most people call silver.”
“You bought a Mercedes, and you had it painted. Custom painted.”
“Go big or go home, and I decided I’m tired of going home, so I’m doing things I like rather than things other people think I’d like. And I won’t be including the ‘if you please’ most expect from me. I have lost my last fuck, Ben. No, I killed it.”
“I’ll recruit some help. What day would you like to do the move?”
“Ideally, we’d do everything on Wednesday afternoon. Maybe after three. It depends on when my car is finished.”
“I’ll talk to Wolfgang. I bet he knows some folks who could use the exercise.”
I grinned at that. Gay men came in all shapes and sizes, and Wolfgang liked his men big, muscular, and capable of lifting hundreds of pounds over their heads. “I bet he does.”
“And how is your work wardrobe?”
“However much I’d like a makeover, that’s not in the cards right now.”
“It’s in the cards. I know your sizes, and I’ll pick up what you need. You can pay me back later. I’ll return what doesn’t fit or work, and we’ll make a day of it. With your dinky apartment, we can get everything moved in a few hours. Are we getting budget boxes?”
“I need boxes, and I need them now, and that’s not going to be budget friendly. I’ll deal with it. I won’t like spending the money, but it’s a necessity. At least I shouldn’t need a moving truck if the job hunt goes well; I’m only interviewing with places that’ll help handle the relocation.”
“Good for you. I’ll see you tomorrow at three, then.”
“Let yourself in and get to work if I’m not back from the body shop, okay? I’ll bring milkshakes. Just tell me how many.”
“Oh, no. I’m bringing the milkshakes, and there will be plenty of cherries to go on top. It sounds like you need it, and I’d feel guilty if a milkshake spilled in your new car.”
“It’s used.”
“It’s new to you, so it’s new. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
Wednesday morning, the paint shop called to inform me the work was done and I could pick up my baby. I headed over right away, eager to ditch the loaner and go home in style.
My car waited for me outside, and the shop’s owner had decided to go intense on the amount of glitter decorating the front before fading it out along the car’s body until the rear was a metallic silver dusted with trace amounts of glitter. She sparkled in the sunlight, and I loved everything about her.
I wanted to hug her hood, but I figured I’d get my filthy fingerprints all over her shiny paint job if I did.
“She’s perfect.”
“She’s definitely going to turn heads. Look inside.”
As promised, he’d done a lot of work on the accents in the car, and anything that could be covered in glitter was. I dug out my credit card and waved it. “Take my money, please. This is even better than I thought it would be.”
All in all, I thought my midlife crisis was starting off well, and after taking the time to exchange pleasantries with the shop’s owner and pay my bill, I headed to my landlord’s office to notify him I wouldn’t be staying. With the housing market as it was, I expected he’d love getting rid of me so he could bring in someone willing to pay more.
I’d gotten a good deal initially, and the lease, signed through the previous owner of the building, had barred anyone from raising my rent beyond a certain percentage each year. The new landlord, a decent enough fellow, had agreed to keep the terms of my lease, as I paid my rent on time, never caused him any trouble, and usually did my own damned repairs unless I couldn’t handle it on my own.
As hoped for, he cut me out of my lease early, and he gave me to the end of the month to vacate.
When I returned home, Wolfgang and Ben waited for me, far ahead of my proposed three in the afternoon, and they had a throng of helpers armed with milkshakes with them. Ben offered me a milkshake, and it had two cherries on top.
Happiness was a milkshake and a new, glittery car, and I questioned why I hadn’t snapped prior.
I’d missed out on a lot of good things staying sane.
“Why are you driving a Mercedes covered in glitter?”
“I regret nothing,” I announced, plucking off the first of my cherries and popping it