falling from the stars

ch 17.

"'Sup kid?" The sound of a lighter sparked.

Tre wasn't paying attention.

"Hey! I'm talkin to ya!"

Tre jolted and looked to his left. Sitting next to him was a scraggly older man, his blue jeans kind of tight and his cowboy boots worn in. He had longish white hair, kinda like a mullet, with a few whiskers on his chin. Tre guessed he was maybe in his late forties, early fifties, but he could tell he had a young spirit behind those bright blue eyes.

"H- hi? Who are you?" Tre squeaked out. You may not be able to tell by his outgoing and charismatic ways, but Tre was pretty shy in new situations.

"The name's Scott. How about you?" He took a drag off his cigarette.

Tre coughed from the smoke. He may smoke weed but cigarettes he did not. "Tre." He eyed the strange man. "Isn't there a no smoking rule on the train?"

Scott laughed. It was a cheerful laugh, one that could fill an entire room. "I ride this train every day. They've tried to get me to stop, but failed every time. They've given up."

"Why do you ride the train every day?" Tre was curious. He'd never met a man like Scott before.

"Ah. I don't have much to do during the day. You see, I'm a self made artist. I make oil pastel paintings of rock and roll legends for a living. When I'm not doing that, I go out for train rides and strolls. I people watch. Watch the way they move, they speak. It helps me with my art, to observe the world from afar. Oh, and I watch wild west movies with my cat, Butch." Another long inhale on the cigarette. "Want any?" He caught Tre watching him.

"Oh, no thanks. I'm more of a marijuana type of guy."

"Oh, me too! I call it Beatle Tobacco, because the Beatles would smoke it and get all those crazy ideas for their songs. It makes the world look better than it is and makes me have hope for the spread of peace and love on this earth. Do you love anyone, Tre?"

Do I love anyone? He wasn't sure. He had a tugging feeling toward Billie, but he didn't think anything of it. "No, I don't, sir."

"Please, call me Scott."

"Ok, Scott."

And with that Scott slipped into humming Give Peace a Chance by John Lennon, and Tre quietly hummed along with him. He tried to fall asleep, but that same question kept running through his mind.

Do I love anyone?

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