There’s a moment after change called acceptance, where you begrudgingly accept the situation you’re in. Sure, you might have fallen into your change kicking and screaming, but after the blows, are the open road. It’s on you to accept your situation and make the drive. This is where we find Omar and Jasper.

Jasper and Omar poured down the road, watching the world pass them by. Occasionally, Omar would rub his eye, as details of the previous night came rushing in to devour his mind. Flashes of his fist connecting with the biker’s face, the shots, the cancer, Monica, everything seemed to roll in and out like a wave crashing into and retreating from shore. He leaned forward and ran his fingers through his messy hair, the strands sticking to his damp forehead.

Jasper glances over and stares at Omar.

 

“You alright?”

“Yeah,” Omar lied. Inside, he was more mixed up than a bottle of salad dressing and despite physically being a man, he never felt more like a boy unsure about his future.

“You look like you need to eat something,” says Jasper as he reaches into a crumpled paper bag and pulls out a breakfast burrito, its greasy exterior glinting in the morning sun.

Omar hesitates before taking a tentative bite. His eyes dilate. After another moment, he bites harder and starts to scarf it down like it was the last meal on Earth.

“Hey, this is pretty good… Where’d you get this?” says Omar as relief spreads and mellows his face.

“The gas station,” says Jasper casually. Omar freezes, lurches forward, and begins spitting it up.

“The gas station?”

“Yeah, the gas station! What’s wrong with that?”

“I can’t eat a gas station burrito. Are you crazy?!”

“Are YOU crazy? Why the hell not?” Says Jasper.

“Do you know what those things do to you?” says Omar as his mind races to a fart-filled future. He rubs his temples.

“What?” says Jasper. “Satisfy hunger?”

A low rumble rings out from Omar’s stomach.

“Oh no… it’s happening.”

Omar doubles over and grabs his belly. He starts to feel his stomach twist and turn like a fork wrapping up spaghetti and a few moments later hears that low squeaky, eeky sound that only comes when something is horribly, horribly wrong.

“Damn boy!” Jasper does a double-take and the car swerves.

“Watch the road!” Omar screams.

“My bad, my bad. Reflexes aren’t what they used to be,” says Jasper as he straightens up the car with a sheepish grin plastered across his face.

A few groans later, Omar speaks up.

“Dad, we gotta find a place to stop. NOW.”

“We just got on the damn road, O. Don’t you want to make it to California?” Jasper tapped the steering wheel, then glances over to see sweat beading on his son’s forehead. A slow smile spreads across his face.

“Alright, alright.” Moments later, a blue sign appears on the horizon like a promise in the night.

 

“Fireworks exit 89.”

Jasper glances to his left and checks the mile marker 88.

“The road code provides again… I’m telling you O – there’s some truth to this shit.”

“Just shut up.”

Jasper laughs.

The car veered right as they got off the highway and approached the fireworks store. Its faded, chipped paint, dark windows, and gravel parking lot weren’t exactly welcoming. But when they cracked the door open, their world changed.

Floor-to-ceiling shelves overflowed with fireworks of every imaginable size and shape – red sparklers that promised fleeting joy, bottle rockets that boasted a fiery ascent, and big boxes rockets emblazoned with the names of slightly firey, slightly sexualized mythical creatures. It was a pyromaniac’s paradise.

 The Watsons approached the counter and set their sights on a stranger, who looked to be the shining gemstone of roadside America. The first thing they noticed was his mullet. It was long with dyed bleach blond highlights as if the man had tried out for a redneck boy band, got cut and never let go of the dream.  Then there was his outfit. He wore a military jacket with the sleeves cut off on the side showing off his massive red arms and a figure that wouldn’t survive boot camp, wrapped up with a pair of dark sunglasses. Then there were the chins, 3 or 4 powerful chins any lesser neck would strain to support. Looking at him, Omar could feel his neck ache from just the sight. And finally was his morals,that he wore as necklaces. A chain with a 50-caliber bullet, a peace sign, a shark tooth, and a cross were just the beginning of his dogma.

His name was Darryl, and he was the epitome of roadside America.

Darryl eyes the Watson men down, sizing them up as they approach closer. In his world, people only came here for two reasons: one to buy fireworks, one to take a shit.  And based on that wavy-haired fella hunched over and his soft-ass, non-firework-lighting hands, it was bound to be the latter.

Darryl crosses his arms and scowls. Omar turns to Jasper. “You think he’s gonna let us use his restroom… he seems angry.”

“You’d be angry too if everyone you met asked to use your bathroom. You’d probably think everyone you meet is full of shit.”

Omar looked down and frowned as his father’s simple logic checked out. The Watson men make their way to the counter and lean forward.

“What can I do you for?” Says Darryl as he lowered his glasses revealing a pair of steely blue eyes. Jasper opens his arms.

