707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQ2ZxXMikiV
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707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8xGVnLoGcG
DREAMS don't make sense. Yes, they do. No, they don't. Here, I'll prove it to you.
707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhKjB4rX438
707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZEMPi3o4gL
1707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMMUird74xi
707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZPEnZTyQ7V
707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZPEnZTyQ7V
707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRrrSGH4wrq
I'M in the living room, sitting on the couch with my father, watching Corner Gas reruns on the TV. So far, so normal. 707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ43rqhakzqi
Dad turns to me and says, "You look sleepy. Mike. You've got a vein on your forehead."707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTKuQWF1Qyi
"Oh, yeah? Bizarre."707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡO2i7UuNGTZ
"Yeah."707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCMG3E2V3qU
"Ponderous, father," I say. "Simply ponderous."707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡI3ilrLXw06
"Something you want to talk about?"707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡz4Gs6oi9DS
"I see myself." I point across the living room, to where my doppelgänger is hiding behind double doors, peering out at me. He grins devilishly.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkzW73s7YuM
"I know," Dad says. "You're fading away."707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmZ9SmQTda5
"I know," I say. "It isn't fair."707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2zqA30BNgP
"Maybe you should go to sleep," Dad offers.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrMSyaAvrjD
I consider the offer. 707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1kjpuNDRUO
During the time it takes for me to make my considerations, the other me waves and waves and waves, trying to grab my attention. I don't give me any attention. Positively none.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7h4YwNmfv7
I say, "You know what? Maybe you're right. I am tired."707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMB1LaUR2Oq
"Good. Go to sleep."707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwGxRub7HC3
Suddenly, the mirror me is no more. Vanished. Into thin air. Into nothingness. I've faded away.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1yI6BqWScN
"I'm gone!" I say, not trying in the slightest to keep the astonishment out of my voice.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡN8bsE52uVm
Dad says, "That's what you get, Mike. You're dead."
707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5dBpqp1OZFDad turns to me and says, "You look sleepy. Mike. You've got a vein on your forehead."707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTKuQWF1Qyi
"Oh, yeah? Bizarre."707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡO2i7UuNGTZ
"Yeah."707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCMG3E2V3qU
"Ponderous, father," I say. "Simply ponderous."707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡI3ilrLXw06
"Something you want to talk about?"707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡz4Gs6oi9DS
"I see myself." I point across the living room, to where my doppelgänger is hiding behind double doors, peering out at me. He grins devilishly.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkzW73s7YuM
"I know," Dad says. "You're fading away."707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmZ9SmQTda5
"I know," I say. "It isn't fair."707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2zqA30BNgP
"Maybe you should go to sleep," Dad offers.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrMSyaAvrjD
I consider the offer. 707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1kjpuNDRUO
During the time it takes for me to make my considerations, the other me waves and waves and waves, trying to grab my attention. I don't give me any attention. Positively none.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7h4YwNmfv7
I say, "You know what? Maybe you're right. I am tired."707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMB1LaUR2Oq
"Good. Go to sleep."707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwGxRub7HC3
Suddenly, the mirror me is no more. Vanished. Into thin air. Into nothingness. I've faded away.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1yI6BqWScN
"I'm gone!" I say, not trying in the slightest to keep the astonishment out of my voice.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡN8bsE52uVm
Dad says, "That's what you get, Mike. You're dead."
