As Kelly clutched her thin housecoat robe about her chest, she hung up the phone with the other hand. "Is he crazy?!" She shouted in her empty apartment.

       Her roommate, Greg, had just called to tell her that he was bringing home some sort of runaway. To my home!

       Greg was usually so levelheaded, she thought. Sure he had his paranoid, self-doubting, worried moments; but he usually made safe decisions. He was not the type that would bring a stranger home in the middle of the night. "A total stranger!! A total and complete stranger!!"

       Unless, Kelly began to reason, this was something else. Greg had said that this kid's parents had thrown him out of their house because he was gay. Perhaps there was something more to this situation. Maybe Greg was interested in this boy.

       However, that did not make sense either. Greg was not the type to have one-night stands. He did not take chances like that. Besides he had a boyfriend already. Greg did not need to screw around. As Al Bundy used to say, "Why go out for milk, when you've already got a cow at home."

       "And another thing, he was thrown out of his parents' home! How old is this kid? He must be jail-bait!"

       Kelly could not figure out why Greg was bringing this kid home. There had to be another reason. "This kid could be dangerous, what if he kills us in our sleep?"

       Greg was taking a chance that involved Kelly. She did not like being subjected to this situation, especially so late at night. "Oh, this makes me mad! There's no way I'm going to be able to sleep tonight!" She stamped her fuzzy slippered feet, as she thundered down the hall back to her bedroom.

       Tyler followed Greg out of the restaurant, toward Greg's car. Tyler did not like the looks he had received from Greg's coworkers, as the two of them left. He did not know if he was justified in being annoyed by them, or if he was just being especially paranoid because of his bad mood.

       Tyler's head swirled with all the emotions he was feeling. He passed through anger, sadness, fear, and a few others that he could not quite discern. Above all, he was exhausted.

       His parents, whom he had thought loved him, had thrown him out for being gay. He had grabbed a few things, and stuffed them into a backpack, before being ushered out of his home. After leaving his home, he was without a place to go, until he met Greg. Greg had been kind enough to offer a place for Tyler to stay for the night. Tyler was a little worried, going home with a person he had only just met. But he was desperate; he had nowhere else to go. The only choice he had was to go with Greg or sleep in the street.

       Tyler opened the passenger door after Greg unlocked it for him. He scrunched himself into the seat of the old Chevy Cavalier, holding his backpack closely to him in his lap. Tyler looked out of the passenger window, as Greg started the car and pulled out of the parking space. Tyler instinctively avoided looking at Greg; it helped create a sense of a protective distance for himself within the small space of the car.

       Greg turned on the radio, keeping the volume low. "I understand if you don't want to talk. It's probably been a really long day for you."

       Tyler did not know how to respond. He figured it was painfully obvious that he had a bad day. Was he supposed to say, 'oh, yes, thank you for noticing what a bad day I had - how nice of you,' as if Greg's acknowledgement of that fact might fix everything?

       "I called my roommate before we left the restaurant to... well... warn her of your arrival."

       Tyler wondered if Greg was oblivious to his disinterest in conversation, or if he would chatter on to force Tyler to respond. He clutched his backpack tighter and wished he were anywhere else.

       "Her name is Kelly," Greg carried on, seemingly not to notice Tyler's apathy. "I woke her up. But I thought it better to wake her up with a phone call at 1:00 AM, rather than leaving her to find a stranger sleeping in the living room when she wakes up. I usually sleep in 'till after ten or eleven when I work the late shift. So she would wake up long before me, I would never have had a chance to let her know, if I hadn't called."

       "Thanks," Tyler finally injected. "Thanks for giving me a place to stay tonight." He decided to respond, hoping that it might satisfy Greg and stop him from rambling. Although Tyler wondered why Greg had said, 'I understand if you don't want to talk,' when they first got in the car. It seemed to Tyler that everything Greg had done after that statement was purposeful to draw him into conversation.

       "You're welcome."

       Tyler relaxed as he began to realize that Greg had made his peace. Greg was finally quiet, having succeeded in getting Tyler to react. Tyler noticed the music on the radio for the first time during the ride. Sugar Ray was playing. He liked the song.

       As Greg drove them to his apartment, Tyler paid close attention to their whereabouts. He still did not have a license and therefore had never paid attention to directions or street names. Why bother learning such things when other people drive him everywhere he goes? Tonight, however, he was being driven by a virtual stranger, to be safe he wanted to be aware of his surroundings.

       Tyler observed a street sign - Mastick Road. The name meant nothing to him, but he recognized the area. It was the same way his mother would take when they would go to the Westgate Mall.

       Tyler suddenly realized he had never asked Greg where his apartment was. He had no idea where this man was taking him. The realization caused momentary panic, uneasiness washed through his body like liquid electricity. "Where do you live?" Tyler asked in a restrained voice.

       "Fairview Park, on Lorain Road," Greg answered.

       Tyler knew roughly where Fairview Park was and he knew of Lorain Road. However, Lorain was a long road that went through several suburbs, as well as Cleveland. Tyler had no idea where Lorain intersected Fairview Park, so Greg's answer meant very little to him.

       "Where do you live?" Greg asked, obviously mistaking Tyler's question as an invitation to reinstate conversation.

       "Berea," Tyler replied. He immediately saw his mistake. Wherever Fairview Park might be, he hoped they would get there soon, because Greg was certain to talk the rest of the drive.