“Hey buddy, I was curious, do you mind if we use your restroom?” Darryl looks down at the counter and scowls.

“Sorry, boys, I ain’t got one.” He smiles a fuck you smile.

“You mean to tell me, you sit here out in the middle of nowhere without a restroom? What do you do when you have to go?”

Darryl, appreciating the challenge, gave a curt nod. “Hold it. I’m good at holding things.”

He delivers the line with a suggestive wink that did little to reassure the Watsons. Jasper sizes up Darryl.

“Yeah, I bet you’re good at holding things.” This time, Jasper’s the one who smiles a fuck-you-smile.

A tense silence stretched between them, broken only by the ominous rumble emanating from Omar’s stomach. Both men whipped their heads around to stare at him. Jasper speaks again.

“Alright, alright,” Jasper sighs. “What’s the price? How much to use your bathroom? My son’s gonna erupt like a volcano here.”

Darryl threw his head back and roars with laughter. “Now you’re speaking my language!” He slammed his hands on the counter, causing the display rockets to wobble precariously.

“Well, you’re gonna need some serious firepower if he’s gonna blow up my bathroom. You’ll need some  Sky Sizzlers, a couple of Boom-Boom Busters, a handful of Fizzle Fountains, and some Whizbang Whirlers.” He gestures grandly at the surrounding fireworks, like a king surveying his pyrotechnic kingdom.

Omar puzzles his face and can’t help but feel that this man is a fucking idiot.

“Come on now, did you really think I’m gonna let him mortar my toilet for free?” Darryl asks while his eyes trace the front pocket of Jasper’s shirt noticing his fat wallet sticking out.

“Yeah that’s exactly what I thought,” Jasper challenges. “Seems like the right thing to do.”

“Right, wrong, fair and unfair, is all in the eyes of the beholder muchacho,” says the firework man.

Jasper mutters, “fuckin’ bastard. Alright… pack em up and toss him the key.”

Darryl nods with a stupid smile plastered across his face.

“Pleasure doing business with yah.” He reaches down under the counter and produces a key, flinging it towards Omar with a flick of his wrist. “Right over there, behind the Bam-Bam Begones and the Extra Cheery Cheerios.”

Omar snatches the key, his head spinning from the bizarre fireworks name and practically sprints towards the back, his desperate need overriding his confusion. Darryl licks his lips and turns his back to Jasper.

“Can’t believe y’all city slickers wanted to come in here and shit in my toilet for free… don’t you know there’s a price to everything in this life old man.”

“You’re damn right there is!” says Jasper as he slyly reaches over the counter and grabs a lighter and slips it into his pocket.

Darryl bags up the fireworks, while Jasper’s eyes find a case of bottle rockets at the back of the store and then looks down at his lighter. Meanwhile, Omar rushes to the toilet and fumbles with the keys After a few key jangles, he cracks the door open and sees the best seat in the house, The king’s throne. He rushes in.

There was no time for the let-me-make-sure-this-place-is-clean pleasure. This was all burrito business. He plopped down on the seat and began to release. Unfortunately for Omar, after a few moments, he felt a strange, warm, wet sensation seep onto his legs. He quickly stood up, looked down, and spots it. Wet drops of yellow piss. “DAMNIT!” Omar erupts and trips over his pants, falling forward landing face-first on the cold tile floor.

The commotion echoed through the store, shattering the fragile truce.

Jasper stands across from Darryl arms crossed in an I’m-judging-you-stare. Darryl returned the favor, one eye bulging out of his head, the other caught in a wink when the crash broke the spell.

“Hey! What’s going on in there?!” Darryl bellows.

“You alright, O?” Jasper calls  out at the same time.

The two men exchanged a grimaced glance before cautiously approaching the bathroom door.

“Everything alright?” Jasper’s question hung in the air. A long, pregnant silence followed. Then, a muffled, “Motherfucker!” came from behind the door.

Darryl winced. “I gotta see what’s going on in there.”

He started towards the door, but Jasper was quicker.

“No, I gotta see what’s going on… Bub.”

Darryl looked up like he didn’t believe what he just heard and starts pushing Jasper.

Jasper starts to push back. It was like two 5th-grade boys fighting for the back seat of the bus when finally, they pushed each other so hard, they fell into the bathroom. When they looked up they were hit with the senses.

First, there was the smell. The sharp smell that bites the nose and causes both Darryl and Jasper to put their shirt over their face. Then it was the sight. It looked like a brown speckled painting of a Jackson Pollock. Shit was sprayed on the wall, with wild imprecision. Then, there was the moan. Omar was facedown on the ground, moaning, feeling lower than whale shit.

A whimper escaped Darryl’s throat, starting soft before escalating into a full-blown wail. “Oh noooooo… Oh nooooo! OH NOOOO! My… my… fucking bathroom!”

