ADAM

Adam was experiencing some very mixed emotions. He was excited to be getting so close to home, but sad to be losing his new found friend. Near St Augustine they branched off onto I-4 leading them toward Orlando and Tampa.

About 5:00 PM Hank turned off at the first Exit for Tampa, and found a place to park. Bringing up MAPS on his phone, Adam gave him the address of his parent's home, and he hit GO. According to the app it was about 45 minutes from where they were, and he used the GPS to drive them there. The neighborhood was somewhat run down, definitely not Park Place, lots of kids on the streets, mostly Hispanic. Hank turned on to the last street of the directions, and drove down it, looking for the numeric address, many of these small houses seemed not to have a number posted that could be seen.

"THAT'S IT!" Adam yelled, pointing, "That's my house, right there!"

Hank pulled to the curb in front of the house that Adam was pointing to. His mother heard our car stop in front and looked out the door, and saw Adam opening the car door.

Mary Cortez, turning back to the inside of the house, "TONY, ADAM'S HOME!" then, running towards our car with arms open wide, "ADAM!" as she threw her arms around Adam, hugging him tightly, and Adam hugged her just as tightly, kissing her lips. Seconds later, Tony appeared, a smile on his face and tears running from his eyes.

"Adam!" Tony exclaimed, "your Mama and I have been worried sick, we didn't hear from you, and we had no idea where you might be, or if you were even alive!" Tony wrapped his arms around Adam, squeezing him like only a man can do. Then, looking at Hank, "Who are you?"

"Papa, Mama," Adam spoke, "this is Hank, and I think he might be my guardian angel."

"Just Hank?" Tony asked, "no last name?"

"Wilcox, sir," Hank stated, "Adam never asked me, and I guess I just never told him."

"I was so happy to get out of that rest area where Hank picked me up, I think if he'd had horns and told me he was Lucifer I would have gone with him!" Adam said, smiling. "But he was more like an angel!"

It took Adam and Hank about an hour to tell Mary and Tony what Adam had been through, and one could see that they shared his pain.

"Hank," Mary said, "we're so thankful that you found Adam and was able to return him to us, God Bless you!"

"Mary, Tony," Hank stated, "Tuesday night, when I found Adam in that rest area, I promised him that I would get him back home, and I try very hard not to break promises. I have delivered on that promise. You two have raised a very beautiful and awesome young man, and I'm very thankful our paths crossed, or I would have never met him. I think maybe fate was on our side, I needed a rest room, and I almost decided to wait until the next exit, but I wasn't sure I could even make it, so I stopped at that rest area, and found a pot of gold!"

"I have a client to pick up tomorrow morning in Sarasota, and take to Chicago, so I really need to leave, get my motel room, and a good nights sleep. Adam, watch out for easy money, and read the contract before you sign."

Hank shared handshakes with Mary and Tony, and walked out toward his car, ready to leave. Before he even opened the door he felt arms around his torso. He turned around and Adam hugged him and Hank had no choice but to return that hug. Both men had tears streaming from their eyes, and their heads were buried into one another's shoulders.

"Hank," Adam said, "you and I both know that I'm not gay, but I still love you. Why do you have to leave me behind?"

"Adam," Hank explained, "life is like a book, with lots of chapters, and each chapter is a part of our lives. The last few days that we've spent together, is just one chapter of the book, that chapter is over, now we have to turn to the next chapter, the next part of our lives. We both have some memories that will linger, but we need to go forward, and live the next chapter, what ever it may bring. I need to leave, and I wish only the best for you. Goodbye, Adam." Hank drove away, leaving Adam at the curb. He'd never before experienced such a heartbreaking departure, and reached for the tissues.

Adam walked slowly into the house, heavy hearted, and trying to hold his emotions at bay. He went to his room and lay on the bed.

A few minutes later, Mary heard Adam sobbing in his room. It hurt her to hear Adam crying, and she went into his room and sat beside him on the bed, running her hand along his back, trying to console him.

"Adam," Mary spoke softly, and lovingly, "why are you so upset?"

"Mama, I've just lost my best friend, and I'll never see him again!"

"I guess you're referring to Hank?" Mary said, "What's so special about him, except that he brought you home?"

"Mama, Hank is the kindest, most generous, caring and loving person I've ever met. Over the few days we spent together, he treated me like a prince, and I loved every minute I spent with him. Now he's dumped me like a hot coal, as if our time together meant nothing! We'll never see each other again."

Adam continued, "He said life is like a book, of many chapters, and our chapter has ended, and we just need to move on to the next chapter of our lives. He just said 'Goodbye Adam' and drove off, leaving me standing."

"Sweetheart," Mary said, "We need to be thankful for Hank, he picked you up in your darkest hour, took you into his home for several days, fed you, washed your soggy clothes, and brought you home to us. People with a heart like his are pretty rare. I think you just maybe got a little too attached to him. I think you'll be fine in a couple of days, you've got parents that are very happy to have you home again, and love you very much."

"I missed you and Papa a lot and I love you both very much," Adam said, "maybe I'll feel better after a good nights sleep."

Hank drove into Sarasota and got his hotel room. The memory of Adam, standing at the curb when he pulled away is haunting him. How could he allow himself to become so attached to that young straight boy. He's not regretting what he did to 'hep' the 'lil bro' but is mostly wishing he hadn't gotten so close to Adam, emotionally.

Hank is wishing he'd at least given Adam his phone number, so that Adam could make contact with him. It's probably just as well, as he had said to Adam earlier, this chapter is over, it's best to let it end.

Hank set the alarm on his phone for 6:00 AM Monday, so he would have time for some coffee and breakfast before picking up his rider at 8:00 and taking her to Chicago. After going to bed, he found himself groping under the covers, his arm was reaching out, wanting to wrap itself around Adam, but just came up empty. He finally cried himself to sleep.

The End

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Authors Note:

Sorry folks, some stories just don't have a happy ending.

Just a reminder, comments are always appreciated, even if they're negative.

Doug, aka o2byoung