Black Droolies

7/31/2019 Black Droolies

1/55

Blanket of Chill

Chapter 1

Night was coming fast.

The wind was a death-chill

that no one person or thing couldescape.


2/55

Three kids huddled behind the

Central Mall dumpster, shivering.

Bruce had his arm wrappedaround Tatia, whose teeth chatteredloudly.

Not more than a foot away,Jack sat on the cold, hard asphalt,hugging his legs.

If we dont get somewhere,Im gonna die, said Tatia throughclenched teeth.

Jack stood up, resolute, andsaid, Lets go!

Where? asked Bruce, partlyannoyed and partly curious. Half the

time, his ideas got them into trouble,and the other half, got them whatthey needed.

I dont know but sitting hereon the ground isnt a good ideabecause its only going to get colder.

My butt already feels like a chunk ofice.


3/55

We could sneak into myfathers shed. I know where the keyis. Problem is, if he finds us, hell killus, chattered Tatia.

No, look what he did to you

last time you were there! Brucesaid angrily.

Begging on the streets duringthe fall and winter months was theworst. With holidays and all; peoplein a bigger hurry to get where

theyre going, theyd hardlycollected any money during thosetimes.

After several days had passed,and all theyd eaten was a couple

cans of tuna, Tatia snuck into herfathers house to find food.

She thought he was at work!

Where the hell have youbeen?he shouted.


4/55

Tatia dropped the loaf of bread

and turned.

When she wouldnt answer, helost it.

She turned to leave, but he

pinned her against the wall and gaveher one of his mind blowing welts.

Tatia slipped out of his grip,bolted through the kitchen sliding

glass door, into the back where shehopped up onto the brick wall thatfenced in the yard.

In a hurry to get away, she losther footing and rolled off the wall,

smashing onto the ground where shebroke her nose and her glasses.

Her nose healed ratherquickly, but her glasses wereshattered. The white tape that nowheld them together almost glowed

under the light of the moon.


5/55

We could try the City Pan

again? suggested Bruce.

It was one of the few sheltersthat took people in without askingquestions. For a couple of underagekids, their options were few, and

especially during winter as more andmore adults sought shelter earlier inthe day.

No, the beds will be taken,Jack replied.

Well, Tatia said, as she stoodup, lets go. The cold coming upfrom the ground is just as bad as thewind. The neighborhood park lawnwill be warmer.

As they made their waythrough the Pickley Hillsneighborhood, they were careful tostay in the shadows. They needed toavoid adults who would call the

cops. In their part of town, it wasnt


6/55

common to see teens lurking the

streets at night.

Tatia lived in theneighborhood for as long as shecould remember and although it wasa middle class neighborhood, her

family wasnt at all respectable.

The first time she left home,she spent the night at the PickleyHills Park. That was where she metBruce and Jack. Since then, theydstuck together no matter what.

Oh no, she said soddenly,and stopped walking.

From a block away, they couldsee the sprinklers, at the park, had

been set.

Lets keep on, said Bruce.Well just have to squat tonight.

They continued past the park,and into another neighborhood.


7/55

What do you think of this

one? asked Bruce, as theyapproached a dark house with a ForSale sign.

Its been sold, said Jack. Hepointed to a trail of heavily disturbed

dirt that lead up to the front door. Itsscreen was slightly bent out of place,and there were scuff marks on theporch. Someones been movingthings in.

After a few more blocks, they

happened into a wealthierneighborhood. Nearly every househad tall security fences thatprotected the mac mansions in theirmidst.

This looks good, said Tatiawith hope, as they approached a tallgray manor style house. Its gate hadbeen left open.

They walked up to the porch.Jack peered through the front

window.


8/55

Oh, man, he groaned

excitedly.

What? asked Tatia.

Theres a table setting anddishes out; candles and silverware,

too. Theyre probably going to showit tomorrow.

Think theres food in there?asked Tatia.

