「ザキさん、こんなクソ寒い夜中になんの用ですか」 空気も凍るような寒さの夜、理由も告げずに俺を稽古場へ呼び出した小劇団の先輩、崎山に不満を隠さず声を掛けた。そこは、稽古場というより廃倉庫といったほうがしっくりくるボロ屋で、風が吹かないだけ外よりマシという状況だった。貧乏劇団ゆえ暖房器具など置いてすらない。 「おう、すまねぇな、森田。ちょっと見せたいもんがあってな」 「金貸してくれってのは無しですよ」 「そんなんじゃねぇよ。芝居の話だ、芝居の」 崎山はもう四十も半ば、芽の出ない役者だ。売れない理由は、今時となっては珍しい「飲む」「打つ」「買う」と三拍子を見事に揃えた素行の悪さが、業界中に知れ渡っているせいだった。どこぞの脚本家の奥さんに横恋慕して旦那に殺されかけただの、賭場で負けて裸で電車に乗って留置所に入れられ...
"I'm proud of you, son." Chance Petersen had never heard those words from his father before in all the 26 years he'd been alive. It wasn't that there weren't opportunities to say them, his father had just never felt that anything his son had done was good enough to merit his doing so. But now that he was extremely ill, his entire outlook had changed. Wayne...
Mike and Bryan enjoy a Mexican dinner while being serenaded by a mariachi band and Mike says that he would never introduce Bryan as an 'escort' but he would say that he is his date or companion. Bryan says that a typical appointment is dinner, a movie and some 'special' time back at the hotel. Mike doesn't think that he's a 'john'; he says that he's paying f...
The snow storm whipped ice crystals down my neck as I ran slipping and sliding from my automobile to the entrance of the 23rd Precinct police station. Inside, I took off and shook my coat. It was hotter and more comfortable in the front reception of this police station than anywhere in my own crappy apartment building. I'd been Uptown here once before, I rec...
"Once that lock melts, go down the hallway until the end, take a right and you're home free." Klutch's voice soothes the team through their ear piece. As Hi-Fi carefully places some type of sticky putty on the keypad lock of the door, her partner is crouched down next to her, swaying his body back and forth as he looks to his left and then back to...
SO FAR: Maggie marries to become Mrs de Lacey but the honeymoon is scarcely over before she and Ryan are split over a major business decision with Ryan taking the moral high ground; he goes off to sleep at a motel. Gradually Maggie through the support of her mom realizes she has put self before community. In fact she accepts she has little knowledge of what...
(Thanks to Shawhollow for taking so much time to edit so many of my stories. Thank you.) *Your private life and public life are never separate because the brain never stops thinking* "Are you going to tell me what that was about?" I hint to Echo as my car pulls away from the charity event. "I can't right now," she furrows her brow. "I need to think a...
Jon Bungle's mom called and asked would he return home to live for the next month while his dad was away in Europe on tour as a guest lecturer on the art gallery circuit. "Mom no, I've comfortable in this apartment with two really nice guys." Matilda slipped into aggressive mode. "Did I think about my own comfort first after deciding to get pregnant again...
This story is also available from HIS point of view, named "Personal Delivery (him)" ***** I hung up the phone. Ken had just called to make sure I was home for the next hour or two. He was making deliveries in the area and I had ordered several items from the catalogue. My boys had just left for a friend's birthday party and, being a single mom, I had plan...
"Well, what do you think, Joe? Do I look cute?" He winked at me. "Don't look like that, I'm only teasing you. Come into the kitchen, I haven't finished cooking yet. Open that bottle of wine and pour us a glass. Glasses are over there in the top cupboard." I didn't know what to do. Seeing Sam dressed as a woman had really startled me. I hadn't expected him t...