I decided to try something different for this week's #TGIFF story: it's the atypical love story between Eli and Jason and this is Chapter One.


Eli was drying a coffee mug when a black-eyed Jason walked into the shop. He nearly dropped the mug when his heart momentarily stopped at the sight of a hurt Jason. Jason was an attractive boy. He wore his blondish-brown hair long, spiked up front, and shaved on the sides and the back. Summer days saw him wearing tight tank tops showing off his taut, sinewy torso and the tattoos on his arms and shoulder blades. His jeans were always skin tight, barely able to contain an impressive package that made Eli confusingly sweat with desire. He was probably in his late teens, but his street life made him look older. He always smelled of grease, cigarettes and cheap cologne. He was usually one of Eli’s final customers for the night, ordering the largest coffee, black, no cream or sugar, and tipped Eli with a smile, a wink, and a little booty shake on his way out of the shop.
Today, Jason lacked his usual flirtatiousness. He couldn’t look at Eli when he ordered his coffee. As usual, Eli couldn’t say anything to Jason. He was too shy and embarrassed to speak. He poured the coffee, exchanged it for cash, provided change, and accepted his tip. Jason didn’t provide his usual tip. It was a forced half-grin before he dragged himself to a booth – completely out of the ordinary for Jason.
“Is that Jason?” asked Brenda, the shop owner.
“Yes,” said Eli.
“He never stays. Go talk to him,” she said.
“What will I say to him?”
“Ask him about that black eye. Did you notice it?”
“Yeah,” replied a sad Eli.
“It pains you to see him hurt, eh Eli?” asked Brenda.
“I don’t like to see him like that,” he replied.
“Go talk to him, Eli. I’ll handle the cleanup. You only have a few minutes before we close.”
Eli hesitated but Brenda pushed him towards the end of the counter. Reluctantly, Eli limped his way to Jason’s booth.
“H-h-how’s the co-co-coffee?” asked a stuttering Eli.
“Perfect as usual,” smiled Jason. The smile was forced and it made Jason wince at the pain from the black eye.
“Does it hurt?” asked Eli.
“This?” replied Jason as he pointed to his eye. Eli nodded. Jason nodded in return.
“Who did that to you?” asked Eli.
“Do you really want to know?” replied Jason. Eli nodded again. “Then take a seat. I don’t like lookin’ up at someone when I speak to them.”
Eli obliged. He slid into the booth across from Jason.
“Have you heard of Jim Bleak?” Eli shook his head. “He’s my boss. He wasn’t happy with last night’s profits so this was incentive to make more money tonight.”
Eli stared at Jason with a mixture of shock and sadness. He didn’t know how to respond. Brenda was never physical with him regarding his job performance.
“Oh, smile sunshine. I don’t like it when you’re sad,” said Jason. “You always have such a pretty grin when I walk in. Don’t let my eye affect your mood. It’ll go away. It doesn’t hurt that much.”
“He…he should…shouldn’t do that,” replied Eli.
“He’s the boss. He can do what he wants. But one day I’m leaving. When I have enough money, I’m getting out of this awful town and away from Jim.”
The door chime went off and a tall, large man walked in. He had long, salt-and-pepper hair that he wore in a ponytail. His jeans were old, ripped, and too tight for a man his age. His jacket was leather with a strange symbol on its back. He searched the room and came charging towards Jason and Eli. He grabbed Jason by the arm and forced him out of the booth.
“Ouch! You’re hurting me, Jim!” cried Jason.
“Unless this boy’s a client, you should be outside working,” replied an angry Jim.
“He-he-he said y-y-you’re hurting him,” said Eli as he tried to stand without limping.
“This little cripple boy is standing up for you?” laughed Jim. “Get out of here and make sure you bring in twice as much as last night.”
Jason bowed his head with shame and left the shop. He didn’t look at Eli but Eli watched him the entire time until he left the shop. He continued to watch until Jason disappeared into the cab of a trucker.
“Got somethin’ for that little whore, do you?” asked a laughing Jim. He took Jason’s unfinished coffee and drank part of it. “You make awful coffee here. I don’t know how anyone could pay for this crap.”
“If you don’t like it,” replied Brenda as she approached the booth with a bat in her hand, “you can find some other place to steal your coffee from paying customers. And if you hurt that boy again, or try to hurt my Eli, you’ll be at the receiving end of this bat.”
Jim placed the coffee cup back on the table, snickered at Brenda, and left.
“Don’t get messed up with men like that, Eli,” said Brenda.