Gosh, Im starving, said

Bruce.

Jack did a 360, and seeing thatnone of the neighbors lights wereon, urged Bruce and Tatia to keep alookout while he went around back.

A moment later, they heardthe sound of breaking glass. Next,an alarm sounded off.

Oh, no! Bruce said in a loudwhisper. Jaaack!


9/55

They turned around and

around, looking for neighborhoodsecurity cars.

Jack! Come on! I hear sirens;theyre coming, now! Bruce saidhoarsely.

Carrying a bag, Jack ran pastthem and out of the gate; Tatia andBruce followed.

They turned right and ran tothe corner, made another right and

then a left.

When they finally stoppedrunning, they found themselves inan unknown alley.

What did you get? askedBruce.

Chicken and some rolls.

In the distance, they could stillhear sirens.


10/55

Did anyone see us? asked

Jack, panting for air.

I dont think so, said Bruce.

Great. The last thing we needis to get into trouble with the police

again.

Hey, what if we crashedhere? asked Tatia.

Jack turned to look behind him.Bruce moved his head over, so he

could see around Jack.

Across from where they stoodwas a large wrought iron fence thatwas barely visible through a barrageof ferns that were growing out of

control.

The property was dark andstill; the gardens were overgrownand the grass was over three feethigh.

In the center of the propertywas a two story house; its brown


11/55

paint cracked and peeled on every

square inch of its surface.

What do you think? askedBruce.

Vines are growing up through

the cobble stones, Jackcommented. Ivy has brokenthrough the window. Id say it lookslike a good place to hide out for acouple days or more maybeweeks.

The sirens got louder.

Okay, help me up, saidTatia.

Bruce and Jack intertwined

their fingers, giving her a boost. Shegrabbed the top of the fence, liftedher leg up and over, and jumpedonto the ground.

She, in turn, stuck her handsback through the iron bars and

clasped her fingers with Jack. Brucejumped over and, together, they


12/55

stuck their hands through the bars,

once more so Jack could follow.

Right as Jack dropped to theground, flashing lights glared downthe alley.

Hide!Jack said.

Tatia and Bruce jumped to theright side of the bushes while Jack

jumped to the left.

They stood real still as the

police car drove, slowly, by.

When itd passed, they wentup to the tall, dark and creepyhouse, and looked through thewindows.

I cant see anything, saidBruce.

Lets go in, said Tatia.

The lock was rusty, for Jack

only had to ram the door with his


13/55

shoulder once. It swung back, wildly,

hitting the wall.

Inside was dark and dusty. Theonly thing they could see was thecobwebs that were highlighted bythe moon.

Bruce pulled his backpack offand pulled out his little batteryoperated fluorescent lamp.

Holding it at arms-length infront of him, he, slowly, stepped

over the threshold and into theentrance hall. Jack and Tatia stayedright behind him.

At the end of the hall, theystopped.

Tatia sneezed half a dozentimes.

Ugh! she cried, trying toswallow. I think Im allergic todust!

The living room was filthy.


14/55

In the center, covering aplastic wrapped couch was thelargest spider web theyd ever seen.Next to it was a plastic wrappedchair.

Im not going in there untilsomeone finds the spider and killsit! said Tatia. I hate spiders.

Ignoring her, Bruce and Jackcontinued further into the livingroom.

Hey, did you guys hear me?

Its just a spider, Tatia, saidBruce.

Despite her protest, shefollowed, closely, behind them.

Facing the couch was a sootyfireplace. All along the walls werebooks, magazines and newspaperspiled high. In the right corner, half a

dozen wood chairs were piled on topof one another.


15/55

A fireplace; thank goodness,said Tatia.

She made to go and grab achair to start breaking down for afire.

Wait, said Jack. Letsinspect the rest of the house, first.

Although the house had manyrooms, it only took a few minutes forthem to check it out.

Past the living room was aparlor and, beyond that, a den thathad an old armoire, a glass displaycase with an old record player andrecords, and some photographs.

