DC By the Book

Excerpt: Calvin turned south when he got to Georgia…. The bars were closed. No one around but a few drunks lying in the doorways. Al l the stores were shut tight, metal grates locked down over windows and doors. Calvin walked past pawn shops, liquor stores, bars, and strip clubs. Spanish markets, Caribbean take-outs, and West African hair-braiding salons. Storefront churches, fortunetellers, and funeral homes. One time Deej had said to Calvin that Georgia Avenue was a street where you could find God and the devil sitting right next to each other, like they was old friends.

Excerpt: He sat in the bleachers, staring at nothing. He felt completely empty. Like there were nothing inside him at all. Just an empty hole. It began to rain. Calvin shivered and turned up the collar on his jacket, but he didn’t move. Finally it started getting dark. He called Momma and told her he wouldn’t be home for dinner. Then he headed over to the library. When Junior walked through the big wooden doors, she was surprised Calvin was there before her. Her face lit up when she spotted him across the big room.