Crawlin' king snake
Short story
November 12, 2003
The Iranian
Well I'm a crawlin' king snake, and I rules my den...
The
alarm clock had tripped the CD player on and the gritty voice of
John Lee Hooker broke the morning silence.
I sat up at the edge
of the bed and looked at my image in the dresser mirror. My
reflection looked old and all puffed up, dark pockets under the
eyes, deep marionette lines running along the face, dark,
chapped lips, and my hair; greasy and all over the place.
I looked
like a mess.
I put on my glasses and reached for the roach
on the nightstand.
The sweet aroma of cannabis started to slowly
mask the mustiness of the bedroom.
I felt dizzy as I stood up, so I sat on the bed
again and took more drags out of the waning joint.
Why was I up so early this bloody Saturday morning?
Then I remembered. I had to go to my daughter's cheerleading competition
in
some stadium somewhere.
I really didn't want to go. Not because
I wasn't interested, or I didn't love my daughter enough. No, none
of that. I
dreaded it because I'd see my ex with her husband and their
kids over there. That, I didn't care for.
Hooker was still going
at it.
Don't want you 'round my
mate,
wanna use her for myself... The stadium was crowded, noisy, and smelled of human
flesh. Pretty little girls in their colorful outfits were shouting
inaudible
cheers and the judges were observing their every little moves.
My
ex spotted me and waved me over. I nodded hello and took
a seat next to my son who hugged me and put his head on my shoulder.
He had a big smile on his face.
I was too stoned to feel any emotions
but I know I was acting uneasy. I would nervously turn my head
and look at my ex. She
looked beautiful
and so much in control. With a brand new baby in her arms, she
looked like a goddess. Her husband and their son were sitting
behind her and they all looked like a good happy family together,
with
my son and I; sitting there like outcasts.
It was finally
my daughter's turn. Her team took the floor and they started doing
their program. She looked so little
and so helpless from the stands. I stood up and shouted her name.
She noticed me and smiled. Then she did the best cartwheel she'd
ever done. I thought that was for me.
They came in third, but
that was just fine.
On the way back, I rolled up another joint and
stuck the John Lee Hooker CD in the player and drove on.
Well I'm
a crawlin' king snake and I rules my den
Come on and give me what I want baby
And I won't crawl no more
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