The Road To Nowhere {A Poetic Short Story}

While driving home from college to see his sick mother, Eric Connor discovers that every road isn't necessarily the one less traveled.

Eric Connor knew he had this planet by the balls,
as evidenced how all the plaques and banners lined the walls,
of his prestigious dorm room; college in the Ivy League,
he never knew of worry, life to him was iced as tea.

With Spring Break now in session parties all were off the hook,
a full two weeks of sex and drinking; mind from off the books,
his classmates were in frenzy getting plastered to the dome,
while Eric had more pressing troubles waiting back at home.

His mother lay awaiting death from tumors of the brain,
she wasn't doing well and he'd heard rumors of the same,
so while his friends got wasted with a bursting bout to life,
young Eric prepped his Wrangler for a thirteen hour drive,

that's six hundred and fifty (give or take some) miles away,
his plans were drive it quick so bout three twenty-five a day,
which gave a Thursday morning E.T.A. if all went well,
he'd done this times before; the distance really small as hell.

12 hours earlier....

Eric, Troy, and Dave were at a party for some frat,
they got along as far as suite-mates went and all of that,
with Eric's lousy news the two friends felt they owed him that,
their ears for him to vent to; in the midst they'd throw 'em back.

The Alpha Delta Beta house was packed as per the norm,
the women drinking freely fully stacked as per the norm,
the frat pres. Jason Simmons groped a babe with all his game,
too bad that it was Eric's ex, her name was Autumn Raines.

She told him that they'd got too close and that had made her scared,
the tears had shown on Eric's face like that had made her care,
he laughed at her hypocrisy right then; it clearly showed,
that she and Jason too had also gotten pretty close.

It'd only been two days since she had left him high and dry,
which also brought back memories of how that night he'd cried,
and now to sit and witness such a pitiful display,
made Eric throw back Henny til the s**t pulled on his face.

13 hours later....

Driving down the road made Eric sit and flash it back,
which made his breathing labor to a panicking attack,
"I'd better slow my roll" he pondered as he drove the road,
his mother was his focus now; he braced and drove alone.

3 hours later....

List'ning to the radio made Eric drift and drive,
he exhaled as the music made him think of diff'rent times,
before his father went and had to get himself erased,
the streets had rubbed him out and couldn't no one tell his face,

from other parts of him the way those sixty bullets hit,
the fragments had exploded leaving smears like bullet s**t,
across his neck and torso which had left him soakin too,
the coroner insisted; coffin closed to those who'd view,
his body at the wake; the mess was just too much to clean,
his skull imploded inward; there was just too much to see....

WAIT!

Hadn't he gone down this stretch of highway just before,
he'd stopped at this same filling station; my how it had poured,
just like how it's doing now; the rain came down in sheets,
he'd thought of love and romance in the rain and said "How sweet."

That must've been an hour past or maybe two at max,
see driving down the thruway in the rain was doing that,
it hypnotized you seeing all the same ol scenery,
the same ol trees and station houses or what seemed to be.

He drove on 'til he saw the exit ramp he was to take,
he focused as he took it thinking of the chance to make,
himself look like the fool he truly thought that he'd become,
he navigated right and said "Let fool and road be one...."

WHOOSH!

There's the station on the right with highway to the left,
subconsciously he felt it; something's slightly to the left,
the same green faded sign for Exit Six Two Eighty-Nine,
he thought of bearing right ahead in eight or maybe nine,

more miles so that's like (maybe) ten or fifteen minutes tops,
no sooner than he thought it ten or fifteen minutes dropped,
young Eric beared accordingly; his vision eyeing right,
his right foot braked down gently as the wheel turned high and tight....

WHOOSH!

There the Hexco station is again; what's goin on?
As Eric passed again he knew that something's gone and wrong,
he's sure he made the right hand turn when exiting the ramp,
but now he wipes his forehead and he feels it's wet and damp.

Now Eric racks his brain to figure out just what the hell,
cause something stinks; if only he could find out what's the smell,
"Here's the exit now," he says, "I'll turn just like before,"
and as he makes the right a noise is heard just like before....

WHOOSH!

2 hours later....

Eric had lost count of just how many times he'd looped,
the road was going nowhere and he'd lost mad time to boot,
he laughed out loud to realize what he hadn't thought before,
the only thing the same through all this time he thought....the store!

So pulling in the gas pumps Eric had another thought,
through all these diff'rent loops he never saw another car,
he hoped he'd find some answers in the small gas station store,
cause goin round in circles he was gassed to take no more.

It looked as though the store was closed cause all the lights were off,
the rainfall came down steady; thunder hard with lightning soft,
as Eric touched the door to enter, all the lights came on,
he went inside and turned to see that all the rain was gone.

"What the fu---" was all that he could utter out before,
he saw the scruffy counterman come in from out some door,
that must've been in back because the timing was akin,
he smiled then shook his head at Eric, "Fine'lly you've come in."

The strange day culminated with a total loss of words,
or could it be that Eric knew them; he'd just lost the nerve,
it takes to ask a question you may know the answer to,
The Counterman looked on and said "No need, I'll answer you.

You've spent most of the eve'ning going round and round the bend,
to look for what your soul's already known; you've found the end,
of living as you knew it; now I'll put this in your head,
no need to question further see cause, you my friend are dead."

It felt as though someone had punched him squarely in the gut,
cause Eric couldn't breathe he only asked (just barely) "What?!"
This made The Counterman explode with howling laughs for days,
"You know already what you seek but be that as it may,

you spent the whole night drinking off the pain of lady love,
you didn't sleep too much before you made it to your truck,
the combination was too much to handle and you tried,
'til you collided with an eighteen wheeler and you died.

You drove the highway stretch on which you perished; back and forth,
for hours til it dawned on you to come back to this store,
and here's where I've been waiting for you Eric true indeed,
my words are too far fetched but this should help you to believe...."

His mother walked toward them but it looked more like a glide,
"I'm sorry that it's like this Eric but he's right you've died,"
is what she said that made his heartbeat feel so tight inside,
and for the umpteenth time it seemed he took the time to cry.

The Counterman clapped Eric's back and spoke while smiling wide,
"There'll be no need for teardrops son; you're on the final side,
of Heaven; make the journey in the way intended to,
with someone like your mom cause Eric, she's transcended too."

His mother took his trembling hand and all the tremors stopped,
then led him to a doorway where the end of living stops,
and as he breathed in deep the door revealed the light inside,
then Eric gripped his mother's hand as they stepped right inside....

The next day....

M.E. Ed O'Reilly knew this work would be a task,
to autopsy the body of a young man burned and smashed,
somewhere along the thruway; even still the sell was neat,
it looked as though the man had simply drove and fell asleep.

He'd seen alot of strangeness in his thirty year career,
the young man on his table had a smile from ear to ear,
regardless of his cranium and torso being crushed,
it'd left the doctor smiling as he then began to cut.

©2014
The Cunning Linguist

Reviews

[SquinklaPsyOps]

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Overall, I was truly impressed.

Thank you for sharing such fascinating poem story.