“I want to get back to the United States...”
Chilton’s intro…
Chilton here, your host of the Kyler Doss blog. Oh, I am also one of his unpublished characters. When will I be published? I don't think I'm in a position to answer that question.
I'm here to fill you in on what Kyler is writing, what he's not writing, and what he is halfway writing. Like works-in-progress. Or as we say in Hollywood, stuff that is "in development."
This particular story is in search of a working title. Julien Needs Coins. That will do for now. Julien will explain it to us; that is, the world in which he needs those coins.
The story has been in development for a while. About all I can do is show you what Julien's got to say so far. Then I'll try and close out this post with an OUTRO.
Alright, here goes...
JULIEN NEEDS COINS
Back to the USA
I want to get back to the United States but I don't have enough coins for the subway. Every corner I turn is dark, everything is closed at this hour. What I notice is the height above me, of walls or buildings or whatever I'm looking at but can't see.
I've got paper money.
I just need to get my hands on some coins.
A Stairway
I can hear music that seems to come from the top of some wooden stairs. It doesn't sound promising, the music or the situation, but there it is. I haven't found anything else, nor am I likely to.
The stairs will take you up a couple flights with the night around you until you get there. I'm running through a few ways I can tell someone what I'm looking for. "Can you make change for some bills I've got, coins?"
I'm halfway up the stairs and wondering what sort of response I will get. I have to admit that I feel like it's going to be negative. By that I mean abusive, full of words I won't understand but will know the meaning of anyhow.
I don't know what anyone gains by doing that to me. I am already broken at the age of 19, marked by the fact that no one knows me. They know my name, which is Julien, but that only goes so far. Of course, no one here has ever seen me before. I think that goes without saying.
A Party
The landing at the top of the stairs reveals there is a party or a dance going on. The room that you would go into seems narrow, not that much wider than the steps you have climbed. I'm sure that's an exaggeration, though. It might be a normal room if you got inside.
There is a guy taking money, which is the cost of getting in. I don't know if they give you a ticket or stamp your hand. Maybe he just remembers you.
This is what I have been planning for, the moment when I will try and get the coins I need. If the guy is friendly, I could tell him my life story and he would give me the coins out of sympathy alone. What I fear is that before I get any of the words out, I am going to get hit with a wall of hostility.
I don't look foreign. My ancestors are from here. It's just me, who I am, that draws a reaction. Call it natural law if you need to call it something, that people can sense how alone you really are and have to add to it for some reason.
My Turn
I step forward when it's my turn. Some people are different than other people and this boy is one of them, calm. He's around my age.
I'm afraid of him, I can't help it. I don't say much of anything but I'm waving some money around.
I think he's trying to understand, which already puts him ahead of the people who jump to conclusions. Although to be fair, I don't know what anybody would make of me standing here.
The Host
"I need some coins," I say.
He looks at me like he has pieced everything together, who I am and where I'm from.
But more than that, I'm afraid he knows what it adds up to.
"I can give you your change," he says, "in coins."
"I'm not staying."
He starts counting them anyhow.
"That's disappointing," he says.
"I need to get back to the United States."
He hands me the coins.
"This is the same as that bill," he says.
"I appreciate that."
"Why don't you change your mind and stay?"
"How much does it cost?"
He waves his hand slowly toward the entrance, that look he has that makes everything alright.
"I guess I can stay for a while," I say.
The Entry
I walk toward the open door, not sure if that's okay. I believe we have communicated pretty well but I look back once or twice.
He is busy with another partygoer. I guess I'm a partygoer. I find an empty table before I start to feel like people are looking at me. The table allows you to blend into the surroundings. I don't know why I stayed but it seems alright.
The music is fine and I don't mind looking around at the people who seem to be enjoying themselves. Friends and conversations, it seems to be that kind of party. I wonder if anyone has met someone here that they didn't know.
The Host Returns
The ticket guy pulls a chair up to my table.
"Do you like it?" he says.
"I can pay." I dig in a pocket for the coins.
"No," he says, "you don't need to."
His words don't sound as bad as they could, no suspicion in it.
He stands up from the table.
"I need to get back out there," he says.
"Are you coming back?"
"It won't be long."
Chilton’s outro…
Okay, hope you liked that. I don't know where it's going from there. If Kyler knows, he isn't talking. Julien needs something in addition to those coins, doesn't he? I get this darkness around him, like it follows him. He expects he is going to get mistreated, then he doesn't.