Sticking close to one another,they made their way to the kitchen.

There were still dishes in theircupboards, and pots and pans hungfrom the ceiling. A microwave that

was completely covered in spiderweb sat on a counter.


16/55

AAAAAGGHHH!!!screamedTatia.

She grabbed Bruces arm.

AAAGH!! followed Bruce.

He jumped back, stepping onTatias foot and nearly knocking herover.

Will you shut it!? said Jack.

With bulging eyes, Brucepointed to the kitchen window.

It was missing a curtain, andperfectly outlined by the light of themoon that shone through was an

enormous tarantula spider.

Relax, guys, theyreharmless, said Jack, as if it werenothing.

Wrong! Tatia Blurted. Thefemales are bad!


17/55

Thats not a female, saidJack, who picked up a large pot andplaced it on the glass, over thespider.

Quick, give me something flat

to keep it inside the pot.

Bruce handed him a plate fromthe cupboard.

Carefully, Jack slid the platebetween the glass and the pot. A

little black leg stuck out as he didthis, making Tatia scream again.

Open the kitchen door forme.

Bruce did as he asked, andthey watched him carefully carry thespider outside.

Gently, he squatted in thethree foot high grass. He set theplate on the ground, and jumped

back as he lifted the pot.


18/55

They watched the softball

sized spider scurry away, and thenhe said, I advise being careful.

There may still be other spiders inthe house.

Upstairs, they found half adozen emptied, but dusty, rooms,except one that had an old, moldymattress.

A door at the end of theupstairs hall opened up to a set of

attic stairs.

When they opened the door,there were many scurrying andscraping sounds. They made it to thetop of the stairs in time to see a

family of raccoons waddling toescape through the broken window.

One turned around and,barring its fangs, lifted its paws andhissed.

WAAaah! Jack yelped.


19/55

Are you seriously scared of a

coon? asked Bruce incredulously.

Yeah, did you see the size ofits teeth?

Its just the light, Jack.

There were boxes everywhere,piled in stacks of 5 feet and higher.In the center were more plasticwrapped couches and chairs.

More spider webs! cried

Tatia, taking in the voluminousstring that covered the furniture,boxes and ceilings. Ill see you atthe bottom of the stairs.

A moment later, Bruce and

Jack reappeared in the hallway.

Probably best to check outthe attic during the day, said Bruce.

They followed Jack to the roomwith the moldy mattress, which they

dragged downstairs into the livingroom.


20/55

Half an hour later, they sat onthe couch, eating baked chicken androlls in front of a fire.

Since Tatia had allergies, they

turned the plastic inside out and laidit on the mattress, creating a niceclean film for them to put theirsleeping bags on.

One thing they never did, until

they were sure of their surroundings,was split up. So they pushed thefurniture back against the books thatlined the wall. That night, Bruceclimbed in between Tatia and Jack,on the mattress in front of the fire.

But Tatia couldnt fall asleep.For some reason, there wassomething about the house thatmade her uncomfortable. She didntwant to say anything, but severaltimes since theyd arrived, shed

thought shed heard moaning.


21/55

When a particularly foul scent

singed her nose hairs, Tatia said,God, you suck.

Bruce tried to pull her back, ashe laughed.

She wrenched her shouldersout of his hands, went to the couch,and watched the fire for a bit.

Tatia reached into herbackpack, and pulled out the pictureof her mother. Sometimes, she liked

to imagine what it would have beenlike, if shed stayed.

Her father liked to tell her overand over that her mother couldntstand her; that without warning, she

picked up and ran, one day. Shedidnt believe it, though. Even if shedid do what her father said, shewouldve never left Tatia behind.

In many fantasies that shedhad, Tatia imagined that one day her

mother would return. Shed grabTatia, and theyd run for it; it


22/55

wouldnt matter where they went,

either, just as long as they weretogether. Every day, she would go toschool and, when shed come home,her mother would be waiting for her.

