My Old Man
A Vignette from a borrowed image
By Maryanne Peters

It doesn’t seem to be used so much these days – not since Joni Mitchell saw him taken away in the big yellow taxi, but it seems right to call him that. He is old and he is a man, and I am neither of those. And he is mine, I suppose. I am definitely his.

He found me on a street corner. I think that he was looking for somebody just like me, and there I was, sick and dirty and worthless. He took me home to his apartment.

He had drugs, but he said that he wanted me to be clean. He wanted me off the drugs so clean on the inside, but clean on the outside too – every limb polished. I did not think too much about it at the time. I was covered in grime right down to the hair follicles, and I so wanted to sleep in a bed again.

But he had further plans for me as became apparent. I agreed to the breasts in exchange for a fix. Unless you are a junkie you might find that hard to believe, but if you ever have been you will know. You will do anything to find that peace; that joy. Anything.

Plenty of junkies who are not gay will suck a cock for the price of a few grams. You do that, or you bend over or lie back, if you are addicted.

The needles carried more than just narcotics. I know that now. The changes in my body became as obvious and the tits he had bought me, but I begged for the shots. He delivered them with love. I can see that now too. The junk he gave me was in measured doses and got me off the worst stuff, and then finally I did not need anything at all - not anymore.

I could have left him. Maybe I should have. But he invested so much time and care that I knew it must be love. It was like I had never had anything like that, least of all from my mother who was my only parent. Do I really have to love him back?

People say that he looks like a creep. Maybe he does, but he is mine. My old man.

The End

© Maryanne Peters 2021

Author's Note:
A midweek one just a little something I posted on FM last year inspired by that image! "People say that he looks like a creep" but maybe he just doesn't get enough sleep? I wonder why?