This short story was inspired by these lines -
"...just the come-ons from the whores on 7th avenue...I do declare there were times when I was so lonesome, I took some comfort there..." From the song, The Boxer by Simon and Garfunkel
No Comfort
He stands at the mouth of the alley. Palms sweaty, pulse racing. He watches the working girls walk by until he sees the one he wants. Red hair done up in a messy half pony tail. Head down beneath his hood, shifting gym shoes amidst the garbage scattered asphalt, he doesn't look her in the face. Couldn't risk it, doesn't want to anyway. He crushes the bills into her hand, leads her down into the alley towards some semblance of privacy. She asks two questions.
No, I'm not a freak. Yes, I'm wearing one. Both answers a lie.
Icy fear threatens to derail his plan but desire and despair win out. He takes her from behind until his lips form a name, twice, quietly and urgently it strangles free from clenched teeth and only then he comes to a shuddering finale. Chest heaving, eyes burning, stomach churning, he pulls his jeans up over his shell; slips away. The hollow emptiness he feels threatening to devour him from the inside out.
Runs home on shaking legs. Stops abruptly when he enters to find her at the table playing cards with his brothers. The man who stole her attention and won her affection sits next to her, his arm hung around her bare shoulders with easy care. She sees him, smiles hello. Her smile is brilliant, her eyes dazzling, they light up his breaking heart in stark relief, casting his guilt and pain in sharp contrast; he withers beneath the glare and shrinks away from it.
Turns the shower on. Hot, boiling hot against his skin, hoping to sear the pain away. He falls against the wall, slides down, slinging arms over his knees, cradling his head in the crook of his elbow. The water makes a shushing sound as he is rocked with silent, choking sobs. Wondering in the back of his mind how could something so hollow and empty feel so heavy that it crushes his heart beneath the weight?
...
A/N: I couldn't sleep because that song was stuck in my head, and this story just popped in there. It's really an excellent, sad tune, you should look it up if you've never heard it before. So, which turtle do you think it was? I'll let you decide.