Page 46 of The Locker Room
shower, and because they were both running at the same time, the water
was lukewarm at best. Xander decided to add a really big hot water
heater and a shower for two to his list for being a grown-up. Hell, some
of the other stuff looked like it might come true, even if Chris was the
one with the car at this point.
Work seemed to crawl by, and that was unusual and frustrating.
Xander liked being functional, liked scraping grills and producing
something and measuring his progress by the ding of the bun-timer and
the number of hamburgers put in a box. The people around him usually
played at their work, too, and he enjoyed being immersed in
conversations that had nothing to do with him, but that he could follow,
anyway.
And of course, watching Chris at the counter was always a treat.
“Here ya go, Ms. Oscar!” Chris always bounced on his toes, and
since Ms. Oscar was their next-door neighbor, he was extra enthusiastic.
“Now, you know, we could always deliver this to you, right? Xander and
I usually get off at ten on Saturday nights!”
Ms. Oscar smiled gently and waved to Xander in the back. “Hullo,
Xander!” Xander waved at her, a nice woman with a pretty smile
somewhere in middle age where eighteen-year-old boys stopped
wondering about age at all. “I couldn"t let you do that, honey. You two
are supposed to be out partying this summer. Aren"t you supposed to be
leaving soon?”
40
Amy Lane
“Six weeks,” Chris confirmed. “It was going to be eight, but I got a
car for graduation, and Xan and I are gonna road trip back east.”
Ms. Oscar took a deep breath in what was clearly enchantment.
“Oh, that"s wonderful, Chris. You two will have so much fun!”
Chris grinned at her and said goodnight, and then turned to Xander
