Chapter Seven

Travis examines a new option for his difficult situation.

An hour later as Travis finds himself driving aimlessly through the town of Dunlap, he decides that a Long Island Tea would taste amazing right now.  Maybe two them! Travis is in shock.  He has for all intents and purposes quit his job.  He has been staying at the Walsworth motel for the past several days now, and he can’t even afford the cheap rates they offer.  He is lonely since he broke up with Andrea, his friends seem to be too busy for him, and now he is jobless with little or nothing to do during the day.   The most painful part of all is not having a real place to live.  He hates living in a small one room motel.  He only has money for about another week or so, and unless he makes other arrangements he will have to start sleeping in his truck.

Travis also hasn’t heard from Kevin his best friend.   He has known Kevin for many years now since they went to high school together.  He has tried calling him but has not received a call back.   Kevin lives in a two bedroom downstairs apartment, has a roommate, and has a landlady who has a strict rule about invited, overnight guests. Travis is also a bit pissed off and embarrassed that Jolleen seems to want him more. 

 

I don’t understand that since Kevin certainly isn’t a prize!

Travis is aware that spending money right now is not a good option.  Simply driving around and wasting gas in not a good idea.  Travis decides to pull over near the University to sit and perhaps people watch.  He has always enjoyed doing that.  Its fun to watch people who have no idea they are being watched.    Travis still has some of his bottled water left over and he had made himself a lunch for work today so he starts to dig in.

As a number of people walk by his truck on the sidewalk Travis finishes eating this lunch.  He finds himself wondering if any of them have had as bad of a week as he has.  How could they have?   It’s mostly college students walking by at this time of day. Travis notices that most of the students walking by on the sidewalk are smiling and don’t seem to have a care in the world.  Most of them are young, healthy, and apparently without too many concerns about real life.

Next on the sidewalk comes a group of three young ladies who are very busy conversing about whatever topic that just happens to have bounced in to their heads.  All of them are obviously college students and none appear to be older than twenty. All three of these young ladies are attractive.  But the redhead in the middle seems to be the leader of sorts.  She is the one the others are looking to for guidance and she is the one who seems to be in charge of this little clique.  She is the shortest of the three also the prettiest. 

Travis starts to have thoughts go through his mind that are not ones usually associated with him and his personality and upbringing.  He starts to think of how nice it would be to be well off financially and not to have to worry about sleeping in a seedy motel, or the backseat of his pickup truck.  He starts to think of how lucky some of these more privileged kids are.  They have mommy and daddy pay for their education and everything else while they themselves party, sleep around, and act superior to real hard working men and women like him.

Just as that last thought goes through Travis’ mind the two girls walking on the outside of the pretty redhead start down another path.  The redhead now walks alone and appears to be heading toward one of the main university buildings.  She is walking toward the Ed Arts Building and is apparently going to a class right after lunch.

 

I wonder if this is her regular schedule for this time of day?

Travis, while sitting in his truck watching Alex walk away from him, starts to think about his limited options.