Author: Frank Hubeny

As Steven entered the computer lab where he cursed a mindless machine a few weeks ago the next second the clicking of keyboards stopped while the students waited to see what would happen. He thought we all knew where he had been and what he had done, but—except for me who heard from a friend of a friend—they likely knew nothing nor wanted to know what he had been up to.

After being dumped under the interstate with the homeless Steven was able to confirm his identity, change his locks and get a new phone. This left him at a point—actually any point on that turning carousel would do—when he had an opportunity to change his mind and follow through by jumping off the merry-go-round.

I don’t know what happened to Steven beyond that point being more interested in my future wife sitting next to me rather than either the assignment on the monitor or Steven’s future antics. I sometimes wondered about him, though, wishing him the best, but only sometimes since both of us, grandma and grandpa now, have had plenty of merry-go-rounds of our own we didn’t want to jump off of even when we knew that was the only way.

______

Denise offers the word “second” to be used in this week’s Six Sentence Stories.

This is the final story in a four part series about Steven circling back to the computer lab. After the lab it followed Steven to the caverns of a little Babylon. Last week Steven found himself dumped in a homeless camp under an interstate. Today, we are back in that computer lab long, long ago when your grandfathers were dating your grandmothers and your father and mother were still a twinkle in their eyes.

There is also a poetry slam going on this week at the café. I asked Steven if he would like to participate. Unfortunately, he agreed. Here’s his poem.

     Hello.  My name is Steven.  
 I like running my mouth as much as 
            the next guy 
         especially that guy, 
               Frank, 
    who thinks he knows 
       what happened to me 
          in those caverns 
  the second some nosy, UNRELIABLE 
    source who   NEVER!!!!   liked me 
     in the    FIRST    place offers 
   a tall tale explaining 
          why I wasn't in class.  

        What Frank doesn't KNOW
  is I was out saving a damsel 
            IN DISTRESS!!!! 
      ——— yeah, that's right ———
  from the very DRAGONS of Blislisnis 
        HE PUT THERE HIMSELF!!!!  
              
He forgot to mention that.
  
Of course, he'd forget to mention that.

I plead the Fifth Amendment on any probing question about those dragons.