Zac yawned once more, stretched his arms upward and then let them flop to his sides.
Rubbing his eyes he looked up and down the street, then stopped and looked back at the apartment.
Turning back around and scratching his head he jumped off the two step porch and started walking toward the bus station, yawning and groggily looking at the rows of apartments.
Stopping abruptly he spun around.
"Damnit."
Staring longingly back at the house he sighed.
"Kristen's supposed to call."
He wrinkled his nose looked as though he might just cry, then shrugged.
"Not fair."
Turning back around he continued to walk.
Taylor was startled when a girl answered.
"Hullo."
Taylor cracked a smile as he realized he'd probably just woken her up, whoever she was.
"Uh…hey. Is uh…is Brent there?"
Taylor could hear her yawn, and waited as she called through the house.
"BRRRREEEEEEEEEEENNNNNNNNTTTTTT GET YOUR FAT ASS OUT OF BED AND GET THE PHONE!"
Taylor frowned.
This chick…her voice…sounded very familiar.
Running through his brain Taylor tried to recognize it, no such luck. Not that it really mattered, probably one of Brent's one night stands or something, he was into those. Shrugging the idea off he waited as Brent fumbled with the phone and then held it to his ear.
"This better be damn good whoever you are, cause I'm running on 2 hours of sleep."
Taylor laughed and shook his head.
"Why only 2 hours Brent? You aren't the one with the family crisis."
"Fuck you Taylor."
Brent chuckled on the other end.
"Oh well, that's better then I did."
"Wouldn't have anything to do with Zac would it."
Taylor nodded on his end of the line.
"Or maybe none of it would have happened if my friend….I think his name is Brent, hadn't decided to take me to a party where my little snot nosed brother might have been."
Taylor said it matter of factly, and waited for Brent's reply.
"Don't blame it on me Taylor."
"Why not. You took me didn't you?"
"Yeah, so. Nothing real bad happened."
"Oh really? I just about ate skin with my brother and you don't think that's bad?"
Brent paused for a moment then sighed.
"Listen Taylor, I figure the two of you are going to have to duke it out sometime right? Why not last night? I'll bet he was fucked up pretty good, you could've taken him."
Taylor shook his head.
"Brent, I'd rather not make anything worse then it already is, if you catch my drift I mean."
"Yeah I know you don't, but I think maybe he does, and I bet whether or not either of you do, it's still going to happen."
"Not if I can avoid it."
"It'll probably happen anyway."
Taylor stopped and looked across his empty kitchen to the fridge.
"Not to change the subject or anything, but I'm hungry."
"Nice to meet you I'm Brent."
"Wanna take me to lunch or something?"
"No."
"C'mon."
"McDonalds then?"
Taylor shrugged.
"It's chow."
It wasn't as close to the front as he may have liked, but it was good enough, almost half way back.
Glancing briefly around him, he noticed there weren't any weirdos that day. Cracking a light smile he glanced around once more. No cross dressers either.
"Darn. I miss them so."
Zac mumbled under his breath as he looked out the window behind him.
He figured he'd be to Tammy's office any minute. That was the only nice thing about buses. They got you there promptly and usually on time.
Taking a deep breath each time the bus stopped at a station, Zac looked out the door window to see who wanted a cheap ride uptown.
Still no strange aliens.
Thank god for small miracles.
It wasn't that he didn't like them, it was just that he was 15, a guy…with long hair…big black guys liked to pick on him, and all the people with weird hair colors looked at him as a fine specimen for their next rainbow color.
He watched as the bus turned on to colfax as he counted the blocks.
Reaching the sixth stop he quickly stood up, making his way to the front of the bus and jumping down the steps.
"Oooo….I can just feel the love streaming from Tammy's office."
He walked to the corner and paused. Looking down at his clothing he frowned.
"I didn't even change. And I smell like beer…human smell after 3 days with no shower…and Kristen. Now that's a deadly combination."
Zac reached up to his hair and remembered that it must look like that Jesse guy on Mtv.
"Oh that's sexy."
He stood, straightening out his hair, then his clothes, then smelled his shirt to see if maybe running through a sprinkler or something might sorta kinda get the smell out.
