(no subject)
Dear Mom,
Hayes doesn’t write, because he’s a terrible person who rarely writes home, even if he has his reasons, and not least among those is that he’d have to sign the letter.
Clarence
P.S. How’s Dad?
And, well, there are quite a lot of things he’d rather do than sign ‘Clarence’ anywhere, and in any case it wouldn’t feel quite right anymore.
And if someone named Clarence were to send a letter home to his very dear parents, then it would be a certain sort of letter, and Hayes isn’t sure that this sort of letter quite works for what it is he does these days.
Dear Mom,
How are you? Weather’s still fine, for a desert. Not skipping breakfast, don’t worry, traveling around different dimensions, getting enough sleep, doing my job, not going shot, the usual. Tell Matt “happy birthday!”
Clarence
Lacks a little something, Hayes thinks.
Then there’s always the danger of a reply because, well, mothers are like that, and he does know it’ll come back-
Oh, wonderful. Made any new friends?
And how is he going to answer that?
Yeah, Mom, friends. Plenty of new friends. There’s this girl Jung, she’s awesome, let’s me drink out of her secret coffee stash and plans crime with me.
Well, that’s true, fine, but it’s Jung, so that’s not quite everything, either.
And then.
And there’s this new guy, Caleb. So I helped him paint his apartment, and he saved my life, and it’s all good.
He’s-
My friend.
Not quite my friend.
More than my-
It’s complicated.
In a bad way. A good way.
… Just complicated.
But still my friend. Definitely my friend.
Except maybe not.
(Does “more than” cancel out “friend?”)
Complicated. --Who went and decided complicated is better? I don’t know complicated. Complicated you can screw, up, right.
… So if you screw up “complicated,” is that it for “simple”
Better not be. Hope not. Really wouldn't like that--
He’s-
my friend not quite more than my
…
really cool.
So how do you explain why ‘really cool,’ Hayes?
You don’t, is what.
Better not to be writing any of this down, really. People’ll like his life all clarified in letters, and he’ll give that a miss for now, thanks.