Michelle sat on the bed as Steve did his usual pissed off ramblings that extended into a myriad of swear words and attempts at insults that were just offensive at best. Michelle had learned early on to just sit quietly and let Steve carry on with his antics lest she be in the line of fire unto which Steve had infinite artillery. Today, or rather tonight, Steve was upset about them being at a hotel in city or a town that wasn't their own.
"We're leaving the business up to some knuckleheads over at the office because you want for the both of us to go play 'divine intervention' with your estranged brother." Steve rambled. Michelle corrected him.
"We're not estranged. We're very close as you can obviously tell. And second, divine intervention? Steve, my brother is going through hell right now. Alright? And the least I can do is help provide a candle for him. So what if the company misses us for a few days. Fuck it, even for a few weeks? As long as my brother can come out of this alive, that is all I care about." Michelle said to him. Steve looked at her dumbfounded.
"A few weeks?! Goddamn, Michelle! If you're really wrapped up in this God awful fantasy, then no wonder your brother is acting this way. If I was your father, I'd drop dead too." Steve said. Michelle slapped him on the face angrily.
"Don't you ever talk about my father that way, you hear me!" Michelle said in rage. Steve reacted in pain.
"Bitch!" Steve replied on the verge of tears. Michelle rolled her eyes and sighed.
"I'm going." She said as she put her jacket on and headed out the door.
"Where are you going?" Steve asked.
"Fuck you, that's where." She said and she closed the door. She put her earbuds in and played Holding Out For A Hero by Frou Frou as she lit up a cigarette and smoked.
She walked to the steps and sat down as she looked up at the stars. She remembered the childhood memory of her and James looking up at the stars on the trampoline. She smiled at this memory.
"Are you okay?" A voice asked. She turned around and saw an older gentleman looking at her.
"Me? Yeah, I'm fine. Just sitting out here listening to some music." She said to him. He nodded.
"I thought I heard a commotion. A fight, if you will." The man said. Michelle sighed and silently laughed at that.
"Yeah, me and my husband are just...see my brother's wife recently-" the man cut her off.
"That's none of my business. If he gives you any trouble, just holler for Clarence. I'll be there." The man said. Michelle smiled at that.
"Thanks, I certainly will." She said and she looked at the sky. "It looks like it's moving, doesn't it?" The old man looked at her in confusion.
"What's that?" He asked her. Michelle answered him.
"The sky. The stars. As my father used to call it...the empyrean." She said. The old man took a gander at the sky and smiled.
"Goodnight....uh..." The old man said. Michelle blushed.
"Michelle." She said.
"Clarence." The old man said.
"Goodnight Clarence." Michelle said with a smile. Clarence walked back to his room and Michelle put her earbud back in and finished her cigarette to one more song, If Only by Hoobastank.
She then went inside her hotel room. Her and Steve made amends and ended their night off with some evening sex.
~
James woke up to the sound of a distant dog barking. James laid there, staring at the ceiling, and reflecting on the circumstances of his situation. He then got up and took a shower, got dressed, packed his clothes, and made it out the door.
He walked to his car and got in. He turned on the car and the radio played Lights by Ellie Goulding. He was about to start driving when he suddenly stopped and listened to the song with tears in his eyes. It was there that he found out that he actually liked the song.
He looked over at the passenger seat and for a split second he could see Eileen swaying to the song with a smile on her face. James sat there and let the song play out.
"Thanks, Eileen." He said and he wiped the tears from his face. Suddenly, Tik Tok by Ke$ha started to play on the radio.
"Nope." He said and he changed the station to his normal one and drove off as Red's Gravity Lies played.
~
As he drove, he called his mother on the phone to let her know he was on his way.
"Hey mom, it's James. I'm just letting you know that I'm on the way." He told her. She was happy to hear that.
"Well, I'm glad to hear it." She said to him.
"Mom, thank you for last night. I was in a dark place and you shined a light. And I'm very thankful for that." James said.
His mom smiled though he didn't see it. The two said their goodbyes and he hung up the phone and paid attention to the road as No Destination by Hoobastank played.
He had a ways to go but he was ready for the drive. Ready as ever for the drive.
YOU ARE READING
The Things That Will Be
Teen Fiction"If there's no struggle, there's no progress." - Frederick Douglass When a young couple expect a newborn, they are unaware of what the future holds when one of them slips into a coma and the baby becomes a sti...