Theyd do homework together, andthen shed make her dinner. When

she was sick, shed make herchicken soup. Theyd be so happybecause, together, theyd haveescaped the ogre that was herfather.

Tatia was distracted from herthoughts when a rush of cool airblew all over her, making the hairfollicles on her arm stand. The fireflickered ferociously, leaving her incomplete darkness for a moment.

She got up from the couch,walked to the hall entrance, andlooked into the darkness, wonderingif a window had blown open in theden or the parlor.


23/55

A creeping sound, like the

whining of a failing brake echoedthrough hall.

At first, she didnt think muchof it, but then the sound seemed toget closer. The whining traveled

through the air and blew directly intoher ear.

Tatia screamed and jumpedback.

Shut up! said Jack annoyed.

Ignoring him, Tatia slowlybacked into the wall. Wind blewthrough the room, blowing up thedusty curtains, making the rodsrattle.

Jack sat up and looked aroundthe room.

The whining brake soundturned into a high pitched steamwhistle that blasted through the air.


24/55

Bruce jumped out of his

sleeping bag.

What was that? he asked.

The draft and the whistlecontinued to blow louder and louder.

They raised their hands totheir ears.

Bruce and Jack backed againstthe wall, next to Tatia.

Suddenly, a loud CRUNCHnoise rent the air.

The noise came from a holethatd been punched into the wall onthe other side of the room.

Wood splinters and dustsprayed across the room.

Holes continued to appear in astraight row, across the wall.

Tatia covered her eyes toprotect them from wood shards.


25/55

CRUNCH! CRUNCH! CRUNCH!

PSSSSH, sprayed more wood.

Tatia was too scared toscream. Bruces eyes were bugged

out, and Jack jumped each time anew hole appeared.

Bruce and Jack watched thetrail of magically appearing holes, allthe way to the brick fireplace, whereit hit iron behind the wall, and made

a high DING!

The holes stopped appearing.

The waves of the fire flickeredagain. Bruce shrieked and yanked at

Tatias arm.

Tatia uncovered her eyes andasked, What?

Look! said Bruce, pointing atthe hall.


26/55

Floating toward the living

room was a whited out ghost of aman. It had the round eyes and anoblong opened mouth that made itlook similar to a lost soul.

The steam whistle blasted

through the air again; they grabbedtheir ears.

Slowly, it levitated closer andcloser to them. From its mouth, adark sludge spilled out over its lips,down its chin and all the way down

its chest.

Jack looked about the room fora quick solution. His eyes settled onthe fire poker.

He grabbed it, raised itskyward, and slashed it downthrough the ghost.

Instantly, it disappeared,leaving a wisp of white in the air thatslowly dissolved.


27/55

How did you know to do

that? asked Bruce.

I watch T.V.

Tatia ran to her sleeping bagand began rolling it up.

What are you doing? askedBruce.

Im getting out of here.

You cant leave! This is a

great place! No ones been here inforever. We can probably spend thewinter here.

What if it comes back?

Jack handed her the fire poker.

If you get scared, swipe theghost with the poker, he said.

I think hes right, said Bruce.You know how it is. We could

search for weeks, and never find a


28/55

place like this. We just have to learn

how to live with a ghost.


29/55

Get Comfortable

Chapter 2

The next morning, they made it apriority to bathe. Most of the time,they were forced to wash with the

ice cold water of Pickley Hills Parkbathrooms.

Jack and Tatia heated pots ofwater by setting them on thefireplace while Bruce snuck out tofind breakfast.

When he returned, he hadCaptain Crunch and a carton oforange juice.

Did the neighbors see you?asked Tatia.

No, I was real careful goingout and coming in.

No milk? asked Jack, whosehair was still wet.


30/55

He walked over and set thelarge pot of water on the fireplace.

I didnt realize it was juiceuntil I was halfway down the block.

