A Little Excerpt

Fall 2016

Matthew Rhodes Bacaluso-Leyman (Rhody) was out with a few of his friends in Chicago. They wanted to try an Asian restaurant in Wicker Park where he and his friends lived at the time. Everything was fine until Rhody was found with one of their other friends against the side of the building. Rhody was sitting on the ground with his head buried in his arms, crying very hard.

“You alright?” One friend asked him.
“No, not really,” Rhody replied quietly.
“What’s wrong?”
“My heart is pounding really hard, and I just want to throw up.”
“Panic attack?” The same friend asked.
“Yeah, I think that’s it. I’m sorry but I think I’m gonna head home,” Rhody stated.
“I’ll go home with you. You know what you want so everyone else can bring some food home to us?”
“I need to see the menu. I’m so sorry about this.”
“All good. I’m sorry you have to go through this.”
“Yeah, same here.”