Charlie woke with a start and was face to face with the distinct outline of an orange bird. A phoenix. He'd seen it somewhere before. Not in this context (he knew it was Hunter's) but it seemed oddly familiar and comfortable to him.

Charlie got up, wiping the embarrassing pool of drool from when he fell asleep on Hunter's shoulder. What happened tonight...shouldn't have happened. But it felt...right.

Charlie went into the kitchen to pour himself a glass of water. He thought about Ben. He thought about the kids at school. He thought about Robbie, who seemed to need him more than ever. Charlie thought about his life. About being a grown up and making grown up decisions.

Charlie remembered a promise he made to himself, long ago, about moving out of Boystown by the time he turned thirty. Charlie thought about how uneventful turning twenty-nine had been...how jam packed yet commonplace everything that had happened in that year had been.

Did he need a change?

Was it time for a new life? 

Even with what just happened with Hunter...was a life travelling the world while Ben saved third world countries the right things?

Charlie thought about his life. He thought of a promise he made to himself long ago. He sighed as he finished his glass of water and checked to see if the front door was locked properly.

He almost kicked over the lease renewal slid under the door.

Charlie was going to have to make a decision. 

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That does it for Volume 9! We'll be launching recaps all next week. Make sure to check back on July 29 for the 10th and FINAL volume of Boystown. See how it all ends!

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