2707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0enENwlS9o
707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡu8McU8kkqA
707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡu8McU8kkqA
NOW I'm at a party. People I remember from my past are present. People are together who were never together. Sense is not the language being spoken.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMNs4OiKf00
I'm on the couch. Again. A different couch. Alone. Nodding off from sheer boredom. This is why I don't go to parties. I'd much rather stay home and occupy myself in ways only I can relate.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ81yH7Lay9y
"Prick!" says my old friend Brandon from behind. "God damned Russian prick!"707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQCL3L2fwDv
I turn to take in the ruckus. Brandon is pummelling a cute little mooshka doll, bashing and beating in its brains with a baseball bat. White, fluffy stuffing leaks from the ever-growing head wound. Soft skull battered, bruised, and cleaved. I'm both troubled and amused by the scene.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUZJmj89r1Q
The doll takes the abuse admirably, if I do say so. It doesn't even make a peep.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRzdcYznkhA
"That's what you get for hitting my sister! Potato water–drinker! Snow-sucker! Filth! Rubbish! Filth!"707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKUjsGfUgw0
I'm confused. The more Brandon talks, the less Brandon sounds like Brandon.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrH4w2EO8m1
As my old friend continues his savage beatdown of an innocent dolly, other partygoers disengage themselves from tepid conversations and instead opt to play witness to the ongoing spectacle.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJ1HmZgpaHU
"Filth! Rubbish! Filth!" is heard amidst cheers of "You get 'em, Branflakes!" and "Go, you!"707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcbOlrhoPtX
I shake my head and roll my eyes just as Brandon's dad, Brian, walks by.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvImUhiziuk
"Drugs," he says cryptically.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPGaNDq3Kyo
"Hmm?" I ask.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnoKfxUkNwR
"You heard me. Get out!" he screams, pointing to the front door.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVGP2K4eLD4
I ignore him and he walks onward, sitting in a rocking chair where he begins to knit an ugly ball of yarn.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlouKBAngg4
A blonde-haired girl I used to know—Sarah—sits beside me on the couch. With a shocking immediacy, she turns to me and starts to talk: "Hey, Mike. What's new with you?"707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQ58ASepHKp
I look into her shocking blue eyes. So blue. Does she like me? She said she loved me once. But that might have been smoke. Words. Without meaning. Just words. In any case, I never loved her. How could I? We never really connected.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKZhRqDP4id
"I've been writing," I say, growing excited. I'm starved for human contact and connections.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ79NYZreuzx
"Oh yeah? Like a novel?"707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjyb62UxImo
"I wish. No. I've been working on one but I haven't finished it yet. Short stories, I guess."707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwGHYWCMDUv
"So, how long are you?"707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBF1EyKymGx
"I dunno. 14 pages, I think?"707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡupKEMS4VY8
"Oh." She loses interest. Scoots over to the other end of the couch, as far away from me as she can get, and into the arms of her brown-haired girlfriend, Fiona. They giggle and hold each other.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVh1ucgUPTD
Bitch.
I'm on the couch. Again. A different couch. Alone. Nodding off from sheer boredom. This is why I don't go to parties. I'd much rather stay home and occupy myself in ways only I can relate.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ81yH7Lay9y
"Prick!" says my old friend Brandon from behind. "God damned Russian prick!"707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQCL3L2fwDv
I turn to take in the ruckus. Brandon is pummelling a cute little mooshka doll, bashing and beating in its brains with a baseball bat. White, fluffy stuffing leaks from the ever-growing head wound. Soft skull battered, bruised, and cleaved. I'm both troubled and amused by the scene.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUZJmj89r1Q
The doll takes the abuse admirably, if I do say so. It doesn't even make a peep.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRzdcYznkhA
"That's what you get for hitting my sister! Potato water–drinker! Snow-sucker! Filth! Rubbish! Filth!"707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKUjsGfUgw0
I'm confused. The more Brandon talks, the less Brandon sounds like Brandon.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrH4w2EO8m1
As my old friend continues his savage beatdown of an innocent dolly, other partygoers disengage themselves from tepid conversations and instead opt to play witness to the ongoing spectacle.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJ1HmZgpaHU
"Filth! Rubbish! Filth!" is heard amidst cheers of "You get 'em, Branflakes!" and "Go, you!"707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcbOlrhoPtX
I shake my head and roll my eyes just as Brandon's dad, Brian, walks by.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvImUhiziuk
"Drugs," he says cryptically.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPGaNDq3Kyo
"Hmm?" I ask.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnoKfxUkNwR
"You heard me. Get out!" he screams, pointing to the front door.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVGP2K4eLD4
I ignore him and he walks onward, sitting in a rocking chair where he begins to knit an ugly ball of yarn.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlouKBAngg4
A blonde-haired girl I used to know—Sarah—sits beside me on the couch. With a shocking immediacy, she turns to me and starts to talk: "Hey, Mike. What's new with you?"707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQ58ASepHKp
I look into her shocking blue eyes. So blue. Does she like me? She said she loved me once. But that might have been smoke. Words. Without meaning. Just words. In any case, I never loved her. How could I? We never really connected.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKZhRqDP4id
"I've been writing," I say, growing excited. I'm starved for human contact and connections.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ79NYZreuzx
"Oh yeah? Like a novel?"707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjyb62UxImo
"I wish. No. I've been working on one but I haven't finished it yet. Short stories, I guess."707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwGHYWCMDUv
"So, how long are you?"707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBF1EyKymGx
"I dunno. 14 pages, I think?"707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡupKEMS4VY8
"Oh." She loses interest. Scoots over to the other end of the couch, as far away from me as she can get, and into the arms of her brown-haired girlfriend, Fiona. They giggle and hold each other.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVh1ucgUPTD
Bitch.