“No ma’am,” replied Eli. He picked up the cup of coffee, wiped the table, and returned to the front counter to help with the closing cleanup. He kept an eye on the window, staring at the truck that contained Jason. He cleaned coffee mugs and watched until Jason emerged from the truck. Jason wiped his mouth with one hand and stuffed cash into his pocket with the other hand. When the truck drove away, Jim showed up. He said a few words to Jason who reluctantly took out the money from his pocket and gave it to Jim. Jim smiled and pushed Jason towards another truck. Eli watched as Jason disappeared in it. He would repeat this several times until sunrise and part of Eli ached thinking about it.
***
It was past midnight when Eli arrived home from work. His mother was passed out on the sofa with an empty bottle of Jack Daniel’s in her hand. He didn’t bother to turn off the TV or wake his mother. He walked to his room, closed the door, put his iTunes on shuffle, and listened to the music as he laid on his bed thinking about Jason. He thought about how much Jason wanted to leave this town and it echoed familiar sentiments in Eli. Brenda paid Eli in cash and Eli saved almost every cent. The only money he spent was on groceries since his mother spent her welfare cheque on alcohol. He didn’t have a father. He left when Eli was learning to walk and the doctor said he would never walk properly. His father didn’t want a cripple for a son so one day he never returned home from work. Since that day, his grandmother moved in to take care of Eli while Eli’s mother drank her sorrows. At fourteen, Eli’s grandmother died, and Eli’s taken care of himself and his mother since then. In a month, Eli will turn seventeen – old enough to leave this town if he has enough money saved up. Maybe he’d ask Jason how much money he’d need to leave. Could they leave together? The thought stirred unusual emotions in Eli – the kind of emotions the teachers at school told him that boys felt for girls, but Eli never felt this way for a girl or any other boy. All the boys at his school taunted him for having a limp. He walked the hallways alone, not a single friend, everyone afraid that a limp could be contagious. But Jason never made an issue of Eli’s limp. Maybe that’s why he felt the way he did for Jason. He was one of few people who didn’t define Eli for his limp.
Eli was shaken from his reverie by the sound of smashed glass in the kitchen. He ran to see what was happening and discovered his ravaged mother throwing empty bottles of alcohol against the walls and the floor.
“Why don’t we have anymore alcohol in this goddam house!” she yelled as she propelled another bottle in Eli’s direction. He ducked, the bottle barely missing him, and he felt the shattered glass against his skin. He ran outside, limping, with tears in his eyes. He curled himself on the porch and cried himself to sleep.
Eli woke with the sunrise and Brenda was sitting next to him with two cups of coffee.
“Your neighbour called me when she heard the screaming and glass shattering.”
“Were you here all night?” asked Eli.
“I brought a liquid meal for your mom to shut her up. She passed out and I cleaned up the mess. I thought I’d make us some coffee and when you’re feeling awake we’d take some of your clothes and make a bed for you at my place.”
“Wha-wha-what about mother?”
“You’ve been taking care of yourself for three years, Eli. You don’t need her.”
“Bu-but she, she needs me.”
“We can visit her, bring her food, but I’d feel better if you were staying somewhere safe.”
Eli nodded and drank his coffee.
“Grab your stuff when you’re ready and I’ll make you some breakfast at my place.”
***
“How’s breakfast, Eli?” asked Brenda. Eli nodded, demonstrating his approval with a mouthful of eggs, bacon and toast.
“I found some old clothes that belonged to my son when he was your age. Boy, how I miss him. If it wasn’t for that sleazy gal that hitched him up, he’d still be in this town. But she needed the city life. I’m lucky if I get to see him every two to three years. He barely calls to check on his mom, anymore. Sorry about my ramblings, Eli. I know, it’s too early in the morning for it.”
“I don’t mind, ma’am.”
“Eli. I told you to call me Brenda. We work together, we’re friends, and ma’am makes me sound old. Do I look old to you?” she asked with a mischievous grin.
“No ma’am…Brenda. You look very pretty and young for a mother.”
“I’ll take that as a compliment, boy. Now try these clothes on before school. They might be big on you. You’re much skinnier than my boy was at your age, but at least I can mend the ratty clothes your mama sends you to school in the meantime.”
“Thank you. I’ll go try them on right now.”
Eli left the room while Brenda cleaned up the breakfast dishes. “It’s surprising,” she told herself, “how a boy so kind and beautiful-hearted could grow out of that messed-up home.”
