exasperation. “See?” He looked Sparks in the eyes. “You’re a parasite looking to feed on my misery.”
“You got part of it right.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“You’re right that I chose you because I think you’re miserable.”
Ollie shook his head and looked back toward Anne: the object of all his affections, the One Thing he couldn’t have. Every second he stared kept the bubbles of pain boiling inside him, but every moment also brought him closer to letting go.
Sparks reached out and touched his shoulder. “Hey,” he said. “I know it’s tough to understand it. It’s just a little more complicated than we have time for right now.”
Ollie rolled his eyes.
“I promise I’ll give you all the details you can stand tonight,” Sparks said. “I just don’t think you want to know right now. At least not until you’re done staring at… at somebody else’s girl.”
Ollie’s eyes became moist. He’s right, was all he could think, and that hurt him deeply. He had come here to have a conversation with Anne, beg and plead and argue with her, try to get her back. But that wasn’t happening. Somewhere between a minute and an hour later, Ollie quietly turned the key and pulled out of the parking spot.
He looked over at Sparks, expecting to see him grinning again. But he wasn’t.
***
Ollie was relieved to find the main room of Tall House unoccupied by any of his roommates, even though it was now well past midnight. He and Sparks trudged up the stairs to his room.
Ollie sat on the edge of his bed, resting his face in his hands.
“Would you like me to wait somewhere or do you want to talk right now?” Sparks asked.
Ollie collapsed onto his back. He knew Sparks already knew his answer, but he appreciated the courtesy anyway. “Where do I go from here?” He looked blankly up at the ceiling. His voice box sounded like it hadn’t been used in years.
“That’s gonna be completely up to you.”
“Can’t you just tell me what I want? I mean, you already know what I want, don’t you?”
“Yeah, sort of. But it doesn’t work that way. I know what you’re going to want, but since you don’t know that yet, well… You need to decide for yourself. Nobody can do that for you. I’ll just be here to help you get going once you know.”
“Can’t you at least tell me when? I feel stuck.”
“Don’t worry. You’ll know tonight what you want. You just need some time, is all.”
Ollie wanted nothing more than to push Sparks out the door so he could begin thinking right then and there. Every second he sat with the parking brake on his life was a moment of pain he could avoid. Still, he felt like he needed some answers first. He sat up. “So. Is this the part where you finally tell me who you really are? What’s your story?”
“Yeah, fair enough,” Sparks said, taking a seat on the cluttered floor. “I can tell you now. Should I make some popcorn or something first, though? Maybe get you your snuggly blanket? Go find Mister Floppy?”
“My mom told me not to bring it to college. Just tell the story, Bomber.”
“Okay, here goes.” He adjusted his position on the floor a little. “When I was a kid, I was just ordinary.”
As Ollie listened, he felt like something important was about to happen in his life, that some small change was about to break it open, but there was no way of knowing for sure.
Sparks went on. “Nothing special or different about me at all. When I was fourteen years old, a friend of the family let me start working at their dairy farm to earn a little bit of money in the summer. I used my earnings to buy my first iPod.
“Even though my mom always told me not to wear it when I rode my bike, I didn’t listen to her. Well, I didn’t hear the car coming from behind. I never bothered to look for cars because there never were any out there. I mean, the dairy was in the middle of nowhere.”
“I suppose that explains your limp?”
“Yeah. I
“You got part of it right.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“You’re right that I chose you because I think you’re miserable.”
Ollie shook his head and looked back toward Anne: the object of all his affections, the One Thing he couldn’t have. Every second he stared kept the bubbles of pain boiling inside him, but every moment also brought him closer to letting go.
Sparks reached out and touched his shoulder. “Hey,” he said. “I know it’s tough to understand it. It’s just a little more complicated than we have time for right now.”
Ollie rolled his eyes.
“I promise I’ll give you all the details you can stand tonight,” Sparks said. “I just don’t think you want to know right now. At least not until you’re done staring at… at somebody else’s girl.”
Ollie’s eyes became moist. He’s right, was all he could think, and that hurt him deeply. He had come here to have a conversation with Anne, beg and plead and argue with her, try to get her back. But that wasn’t happening. Somewhere between a minute and an hour later, Ollie quietly turned the key and pulled out of the parking spot.
He looked over at Sparks, expecting to see him grinning again. But he wasn’t.
***
Ollie was relieved to find the main room of Tall House unoccupied by any of his roommates, even though it was now well past midnight. He and Sparks trudged up the stairs to his room.
Ollie sat on the edge of his bed, resting his face in his hands.
“Would you like me to wait somewhere or do you want to talk right now?” Sparks asked.
Ollie collapsed onto his back. He knew Sparks already knew his answer, but he appreciated the courtesy anyway. “Where do I go from here?” He looked blankly up at the ceiling. His voice box sounded like it hadn’t been used in years.
“That’s gonna be completely up to you.”
“Can’t you just tell me what I want? I mean, you already know what I want, don’t you?”
“Yeah, sort of. But it doesn’t work that way. I know what you’re going to want, but since you don’t know that yet, well… You need to decide for yourself. Nobody can do that for you. I’ll just be here to help you get going once you know.”
“Can’t you at least tell me when? I feel stuck.”
“Don’t worry. You’ll know tonight what you want. You just need some time, is all.”
Ollie wanted nothing more than to push Sparks out the door so he could begin thinking right then and there. Every second he sat with the parking brake on his life was a moment of pain he could avoid. Still, he felt like he needed some answers first. He sat up. “So. Is this the part where you finally tell me who you really are? What’s your story?”
“Yeah, fair enough,” Sparks said, taking a seat on the cluttered floor. “I can tell you now. Should I make some popcorn or something first, though? Maybe get you your snuggly blanket? Go find Mister Floppy?”
“My mom told me not to bring it to college. Just tell the story, Bomber.”
“Okay, here goes.” He adjusted his position on the floor a little. “When I was a kid, I was just ordinary.”
As Ollie listened, he felt like something important was about to happen in his life, that some small change was about to break it open, but there was no way of knowing for sure.
Sparks went on. “Nothing special or different about me at all. When I was fourteen years old, a friend of the family let me start working at their dairy farm to earn a little bit of money in the summer. I used my earnings to buy my first iPod.
“Even though my mom always told me not to wear it when I rode my bike, I didn’t listen to her. Well, I didn’t hear the car coming from behind. I never bothered to look for cars because there never were any out there. I mean, the dairy was in the middle of nowhere.”
“I suppose that explains your limp?”
“Yeah. I
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