The blaring sounds of bagpipes filters into my dreams. It sounds familiar. Amazing Grace. Consciousness returns to me and I realize the CD player is still on from when I fell asleep. Groggily, I squint at the clock. One thirty. Unless I slept for a day I've only been out for an hour. Judging by my weariness it must have been the hour, as always. As much as I'd like to roll over and fall back to sleep, at that moment my phone rings. I lay there briefly debating whether or not to answer before pressing talk.
"H'lo," I slur.
"Derek. Do you think you could give me a ride to school in like ten minutes?" It's Elliot.
"Yea," I'd rather sleep.
"Alright. Just come over in ten minutes. Mm'bah."
"Mm'bah."
After hanging up, I still consider going back to sleep but it's already too late. Now that I'm fully awake it would take another few hours to fall back to sleep. As I lay there pondering this, I look at my plant. It's starting to get some yellow tinges to it. I realize that it's been awhile since the poor thing has seen the sun. That settles it. I get up and open the blinds. I look back at the plant and wonder if it has feelings and appreciates what I've just done for it or if it's just a series of chemical reactions that my actions have merely made more efficient. I like to believe the former, taking small joy in knowing that I've made existence better for something.
Ten minutes later I'm tearing down the street swigging water to wash the toothpaste taste out of my mouth. Elliot's house is much the same as it always is, which means the driveway hasn't been shoveled, ever. No problem, I just gain a little extra speed and steer a bit wide to make sure I don't hit the Beretta sitting at the bottom on my way in.
"Hello," Elliot says after the fourth ring.
"You should come outside."
"Alright, I'll be right out." I'm already hanging up before he finishes.
At twenty to two the streets of this town are relatively quiet. I'm thankful for that quietness as I drive around so Elliot can have a square before school. I hate having other people on the road when I'm driving. They always look at me like speeding is a crime or something.