Hopper
———————————————————————–
Opening Chapter of “Hopper” – Debut Novel
————————————————————————
Friday, July 22nd – 6:06am – 17ºC/63ºF
Hopper stood alone in his vest, ironing. In a cheap rented room lit by a thick black wire slung out from the window and loosely connected to the street lighting outside, he smoothed out the creases of each note, a couple of fives, a ten maybe but nothing larger. Straightening out the folds, carefully smoothing out each corner before slipping them back into his wallet, an old fold of leather with the stitch of someone else’s name half plucked from the corner seam. A line of floss still hung from his teeth and if you looked over his shoulder, you could just make out the small shrine he’d built for her; photos, old champagne corks, restaurant receipts and ticket stubs – an old drawing of her while she slept. Friday, July 22nd, a little after 6am on what would be the hottest day of the year.