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"Some old guy was watching me when I bought the test. Fucking creep."

To wait, wait, wait -- the theme of youth. Especially ambitious youth, ambitious in ideal, in occupation dreams, and in the bedroom. I set a personal best on chain-cigarette-smoking while I waited for Rachel to send the results of her urine test.

The Korean girl, who lives in the apartment upstairs, awkwardly clunked down with roller skates on her feet. She slid off concrete, into grass, and nearly collapsed near the intersection of Ant Hill and Acorn Cemetery. I closed my eyes. The symphony of this city seemed optimistic for once. The low hum of circling sedans and the chirping of invisible birds blended majestically.

I felt as if I strolled into another window of time. The realm free of worry and doomed futures coated my aching soul.

"I'M NOT PREGNANT!!!!!!!!!!" I read on the lit cell phone screen, I smiled, the phone lit again, "I LOVE YOU SO MUCH!!!"

The black veil lifted.

I could continue to breathe.