Chapter Text
He walked down the streets of Phoenix, he is still not too familiar with them even though he’s been staying here for 2 days now visiting an old school friend whom had just gotten married. He had a plane to catch at lunch tomorrow so he thought he would make his last night here the most of it, grabbing a few beers with his mate and chit chatting about life, even offering to drawing a nice piece of him and his wife as a late wedding gift.
But since his friend wanted home to his wife quite early, to do, well I guess to do things newly wedded people do, so Mike had been left with his last beer walking down from the bar up to his hotel.
He was quite annoyed on how some of the streetlights had a warm bulb and others a cold one, making the lights that hit the street sometimes be yellow and sometimes more white/blue. He thought even a five year old would have the brains to put the same lights in all of them.
Then he saw a shadow moving under one of the lights, further down the street, which had now narrowed down to an alley, hidden next to a dumpster.
His curiosity and worry brought him closer and he could now see that it was a large man standing over another person, not quite sure if it was a woman or a man, checking the pockets probably looking for change.
“Hey, get off!” He screamed as he jogged down to the figure. The large man quickly disappeared down into the night and Mike went to check on the other person, who he could now see was a very skinny guy, couldn’t be over 25 and looked as if life had been drained from his passed out body. The obvious smell of probably all sorts of alcohol and sweat coming from the stranger threw Mike into an uncomfortable mood.
He felt for the poor man, lying here all passed out and vulnerable, at the same time his mind told him to ignore the man since he had been taught since he was a child that people on the street were dangerous, especially if they had bottles of needles near them.
But Mike had to make sure he was okay so he shook the tender guy hoping to get a response but all he got was gravity pulling the man down to the ground, leaving his dreadlocks getting wet in a poodle of water. Mike looked to his left and right, making sure no one was watching while trying to find the passed out’s wallet or phone to see if he had an address or at least a number written down so he could call someone to pick the drunk up.
All he found was a recite from a grocery store, with only white bread and coffee powder bought.
Mike tried to assure himself that the man would be fine, but his gut told him he mustn’t leave, as he would never be able to handle the guilt if anything happened.
He quickly ran into the corner shop he had seen right before and bought probably too many water bottles and took them back to the drunken man, who had now gained back a little bit of consciousness.
Mike slapped him across the face so he would wake more and drink, which he did.
He emptied 2 water bottles before the man was back in his body enough to ask who the fuck Mike was.
“I’m just helping you, is there any one you could call or any place you could go to sleep this off?”, he responded.
A moan came from the drunk man as he tried to slowly stand up, which Mike had to help him with, putting one of the thin man’s arms around his neck to help support him.
”Near Burger King” was all the man could get out and Mike assumed he was talking about where he lived.
He helped the man walk while also giving him more water.
When they got to a zebra crossing the stranger almost tripped on his way up to the sidewalk again and Mikes hand went to his ribs/waist to support so that he didn’t fall. The stranger let out a groan at Mike’s touch, obviously in some sort of pain.
“I’m sorry, are you okay?” Mike quickly asked, but the stranger only nodded and mumbled a quick “mmm” but Mike did not believe him. They walked for a bit longer til the drunken pointed his hand to an apartment building and said “there”.
They then walked in the direction of the building and the stranger hurried a bit, wanting to get home faster.
But the problem was, the faster he walked, the more it hurt so he let out another groan and this time Mike didn’t take an “I’m fine” for an answer.
He lifted up the mans white t-shirt only to reveal a big bruise.
“What happened?”, he asked.
“I got into a fight with this douchebag at the club I was at” he explained.
Mike offered to check the bruise out but the stranger refused.
They got to the apartment and the door immediately opened and a distressed woman was seen. “Oh thank god, Chester, you’re back” she outburst. At least now Mike knew the name of the stranger he had helped.
He helped lead the skinny man into the apartment while the woman was thanking him for bringing him home.
He couldn’t help but notice the rolled weed on the table and bottles next to the couch, and not to mention the medicine cabinet that was wide open.
The woman offered him a piece of cherry pie from the freezer but Mike declined, not wanting to trouble the pretty woman, who had introduced herself as ‘Sam’.
That night Mike walked back to his hotel room not being able to stop wondering if that man, and who he presumed was his girlfriend, had a better future than what life had given them now. He always hated how unfair it was, that some people was born onto silver plates while others had to fight to even make it through the hour.
He had a hard time sleeping once he got to his room, which would just mean more trouble and annoyance the next day since he had to pack and hurry to the plane that was going to take him back to LA, he was praying there wouldn’t be any babies onboard.
..to be continued