707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBjIYGC0Ddl
707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡz149VvrJM2
3707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOuvoRpd0R6
707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJWwC12htXq
707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJWwC12htXq
WE pull into the driveway. I'm quick out of the car and even quicker into the house. I just want to sit and see my cats.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡV9D1coHcij
In the house. Through the hallway. Ginger is on the stairs, peering over the edge of the staircase like a scared little owl. Afraid of strangers. I'm no stranger to him and his ways. Bear is sleeping on my bed—peaceful, tranquil.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlhotKHxtQ1
My sister Lesley and her husband Jason enter the house. Riley, their dog, yaps behind them. Noisy bugger. Which is odd. He's usually quite quiet.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAJZncllhAr
Ginger is disturbed. Bear is perturbed.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFdQeA1hJuT
Some nerve.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡABQhdVbyD9
I crash into my chair. Time to relax.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaqhnyeiwoO
Never mind.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1abUHaLAz7
There's a knock at the door. Who could it be?707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnuDlsi4bLC
I go to answer it. Two girls. Blonde Sarah. Brunette Fiona. What the hell do they want?707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡARiomZ6gnM
The door swings open.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡN5L0H2tU4D
"Heeeeey!" I hear both girls say.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOFnHhWPnPm
"Hello."707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSlOPQ100B5
They don't wait for my approval before storming the castle. God damnit. What the hell happened to this world. Where did respect die, I wonder, so I know which hole to hide in.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkFwp6GEPF9
"Abuse! Abuse!" they say.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtubZL8e2XZ
"What in the steamed hobo scarves are you two talking about?"707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmtt0nEh7bS
"Abuse! Dogs, cats, food, poop!"707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJYS2egIx2v
Anger rising. Rage-foam forming at the corners of my mouth. Feel my hands tremble. What is this?707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡY6syWBRZIM
The girls push me back through the hallway and there's nothing I can do to stop the flood of them. Woe is me. Oh, sweet woe.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCpk9bPaVZ0
"Oh my god! Oh my god! Oh my god!" they squeal. "Abuse!"707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJza7RALpGA
Grab for the nearest shoulder. Spin the girl around. Speak into her face, "There's no abuse here."707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJHGci46Fz5
Fiona cringes and backs away. Sarah and her exit the house.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAtZACHKB1o
Wonder what sent them packing. My breath, perhaps? I ponder such trivialities as I return to my chair.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlMnoT6yWgm
I gaze into the reflection of my mouse. I'm dressed like Spider-Man.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdkFbPewF7V
Huh. Funny dat.
In the house. Through the hallway. Ginger is on the stairs, peering over the edge of the staircase like a scared little owl. Afraid of strangers. I'm no stranger to him and his ways. Bear is sleeping on my bed—peaceful, tranquil.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlhotKHxtQ1
My sister Lesley and her husband Jason enter the house. Riley, their dog, yaps behind them. Noisy bugger. Which is odd. He's usually quite quiet.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAJZncllhAr
Ginger is disturbed. Bear is perturbed.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFdQeA1hJuT
Some nerve.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡABQhdVbyD9
I crash into my chair. Time to relax.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaqhnyeiwoO
Never mind.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1abUHaLAz7
There's a knock at the door. Who could it be?707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnuDlsi4bLC
I go to answer it. Two girls. Blonde Sarah. Brunette Fiona. What the hell do they want?707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡARiomZ6gnM
The door swings open.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡN5L0H2tU4D
"Heeeeey!" I hear both girls say.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOFnHhWPnPm
"Hello."707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSlOPQ100B5
They don't wait for my approval before storming the castle. God damnit. What the hell happened to this world. Where did respect die, I wonder, so I know which hole to hide in.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkFwp6GEPF9
"Abuse! Abuse!" they say.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtubZL8e2XZ
"What in the steamed hobo scarves are you two talking about?"707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmtt0nEh7bS
"Abuse! Dogs, cats, food, poop!"707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJYS2egIx2v
Anger rising. Rage-foam forming at the corners of my mouth. Feel my hands tremble. What is this?707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡY6syWBRZIM
The girls push me back through the hallway and there's nothing I can do to stop the flood of them. Woe is me. Oh, sweet woe.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCpk9bPaVZ0
"Oh my god! Oh my god! Oh my god!" they squeal. "Abuse!"707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJza7RALpGA
Grab for the nearest shoulder. Spin the girl around. Speak into her face, "There's no abuse here."707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJHGci46Fz5
Fiona cringes and backs away. Sarah and her exit the house.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAtZACHKB1o
Wonder what sent them packing. My breath, perhaps? I ponder such trivialities as I return to my chair.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlMnoT6yWgm
I gaze into the reflection of my mouse. I'm dressed like Spider-Man.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdkFbPewF7V
Huh. Funny dat.
