Cars passed Simon’s sitting form, torn and disheveled, a strange bird perched on the margin of the highway, inexplicably cocking its head at the pulse of traffic. Some slowed and pulled away after surveying the ripped shirt and dirty pants, the ragged face bonneted with the tangle of the bird’s nest. If Simon had looked up from his contemplation of the road he would have seen the slow swivel of heads, the shockingly white faces in the interior tint of the car as the passengers stared open-mouthed at the creature tossed up on the shore of the highway. He would have seen the mute exchanges as they exclaimed or oohed to one another and then were gone down the road, the tumble of children jumping up on their knees with their sticky tourist hands curved over the seat to stare out the back window, receding with a bump over the frost-heaved tar and then around the next curve from sight.

But Simon doesn’t notice. He is still faint and incontinent, balanced on the rail, trying to stay there as opposed to the different places his head and bowels are trying to send him. He doesn’t notice the semi that gears down and hisses to a stop in front of him, the diesel engine growling, until the driver slides across the seat and opens the passenger door and yells down at Simon.

“Hey! You okay?”

Simon jerks his head up and tilts it, squinting owlishly at the driver. Stunned by the sound of another human voice.

“Do I look okay?” he asks.

“Hell no. You look like a bag full of assholes.”

“That’s about how I feel.”

“You need a ride someplace?” asks the trucker. “You sit there long enough and the State Patrol’s gonna pick you up for bein crazy. The way you look, they’d pick you up for litterin.”

“Yeah, well,” Simon has to think out the words. His voice feels hollow. “Well, where you goin?”

“The Cities.”

“Sounds good.”

“Well?” says the trucker impatiently.

Simon unfolds from the rail and totters across the tar to the steel running board of the semi and grabs the solid handle mounted to the left of the door. His knee wobbles but holds as he hops up and swings the door shut. The trucker releases the brake and they begin rolling out high above the road.