He looked around like a man surveying the ruins of his home after a tornado touched down. “What have you done?!” Darryl stands up and lunges at Jasper, grabbing him by the shirt and slamming him against the wall.

“We ain’t got no janitors here, I’M gonna have to clean up all this shit!” Jasper’s eyes widened.

Omar slowly picked himself up. “Sor…. Sorry!” says Omar his voice never knew more shame.

“Sorry?! Sorry?! I’M THE ONE WHO”S SORRY!” Darryl released Jasper and started running his finger through his hair.

The situation in the bathroom was desperate. And the bright yellow lights only seemed to make things worse, even with his sunglasses. Then a sick smile grew on Darryls face it was somewhere between a madman and a menace.

“No way in Hell am I cleaning up all this shit.” Says Darryl getting ever more amused with himself. He turns back to Omar and Jasper. “You are!” He points at them.

Jasper threw his hands up in exasperation. “Now, now, let’s not get hasty here,” he soothed, trying to reason with the increasingly volatile Darryl. “I’m a paying customer.”

“Oh really?” Darryl challenged, raising his eyebrows.

“What do you have to say about this?” With a flourish, he lifts his shirt, revealing a line of Roman candles strapped across his torso, each one primed and ready to ignite. He reached into his back pocket and brandished a mortar tube, with a menacing grin plastered on his face.

“I’ll blow your ass to kingdom come, if you don’t start scrubbing like Cinderella.”

Darryl pulls out a roman candle and twirls it in his hand like some sort of redneck ninja.

Jasper throws his hands up and backs into the sink, his butt touching the hand dryer while Darryl hones in.

“Easy… easy.”

“YOU BE EASY. Now we’re gonna do this MY way” Darryl barks. “Below the counter are some chemicals…I want you to slowly open it and…”

HUP SQUISH Omar lunges forward and slams the plunger directly into Darryl’s ear. The unexpected attack sent Darryl reeling, falling into the toilet as a strangled cry escapes his lips.

He stumbles back, clutching at his head as toilet water dripped down his face. “What the FUCK!” says Darryl. He looks into the mirror, sees toilet water runs down his face and gags. Instantly, Jasper looks relieved and races forward.

“Let’s get out of here!” screams Jasper. Jasper rushes forward and pushes Darryl to the side and he falls into the sink. Omar pushes the door open and they rush out. They make it about 10 – 15 feet when the whirl of a Roman candle comes screaming by. It flashes and flares right between the Watson men’s heads.

“Whoah!” another green flare rushes past their head and into the wall. “Come back here you fucker!”

Darryl screams and starts lighting some more roman candles. PHEW…PHEW…PHEW… the roman candles continue to scream on by and bounce off the wall.

“Dad! This guy’s going to blow us up!”

“I know!  He’s crazy, but I ain’t going out like a bitch!”

Jasper stops mid-run, takes a bottle rocket, and fires one back. It goes straight at Darryl’s head. He ducks under the counter and leans his back against it while his chest rises and falls as he cracks open an energy drink. Jasper and Omar slide in behind an aisle and a standoff settles in.

“Listen, man, you ain’t leaving here without cleaning!” Says Darryl before he stands up and lights off a few more Roman candles, which fly by Omar and Jasper’s heads. “I don’t get paid enough for this shit.”

“Fuck you, man!” Jasper sends a rocket screaming back. “You crazy bastard!”

“Yeah! Well, I’m fixing to turn you into a firework show!” Darryl sends a volley back to the Watson men. “You know what my ex-wife said about me?… I have an explosive personality.”

Jasper and Omar are pressed behind the aisle. And for a moment, they lock eyes, and a smile appears on their faces.

“Bitch, don’t lie, you ain’t never been married!” Jasper sends a firework screaming back.

“Oh yeah! You want to judge me? Get ready, I’ll show you Cupid’s arrow!”

Jasper and Omar hear rustling and the crack of glass. Behind them, Darryl had just cracked open the glass counter and pulls out an extra-large firework, aptly named “Cupid’s arrow.” It has an image of Cupid with devil horns on his head.

“You know, I was gonna save this one for my own personal show, but this seems like the right time for some LOVE,” says Darryl.

Omar and Jasper look at each other and hear the sizzling of the fuse.

“Get ready, bitch!” Darryl screams.

BOOM! A monumental firework goes off in the store and shatters the glass casing of all surrounding fireworks. Mortars, whizzlers, and star-spangled stunners fall onto the floor.

“You think I’m messing around?! I’ll blow you up like you blew up my toilet!”

BOOM, another firework comes roaring by and sends a thick billow of smoke all throughout the shop. And then curiously, Omar notices the distinct red spark of a flame. It starts off small and grows larger and larger.

BOOM!

Another firework comes flashing by.

