Sara texted Anton while lying on her back in the middle of a dry field in winter, saying she was sad.

Anton said, ‘Come over and watch Groundhogs Day.’

Sara stood slowly and said ‘Ok, I’m running home now.’

Anton said his address.

Sara drove to Anton’s house. When she arrived, Anton was on his front porch smoking. Sara walked up to the fence and shouted ‘Anton.’ Anton waved his cigarette. ‘What’s up,’ Anton said.

Sara said ‘Can I jump this fence’ and climbed over the fence. Anton laughed.

Anton and Sara walked into the house.

Sara said, ‘Nice house.’

Anton said ‘Thanks.’

Anton said they had a room available. Sara laughed as she crashed into some bikes. Anton went upstairs and Sara examined some VHS tapes on a shelf. ‘Where are you,’ said Anton from upstairs. Sara walked loudly upstairs.

Sara and Anton listened to a five-hour video of video game music while Anton put on shoes. Anton put various items into a yellow backpack and picked up a basketball.

‘We should play basketball,’ said Anton. ‘It’s nice outside.’

‘Ok,’ said Sara.

Outside, Anton pointed at his van and said, ‘Somebody broke into my van last night.’

Sara laughed. ‘Holy shit,’ she said. ‘Did you get robbed.’

Anton laughed. ‘There was nothing to take,’ he said. ‘Actually they left stuff behind.’

Anton and Sara walked around to the driver’s side of the van. There was broken glass in the street. Anton picked up a pair of glasses from the street. ‘They left these’ he said. Anton opened the van door. ‘Also a Bible.’

Anton handed Sara a pocket sized orange Bible and said ‘Let’s have a poetry reading.’ Anton slammed the door of the van and glass shards rained out of the window. Sara opened the door and re-slammed it, causing more glass to fall. ‘Hell yeah!’ said Anton.

Sara and Anton walked to the park bouncing a basketball. Anton pointed at the top of a hill and said, ‘See the top of that hill.’

‘Yes,’ said Sara.

‘That’s the top of the Super Flea,’ said Anton.

‘What. Superf-ly,’ said Sara. ‘Oh, I thought you were saying it as an adverb, I don’t know.’ Sara laughed.

Anton stopped at the edge of a bridge and pointed over the railing. ‘Look how much trash is down there,’ Anton said. ‘I hate people.’

Sara looked. ‘Me too,’ said Sara.

‘I want to throw this basketball down there,’ said Anton, spitting into the abyss.

‘Do it,’ said Sara. ‘I want to build a tire swing.’

At the park, two children said to Sara and Anton, ‘Want to play basketball.’

Anton said ‘Yes’ and put down his backpack.

Sara felt anxious. Anton picked up the ball and shot it. He missed. ‘Left handed eyes closed,’ he said. Sara thought about laughing.

Sara closed her eyes and shot the ball left handed. Sara opened her eyes and watched the ball fall thru the hoop. ‘Left handed eyes closed,’ Sara said.

Anton laughed. ‘No way,’ he said.

‘Yes,’ Sara said. ‘I opened my eyes after I shot it.’

The two children joined Sara and Anton and Sara felt like the world was moving too fast. Sara imagined the word ‘panic’ spelled across her forehead. Sara tried to avoid touching anyone.

The ball fell into Sara’s hands and she tried to throw it at the hoop. ‘Take it out!’ one of the children said.

‘What,’ said Sara.

Anton passed the ball to Sara again and she tried to shoot it again. ‘No, you have to take it out,’ Anton said.

Sara felt lost or stranded. Sara thought about lying down and never standing up again.

The next time Sara had the ball she threw it arbitrarily into the air without looking. The children seemed confused. Anton said ‘take it out’ again and Sara shook her head and felt her face seem bewildered.

‘It’s ok,’ one of the children said. ‘Never mind.’

Anton shouted encouraging things and shook Sara gently by the shoulders. Sara thought vaguely about crying.

Soon a woman walked by and shouted at one of the children and the children said they had to go. Sara felt relieved. Anton smiled and shook the children’s hands. Anton asked the children if they wanted the basketball. The children nodded and took the basketball.

Anton and Sara walked to a fountain at the edge of the park. Some children were riding their bikes in the fountain. ‘They never turn this fountain off,’ said Anton.

‘Nice,’ said Sara.

Anton took off his shoes and got in the fountain.

‘Is it cold,’ said Sara. Sara took off her shoes and got in the fountain too.

‘No,’ said Anton.

‘It’s cold, a little’ said Sara.

Anton said, ‘Ok, a little.’ Anton put his foot over one of the fountain’s spigots and the arch of water disappeared.

