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Coward, SC

A night out with male friends can sometimes trigger toxic tests to avoid intimacy, to feel the scar tissue of the internalized male gaze.

Gen X men clamber in the dark away from our fathers’ outdated masculinity like feral cats.

A man gets on the 40 Metro bus at N 105th and Aurora without paying. The bus driver says “Rides aren’t free.”

The man says “I just need a ride up the hill.”

“Rides aren’t free,” reiterates the driver. “You can pay for a ride or you can steal a ride? What do you want to do?”

The bus driver closes the doors, puts his foot on the gas and says “Steal a ride.” 新