"Nope, she's in there, might wanna use spray and wash AND tide…a couple times to get that out."
Shrugging he started walking. Reaching her office he stood in front, looking once more at himself then sighed.
"I smell like pig puke, I just KNOW I'm going to have a headache in about an hour, and I only got about 4 hours of sleep…on the floor. Sounds like a fun day to me."
Pulling open the glass door, he stepped inside as a little bell above jingled.
A young blond emerged from a door to some back room and frowned.
"Um...can I help you?"
Zac looked a little embarrassed as he stepped only one step closer, keeping a little distance so his smell wouldn't move it's way in her direction in a dark green cloud.
"Yeah is Tammy here?"
The woman looked at him unknowingly and shook her head.
"Do you have an appointment?"
Zac threw up his arms.
"This is a print shop, not the white house."
"She IS the manager you know, she has a busy schedule."
"She told me to be here at 9:30 okay."
"Are you sure?"
The girl gave Zac a look of disgust and waited for his response.
"Look lady. Unless Ike gave me the address to some piss ass print place a hundred miles from where I'm supposed to be, then I've got the right place, I didn't come here with a giganto hangover so some blond chick could question my sense of being. She told me to be here at nine thirty. Now if she's here please go and tell her I'm here, and if she's not, then I'll be on my way."
The blond looked shocked and shook her head.
"No no, just wait a minute, I'll go see if she's busy."
Zac shrugged and watched as she went back through the doorway.
She walked through the cluttered room, all the way to the back, stopping in front of an office door that announced that it was Tammy's, and she was the general manager.
Stepping up to the open door she peered in.
Tammy sat at her desk intently studying some kind of interesting paper work.
"Tammy?"
She jerked her head up, sighing.
"Yes?"
"There's some kid out here…he looks a little…dirty. I don't know he said you told him to be here at 9:30…that's all he said. I have no idea if you want to see him or not…I just thou…"
Tammy smiled, cutting the girl off.
"You can send him back."
The blond frowned.
"You're sure you know him?"
Tammy looked at her and nodded.
"He's Isaac's little brother."
The girl's eyes lit up and she smiled.
"Ooooohhhhhhh!"
The two of them nodded in unison.
"So would you please send him back here please?"
The girl nodded and walked quickly up to the front again.
Frowning as she noticed he was now leaning against the counter. He smelled rank enough far away.
"She says come on back."
Zac sighed and followed the woman, checking out all the expensive computer stuff as they went.
"Right back here."
She stood out front of the office, and motioned him to the door.
"Have fun!"
She sort of waved at him then walked away.
Taking a step forward, he stared at Tammy.
"Hey Zac."
He shrugged.
"Hey."
"Have a seat."
She pointed to a chair in front of her desk, then patiently waited for him to sit.
"Here's the deal. I have a shipper coming at 10, I need the truck unloaded into our storeroom. It'll take you probably a while, but I'll pay you accordingly. Deal?"
Zac frowned.
"Is it a deal?"
Despite the fact that his head had started aching sooner then planned, and he needed about 6 hours more sleep, he could use some food, and he smelled, he decided he needed the cash more then anything.
"I'll let you go home at lunch and….shower."
Zac watched as a grin broke out on her face.
"You do smell you know."
"I'm aware."
"Did you have fun last night, I think you stayed out a little late.."
"I proved Ike wrong that's all that counts alright."
"That you did. I was just wondering if your head hurt enough right now to really really want an asprin, or if you'd like some coffee or anything."
She shook the bottle of pills in her hand, and cocked her head at him, leaning back in her chair. Zac watched them intently.
"Here."
She tossed him the bottle and he popped the top.
"Then I'd like to mention that I wish you wouldn't go out drinking all night.."
"Who said I was drinking all night."
"Oh please."
"Oh please what…I do other things besides drink beer."
"Yeah I know, there's girls in there somewhere."
"Oh very funny, listen, I got enough of that from my mom."
"Gee then, she was actually doing her job. Anyway, that's the deal, take it or leave it."
"Like I have a choice."
"You do."
Popping two pills into his mouth he dry swallowed them and looked at her.
"Sure. Why not."
