Winter Waites (Aster Valley 0.50)

When I finally slid into bed beside the little warm furnace of Dillie’s curled-up body, I wondered if my lame-ass night would make a good GUS song. Probably not. Nothing in my life was exciting enough for that.

The next day I went into work with the biggest travel mug of coffee I owned. I felt invigorated. New Year’s was coming up in only a couple of days, and I’d decided to treat it like a new beginning. New Year, new me. I was going to organize my life, starting with finding a way to make some extra money to help with my sister’s college fees and save up for the jeep repair that would probably rear its ugly head before too much longer. I was also going to take a break from dating. It was going to be the best year yet. I was going to take the bull by the horns and manhandle my life into the kind of life I wanted to live long term. I would work hard, make new friends, continue my efforts to make my rental place feel like home, and enjoy each day as it came. Maybe I’d even try to find time for a hobby. One of the nurses had invited me to take a beginner knitting class with her at a local yarn shop in town, and I’d considered it. My little sister loved to knit, and it’d be nice to have something like that to share with her. I felt powerful and steady. This was going to be the year of Winter.

The feeling didn’t last. By New Year’s Eve, I was exhausted, annoyed, and lonely. So lonely, in fact, I called my mom which turned out to be a big mistake.

“How was your Christmas?” I asked, pulling the sofa blanket up higher and watching the fake fireplace scene on my laptop’s screensaver.

She sighed. It was a sound so familiar, it almost made my eyes fill. “Well, you know how it is. Paula put me on nights, and I swear it was only to get back at me for going out with Darren and those guys to shoot pool. But she’s crazy if she thinks he’s ever going to ask her out. Also, the furnace cut out because that damned furnace guy never did put his annual service visit on special like he’s done in the past. So now I’m going to have to pay for a repair call, and it’s all his fault. I need to find a new furnace company, but I don’t know when I’m supposed to do that now that I’m sleeping all day and busting my ass all night.”

As I listened to her bitch about problems of her own making, I remembered why I’d been avoiding her and why I’d wanted to move clear across the state.

“Is Summer there?” I asked, cutting her off. I should have called my sister in the first place.

Mom sighed again. “No. She went back to school early. Said there was some kind of special project she needed to get started on. What I want to know is how she has a project between semesters? Huh? Explain that to me. The girls at work said…”

Her voice drifted off as I pulled the phone away from my ear and shot my sister a text.

Me: Why are you back in Aurora?

I brought the phone back up to my ear. “Well, I just wanted to wish you a happy New Year’s,” I said. “You have any plans tonight?” I listened for a few more minutes before wrapping up the call. She never asked me my plans or how I was doing, but then again, I hadn’t expected her to. Meanwhile, there was a response from my sister.

Summer: Couldn’t spend one more night there. Thought about coming to Aster Valley, but then my roommate said she was coming back here early too. We’re doing a movie marathon with some friends.

Me: You know you’re welcome here anytime.

Summer: I was thinking of coming to stay with you this summer. Think I can find a job there?

Me: Absolutely, I’ll start asking around.

I reached over to unmute my laptop. Even though summer was still five months away, thinking of my sister coming to stay here lifted my spirits enough to enjoy the rest of the night. The following day, the Human Resources department called me in and asked if I’d like to be added to the mobile OT roster covering in-home visits. The money was great, and I could take as many cases as I wanted as long as it didn’t interfere with my existing schedule. It was exactly the kind of extra income I needed to be able to help Summer with her school fees.

Maybe it was going to be the year of Winter after all.

3

Gent

A week after punching the wall, I was still angry at myself for doing something so destructive. Putting my career in jeopardy after one moment of drunken stupidity wasn’t like me. Getting drunk at all wasn’t like me, and I’d never been that guy—the musician who causes property damage at a hotel.