Counterfeit Children (KURT COBAIN)

27. alaskan way

patty and i sat on the deck of her house, sipping hot chocolate and talking. fog poured over the rich part of aberdeen. patty's dad was a writer, making a new home in every town he passed so that he could write what he knew. his new book was a horror novel set in the rural pacific northwest, so he was here. he bought a big house on 6th street by the golf course. new wood shingles, light blue siding and wood floors. patty's room was painted a soft lilac color, her bed linens white and crisp.
"hey pat, you should come to my friend rog's birthday party," i told her, eating a marshmallow off the top of my mug. she thought for a minute.
"roger osborne?" she asked. i nodded.
"yeah, from montesano, you know him?" i asked her.
"his dad sold us our house, i met him once. our dads are friends." she explained.
"so will you go?" i pried. she nodded.
"that sounds fun, i've never been to a high school party," she said. roger was in community college. this was a college party. however the timid patty, at 14, didn't need to know that. i looked at my watch and decided it was time for me to go. it was the first full day of mid-winter break and kurt and i were hopping in his truck and driving to seattle for the weekend.
"hey pat, i'll see you monday, we're still on for breakfast right?"i asked her. she nodded, smiling and standing to go back inside.
"see ya," she said, shutting her screen door behind her as i walked down the stairs and got on my bike, the spokes whirring through the puddles in the pavement on my way home.

i left my bike in the garage and came in through the garage door, my brother was in the kitchen making a ham sandwich. i walked past him and into the living room, my dad was sitting in his easy chair watching golf and holding the baby, my sister on the floor playing with her barbies. i walked up the stairs to grab my backpack of clothes and walked into my moms room. she was laying on her bed reading a book, i sat beside her.

"hey baby, you getting ready to leave?" she asked. i nodded.
"we need to talk," she said, sitting up and putting a 'bureau of indian affairs' book mark into her romance novel.
"yeah?" i said, a bit concerned.
"i know you and kurt are dating but are you uh, sleeping together?" she asked.
"no, mama," i reassured her.
"listen, i don't really mind if you do. i trust you, just be safe," she said, reaching into her bedside table and pulling out a couple condoms. i felt my cheeks turn red.
"i really won't need those." i reassured her. she shook her head.
"just take them, it'll make me feel better," she laughed, placing them in my reluctantly outstretched hand. i put them in the pocket of my faded army green backpack and lightly thanked her. i leaned down and kissed her on the cheek, letting her wrap me in her arms.
"have fun! your first time in seattle without me or grandma. oh you're growing up so fast," she said, holding my shoulders at arms length.
"now go! before i start crying,"she laughed as she let me go.

i walked back down the tan carpeted stairs and to my father, who i hugged and wished me well. the phone rang from the kitchen, which paul raced me for. he got there first and let out a strained.
"novia residence," to which someone on the other side spoke and paul rolled his eyes and gave the phone to me

"hello," i said, kurt began speaking on the other end.
"are you ready?" he asked me.
"yeah," i said back absently.
"cool, i'll be over soon," he told me. i sat on the couch watching golf with my dad for awhile. kurt's truck pulled up the driveway of my house and honked. i said goodbye to my family in the living room and shut the door behind me. kurt leaned over the passenger seat to open the door for me.
"a gentleman," i smiled. he nodded, before gesturing at his array of tapes.
"pick one, my love," he said in an exaggerated accent before pulling out of my driveway. i chose a wipers album and pushed it into the tape deck as kurt drove through the streets of aberdeen. pulling onto the two lane highway that'd lead us to i5.

old barns and trees lined the highway, a house every couple miles. it winded over hills and through farmlands full of wheat and potatoes. kurt tapped his fingers on the steering wheel. it was still foggy although the clock on the dashboard read 11:30. soon enough we were on i5 and the big highway barriers and other cars on their way to seattle came up. we passed through centralia, then we finally saw the sound. a mass of water, foggy with a bright green bridge connecting us to the other side. the freight trains chugged through beneath us. every kid from rural washington knows they're close when they hit the alaskan way viaduct. it's where the trees and farms and freight lines finally turn into shipping containers and tall concrete buildings. it's an abrupt change, but it's a beautiful one. mist traveled over the city, following us from aberdeen. kurt pulled off the viaduct in the city and drove around for awhile, we stopped at a gas station and got snacks and ended up having a silly picnic at the pier. an old bum was playing anarchist folk songs on his guitar, families were taking photos over the water, the ferris wheel was running.
"someday i want to live here," kurt admitted.
"me too, it'd be so cool." i told him. he took another bite of his gas station hot dog.
"i have a surprise for you," he told me, digging in the pockets of his blue jeans. i was suspicious.
he pulled out two tickets to metallica.

"what the fuck dude," i said, in complete disbelief.
"think of it as an early birthday present," he said. i tackled him with a hug, him laying on his back in the grass, my upper body on top of him, peppering his face with kisses. he smiled big, kissing me back a few times before pushing me off.
"there's kids here gar, jesus," he joked.
"i'm sorry i'm just stoked!"

this chapter is dedicated to the viaduct. rip baby, seattle is gonna miss you