“Dad… Dad… DAD!” Omar starts yanking on Jasper’s shoulder. “We got to… we got to go!”

He knocks the bottle rocket out of Jasper’s hands, turns his head, and could see the fire reflecting from Jasper’s eyes.

“Now!”

“You think that’s all I got! I’m just getting started muchacho, get ready for this!”

They hear another fuse light. A low rumble echoed through the fireworks store, a sound that vibrates in Omar’s teeth. This wasn’t the playful boom of a bottle rocket or the satisfying sizzle of a sparkler. This was the hungry growl of a beast awakening.

Omar glances back at Jasper, who was already halfway out of the aisle, eyes wide and wild with a manic glee. “Dad! Dad!” Omar yells, but the roar of the fuse drowned him out.

The world went red. Not the cherry red of a safety fuse, but a deeper, angrier crimson. It pulsed from beneath the counter, the glow pushing its way through the cracks in the linoleum like a demonic heartbeat. Omar squeezes his eyes shut, picturing the fiery aftermath of misplaced anger. Big mistake.

“Now, Dad, Now!” Omar grabs Jasper and pulls him out of the store. They make a beeline straight for their car and rush into it, practically knocking the door off its hinges.

The silence that followed was worse. A pregnant pause that stretches on for an eternity, punctuated only by the ragged gasps of his own breath. Then, a crack. It wasn’t the sharp crack of a firework, but a deeper, more ominous sound, like an elephant’s ass splitting in two.

“Oh FUCK!” Darryl screams and runs out the store.

Omar peeks through his fingers. The floorboards beneath his feet seemed to ripple, like someone through a stone into a pond. The air grew thick and hot, smelling not of gunpowder, but of singed hair and something sickly sweet, like burnt cotton candy.

Another crack, louder this time, and the front of the store seemed to bulge outwards. The windows splintered, sending it’s sharp glass onto the front lawn. Omar threw himself back, burying his head under his arm just as a blinding white light filled the world.

It wasn’t the gentle glow of a sparkler or the fleeting brilliance of a bottle rocket. This was a supernova in a shoebox, 4^th of July everywhere in the world, all at once. The heat slammed into Omar like a freight train, momentarily stealing his breath. He squeezes his eyes tighter, gritting his teeth against the deafening roar that seemed to vibrate through his very bones.

When the light faded, Omar found himself staring at a scene straight out of a fever dream. The store was gone, replaced by a smoldering crater ringed by twisted metal. Smoke billowed into the night sky, carrying with it the fading embers of a thousand explosions. And Darryl was on his knees throwing his hands to heavens above begging for mercy.

“Now that’s a firework!” says Jasper laughing.

Omar starts laughing too, out of utter shock.

“What a crazy fucker… who lights fireworks in their own store?” Says Jasper still laughing.

“What the fuck?” Omar joins. He looks over at Jasper and felt his bond grow and get hardened as if by iron. They just shared the strongest bond known to man, bonding through  chaos.

“I love you man.” Says Jasper as he turns to Omar. But something in the back seat caught his eye. It was the letter. And slowly the realization of the inevitable sets in. Mortality. His excitement is quickly extinguished, and tears start to roll down his face.

Omar sighs, and nods. “I love you too.” Then panic sets in. He clutches the seat, his white knuckles bulging out. “We… we gotta go… we gotta go.” He turns to Jasper who is staring blankly ahead, a single tear tracing a path down his cheek. “Dad? Dad!” Omar’s voice cracks with sudden fear. “What’s wrong?”

Jasper’s smile falters, replaced by a deep sadness that seemed to age him ten years in those few seconds. The roar of the nearby fire fades into a dull hum in Omar’s ears, and is replaced by the deafening silence of his father’s grief. In that moment, the weight of the inevitable settles on them both, a crushing realization that shattered the fragile shield of denial they’d built.

Jasper started the car, the engine roaring to life, but didn’t move. Tears welled up in his eyes, blurring the road ahead. A lifetime of regrets, of missed moments, of what-ifs floods his mind. The brush with oblivion had ripped the curtain back, revealing the precious, irreplaceable nature of time. It had fully dawned on Jasper that there wasn’t going to be many more memories created. It was sobering as it was upsetting.

“I just want to live,” he whispered, his voice choking with emotion. But the whisper held a new meaning now, a desperate plea for stolen time, a stark reminder of the impermanence of it all.

Omar watches his father’s cement start to crack, a single tear slipping down his own cheek in unison. He understood now. This wasn’t just a road trip; this was a goodbye.

 

 

OK – This is a rough middle chapter from my book that you should be able to read without the context of the rest of the book. I’m just looking to see what response this gets as I’m debating on cutting it or keeping it. But essentially, Jasper starts to cry because earlier in the book, it’s revealed he has terminal cancer. Either way, please let me know what you think/ Book should be out in a few months.