A little boy lived with his mother. His dad had left them when he was still an infant, (doesnt sound funny yet. Yes. I know) and now he was approaching his sixth birthday, never having known what its like to have a father, to have a man around the house. Naturally, this was on his mothers mind, too. She had been without a partner for years, and was lonely, sometimes very depressed about it.

At the stroke of midnight, one night, the little boy was awakened from his sleep by sounds coming from his mothers room. He got up and went down the hall, opened the door a crack and saw his mother, standing in front of the mirror, naked, her arms spread out to her sides. She was so intensely involved in what she was doing she didnt even see him. She repeated over and over into the mirror, I want a man! I want a man! I want a man!!



A little confused, but very curious, the boy went back to bed.



The next night, once again, at exactly midnight, he was awakened, and padded down the hallway to find his mother, again, nude, facing the mirror, I want a man! I want a man! I want a man!!!



Hes no fool. He starts to set his alarm for midnight so he wont miss anything. But this next night, when hes awakened by his alarm and sneaks down the hallway, he hears his mom and some unfamiliar male voice coming from behind her bedroom door. This had never happened before. It scared the stuffing out of him. He ran back to his room and hid under the blankets. When he awoke in the morning, and came downstairs for breakfast, he found his mother sitting at the table with a strange man. She introduced them to each other; he sat there eyeing this man, trying to figure things out. After a while, his mommy showed her new friend to the door, kissed him goodbye, and sent him on his way.



This was not lost on the little boy. And that night, he set his alarm for midnight, again. When the alarm awakened him, he got up, stripped naked, and tiptoed down the hall where he positioned himself directly in front of his mothers mirror. He stretched his arms out wide, looked straight into the glass, opened his little mouth and cried out, I want a bicycle! I want a bicycle! I want a bicycle!