Gorton Born Again American 2nd release

1. Auflage 2014
ISBN: 978-1-4835-3583-8
Verlag: BookBaby
Format: EPUB
Kopierschutz: Adobe DRM (»Systemvoraussetzungen)

E-Book, Englisch, 111 Seiten

A story filled with adventure, history and the American Dream.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Gorton, Michael

Leseproben

CHAPTER 1 RECONNECTION Failure is not the worst thing in the world. The very worst is not to try. Corey woke with a jolt and looked around her bedroom. The phone was ringing in another room and it made her angry. “Who the hell was calling,” she practically shouted at the empty room? Corey glanced at the clock: 10:13 AM. The ringing ended and she tried to go back to sleep, but couldn’t. She had probably been in bed for ten or eleven hours, but the day held no prospects, no adventure, and no reason to roll out of bed. It was a typical day for Corey Adams. Corey spent most days steeped in anger, not really at anyone or anything. She was just angry and desperate. It was her lifestyle and persona that propagated her bad mood, and had been so for nearly a decade. She sat up and surveyed the room. Dirty clothing cluttered the floors, trash and clutter covered the counter tops and dust caked everything. A couple of the drawers were pulled out and sitting on the floor, and her closet door had a broken hinge. Her government checks and food stamps were not enough to make her happy, but they were enough to make her question the motivation for getting a job. Her lifestyle and personal decisions had a pattern of sucking any positive energy that might take root in her soul. She rolled out of bed, kicked a dirty pair of jeans out of her path and stumbled into the hallway that led to the kitchen. The floors were littered with trash and dirt, but Corey did not even notice. The coffee bin was devoid of fresh grounds so she heated up yesterday’s coffee. She sat at the table and sipped on coffee, trying to clear the fog in her head. For a few seconds, she wondered how long she been living this way. Corey did not know. She didn’t even know what day it was, beyond the fact that today was not the day her unemployment check arrived. When she counted, she realized she had spent three solid years on unemployment. No jobs, no prospects and no motivation to find work. She was after all, making decent money just sitting at home. Once upon a time, Corey had been motivated, driven and focused on goals. She had gone off to college with big dreams and plans that would change the world. She had believed in an America where her work and efforts could produce something valuable. She now knew that place did not exist. The pain of existence was nearly breathless, and yet the thought of ending life was incomprehensible. As a young girl in college, bad luck had taught her that she was like most people, stuck in a purgatory of existence called life. She opened the fridge and found some leftovers. Tomorrow: food stamps and a trip to the grocery store. The thought nearly brought a smile, and then she remembered the phone that had ruined her slumber. Who had called her at 10 in the morning? She looked at the number, but didn’t recognize the area code. The caller had left a voice mail: “Hey Corey, it’s Aaron Billings from ASU. I know it’s been ten years but hope you remember me. It’s taken me years to find the courage to reach out to you. I don’t know why, but I can’t stop thinking about you. I remember all the fun times we had joking, studying and philosophizing before you dropped out and disappeared. Anyway, I just needed to reach out to you. It happens that I’ll be in Phoenix tomorrow and would like to get together. Please call!” A sad smile came to Corey’s face as she remembered a time period when everything was possible, and a young man named Aaron with sandy hair and blue eyes that captured her heart. When it came to academics, Aaron Billings was a ball of fire. He could talk and express algebraic equations like emotions to the nth degree. He loved to emotionally chatter about how to invent things that would change the world. When it came to their personal connection, he never crossed barriers, but there was no denying an attraction like none she had ever experienced. Unfortunately, Aaron was terribly shy, so nothing had ever happened between them. Corey surveyed her house. An army of cleaning crew experts could not clean this place before tomorrow. She dragged herself into the bathroom and studied the image looking back at her from the mirror. What she saw was frightening. Her eyes were dull, almost lifeless and her skin was pale, she had bags under her eyes and disheveled dark red-almost brown hair. Once, a long time ago, in a world where Aaron lived, she had been cute and full of life. That memory of a person did not stare back at her from the