You look a lot older in person, I said
I wasn’t expecting the gray hair
Or the weathered look
Must be the dry desert air
How old you think I am, he said
Giving me one a those lopsided grins
Voice still smooth as ever
Every word spoken like a song
I thought about it for a bit
Shrugged and said, maybe eighty
He didn’t look that old
But the math said he might be
Damn, son, he said
The grin sliding away
Sad eyes looking at me
Like a hound dog sent to the porch
Sorry, man, I said
Holding my hands up; surrendering
There just ain’t no accounting
For a fool such as I
He laughed and raised his hand
We high-fived; his one-sided grin reappeared
And he said, well that’s all right
Long as you stay offa my blue suede shoes
I got up to leave, shook his hand
Told him I was glad he wasn’t dead
He made me promise not to tell where he was
Lot of suspicious minds out there, he said
I walked away, looking back one more time
Grinned at the flashing neon sign above him
A big blue moon floated above red letters
HEARTBREAK HOTEL
Below, smaller letters read, try the king’s sweets
A picture of a Twinkie was below that
As I slid into my pickup, the old guy mumbled
Thank ya, thankyaverymuch
Copyright © 2013 C Mashburn
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