The next morning, I lay awake, waiting for the man in the other bed to get up. I never did get his name. I listened to him snoring and making strange sounds from his throat. It reminded me of listening to my dad sleep. I thought about getting up and going. Would he even give me a ride? I was a full 90 minutes away and had to pass through Providence. That could take hours if I didn’t get lucky.

Finally, around 9:30, the sounds stopped and I heard him rustling. Neither of us said anything. He packed up and walked out of the room, lighting a cigarette. I followed behind with my suitcase. When we arrived at his car, I went around, figuring I wouldn’t ask him if he was going to give me a ride. He stood at the door for a minute, looked at me, and got into the car. Then the door unlocked. I opened it and got in.

“I need to stop for breakfast. Then I’ll drop you off on the other side of Providence.”

That was all I needed to hear.

We stopped at a diner. I had bacon and eggs. I don’t remember what he ordered. But he was not in a hurry. He bought a fresh pack of smokes and had a couple of them as he drank three cups of coffee. We were both silent the whole time. Finally, he got up and headed to his car.

A little over an hour later, he dropped me off near the 146 exit on I-95. I walked down the road, found a pay phone, and called Angela.

“I just got here,” I said. “Can you come pick me up?”

“You’re here? Where are you?”

“Just off I-95 at the 146. I’m at McDonald's. Can you come get me?”

“I’ll be right there. I can’t wait to see you.”

I hung up the phone and caught my reflection in the phone booth window. I smelled my own breath. I brushed back my dirty hair but it was no use. I opened my suitcase and scrounged through it until I found a clean, white tee-shirt and a pair of shorts. I went into the McDonald’s and headed to the bathroom. I did my best to wash up. I brushed my teeth. I got a hamburger and a carton of milk.

A few minutes later, I saw a gold Duster pull into the parking lot with Angela behind the wheel. I thought for a minute about walking out the other door and going back on the road. What would she think about how I looked? About how I smelled? This was a long way from the beaches of Daytona. Those were heady times, filled with tequila sunrises, dancing, and lots of friends around. This place wasn’t magic, it was reality. It felt different.

Angela got out of the car and started looking around for me. I took a deep breath, grabbed my suitcase, and walked into the parking lot. It turned out to be one of the craziest summers of my life.