Sara laughed and slapped her hand across some water to splash Anton.

‘My feet hurt,’ said Sara after awhile.

Anton and Sara got out of the fountain. Three children rode up on their bikes.

‘Cool bike,’ Anton said. The children rode away.

Sara felt soggy and cold. Anton and Sara picked up their shoes and started to walk.

Anton pointed to a sunny corner of the square. ‘Once I did a performance art there. I just stood still for 24 hours.’

‘Really,’ said Sara. ‘Sounds very zen.’

Anton said, ‘Do you like Shia Laboeuf.’

‘I guess,’ Sara said.

‘I like Shia Laboeuf.’ said Anton. ‘How do you say Shia Laboeuf. La-beau. La-buff.’

‘La-buff. I don’t know.’

Anton spat in some grass. ‘We should get tacos.’

‘Ok,’ said Sara.

Anton and Sara followed a family onto the sidewalk away from the park. The family had four children and a large dog.

Sara petted the dog as they waited to cross the street. Anton said, ‘Nice dog.’

‘Thanks,’ the father said.

‘What kind of dog,’ said Anton.

‘German shepherd,’ said the father.

Anton and Sara followed the family across the bridge. The family was joined by another family.

‘Do you think that is all one family,’ Sara said. ‘What if it is a commune.’

‘Commune,’ Anton said laughing. ‘Oh, I thought you meant cult.’

Sara said, ‘Look at how happy they are. I bet they’re all on acid.’

‘They’re polyamorous, I’m in a relationship with all of them,’ Anton said, stepping around some glass.

‘Everyone in the world in one giant relationship,’ Sara said. ‘On acid.’

Anton and Sara walked up a hill. At the top of the hill there was an open gate. Inside the gate there was a concrete ledge and under the ledge there was a hole in the ground. ‘Reservoir,’ said Anton. The reservoir was full of trees and graffiti.

Sara followed Anton across the ledge. There were people below in the reservoir.

‘Are you shooting a video,’ Anton called to the three people.

The people looked at each other. They were carrying a crate and a case of Budweiser. One of them had a camera on his shoulder. ‘Yes,’ said one of them.

‘Rap video,’ said Anton.

‘No,’ the person said.

‘Yes,’ another one said.

‘Are you guys painting,’ Anton said to the people.

‘Yes,’ said the first person.

‘No,’ said the second person.

The people laughed. Anton started to play music from a speaker in his backpack. ‘What is that,’ the camera person said, ‘Is that a boom box.’

‘It’s just my phone,’ Anton said.

Sara’s face felt frozen with anxiety. Sara felt an urge to laugh at any arbitrary or all moments. her face felt spasming out of control as though her face muscles were slipping on ice.

‘What are you guys doing here,’ the first person said.

‘It’s a nice day,’ Anton said.

‘No,’ the person said. ‘I mean what are you doing in the neighborhood.’

‘Oh. Work,’ Anton said.

Sara said, ‘I don’t live here.’ Sara’s face felt cold when she smiled.

‘Oh,’ the first person said. ‘Seems like a lot of hipsters have moved here lately.’

‘What kind of work do you do,’ the second person said.

‘Music,’ said the first person.

‘Yeah I do some music,’ Anton said. ‘Oh. Poetry too.’

Sara felt around her face for her mouth.

Soon the person with the camera left.

‘Can you paint something,’ Anton said to the first person.

Sara felt bored but also happy. Sara felt like her face had floated away. After awhile the first person agreed to paint something. He sprayed a round green face on the reservoir wall.

Anton produced a lipstick from his pocket and applied lipstick to his lips. Anton put his hand on Sara’s face and put lipstick on her lips too. Anton said ‘seal it with a kiss’ and put his lips on Sara’s lips then walked over to the wall and put his lips on the green face. Sara felt unable to make her face react.

The first person laughed and gestured for the lipstick. Anton gave him the lipstick and he drew thick pink lipstick lips onto the face on the wall.

‘Is that a cartouche,’ said Anton.

‘A what.’

Anton laughed. ‘A cartoon.’

The person handed Anton a can of blue paint and Anton sprayed the bottom of a pipe blue. Anton sprayed something on the ground next to a bush.

‘What does that say,’ said Sara. It said ‘LUH.’

‘Luh,’ said Anton. Sara thought about laughing but didn’t.

Anton and Sara walked back to Anton’s house. Back in Anton’s room, the five hour video was still playing. Anton put on Groundhogs Day. During the movie Anton smoked three cigarettes and laughed loudly a lot of times. Eventually Sara’s face felt warm again, and she went home.

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