Tord X Tom

Chapter Six

Tord stood out in the dark near a coffee shop, waiting for someone to pick him up and take him somewhere. A handsome man walks out of the shop and looks at him before getting into his car. The man drives by Tord but stops when a simi-truck goes by, he backs-up and rolls down the window, "In case you hadn't figured, it's Christmas Eve. You're never gonna get a cab here." Tord smiled to himself, "Thanks."

"You got somewhere you need to go?" He asked him. Tord sighed, "I'm not sure." The man sighed angrily, "Well, let me ask you that again. This time, look around and consider your options. Have you got somewhere you need to go?" Tord nodded, "Yeah, I do."

"Well, great. Get in." The man to a drink from a flask, "So where can I take you?" The man asked him. Tord chuckled, "I don't know." The man sighed in agitation, "What do you mean, you don't know?"

"I don't know." They got to the man's house and he kept calling shelters, seeing if he could get Tord a place to stay for the night, "Okay. Well, there must be another shelter I can call. Yeah, well, thanks a lot. Merry Christmas to you too. Great. That was our last option. What am I gonna do with you?"

"Nothing. I'll... Listen, thanks for bringing me this far." Tord got up, sighing. The man looked up at Tord, "Where are you going? You'll freeze out there. You don't even have a coat."

"I'll manage."

"No, you won't. You'll die of cold, and then I'll have to feel guilty. And I've already got more guilt than I know what to do with," The guy got up and started to walk into the kitchen, "You want a drink?"

"No, I'm okay." A glass gets dropped and shatters on the floor, "Shit!" Tord had a quick flashback of war.

"Hey? You okay?" Tord held his head and looked up at the man, "...Yeah. I'm fine." The man sighed lightly, "...You know what? It's Christmas Eve and... And I have a couch, so you can stay on it. I'm gonna go take a shower. Fix yourself something to eat if you're hungry or anything. There's nothing to steal, but don't be a jerk and take something anyway."

"No. I wouldn't." Tord explained. "My name is Tord." The man shouted as he walked into the bathroom, closing the door, "No. Let's not do the name thing, because it's... I don't wanna meet you. I may wanna help you tonight, but I don't wanna know you, really." Tord sighed, "Okay..."