drive away from them, anyway.
*****
Â
Chapter 9
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Billy lived in Barton, a rural area bordering Highland Township, the Confluence suburb in which Dave lived. The sprawl of fast - food restaurants and shopping centers and housing developments which blanketed Highland hadn ' t yet enveloped Barton, had only nicked it. Barton was still girdled with forests and rolling farmland, only interrupted occasionally by clusters of houses and trailers. Billy Bristol inhabited one such trailer, a metal box in a roadside clearing surrounded by woods.
The site wasn ' t far from Ernie Dumbrowski ' s home; in fact, Billy lived less than a mile up the road from Ernie. Originally, Billy had lived with his family in a house on the other side of Barton; in his junior year of high school, though, his father, an insurance salesman, had been transferred to Pittsburgh, and the whole family had gone with him...except Billy. Unwilling to leave all his friends and girlfriends behind, Billy had chosen to stay in Barton and had convinced his parents to go without him. A friend of his mother had agreed to rent him the trailer for a very small fee, and Billy had lived there ever since. With his wages from the Wild West Steakhouse, and occasional contributions from his parents, he'd gotten along just fine on his own. Though the trailer was old and rather shabby, he seemed to like it, if for no other reason than that it was his very own personal bachelor pad.
Glad to have escaped his feuding family, Dave Heinrich guided his brown Ford Torino up the short gravel drive to Billy ' s trailer. Lights glowed in the trailer ' s windows, and the silver Honda at the end of the drive also signaled that Billy was home. Since there were no other vehicles around, Billy was probably alone.
Parking behind the Honda, Dave plucked his knapsack from the floor and rose from the Torino. It was a cold night, cold enough for him to see the fog of his breath as he strolled to the trailer ' s front door, cold enough to let him know that Spring wouldn ' t arrive any time soon. At least it was clear and the moon was bright enough to cast up warning gleams from the patches of ice on the sidewalk.
Dave boosted himself up the set of cinder blocks which served as steps to the front stoop, a square slab of concrete atop more blocks. Knocking twice on the door, he immediately heard footsteps approaching from inside the trailer.
In a flash, the door sprang open and Billy appeared, dressed in his Wild West uniform. As always, he sported the patented Bristol grin, that easy - going, friendly smile with a stream of mirth and mischief glittering just beneath the surface.
" Hey ! " chirped Billy, his grin widening at the sight of his pal. " Davey - boy! What ' s up, man? "
" Not much, " said Dave. " What ' re you up to? "
" Just hangin ' out, havin ' a couple beers. What brings you out this way? "
" Aw, my family ' s going at it again, " sighed Dave. " I needed to do some studying, and I needed some peace and quiet, so I thought I ' d drop in. "
" Peace and quiet ? " laughed Billy. " Here? "
" Well, " grinned Dave, " I figured maybe we could hash out some of this stuff together, you know? I mean, we both have tests coming up, so it wouldn ' t hurt to do some studying tonight. "
" Hey, good plan, " nodded Billy. " I was gonna ' do some studying tonight, anyway. We ' ll have to hit the books later, though, ' cause I ' ve got company. "
" Oh, really ? " said Dave, disappointment shading his voice. " I ' m sorry. I should ' ve called first. I was just in too much of a hurry to get out of the house. "
" No problem, " Billy said blithely, dismissing Dave ' s apology with a wave of his wiry hand. " It ' s no big deal. "
Turning, Dave started for his car. " I ' m sorry about this. I ' ll just call you later and maybe stop back then. "
" No no, " said Billy, slipping to one side of the doorway and gesturing for Dave to enter. " Come on in, man. It ' s okay. "
" I can come back
*****
Â
Chapter 9
Â
Billy lived in Barton, a rural area bordering Highland Township, the Confluence suburb in which Dave lived. The sprawl of fast - food restaurants and shopping centers and housing developments which blanketed Highland hadn ' t yet enveloped Barton, had only nicked it. Barton was still girdled with forests and rolling farmland, only interrupted occasionally by clusters of houses and trailers. Billy Bristol inhabited one such trailer, a metal box in a roadside clearing surrounded by woods.
The site wasn ' t far from Ernie Dumbrowski ' s home; in fact, Billy lived less than a mile up the road from Ernie. Originally, Billy had lived with his family in a house on the other side of Barton; in his junior year of high school, though, his father, an insurance salesman, had been transferred to Pittsburgh, and the whole family had gone with him...except Billy. Unwilling to leave all his friends and girlfriends behind, Billy had chosen to stay in Barton and had convinced his parents to go without him. A friend of his mother had agreed to rent him the trailer for a very small fee, and Billy had lived there ever since. With his wages from the Wild West Steakhouse, and occasional contributions from his parents, he'd gotten along just fine on his own. Though the trailer was old and rather shabby, he seemed to like it, if for no other reason than that it was his very own personal bachelor pad.
Glad to have escaped his feuding family, Dave Heinrich guided his brown Ford Torino up the short gravel drive to Billy ' s trailer. Lights glowed in the trailer ' s windows, and the silver Honda at the end of the drive also signaled that Billy was home. Since there were no other vehicles around, Billy was probably alone.
Parking behind the Honda, Dave plucked his knapsack from the floor and rose from the Torino. It was a cold night, cold enough for him to see the fog of his breath as he strolled to the trailer ' s front door, cold enough to let him know that Spring wouldn ' t arrive any time soon. At least it was clear and the moon was bright enough to cast up warning gleams from the patches of ice on the sidewalk.
Dave boosted himself up the set of cinder blocks which served as steps to the front stoop, a square slab of concrete atop more blocks. Knocking twice on the door, he immediately heard footsteps approaching from inside the trailer.
In a flash, the door sprang open and Billy appeared, dressed in his Wild West uniform. As always, he sported the patented Bristol grin, that easy - going, friendly smile with a stream of mirth and mischief glittering just beneath the surface.
" Hey ! " chirped Billy, his grin widening at the sight of his pal. " Davey - boy! What ' s up, man? "
" Not much, " said Dave. " What ' re you up to? "
" Just hangin ' out, havin ' a couple beers. What brings you out this way? "
" Aw, my family ' s going at it again, " sighed Dave. " I needed to do some studying, and I needed some peace and quiet, so I thought I ' d drop in. "
" Peace and quiet ? " laughed Billy. " Here? "
" Well, " grinned Dave, " I figured maybe we could hash out some of this stuff together, you know? I mean, we both have tests coming up, so it wouldn ' t hurt to do some studying tonight. "
" Hey, good plan, " nodded Billy. " I was gonna ' do some studying tonight, anyway. We ' ll have to hit the books later, though, ' cause I ' ve got company. "
" Oh, really ? " said Dave, disappointment shading his voice. " I ' m sorry. I should ' ve called first. I was just in too much of a hurry to get out of the house. "
" No problem, " Billy said blithely, dismissing Dave ' s apology with a wave of his wiry hand. " It ' s no big deal. "
Turning, Dave started for his car. " I ' m sorry about this. I ' ll just call you later and maybe stop back then. "
" No no, " said Billy, slipping to one side of the doorway and gesturing for Dave to enter. " Come on in, man. It ' s okay. "
" I can come back
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