on the other end was immediately recognized as Alyssa’s.
“Hey, Alyssa. How’s it goin’?” asked Test in a regretful tone.
“I’m okay. How are you? You don’t sound so good.”
“Oh…I’m fine.” His voice strained as he sat up on the opposite side of the bed. “Hey, I owe you an
Enrique wanted to be angry, but the submissive manner in which the young man answered helped to remind him why he was there. He took a step back and changed his posture to a more relaxed position. With a deep breath he continued. “Look, Chance, I’m sorry, okay? I’ve been worried as hell about you today. Not only that, but Alyssa and Julie are both pissed at me for being an ass last night.”
Test exhaled deeply and relaxed his shoulders as he nodded his head. “Nah, I’m the one that was an ass. It wasn’t your fault.”
The conversation stopped for a moment and the two of them faced each other uncomfortably. Test, forgetting that he was standing in the open doorway wearing nothing but his boxers, slid bashfully back behind the door. His embarrassing discovery caused Enrique to laugh, breaking the tension of the moment.
“So do you think I can come in or what? It has to look bad…” said Enrique as he looked up and down the walkway, “…what with me standing here talking to you while you’re half naked and all.”
Test wanted to, but couldn’t find the humor in anything. He remained motionless in the doorway, staring at Enrique intently and thinking of the last twenty four hours events. He was already tired of explaining and answering questions.
“I really need to get some sleep, Enrique. Can we do this another time?” he asked with a tense jaw.
Enrique’s frustration immediately covered his face, but then manifested into a tight lipped smile.
“I’ll tell you about it at work tomorrow--that is if I still have a job?” asked Test.
“Of course you have a job,” answered Enrique promptly.
“Then please…just let me be right now?”
Test held out an open hand to Enrique as a gesture of forgiveness as well as thanks. Enrique took it and gripped tightly.
“Don’t be late,” said Enrique with firmness in his voice.
Unable to look him in the eye, Test replied. “I won’t.”
As Enrique turned and walked to his truck, Test backed into his room and closed the door. He walked to the curtains, peeked through them, and carefully watched as Enrique pulled away.
His head was pounding, and he could feel every muscle in his body burn and ache. With his adrenaline fading, the stiffness of his joints became more apparent. He gingerly moved to the bed and took a seat on its edge. The clock on the nightstand told him that it was five o’clock. Beside it, the message light on the phone was once again blinking. Test couldn’t believe that he had slept through the phone ringing next to his head, but it was apparent that he had. And then he remembered the dream.
Quickly, his pulse accelerated, and in the dim light of the room, he grew fearful. He had dreamt of the farm in Nebraska before, but the dreams had always been snap shots of the farm as he knew it when it was his safe haven. This dream had felt different. He remembered the man standing beside the truck; his eyes strangely familiar, as if he’d seen him before. And then his mind put it together. It was the same man that he had seen across the street waiving to him the morning before. For a moment he felt sick, almost to the degree of needing to vomit. Sweat began to bead up on his forehead as he took a series of deep breaths until the sensation passed.
“Damn,” he said aloud. “That was so real.”
Suddenly the phone rang, causing him to flinch harshly. He winced in pain as he climbed across the bed and reached for the phone.
“Hello?” he asked with his voice crackling, still shaking from the pain.
“Chance?”
The soft voice on the other end was immediately recognized as Alyssa’s.
“Hey, Alyssa. How’s it goin’?” asked Test in a regretful tone.
“I’m okay. How are you? You don’t sound so good.”
“Oh…I’m fine.” His voice strained as he sat up on the opposite side of the bed. “Hey, I owe you an
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