When we woke up that morning the room was freezing. We had clung to each other for the majority of the night trying to steal our warmth. As the sun was poking through the unsealable window slats we could see our breath in the air. After we were sure we were awake, Michele decided to call Gomez. She told him of her brilliant plan for us to all go to into West Hollywood so he could buy long johns for his trip to New Mexico, and how I could buy groceries. We get dressed and Gomez arrives at our place in Silverlake shortly after. We drive down Sunset listening to a Mitch Hedburg tape and then pull into the Target parking garage off La Brea. Gomez and I wander around looking for child size long johns, while Michele disappears to shoplift whatever she can. When he found his long johns, and she had come up on a good amount of free merchandise, we went to Ralph's for groceries. I took my usual time, perusing each aisle as I like to do; found the cheapest buys for the week and we were off. Later we found ourselves in Gomez's place at Hollywood and Highland after we dropped off the groceries in Silverlake. While there; Michele cooks us food, we go online, drink beer, and smoke cigarettes. When Gomez's skin tight pant wearing friend shows up I go outside to call my mother and lie about how I'm in Arizona. Gomez and his friend leave for the airport, and I tell him I'll take good care of Michele. We then walk east on Hollywood so Michele can go to work at Bed Behavior. Here we part ways, and I take the Metro back to Silverlake. I went back to the apartment and spent the next few hours drinking, cooking, going online, and killing time. Later I met Michele at work a little before closing. During the night we went to a few bars, but nothing really seems to stick in my mind. Back at her place we drink more into the late hours. We talk of idealistic things; she writes a word I say that she likes on her wall; we listen to nostalgic music. At some point she handcuffs me to the bed and starts to go down on me. This was the first blow job I'd had in three months. A little while after she starts fucking me the handcuffs come off. I had finally gotten out of the six month New Jersey sentence. I was back west, and now I knew it.
