The sun traveled to the West sky of the Big Apple for the third time when I poked the curtain open with my naked feet.

Even though it was dark for the absence of any living light, I knew exactly where I was from feeling the smooth edges of the bed sheet and from smelling the sneaky scent of an Alpine dog.

I was in the guest room, 8 stories high, in an apartment somewhere in Brooklyn and more accurately, in the nest of the Parsons.

I knew the room by heart but mainly by the easily recognizable odor of the Alpine canine that stayed here for a week or two in one of the starting months of this abject year.

Before " It " happened and during the happening, the idea of providing space arrived from Jordan and with the wishful thinking in my heart, I followed her words instantly. So I slept in their empty guest room whenever the awful restlessness crept out from the dark corners of my mind but nevertheless tried my best not to be cynical but happy as I played fetch with the Alpine for a few days and tiresome nights.

The Alpine was not a pet of the Parsons but since it was a temporary responsibility, the dog returned to his owner a week later.

And a week later, " It " began and ended.

I peered down 70 feet to the weather of the city to calculate what time it was then. Despite of the presence of the lingering evening rays which reflected on the glass buildings to elongate their stay, I was still overly confused by the prospect it might be early dawn.

The people on the streets were busy playing the orchestra of everyday's bustling tunes along with the cars and buses joining the beat with their dumb, loud noises since New York never needed any sleep at all.

Percy and Jordan were both expert in having a humor since they loved life and let life love them back in whatever twisted and optimistic way they always saw it as. I had unintentionally evolved to being a " Perfect Victim " of their mesdomonas and jokes for my unbroken connection with them for the foregoing months.

The note under the champagne glass sat on the edge of the dining table and I smirked instantly to find its jocular existence as it bluntly indicated to my alcoholism as I read it.

" Take two and a breath mint. " The note said and I did not question the invisible prophet's integrity as I swallowed them dry. The breath was continuing it's competition of standing high on a disgusting scale as I was hindered from taking care of myself in the past two days.

I laughed hysterically when I came to discover the second note whilst being in search for a drink in the kitchen. The pink slip was stuck on the wooden surface of the Wine cabinet, a feature in their home I was well familiar with.

" No drinks for Dion. "

The locked cabinet left me in the decision that it would be better for my physical health as well as the nonchalant psychological imbalance if I kept off from the action of sipping into any more of the golden elixirs that had the promise of comfort but never provided any long solutions to anything.

" Colorado called. "

The third note was the telephone toll, at the end of the hall and it left me wondering momentarily, how Colorado managed to find me along with the worry of the reason behind his early inquiries since my anxiously taken vacation still had a lazy week in between work.

I bopped the answering machine and paced down the hall with the champagne glass that was filled with water as I kept the blanket hanging on my shoulder as a cape of some unhealthy superhero who was suffering from a Mid life crisis.

" Hello, Mr. Montgomery. I was wondering when you would be back. I already left quite a few messages on your line but you might have not found them. " Then the loud gasp of his mouth left the trail of words broken since near 50 year old Colorado suffered from the gifts of old age.

" I don't mean to stress your vacation. I hope you are having a wonderful time. But as your lawyer and soon to be colleague, I thought I would give you a heads up about some papers that need your urgent attention. "

I managed to make sense of his message when the second gap of his breath fell as I trotted down the long hall towards the edge of the living room and momentarily stopped from the pinging of my subconscious to hear what he had to say. Eagerly.

" The last of the alimony papers are in. Actually, they got here last Thursday. And we cannot, of course, forget about the papers before. So . . . if you do get this message, thanks to Mr. Parson. Please drop by my office on any business day.

Wouldn't take an hour or two. The decor's already here . . . if you want to take a peak.

Um . . . er anyway, Graham. Please contact me as soon as possible. Take care. "

The beep at the end finished the soundtrack of my life.

Technically, it was just the soundtrack of my recent year and in no way, could define my existence of 35 years on this big blue planet. But time felt still and the test of the 34 years seemed to be celebrated, lived and spent by another Graham Dion Montgomery who wasn't an alcoholic or upset by the very vigor of life itself.

I only care about the present even though I can not resist my occasional dips in the ocean of my past memories.

I met the pair of unaware and confused eyes when I finished my current wallowing as I turned right to the living room which was supposed to be empty as that dull evening but contained another creature.

She was the woman from the other night who could not resist to act more than an innocent bystander of my unscheduled health hazard.

Obviously, at that moment, my mind was stuck in the clutter of the past since I could not recognize her face but detected the vague similarity of those eyes which looked surprised at first, then guilty. As if she was caught doing something lower than her age, something childish such as talking to an imaginary friend or arrested in the middle of a social crime.

She posed a greet to camouflage her rapid move to hide a notebook from her lap to the side when I returned the introduction with a dull " Hello " and a hesitant wave.

" Feeling better now? " She quizzed first as she was quicker to recall my identity from the other night and I was busy remembering where I had seen her before.

The answer came when I spotted the " One rock necklace " on the edge of her collarbone, trying to hide under an old fashioned Indigo country club sweater.

" More or less. " I replied as I sat down since I exposed myself too much to make a hasty return to the silent corners of the house where smoking solitude would not be much of a trouble. But the formal decency of the high buttoned class that I lived in, departed from my character as the weak body slumped down on the opposite couch and laid down straight, in a distraught manner.

" Do you still have a fever? Jordan said it was almost gone. " She added and wanted to entreat more but the words became lost since I knew it was a facade, a mask as she coaxed the book from her lap to her handbag. Like she was a thief and my unfortunate, untimely entrance had hindered a heist.

" No . . . I actually wanted to thank you for that. I did not want to bother anyone . . . and especially . . .  "

" It sounds like you have a track record of flying under the weather. " She cracked a joke with a smile and I answered without looking. " Can't lie about that. "

" I'm Junith and you must be Graham. "

I flinched at that name like an analytic shock to some unknown allergy finally declared it's painful presence.

In the past years when I was not myself but happy, I went by the name Graham. It was just after " It " happened when one drunk night threw me on the stage to perform an embarrassing blot of show as the evening found me yelling how much I hated hearing that " stupid fucking name " and the train of change slowly started to form.

Jordan started calling me Dion from the next day. So did Percy. So did everyone else.

Those who did not, fell under the long list of people I avoided or did my best to evade on a daily basis.

A few minutes of disfigured and broken down conversation explained her presence in the Parson's nest. Coincidentally, she met Jordan at a wedding and from the spar of their introduction, they both realized the common passion they shared that bought her up over to the Posh side of NY.

We were both guests of the Parson and since I knew them longer than her, I felt the obligation to entertain when the incomplete conversation that started on the topic of NY and ended frantically in the subject of the weather.

And I regaled her in the worst way imaginable.