The clerk was onto me, and the only

way I got away with these wasbecause a couple of Joeys kids camein and pepper sprayed him in theeyes.

Thats terrible! said Tatia.

She was sitting with her backto the fireplace, hoping her wet hairwould dry quickly, as the house wasstill very cold.

Joey was the citys bully.

In his fathers warehouse onthe other side of town, he resided asan unofficial magistrate to a host ofabout a hundred kids.

In exchange for letting them

stay there, the kids provided publicservices, such as window washing,


31/55

pick pocketing, shop lifting, and

sometimes burglary.

The kids would give him alltheir earnings, in exchange for hisprotection and his silence.

Well, you want to eat, dontyou? asked Bruce sarcastically.

Tatia walked to the kitchenand brought back a couple bowlsand spoons.

Yeah, well, just dont let themdo us any more favors, said Jack.As it is, I dont know how Im gonnaget my guitar back.

When Tatia got her nose

broken, Jack and Bruce went to Joeyfor help because the hospitalwouldnt admit her without healthinsurance or an up front payment.

Jack gave Joey his fathers1952 Roy Buchanan Fender

Telecaster, in exchange for the


32/55

$1,000 they needed to get Tatias

nose fixed.

Im sorry, Jack, Tatia said.She grabbed the cereal and juice,poured them into the bowls,together.

You dont have to apologize,Tatia. I dont blame you, but Ive gotto get it back. Its the only thing myfather ever gave to me, and itsworth a lot more than $1,000.

Like how much? asked Brucesounding excited.

I dont know. Its just what myfather told me before he died, but Iwont sell it not for a million

dollars.

Well, todays Tuesday, saidBruce. Im gonna mow Mrs.Hendersons lawn, so thats $20;tomorrow, Ive got Mr. Bracket, sothats another. Ill go through the

neighborhood, today, and try todrum up some more business, too.


33/55

Right, Tatia chimed in.Today Im going to school. Ill raidthe kitchen and get food supplies;hopefully enough for the week, sothats one less expense. Then Illgive blood, thats $20, and Mister

Crane on Milton Street said hed payme for my newspapers today, sothat should be another $20.

Sounding downtrodden, Jacksaid. I dont have anything lined uptoday. What am I gonna do?

Wash windows, of course,said Tatia.

Great. Maybe Ill make fivebucks, if Im lucky.

Jack, five is five; you cantgive up, Tatia said sympathetically.

Maybe we should go andwork for Joey? Bruce suggested,taking a bite of his cereal.


34/55

No, said Jack. We shouldnt

get any more mixed up, with him,than we already are. If theres onething I know about Joey, its that hedoesnt like to let go of his debtors.Hell always come up with an excuseto pull you back in, and make you

his slave.

Ive got an idea Tatia said asshe munched. You should scavengethis house today. We dont knowwhats upstairs in the attic. For allwe know, there could be valuables.

Great idea, he said. Ill gothrough all the boxes, and even thekitchen. Well sell what we can.

They flinched as a sudden

noise blasted.

Waaaaaahhh!

The sound was like the faraway, prolonged horn of a train.


35/55

Aah!Tatia jumped in her

seat, nearly spilling juice over theside of her bowl.

The wind around the roomblew again, rattling the curtains.

The ghost appeared again.This time, he looked angrier thanbefore. A copious amount of sludgeissued from his mouth as he madethe floorboards rattle, and the couchlevitate.

Jack ran for the poker. Theghost, seeing him with it, backedaway and around the room.

WAAAAHHH! the ghost wailed

louder.

Jack chased him around thecouch several times before he gaveup and disappeared, leaving behindanother wisp of white.


36/55

Roy Buchanan

Chapter 3

After breakfast, they went theirseparate ways: Tatia to school, andBruce to mow lawns.

With a trash basket, a bucketof hot water and towels, Jack wentup to the attic.

The air was thick with dust. Hechoked on the scent of recent animal

urine.