The clothes were a little baggy on Eli, at least two sizes too big, but they were comfortable and new compared to the clothes he regularly wore. He felt proud for the first time since he started high school. Maybe the new clothes would deter the others from poking fun at his limp today. Unfortunately, he was wrong. Even after the many praises given to him by Brenda on how handsome he looked, the usual trio at school – George, Jeff and Bryan – said he looked like a hopping, deflated snowman. He was tripped, kicked, and spat on while walking home. His sense of pride dissipated as quickly as his new clothes aged. He felt ashamed to return to Brenda’s after her generous gesture this morning, repaying her with torn clothing. Instead, he hid behind the coffee shop, stalling before his work shift started, knowing that his apron would cover most of the tears and dirt.
The back of the coffee shop was an alley shared by part of a motel. Eli squeezed himself between two large garbage cans and read one of his books to pass the time. During this time, he heard the sound of a door open. It came from one of the rooms on the second floor of the motel. His blondish-brown hair was wet, waiting to be groomed and spiked, while his torso lacked a shirt and the only clothing he wore were a pair of boxers, the kind with repeating happy faces designed all over it. He lit a cigarette and smiled when he noticed Eli watching from the ground.
“Hey boy, most men pay me good money for this view,” said Jason.
Eli blushed, ashamed to be caught peeking at Jason’s body, and returned his stare to his book. He couldn’t read, he was too distracted, but he hoped that he could fool Jason.
“If you don’t have to work,” said Jason, “why don’t you come sit up here. It smells much nicer than that garbage.”
“No thank you,” responded Eli.
“If you don’t come up here, then I’ll have to charge you for the view.”
Jason chuckled at his own joke and Eli sheepishly smiled.
“Stop the presses! He can smile!” exclaimed Jason. “Now get your ass up here. It’ll take me a minute to dress.”
Eli reluctantly rose from his place on the ground, wiped as much dirt off his clothes, and walked up the steps to the second floor of the motel. He stood outside Jason’s door, holding his book tight to his chest, and waited. A few minutes later, Jason came barging out.
“Whatcha waiting out here for. Come inside to my palatial abode.”
Eli noticed that Jason’s black eye was darker today and he was wearing his usual evening outfit – tank top, tight jeans – but his hair was still messy and not spiked. He liked this less-boyish look on Jason. He blushed at his own admission and felt a strange stirring in his pants that made him feel uneasy. He quickly took a seat on the chair by the desk near the door and laid his book down on his crotch.
“Can I pour you a drink?” asked Jason. “I have some J.D. and cola.”
Eli shook his head. “I don’t drink alcohol,” he replied.
“Trust me, you’ll like it.”
Eli shrugged and took the plastic cup filled with the alcoholic mixture. The odour of the alcohol overpowered the usual sweetness of cola but he took a sip because he didn’t want to be rude. He choked and Jason laughed, slapping his knee in the process.
“The same thing happened to me with my first drink,” said Jason. “Don’t be embarrassed, boy. Have another sip and you’ll get used to it. I love my J.D. and cola. It’s the only thing that calms my nerves to deal with Jim and work.”
Eli nodded as though he understood Jason’s reasoning, but he did it to try and distract Jason, not wanting to take another sip. He looked at his watch and noticed that he had thirty minutes before his shift started but he was feeling uncomfortable and needed some space to breathe.
“I-I-I better get g-g-going to work,” stuttered Eli.
“I don’t want to be the reason you’re late for work,” responded Jason. “But you can come visit anytime. It gets quite lonely sometimes and it’s nice to have a friend.”
Eli’s heart somersaulted and his eyes watered at the sound Jason made when he said the word ‘friend.’ No one called him a friend. They all made fun of him or stayed away from him because of his limp.
Eli nodded and smiled before he made his way to the door.
“You should smile more,” commented Jason. “You look very handsome when you smile.”
There was that stirring in Eli’s pants again. This time, Eli rushed out the door, down the steps, and inside the coffee shop through the back door. He almost tripped over his limp running so fast, but he stood near the back door, catching his breath, and tried to calm the heat of emotion that rumbled throughout his body. What did these feelings mean? Is this what it felt like to have a friend?
“There you are,” said a voice from the other end. It was Brenda. “You never came by the house after school.”
“Sorry. I-I-I had to stay b-b-behind.”
“What happened to your clothes?” asked Brenda as she neared Eli.
Eli blushed and lowered his head in shame.
“Was it those boys at school? I should call that Principal…”
“NO!” shouted Eli. It took Brenda by surprise. Eli never screamed. He usually spoke softly, if he did speak.

“Ok. Ok. Don’t get your pants all knotted up. We’ll get you a fresh set for tomorrow. Here, put on your apron and let’s get to work. The afternoon rush’ll start soon.”