Home [Shawn Hunter]

the road not taken

"It's funny Mr. Turner, this one usually handles the yipping in my class." Mr. Feeny says as he walks into Mr. Turner's english class; the boys loudly sleeping through our poem analyzing assignment read-a-loud. "Dude, wake up it's both of them." Cory says, sleepily waking up Shawn. "Oh man now I don't know who's class I slept through." Shawn says. "Mine Hunter!" Mr. Turner says, "Remember the road not taken?" He reminds them of the poem. "A remarkable poem in which the poet tells us that we make choices in life and each choice puts us on a new road, that can have a profound effect on our destinies." Feeny speaks. "How does a poem about a guy on two roads have anything to do with our lives when most of us can't even drive yet?" Shawn asks, Feeny pats his shoulder, "Isn't he fun?" Feeny asks Turner, "I like to think of him as job security." Turner jokes, "We should be asking Cass that one." He teases. "Mr. Matthews, what was your last choice in your life?" Feeny asks Cory. "I scored a job down at Pauley's for Christmas break. I'm a gopher." "Yeah you are." I mutter and Turner gently hits my head with a couple of loose leaf papers. "And I got me this soft, cushy union job down at the docks." Shawn says and I turn to look at him, "I can finally buy people nice Christmas gifts this year." He says, looking at me with shame in his eyes.

No way he just outed his job to the class before me.

"Alright I want you all to keep a journal of the choices you make over the next week then I want you to write a paper on the potential of those choices to change your life." Turner explains. "But Mr. Turner what if my choice is to not do the assignment?" Shawn asks. "You got this one, George?" "No, no it's your class, I get them after lunch." Feeny throws his hands up in surrender, "Cass it's getting passed to you." I shrug, "Wouldn't be the first bad choice he's made this past month." I snark "Well, Hunter you'd get an F, not get into college, hang around your local corner store waiting for them to drop the next batch of lottery tickets." Turner explains, "That would change my life how?" Shawn asks. I roll my eyes and rub my temples. "You're stressing us out here." Turner says before the bell interrupts his lecture. 

"Why are you mad at me? I told you my job." Shawn asks, following me to lunch, "No, you told the entire english class your job, not me." I answer, continuing my walk to the cafeteria. "I'm sorry." "Write that one down in your choices journal." I say, slamming my stuff down and sitting at a table. "You want an apple?" Shawn asks me, I slightly turn my body away from him, "Write that one in yours." He huffs and walks to the lunch line. 

++

"Cass." Shawn says, opening my window at 8:30 in the morning, dressed in all black head to toe bundled up. "Shawn you're pale." I say, getting up to help him in as he is struggling, "And freezing." I say, grabbing him a blanket. "Not easy being at the docks at three in the morning, do you know how cold it is as three in the morning, Cass?" He asks, shivering. "Fortunately I don't." I say and he almost glares at me. "This wasn't the first job, Cass." He confesses, sitting in my bed. "Then what was? What couldn't you tell me?" I ask, sitting in my chair across from my bed. "Cass, I was working for some really really powerful people." He starts, "Like business owners?" I ask, "Kinda." There's a pause. "I was working for the MOB." He blurts out, "What?" I chuckle thinking he's joking; his dead serious stare shuts me up quickly. "No, Shawny. No you didn't." I say and he nods, dissapointedly. "They're slinging cash and enough cash I can actually do something with my life." He rambles. "Shawn you can do something with your life if you go to school not work for the MOB who could kill you at anytime." I am on the verge of raising my voice. "Cass, I tried to work at the docks to make real, safe money but I can't do this." He says, showing me his purple and red hands. I grab them in my warm hands, massaging them lightly. "Shawny, you don't need a job right now." I say. "You deserve better and that's what I'm trying to do." Shawn defends his points. "Shawn, I love you." "Cass-" "Shawn, I love you." I repeat and there's a pause before he falls into me, quietly sobbing.