The Marrying Kind by Monique Miller

worth a try. He dialed the number to the radio station and it rang on the first try. Travis felt sure that someone had already probably been chosen as the ninth caller. When the DJ answered the call Travis was prepared to hear the words “Sorry, we already have a winner,” but he didn’t hear those words.
    â€œHello,” he heard the DJ say.
    â€œAh, hello,” Travis replied.
    â€œWho am I speaking to?” the DJ asked.
    â€œThis is Travis.”
    â€œTravis,” the DJ said.
    â€œYes,” Travis said.
    â€œDo you know what caller you are?”
    â€œUh, caller number nine?” Travis asked, thinking that he might be since the DJ was taking more than two seconds to talk to him.
    â€œYes, Travis, you are caller number nine,” the DJ said, yelling into the microphone.
    â€œYes.” Travis did his own yell into the phone.
    â€œDo you know what you’ve won?” the DJ asked.
    â€œTickets to the Sonnette concert, right?”
    â€œYou are correct, Travis. Not only have you won front-row tickets to the show, you and a guest will get the VIP treatment and will be able to go backstage to meet Sonnette after the show.”
    â€œWhat? Are you serious?” Travis asked in disbelief.
    â€œYep.”
    â€œThis is great. I’ve been trying to win tickets for weeks now,” Travis said.
    â€œWell, you can stop trying now and you can start getting ready for the show,” the DJ said. “Travis, who is your favorite radio station for the hottest songs and hottest tickets?” the DJ asked.
    â€œFoxy 107.1.” Travis yelled this in the phone.
    He heard music start to play on the radio. On the phone the DJ asked him to hold on for a moment. After a couple of seconds the DJ came back on to the phone and asked him his full name and address. He then told Travis when and where he could pick up his tickets for the show. Travis thanked him and hung up.
    He’d almost forgotten about his job loss that day until his stomach started to ache again. Smiling, he picked up the bottle of water off of the counter and took a couple of sips as he thought about calling Tory to ask her if she would like to go to the Sonnette concert with him. Then he wondered if Tory would even appreciate the soulful songs that Sonnette sang. He’d hold off for a couple of days just in case another prospect came his way. He was going to have to remember that he was supposed to have a player state of mind.

Chapter 8
    Travis decided not to job hunt, but instead took the day off, feeling he deserved a break from all the hard work he’d done the previous week. He felt a lot better after sipping water the rest of the evening before and eating some fruit. Andre had encouraged him to go to the hospital to make sure he hadn’t gotten heatstroke, but Travis’s pocket couldn’t afford a trip to the emergency room. So he hoped and prayed that drinking the water and eating pieces of juicy fruit would help his condition, and gladly it had.
    For the first part of the day he hung around the house watching TV, first watching a church service on television. He felt a little bad about not actually going to a church service, but then shrugged it off. Then he watched some episodes of CSI on the DVR.
    That next day, Monday, he ventured out at lunch time to go the library to check his e-mail. After he left the e-mail he headed to Starbucks to get a cup of coffee. He had a coupon for a free cup of coffee with a Danish purchase.
    He found a seat in the corner at a table. As he drank his coffee he people watched, observing people inside and outside of the store as they went about their daily lives. The Danish he’d chosen was tasty and the Starbucks coffee ended up being some of the best coffee he’d ever tasted, especially after he added the sugar, cream, and a sprinkle of cinnamon to it.
    He almost choked on his coffee when he glanced toward the door and saw Jade Morris. She still