bathroom mirror. The decision was an easy one. Deep down inside, she wanted to see Aaron, but she knew that she could not, would not return the call. Corey plopped down on the couch and began channel surfing in search of some mindless show that would kill the pain, eliminate the intrusion of Aaron into her senseless life, and burn the minutes of the day. ? DAY 1 It was the ring of the phone that woke her again the next morning. Damn it, leave me alone! She fumbled for her phone and softened a bit when she saw the caller ID and realized it was Aaron again. While she resolved not to answer, she prayed he would leave her a message, just so she could hear his voice. That voice had been the highpoint of the day, yesterday; perhaps of the entire week, maybe the year. He didn’t leave a message. It didn’t matter, today was food stamp day. That would bring a small bit of joy with new groceries and maybe a six pack or two. Now that was a true highlight in her monotonous and painful existence. Corey found a reasonably clean pair of jeans and a sweatshirt, then warmed up the shower. She took a little extra care as she got ready today, combing her hair and carefully applying a bit of makeup. Had Aaron’s call lit a long dead spark inside? The thought had crossed her mind that perhaps she could venture back out into the world and hatch a new group of friends. For a very long time, Corey had avoided expending the energy to develop new relationships believing that she really had nothing to offer. How many times had she started a relationship only to have her heart broken? No matter. She knew Aaron would not be impressed by the woman she had become, and she did not want to erase the happy memory of her brief and exciting college days with a meeting today. She grabbed her things, stepped out the front door to her apartment, and turned the lock. “Hi Corey Anne!” Corey had not been called Corey Anne since college. Hearing that old nickname softened her. She scanned the person who now blocked her path down the cracked concrete pavement leading to the bus stop. Standing there with a broad smile was an older, more mature version of Aaron than she remembered. He had grown into a solid and handsome man. “Aaron? Oh my gosh what a surprise,” she uttered, trying to pretend that she had never received his call. Aaron wrapped his arms around her and hugged her like a soldier greeting his girlfriend after returning from war. He had never even touched her before today and his proximity was like a ray of sunshine beaming through the clouds at the end of a long storm. He held her at arm’s length and stared into her eyes. Something about her looked older, tired, and maybe sick. “Corey, I called you. You didn’t respond but I could not allow myself to drive through this town without at least trying to exercise the opportunity to see you. Please tell me we can spend some time and get caught up.” Aaron was talking fast, nervous, and excited. “I, I was just going out to run some errands.” Corey hesitated as she realized the impact his presence caught her off guard. “Cancel them or let me do them with you” he said emphatically. “Spend the morning with me” he pleaded. “Okay,” she gave in without considering her position, and then immediately regretted her snap decision. She was feeling a pain swelling in her stomach and was going to renege, but Aaron smiled broadly, took her arm and led her to an old beaten up dark blue jeep with the top down. He opened the passenger door and helped her up into the seat. “I hope you know that I won’t take no for an answer,” he closed her door to the jeep and jogged over to the driver side. “You haven’t changed.” Corey noticed that even though the jeep was rugged, it was spotless inside and out, and loaded with all the newest high tech gadgets. Aaron effortlessly hopped in on the driver’s side and popped the glove box. He pulled out a ball cap and handed it to her. “You’re gonna need this.” With a turn of the key, a blast of crystal clear music and a shift into first, they were off. For a few minutes, Corey was lost in the moment, re-living a lost portion of her spirit that believed in the promise of tomorrow. The broken architecture of her neighborhood receded behind her in a blur as the cool wind brought life to her cheeks. Aaron didn’t say anything. He simply drove with the expertise of a savant while singing along with the old familiar tunes. Occasionally, he would glace over at Corey with a huge smile and sparkle in his eyes, but he said nothing. It was as if he was saying everything as he expertly maneuvered the jeep out of town and up a steep mountain road with the gears, steering wheel, music, sunshine on his head and wind in his hair. After an hour, he pulled onto a side road that overlooked the city below. It was a clear day and the...