Sal woke up from his dark dream with Carl shaking him hard. Sweat trailed down Sal's back, and his muscles felt tight. He looked up at Carl. “I was having a bad dream,” Sal said.
“Yeah, no shit," Carl said. "You were screaming like crazy. It must have been some nightmare.”
“What time is it?” Sal's eyes squinted at the daylight.
“It's noon. Are you okay? I didn’t hear you come home last night.”
“I got sidetracked.” Sal pushed his blanket aside and decided to head to the bathroom. He needed some space before the questions rained down him. Sal had made to the door before Carl asked how Seth was doing. It was a question that made him lose focus, and he slammed his small toe hard against the doorframe. He grabbed his foot and held hug it.
Goddamn it.
Seth. The name was like a bucket of cold water to the face.
He half-turned to face Carl. “The truth is I don’t know. We kissed, we danced, and then he ditched me.”
“You kissed? He ditched you?” Carl asked. "How? When?”
“I'm as surprised as you are.” Sal was annoyed. "You see, Seth can disappear whenever he wants. I suppose he got bored that I didn’t stay around for a game of Hide-and-Seek.” Sal rubbed his throbbing toe.
“I’m sorry. I know how much you liked him.” Carl sounded sincere, and Sal felt bad for being so touchy.
“The good news is, I know where Louise is. Mr. Hide-and-Seek gave me a note. I guess it checks out." He hoped it would. He was distracted by Officer Green when he'd read it. "It's in the glove compartment in the bus.”
“Best brother ever!” Carl hugged him swiftly, and then he hurried to the bus. Carl had more faith in Seth than he did at the moment.
Sal stepped into the bathroom and looked in the mirror. He looked awful. Hell, he felt awful. He'd make the perfect zombie at that point—George A. Romero would've been proud. His eyes looked sunken, his pale skin looked like dough, and his hair had mud in it.
When Sal stepped out of the shower, his physical body felt better, but his insides were still in chaos. All he wanted to do now and for a long time to come was to indulge himself in Hitman. Even his beloved basketball was far from his mind.
He passed his father in the hall. “Hey, Sal," he said. "Good to see you up. It’s Vickie’s birthday today, so we’re all heading over to The Ugly Duckling for dinner tonight.”
“I’ll be there,” Sal said, holding up his thumb.
“Great! Six o’clock.” His father looked pleased.
Sal grimaced when he entered his room and closed the door behind him. He wasn't in the mood for social functions right then.
He looked out the window to see Vickie playing catch with the twins. She looked so happy, so free. At least he'd done something right.
Sal found his phone, flipped through it, and collapsed on the bed, his thoughts running amok. He was sure he was going crazy. Sal opened a playlist on his phone, feeling the need to add some music to his game. To his great dissatisfaction, Against All Odds by Phil Collins came flying from the phone.
“Oh, hell, no!” Sal addressed the phone. "Why are you mocking me?”
Sal desperately tried to turn the song off, but the phone seemed to jam instead, and the volume turned up and the song continued.
Sal tossed a blanket over his face.
Carl came crashing through the door. “Sal, I…” was all a bemused Carl was able to say before he chuckled. “If only the world could see you now: Don Juan brought to his knees by a knight in shining armor. All of the fair maidens in this city would go crazy at the sight of you.”
Sal flicked Carl an "up yours" gesture using his index and middle fingers, and Carl’s chuckle turned to loud laughter.
“I really dig the choice of song, bro. It really compliments your torment.”
“Can I help you with anything?” Sal said from beneath the blanket.
“I looked up the address. It’s a four-hour drive from here.” Carl switched off his phone and Sal sighed.
“Thank God.”
“Please remove the blanket while I'm am talking to you. It's like talking to Casper the Friendly Ghost.”
“Only if you promise to stop badgering me, and don't say his name.” Sal reluctantly removed the blanket.
“Thank you. The city's called Limestone. It has a population of a thousand people. It's surrounded by weather-beaten desert, as far as I can tell. If the note's for real, Louise’s out there, in Limestone.” Carl stared at the note like it was poetry, and he was a dreamy boy absorbed in it.
“When are you planning on leaving?” Sal said, hoping to break the notorious spell Carl was under. It was the same spell Sal was under, a spell causing the chemical meltdown of his thought and reason. At least Carl had hope.
“Tomorrow morning. Will you see me all the way to her door? That way, if she rejects me, we can listen to Phil Collins together.” Carl was joking, but his voice had a hint of the jitters.
“Of course. I need to get out of here, anyway.” Sal and Carl touched knuckles.
“What are you going to say to Mom and Dad?” Sal asked as he reunited with Agent 47.
“Nothing. I figured I'd call them once I was in Limestone when it was too late for them to talk me out of it. Besides, I don’t want to spoil Vickie’s birthday."