The Next Day
(May 1985)
The clouds were real low in the sky. Ennis stared at them, standing outside of his trailer. He looked for the silver lining but he couldn’t see them today.
Cassie was always talking about seeing the silver lining. Ennis had begun trying, but he just couldn’t, not today. Last night he started feeling a little better, sitting there with Tom, but today he didn’t feel anything silver at all.
Jack was in his mind all day, but now Tom was there too. It scared him, that they were both there all day. He always thought he wasn’t like that, that it was just with Jack, but now he didn’t know, now with Tom in his mind too.
Ennis looked over at Tom’s trailer, he wasn’t home now. He wondered about Tom, obviously it seemed like Tom was like that too. The pictures, of Tom and his friend, the feeling of Tom’s hand. Ennis tried to put that out of his mind, but he couldn’t the entire day.
Ennis went back inside his trailer and opened up a beer. He kept hearing Jack say, from that day so long ago “it’s nobody’s business but ours.” But it became other peoples business, Alma’s, and Cassie's and now even Tom’s. It became their business even now, even after Jack has been gone.
Jack never seemed to care, he was always so enthusiastic when they were together. Tom seemed like he didn’t care either.
Ennis sat down, still thinking, still wondering, “how did Tom know?” He kept asking himself all day “how could he possibly know?”
Ennis sat there, but his eyes began closing, his head nodding. He saw Jack, standing there smiling, but then he saw Tom, with that thoughtful look on his face that was already becoming familiar. Then there was Jack again, now with Tom. Suddenly there was a loud noise.
Ennis shuddered and shook himself awake. But the noise continued. He went to open the door.
(It starting to seem like Tom is asking for a whole story too, with Ennis.)
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