Free Destiny (Waiting for Forever) by Jamie Mayfield

was so late. I need to call that guy about the room.” I was talking more to myself than her, but she understood.
    “I’ll give you a call tomorrow night to see how you’re doing. If you find a place to live, make sure to let us know where you’ll be, okay?”
    “Okay, Mom. I may call you first if I find something,” I told her, trying to calm her fear of me disappearing into thin air.
    “I love you, Brian. I’ll talk to you soon.”
    “I love you too, Mom. Good night.” I closed my phone and set it on the bed next to me. For a minute, my homesickness was like a physical weight on my chest. Texting with Carolyn had made me miss her, Richard, and home. Hearing her voice was like throwing gasoline on the fire because now the feeling intensified to almost intolerable levels. My throat burned, and to stave off the tears I couldn’t afford, I grabbed my backpack and found the ad I needed. Taking a deep breath to steady myself, I dialed.
    “You found me,” the buoyant voice greeted me when the call connected, and it surprised me a little. Most people I knew answered the phone with a simple “Hello.”
    “Hi, I’m calling about your ad for a room,” I said, trying to sound confident. It was almost as if all the other calls I had made had been trial runs because I really wanted this one. I only hoped that it wasn’t too good to be true and I wasn’t setting myself up for a disappointment.
    “Okay, kid, how old are you?” he asked.
    “I’m eighteen,” I said, hoping that it wouldn’t count against me.
    “How do I know you’re going to pay me?” That was an odd question. He didn’t ask if I had a job or references, like the others I’d called.
    “I just arrived here last week so I don’t have a job yet, but as soon as I find a place to live, I will be looking. I also have the money for first and last month’s rent as well as a cushion in case I don’t find a job right away,” I parroted some of the stuff I’d gotten from the other calls. Some wanted a security deposit, others wanted the first and last month’s rent. What I really wanted to get across to the guy was that I had a plan, and I was someone he wanted to take a chance on.
    “Don’t ever tell someone what kind of money you have, kid. If you do, they’ll take advantage of you,” he admonished. “You want to come by tonight and take a look at it, or wait until tomorrow?”
    “I need to check the trolley schedule and what stop you’re closest to. What’s the address?” I asked, grabbing my map and the trolley schedule.
    “Hey, don’t worry about it. I can come and get you and bring you back,” he offered, and I started to feel very uneasy.
    “Uhmmm… I’m sorry, but I don’t think that’s a good idea. I mean, I don’t really know you, and—” I started, but he cut me off with a laugh.
    “Thank God, at least you have some sense,” he said. “You in a good part of town, kid? Where are you coming from?”
    “I… I don’t know if it’s good. It seems okay. I’m a couple of blocks from the bus station.” I started throwing the trolley schedule and the map into my backpack.
    “You should be okay, but you can come by tomorrow morning if you want,” he offered. By tomorrow morning, I hoped to have a place to live so I could start looking for a job and Jamie.
    “No, I’ll come tonight.”
    “You seem pretty determined, cowboy. I like that. I think you’ll do well here. Okay, just take the Downtown/Adams bus on First to University and Eighth Street; we’re a couple of blocks north. It will still be light when you get here, so you’ll be okay finding it. Make sure you come up to the right side of the building. Take the stairs. Don’t come in through the front. You sound pretty adorable, and a hot little boy like you, fresh off the bus, they’ll eat you alive.” I wasn’t sure I liked the sound of that, but I was intrigued anyway as he gave me an address.
    “Who should I ask for?” I asked, grabbing my room key