(Wednesday evening. Parking lot behind strip mall)

Donny and Stone each drank the two beers that Stone had pilfered from Mr. Brennan’s house as they wandered towards the mall. Two beers were not enough, they decided, so they emptied their pockets to combine their cash.

“If the old man is still hanging by the 24/7 store, he will buy for us.” Neither Roy was old enough to buy alcohol. They tossed their empty beer cans, missing the trash can. The cans fell in the unmowed lawn of the convenience store. 

Sure enough, old Eddie was sitting on a portable aluminum lawn chair in the semi darkness. There were no stars to see, only the signs on the 24/7 were illuminating the area. Old Ed sat on his chair, occasionally calling out to his own invisible friend. 

“The big rain is a’coming, it’s going to be bad. A nightmare storm is coming. I can feel it in my bones–it’s going to be bad. Bad, bad, I’m telling you.” He called out as the boys approached him.

“Hey, Eddie, you up for some beer? Buy us three six packs and there’s enough money for some beer for yourself. Interested?” Stone watched as the old man tried to stand.

Looking around for neighbors that might tell, Stone pulled out a twenty and a ten and casually flashed the bills in front of old Eddie’s face.

Eddie smiled. Eddie was in his 90’s, a regular from the trailer park. He was recognized by his hair, once black, now mixed with gray sprigs that shot up unevenly, a hair halo around his face in snarls. It appeared that Eddie had, long ago, lost his comb. His eyebrows were long thick hairs with no order. They arched up and crowded his forehead with waves of wrinkles when he smiled. He looked like Einstein–the one in the picture everyone knew. The boys both lit another cigarette while they waited for Eddie to come out of the store.

Ten minutes later, Eddie brought out three six packs inside a paper bag. He offered up the change in his hand. 

“I decided to drink some beer tonight after all. Give me three cans and we’re good.” Old Eddie’s eyebrows arched as he smiled.

“Keep the change, old man, and enjoy your beer. Thanks.”

Stone took the paper bag and broke off three cans from the plastic binding of one of the six packs. Then he took out another can and handed it to Donny. They continued to walk along the back of the mall where they wouldn’t be seen while they drank. They stopped and sat on the receiving dock of the old Sears building and each drank six more cans. They could hear distant gunshots from downtown.

“Sure wish we had our driver licenses.” Donny blurted out as he popped another can open. Stone was quiet and didn’t acknowledge Donny. Donny knew that meant that Stone was working on a plan in his head.

They jumped off the dock and headed south. They walked in step, slow and casual, a cigarette in one hand, an open can of beer in the other. The World was surely theirs.

Young men preoccupied in their world of speeding cars and jacked-up trucks with their carriage high on big wheels. Life for them was theirs to take with no pressing concern that Stone couldn’t outmaneuver. If they wanted it, they believed that there was enough to steal around them to get it all. Just a few more church services. Now with this bounty thing exploding, easy money was just a used paper cup away.

They had nothing to fear, they were young and invincible.