Page:Jay Little - Maybe—Tomorrow.pdf/93

 I'll make him strong, he thought. I'll show them he's not a sissy after all.

A bridge loomed ahead of them. They passed beneath its strong steel beams and before them lay the beginning of Egan, Texas. Under a mass of trees and shrubs, bound to a grass-covered earth, stood a large two story house. Its high windows blazed with light and the wide veranda and huge four-squared chimney stood white in the moonlight.

"Old man Reeves must be having a party," said Blake. "Look at all those cars and people."

"Sure is a big crowd, isn't it."

"Do you know Marlene?"

"I've seen her at dances. She's very pretty."

"I've had a couple dates with her. She's kinda snooty and always powdering her face. Hell, I couldn't even let the windows down because the wind would mess her hair  I asked her one time after we had been to the show if she'd like a hot dog  you know what she said?"

"No."

"She said, ‘Thanks Robert,' (she calls me Robert) ‘but I don't care for them. Must we go to a drive-in?"

"Did she really."

"She's that away "

They drove along. Past more houses and filling stations; past rows of one-story buildings; past the sidewalks where a few people lingered. Two Negroes, in bright checkered shirts and tight, cuffed trousers, laughed, and snapped their fingers as they walked. Gaylord looked at them with a curious sensation, wishing he could walk down a street with the same careless stride.

Gaylord did not protest when Blake suggested, "Let's eat." And when the red light changed to green, he swung the car onto a vacant lot of shelled earth around a neon-circled building.

A blonde, unattractive female waited on them. "Well," she asked sharply, "what's it going to be?"

"Hello, sweetheart," Blake grinned, noticing the mole on her chin. "Ya want a hamburger or something else, Gay?" Before Gaylord could