The Day Ginger Snapped part 9

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Well, it's been a long time since I've been in this area, but as I was driving to John's trailer I couldn't help but feel like I recognized the area. Some things never change and this neighborhood was one of them. As I got closer to the turn off, I realized where I was. This was the same neighborhood that John had lived in when we were in high school. The houses had been older but well kept back then.. Now, they were just older.

I passed the small wood frame house that John had lived in with his mother and took the dirt road turn off just as I had been instructed to do. Imagine my surprise when the road ended up in his mother's backyard! There, less than twenty feet from her backdoor was the silver tin can trailer that John was so very proud of.

There was movement in a window of his mother's house and John came walking out of her back door before I had a chance to get out of my car. He came up to my car and opened the door for me. "I hope you didn't have any trouble finding us back here."

"Oh no, I kind of remembered the roads. Isn't this your mother's house? Do you live with her?"

John motioned for me to follow him into his trailer as he spoke. "I lived with her for awhile when I got out of prison, but she said that a man should have his own home. So, she bought me this used trailer and let me park it back here. To be honest with you, I don't really think she wanted me to move out at all. I think she likes having me around.

Yeah, right!

I looked around the trailer, which didn't take long. You could pretty much see everything and touch everything from where I was standing. However, I wouldn't recommend the touching part. He had a small television set with rabbit ears sitting on an empty milk crate. He had a lawn chair sitting less than two feet in front of it with more milk crates stacked on top of each other to make an end table beside the chair. There were several empty beer cans on and around all of that.

The kitchen was smaller than what I've seen in many efficiency hotel rooms. The refrigerator was dorm sized and sat under a board that folded down to serve as a table or an ironing board. There was a toaster oven and a hot plate. I saw several empty boxes from
frozen dinners in the overflowing trash can.

The bedroom looked more like a closet than an actual room and the door was permanently opened because the twin mattress on the floor blocked it and made it impossible to close. I can't be sure but I think the bed had the same purple elephant sheets on it that he had used on his bed back in high school. There were a couple of boxes sitting right by the bed and I could tell that they were being used as dresser drawers.

There was a small door to the left of the bedroom entrance and I can only assume that it was the bathroom, but I wasn't brave enough to actually find out for sure.

"Well, I can see that you've really made this place your own."

"What can I say. A man's home is his castle. I'm about starved. How about you?"

"Well, I can't say that I'm starved, but I'm ready to get out of here any time you are. I'll even drive."

"You're my kind of woman."

Stop winking at me, you freak!

As soon as he said that he turned around and walked out the door and I ran out right behind him feeling like I needed a shower.

We had just gotten to my car and were about to get in when we heard his mother yelling from inside her house, "John, John, I know you can hear me! Get in here and get this phone call! It's your probation officer! He says you're late for your appointment, AGAIN! You get in here right now, before I tan your hide!"

John got that same dumb, 'I've been bad, but I know you'll forgive me' look on his face that I had seen so many time in high school. Before he had a chance to say anything, I told him that he better go take care of things before they got any worse and that we could always do lunch another day.

He made me promise that we would, then he slammed my car door and walked toward his mother's back door yelling, "I'm coming, momma. Don't get your panties in an uproar."

I got in the car and drove myself to the closest bar I could find. I ordered a Margarita for myself and a round for everyone else in the place. Of course, there were only two other people in the dive, but I didn't care. I felt like celebrating.