25th
Now, for what is really on my mind.
It was a warm summer evening. Theodore woke up to the sound of his mother beating on his bedroom door.
“Wake up Teddy, you bum!” she hollered. The sound waves didn’t seem mind the wooden slab blocking the two, as it pierced Theodore’s ears like a well thrust spear.
Theodore, although now wide awake, slid out of bed slowly, not wanting to face the day. He noticed his alarm clock. 11 o’ clock in the morning. Yesterday he was able to sleep until one. He felt cheated.
Ted swallowed. Pain. Another sore throat. The third in as many weeks. Why do I feel so crappy? Ted thought.
Ted’s next thought brought him some peace. He could play the ‘sick game’ once again. While his mother seemed akin to a slave driver from biblical times, she would melt at any sign of sickness. Being a former nurse, she had seen how improper care could turn some simple illness into a life or death situation. Although he knew this sore throat would develop no further, he knew he could convince his mom that today he should stay in. He could watch television, surf the internet, and, if she was in an exceptionally good mood, she might even prepare liver topped with cottage cheese, his favorite.
Even that didn’t matter so much. As long as he didn’t have to go out there. He hated people more than anything, and his mother pestering him to get a job. If only he’d have been able to win that last big bet. He would have everything right now: his wife and kids, his house, his fantastic job as a nuclear engineer at MALCOR, and money, more he had ever seen. But no. The high stakes poker tables were not his friend that day. He can still remember more vividly than anything the river card being placed down by the dealer. The very card that became his best friend and worst enemy…