Achoo! Ugh he heaved.

He walked to the brokenwindow, stuck his head out and

breathed in deeply. Then, he openedthe two other windows, allowing abreeze of fresh air to sweep theroom.

When Jack was a kid, his father

told him all about Roy Buchanan andthe Potato Peeler, Bobby Gregg.


37/55

The best darned musicians ofall time!

He grabbed the broom andstuck the wide end with the bristlesinto the largest cobweb that was

attached to the couch. Jack twistedthe broom, rolling the web into ahuge wad. When he got as much ofit as he could, he used his fingers topry it off, and dropped it into thetrash basket.

Jack didnt meet his fatheruntil much later. His mother told himtheyd hooked up in a moment offiery rock n roll passion.

That was about all he needed

to know. He was fine without hisfather. Never, did he ask any otherquestions about him or why hewasnt around, until one day whenhe got a letter in the mail.

Dear Jack,


38/55

Im your father.

Im dying. Come visit me.

Your Dad,

John

That was it; that was all it said.

No Im sorry for being absent;sorry I never sent you a card; sorry Inever bothered.

Nevertheless, his motherinsisted he go. She printed him aticket, packed him a lunch and tookhim to the train station.

In case of an emergency,she said as she shoved a wad ofcash into his front jeans pocket.

When he arrived at hisdestination, his father stood therelooking like a grim reaper. He was

dirty, wheezy-breathed, and sleazylooking.


39/55

John moved Jack into the spareroom that would have been hisnurses, but he didnt need or wantaround the clock care, yet.

Every day with his father wastorture. Jack tried not to fall asleepas he rambled on and on.

On more than one occasion,he wanted to tell is father to shut it,so he could have some peace and

quiet. The man could talk for hours,going over the same details,repetitively.

Jack said nothing, though, outof respect for his dying father. But in

all the days, he never stoppedtalking about his time as a musician.

Two weeks after Jack movedin, his father got worse. Instead of

just dying, like Jack anticipated, he

wasted away. He got skinnier andskinnier, until he couldnt walk.


40/55

Jack, then, stayed by his side,and listened to his ramblings as helay in his hospice bed, which hadbeen moved into the living room.

Buchanan made his

distortions without a pedal, heremembered his father shouted athim, over the television commercial.These days, musicians have it tooeasy; these days, guitars are madeof tin and fiber board, hed scoff.No wonder they cant make music

worth a darn. They dont have towork for it!

One night, his father told himthat no one in his family liked himvery much. They called him a bum,

reckless and impulsive, only caredabout making music and nothingelse.

Theyd say different if I was

Mick Jagger or Mc Cartney, orLennon, he coughed through

phlegm. He grabbed a tissue andwiped his mouth.


41/55

People, they love music, butthey dont want to suffer the sight ofa musician. They turn on the radio,but they dont hear the music. Mostof the time, its just words they hear,and they dont even understand

them, not really. They hear a realmusician playing next door, trying toperfect his craft, and they tell him toshut it even call the cops. Peopleare fakers.

He reached over for his

smokes, and tapped one out.

Oh but son, that night in theOzark, we knew we were headed forsuccess. We knew we were good.

The people loved us, but then Roy

showed his true colors. He showedwhat a traitor he was, and it ruinedmy life.

Me and Roy, we were bestfriends, but he was half wolf-halfman, just like they said. Roy didnt

get along too well with others,neither.


42/55

He took a deep inhale.

HOOOOooooo, he blewloudly. Roy had one guitar: a 53

Telecaster nicknamed Nancy. Its ina museum, but what most people

dont know is that he had another: A52 Tele.

Sure, Nancy was nice, but 52was as perfect as it got. That wasthe year they perfected it. The yearafter, they cheapened the Fender

Telecaster. Not only does the 52allow both pickups to be used at thesame time, but look at this: Slotheads, not screws!

He stopped a moment, as Jack

examined the guitar.

