Shiiiiiiiiit, he thought. Bad judgment was one thing, but now he was truly beginning to suspect he might be a serious alcoholic. I got trashed in a gay bar, he remembered. And I have a date tonight… The shower shocked him awake. He was still half drunk and half hungover when he struggled into his clothes. The memories crept back… Jiff turning tricks at the bar, and… Those two little girls with the dog… Mary and Cricket; he remembered their names. As he brushed his teeth and gargled he tried to convince himself it was all a dream he’d had when he’d passed out but he knew he’d only be lying to himself. No doubt they were two sisters from a poor family. They had to be. Collier spat foam into the toilet; several more gargles couldn’t dispel the hangover taste. Next he stuck his mouth directly under the faucet and filled his belly with water. Then he remembered that little dog—the feisty mutt—and what he thought he’d seen it doing as he left… Collier shoved it from his head and left his room but before he could take his first step down the hall, he stopped.
