College Life
It took most of the rest of the day but we made it to Davie’s palace and spent the night in Columbia. Davie had tried to keep us up all night talking about John and how he wished he’d been with him, bad legs and all. John had always gone over to his house when they’d been little and played with him while all the other kids had run by the house yelling “cripple.” Some of the kids thought Davie was contagious and John would pretend to cough on them when he’d been over there recently. He was like that with everybody. He watched out for you if you needed it and stood up to those who messed with you, even for his bratty little brother. Damn, I missed that boy and thought being around one of his friends would help.
Now, Davie turned out alright eventually. He finished up school and became a doctor and ended up treating kids with problems like his. He told me one time that he was paying back something for John: for what he’d done when they were kids. That night at the house he lived in by campus though, he was drunk and angry at everything and it was hard to get in a word that didn’t set him off. I sat in the corner of his house’s common area and sipped on the bottle, which Bug was still giving the stink eye. He kept trying to ask Davie about the girls at college and if any of them ever came over and, by chance, would any of them be coming over tonight as though Davie had spread the word that two big-time teenagers from Florence were coming into town and the girls would be flocking to see them. But, Davie just went on and on about how unfair it was that John had gotten killed while he was stuck over here and that he was going to find a way to get over there soon and pay back those Germans.
I got tired of the talk fast. I’d been sad about it for a year already and didn’t need him going on and on, so I kept my mouth shut on the subject and tried to steer him towards talking about classes. Eventually, the alcohol and grief got to him and he started slumping lower in his chair and I started to relax and enjoy myself a little more, thinking about getting on the road early. I was still sad and it wasn’t all about John to be fair. I was kinda sad all the time if I was telling the truth and pretending I was happy if I wasn’t.
All of a sudden, there was a loud voice on the porch and the door bust open and a tall, gangly kid walked in. “What’s going on, crip? You got some visitors or are these new nurses for you?” He walked over and I could smell the liquor about three steps before he got to me. “What’s your story, rube? You one of crip’s country friends?”
He stuck out his hand and I did my best to squeeze it off his wrist but he was so drunk he didn’t even notice. “Nah, I’m from the revenue department. We heard there were some assholes over here not paying their asshole tax and they sent me to look into it.” That’s still one of the things I can’t believe I thought of on the spot and I was so proud, but this guy was so drunk and cocky, it rolled off his back without leaving a stain.
“Good one, rube. Be sure to tell that one at the next family reunion. It’ll probably get one of your cousins hot enough to marry you.” He looked back at Davie who had come awake a little and was struggling to comprehend what was going on. Bug was tensing up and I saw his face go red. Stringbean didn’t know it, but he was a word or two away from having 5’ 6” of Bug crawl up his front side and tear into his face. He looked back at me after Davie didn’t say anything and I stared at him for a beat and the delay was enough for him to lose interest. “Well, goodnight fellas. Don’t keep old Davie up too long. He’s got a weak constitution, you know.” He headed down the hall and I could hear his bed creak when he fell into it.
Davie looked at us the best he could with his eyes down. “Sorry. That’s my housemate. He’s not always like that.”
I looked at Davie’s face and knew that wasn’t true. “Why’s he even here,” I asked,
“Shouldn’t he be in the service? He doesn’t look like he’s got anything wrong with him.” I regretted saying that immediately as Davie’s eyes sunk further down.
“No. He’s fine. He told me so but his daddy is a state senator and got a doctor to write an excuse for him. He said “only suckers” are going to fight.” I didn’t say much after that and Davie eventually drug his way back to his room and Bug gave up on any girls coming over and headed back after a few minutes. I stayed out in the common area until the only sound was the frogs in the trees outside the windows before I unfolded myself and crept down the hall to the roommate’s room. I listened at the door and heard snoring, so I sneaked in. He was laying on his back, still fully dressed and mouth wide open, passed out from the alcohol. I’d finished up my little bottle over the course of the day and evening and wasn’t exactly sober, but I knew what I was doing as I pulled his covers back and unzipped my pants. I stood and peed all over him, making sure to concentrate on his crotch area, but spreading it around a bit for good measure. I put the covers back over him and knew he’d wake up smelling the piss but thinking he’d done it. I wanted to see it, but wanted to get out of there even more. Davie talking about John so much had made me queasy and the road was the thing I thought would settle me. I got a few hours of sleep on the floor in Davie’s room before my internal clock woke me up at five or so. I roused Bug and we crept out the door. As I shut it, the housemate stepped out into the hallway. He must not have been expecting anyone to be there as he was buck naked and holding his clothes by his fingertips, touching as little of the damp as he could.
“What the hell you staring at, hick,” he said after a moment.
I made a big show of sniffing the air, lifting my chin and then grimacing. “Damn, boy, you piss yourself? I didn’t have to go to college to learn not to do that.” He wasn’t as quick on the response as he had been last night and I didn’t want to give him a chance, so I turned and almost ran into Bug who’d stopped and was tensing up again at the sight of him. “C’mon, Bug, there’s a yellow flood in this town and we need to get to high ground.” We walked out, stepped off the porch, and headed down College Street towards the train tracks, the whistles drawing us in.