Anyway, Roy got into it withone dude over creative differences.He felt they should have been doingwhat he told them.

Now, I was just protecting my

friend. Roy wasnt much of a fighter,like he thought he was. He was just


43/55

scary looking, thats all. This dude

was more than I could handlethough. So while I was getting thecrap beat out of me, he made offwith this.

He indicated the guitar by

tapping it with his finger.

That was the night I went tojail. The dude was real well known,real respected; the law was on hisside from the get go. He was churchgoer, and it was the Bible belt. I was

just protecting myself; I wasnt drunkand messing up my life, like peoplelike to say.

He paused a moment, towrestle back the emotion in his

voice.

seven years, I did over that.Shoulda been ten, though. Still, Inever got back on the train afterthat. It was like my time was done.No one wanted to give me a second

chance.


44/55

And, yet, sometimes I blame

myself for never making it. I wasbroken, when I left prison. Hell, Ididnt even touch a guitar the entiretime that I was in there.

He took another drag and said,

Many years later, I caught up withRoy at the Rockaplast show. Hethought I just wanted to say hi.

All he wanted was to get awayfrom me because he knew that if hehadnt left me, Id have never killed

that guy and gone to jail. We weresupposed to be tight. Roy knew hedbetrayed me.

Anyway, he pretended to beglad to see me, and then he made

some lame excuse and left the room.

That was the night I stole my52 tele from him, haha. I thought itwas the Nancy, and I didnt realize itwasnt until later. Still, I heard thathe was downright angry, and that he

was gonna find me and put a bulletin me. But he died instead.


45/55

Oh but it was me, the PotatoPeeler, and Roy. We were good andwe were tough. But that was back in52. Waaay back when.

.

Jack listened to his fathersincessant ramble for several weeks,until the cancer took him into acoma.

When he didnt wake afterseveral days, the nurse said it was

probably permanent.

Relieved and thinking he couldfinally go home, he called his motherthat very night. To his surprise, sheinsisted that he stay with his father

until the very end.

Violent anger welled up insidehim. He didnt want to spendanother moment in that house.

She didnt understand what a

torturous experience it had been for


46/55

him to spend each day with the foul

scents of his dying father.

He knew he should beashamed for feeling the way he did,but hed have given anything to beanywhere else.

When Jack protested, sheinsisted that he needed to be therefor him, in case he woke.

Hes your father! sheshouted at him. How could you be

so selfish?

He was going to do as hismother wished.

His mind changed when a few

a days later, the nurse came in andstarted instructing him on how tochange his diaper and sponge bathehim.

He just couldnt do it.


47/55

The man was a stranger to

him. Why should he do for his father,what he never did for him as a baby?

So that night, Jack grabbed the52 Fender Telecaster, and left.

Every day, he felt guilty aboutit, too. That first night away, hewandered to the Pickley Hills Park.

Sitting on the moist, wetbench, he pulled the telecaster fromits ugly brown velvet case.

It was obvious that the guitarwas old. The alignments were funny,the spacings were off.

He ran a chord. It felt nice and

warn, the way the strings resistedand pulled back.

Unimpressed, he put theguitar back in its case. He nevertouched it again.

A whole week passed with himsleeping at the Pickley Hills Park,


48/55

and wandering the streets. Nights

later, he ran into Bruce, who used tospend time there, too.

Theyd talk and watch thefamilies come to the park and haveparties. Sometimes, other teenagers

would come by, too, though not forgood times: more or less, good timetrouble.

Bruce was the first person hedtalked to about his father. He was agood listener, too.

After Jack had finished talking,Bruce said, Jack, you have to goback. Your father is not you, and youhave to be better than him. He ranaway, and now youre running

away.

Bruce gave Jack the kick in thepants that he was looking for. It gavehim the courage to go back to hisfathers cottage at the hospice.


49/55

He intended to apologize.

From that point on, he was going todo whatever to make his death easy.

