Going Solo

Stages, Roads, Lights, Flowers

Photo by Steve Johnson on Unsplash

In his mind he was just drunk, harmless drunk, happy.

But he was in handcuffs, couldn’t see ‘em but felt em, his ass against the front of a car, not his car, somebody’s.

Band broke up arguing over video money. He got drunk. Already forgot with who.

The sun was out when he started. With Alison? Yeah. She left. Then Mick and Tuna.

Nobody but him now, and cops.

The flashing lights were ugly on the cop car, but they were pretty in the reflection of the florist’s window.

That was weird.

He wanted to get closer to the florist. Was it the one where he got flowers for his mama’s funeral?

Fuck, he didn’t even know what city he was in he was so happy drunk.

Took another step and the cop told him to stop, then there was something, flashlight or billy club up against his throat.

Another cop barked and there wasn’t anything against his throat.

But he could see the bodycam.

It had been a long time since he got arrested.

Weren’t bodycams, dash cams, no cams, just the abandoned truck wash off 94 where the cop would take you and beat your ass and never turn the dope into the evidence room.

He quit dope, mostly, sort of, so he could be a music star.

Mostly just booze now, cheaper, happier.

The cop said something.

He heard noise, but didn’t understand the words.

He was staring at the bodycam.

Saw a bunch of bodycam on the internet, on YouTube. Folks laughing, folks getting beat up, cops getting attacked by dogs and drunks.

Lugo said they weren’t spending no money on video, everyone started to argue, scuffle, shout.

They were too old anyway. 

Nobody.

Wannabes.

Saxophone players and bass players that drove fork trucks and picked up people’s dog shit. 

That was a job now.

Damn, the cop lights coming off that florist window looked kinda like stage lights.

That bodycam was a real camera.

Vallejo started to sing Long Walk Home from the Store.

He cowrote that thing with Clifford. 

Cop told him to shutup, but Vallejo was gone in his head, drunk, singing.

The cop told him to shutup again but he sang and kept singing even after the cop started laughing.

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