Chapter One. In which Freddie Glenn comes over to Adam Rubin's apartment after visiting the Cash for Clunkers program.

Chapter One.

Adam was sitting on his couch. He was looking at the shadows of the birds, as they cast through his window and on to the wall. He whistled a tune and got up to throw on a CD of "Besides All That" by Steven Brown.

The doorbell rang. Then the person got cavalier and just threw the door open.

It was Freddie.

"Freddie Glenn! What's up!" Adam said enthusiastically.

"Hey Adam," Freddie said.

"What are you doing?"

"Nothing," Freddie said. "I just got back from the Cash for Clunkers program."

"What's that?"

"It's some U.S. government thing they just started. It's weird. It has to do with like, trade in your old car and get a new car, and if the new car is like, a hybrid, or uses less gas, you can get some kind of rebate or something."

"Oh," Adam said.

"But I don't know," Freddie said, disappearing into the kitchen and coming back with a beer. "I could be misunderstanding the whole thing. That's just what I picked up from reading the papers."

"Pfft," Adam said. "There's a lot of that going around."

Freddie gave him a blank look. "What do you mean?"

"There's some shit happening with an Adam Rubin. It's getting on my nerves. The phone has been ringing day and night. I don't even know who that is."

"Adam Rubin," Freddie considered.

"Yeah. I don't know. Some kind of NBA star or something. Maybe I'm getting old."

"I don't think you're that old," Freddie said. "Maybe it's just ... there are always new people in bad culture. Maybe you're not so bad off if you just ignore the bad culture altogether."

Adam scratched the variegated white spackle over his head. "I'm not so sure," he said. "I know what you're saying, but I could see the argument for both. It's also good to engage with the world."

Freddie took a glug. His cel phone rang.

"Hello?" he said. "No. Yes, that's right. No, I - look, how did you even get this number? No- I am not. Yes, this is Freddie Glenn. No, I'm not THAT Freddie Glenn. No. No! Goodbye!"

The clock of the smiley plastic cat ticked.

Freddie sighed.

"You too, huh?" Adam said.

"Yes, apparently."