But when he got back to thecottage, it was empty. He knockedon the door, repeatedly.

Finally, he walked to the sideof the house and peered through thesliding glass window.

No one was there. The livingroom was completely emptied of all

furniture.

At that moment, a buzzingfeeling erupted on the hair line of hisforehead, and traveled down hisface, back and body.

A ringing noise in his earsdeafened him.

In a zombified state, hewalked blindly, but with eyes wideopened, through the neighborhood.


50/55

Eventually, he made his way

back to Pickley Hills Park, where hemet up with Bruce again.

Nearly every day, Jackremembered the crackle sound thetobacco in his cigarette made, as he

dragged on it. Anytime he heardanything like it, or saw smokers, hethought about his time in thehospice.

Even as he worked, he tried toforget those weeks with his father,

but the images and conversationsplayed themselves over and overagain, in his mind.

It was late in the afternoonbefore he finally sat for a break.

Hed cleaned out most of thecobwebs and swept up all the animaldroppings.

So deep in the last memory ofhis father, Jack was that he jumped

when Tatia walked in.


51/55

Wow, this place is looking

good!

Jack had pushed all the boxesto the left side of the room. All thestuff hed pulled out were in piles onthe right.

In the lower corner on thefloor, hed piled old clothes. Just upfrom that were old raggedy toys,and, up from that, a couple of old

jewelry boxes.

Immediately, Tatia walkedover and lifted some of their lids andpulled out their tiny drawers.

She found a couple old ringsand necklaces.

What do you think?

I dont know, she said.Looks costume to me, but some ofthem have the little stamps on themthough. So theyre real gold, though

its old. We just need to clean it up a


52/55

bit. Toothpaste: thats what Maggie

at school always says.

Who?

Just some stuck up rich girl.

She walked over to the pile oftoys. She picked up a doll with brightred hair. Wow, some old ugly toys,but someone might want them.

She stood up and walked to a

large stack of 10 lb cans that saidBully Beef.

What in the world are these?

I think theyre rations from

the army.

Wow, 1949, it says. Well, Iguess that means you didnt findmuch. I hate to say it, but I dontthink these necklaces will fetchmuch. You know how pawn houses

are.


53/55

Are you kidding? he asked,

looking at her like she was crazy.These cans; this green helmet andclothes are vintage stuff. Someonewill buy these. Trust me. Plus, Ivestill got another dozen boxes to gothrough.

Well sell what we can to thepawn shop. With the rest, well takeit to the swap meet on Saturday.

How are we gonna get thesecans to the swap meet? Theyre

humungous.

We wont. Well put those onEbay.

Whoa! said Bruce, who had

just walked in. I cant believe allthis stuff.

Jack smiled and said, Itsgreat, isnt it. Maybe Ill get myguitar back sooner than later.

Did you get any food? askedJack. Im starving.


54/55

Yeah, I got quite a bit, but Idont think Ill be able to go back.

The cafeteria guy saw me.

~~~

That evening, they sat on thecouch, eating ham and cheesesandwiches.

Did you see the ghost at alltoday? asked Tatia.

No but I felt him.

Werent you scared?

Heck, no! I told him to go

away, and he did.

Just then, as if he knew theywere talking about him, the sound ofa whiney brake entered the room.

This time, they didnt panic.

Rather, they waited for the noise toabate.


55/55

When his white form didntappear, Bruce said, Whats up,

jerk? to the air.

Waaaaahhhhhhhh!!

The couch rumbled and shook.

Bruce, shut up! Dont call himnames, said Tatia, trying not todrop her sandwich as she held ontothe back of the couch.

Aww, what? Did I hurt yourwhittle fee wings, aww

The ghost looked at him. Tatiagagged as more black sludge spilleddown his front. Then, fast, he flew

into Bruce and disappeared.

He screamed and jumped offthe couch.

That was cold!

Black Droolies

Documents

Transcript of Black Droolies