Bleeding Gut Blues by S Fitts

Ellis O’Neill, a young drifter withdrawn from the world, is subsisting at the base of the Pyramid of Needs. He wakes up on a lawn in southern Illinois with just enough recollection of the night before to get him to a bus station, Cincinnati, and Danny, waiting with a sedan pointed two thousand, two hundred miles west. Officially, they’re checking on Danny’s sister, Angie, but for Danny, the trip is an excuse to pull his friend back into the world. Ellis isn't sure about the world, but he's sure about Angie, his only proven solution to a life shaped by alienation and neglect.