707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKEkhFap5s8
707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPNaNRGGZY5
4
707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8so8ZLJbBz
WALKING down the street. There's my old school. Through the playground. The yard is empty. Where are all the kids? Oh yes, it's Monday. Wait. That doesn't make a lick of sense. What time is it? My non-existent watch says noon. Weird. What's the season, I wonder? Feels like summer. What year is it? Have I even been born yet?707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6c4UGZx1hc
There's an old friend. Down by the sycamore tree. The tree that was never there. Interesting. It's grown mighty tall since I was last here... when it was never here. I meet the friend. Nick. Used to sell me drugs. Good stuff, too.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0q1IGweNnT
"Hey, Nick."707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0GVGBik9LD
"Hey, Mike."707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4RBcTI2nBj
"What's good?"707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnmuU56NI5r
"Not much," he says with a sigh.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc5ORLuEHTO
"How come?"707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkaGdoi5kva
"Trouble is coming." He casts paranoid glances around and around.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHfFQnu1L8Q
"Where?"707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdQIwboaxqZ
"There." Nick aims a finger to my right, past my shoulder. 707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNtz0dbyYFV
Some wannabe-badass teen who walks from the portable classrooms to where Nick and I are standing. Under the sycamore tree.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzn2PfTjwUz
"Who's he?" I ask.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5dJPCz6cza
"Stanley," Wannabe says.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwyAAGQYd3h
"Oh."707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ89HeVDBO4e
Stanley wears a black leather jacket, and blue Levi's jeans. His brown hair is slicked back and he smokes a filtered cigarette. "Bitches, man," Stanley says.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkKKLfPWbxI
I knew a tirade was coming. I was right.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡp5mO20YJJm
"Becky says I can't smoke my Camels anymore. Dumb bitch. I smoke what I want to smoke. I'm hard."707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0QFqlf3cE1
Nick nods but doesn't say anything. I follow suit.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOQvuMrbf4f
Stanley looks at me with contempt. "Who the shit are you?"707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡodgIGBYnJF
"Mike."707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6FQNsBJrHU
"Yeah, well, I'm hard, Mike. Harder than you, okay?"707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYL3J5CH6Gy
I keep my yap shut.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnYkwxdQ3OK
"Yeah, I'm hard, alright. I'm the baddest kid around." Stanley takes a long drag off his cigarette.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡO16efj3Hod
He is a kid, alright. I say nothing.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡO6V7ojFVBq
Stanley offers the smoke to Nick, who declines.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡA4GLYLjzUG
"Alright, bitch. Suit yourself." Another pull.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrEoIHZB4sN
"Anything in that thing?" I ask him.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQwHtG1zXE4
"Like what? LSD?"707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPY3VD1MZK0
Sarcasm. Or maybe just stupid. Acid is destroyed at burning temperature. "No. Weed," I say.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8w2rtmA7tY
"I don't smoke that shit, bro. Not yet."707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPGuOdO7WgV
I laugh. What a badass. Wannabe badass. Plans his drug-induced future. What. When. Where. Why. How. Please.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKzgkiU5rDi
Stanley doesn't take my laughter kindly. "Easy, playa. I'm hard. Harder than you." Veins were popping out of his face in places I never knew veins existed. He looked about ready to pop. "I may not smoke drugs yet, but I will. What, you think I'm not bad? Huh? LOCKDOWN!"707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1FGCClhd88
Everything changes then.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAsMcKRKfbW
Kids come scurrying out of every hideaway hole and hovel imaginable.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyj7CXFYXan
Stanley gives me a hard shove. 707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡINbAQEt3gC
I fall on my ass, quickly get to my feet and try to run.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQZxhE7Ze51
Too many kids. In the way. "Move!" I say. 707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIxbj31LlRs
No one listens. They laugh.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUY6fvXPBBF
I try to get by a wall of rats when I feel two hands grip me around the kidneys. I look back and there's a smiling little girl. We've formed a chain. A chain of kids. Gripping each other. Gripping me. Let go. I don't like to be touched. Stop it!707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ87WO2e6Ckd
The pain is excruciating. Feels like fire. What the hell is wrong with them. They won't let go of me. I smack hands and attempt to remove them. They push harder. Feel the burn. Against my flesh. What is wrong with them. Why won't they stop.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXLDcPYjRQL
I'm driven mad as fingers pierce skin and blood is drawn. Bleeding out. A hand enters one side of me. Another hand. Other side. Feel a tug on my organs.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7DuTSLpmHM
A pull.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡalxolFlfFR
Rip.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXLlVOJg5JM
RIP.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaPqiyziquC
I'm dead.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTQDlMp4lKK
In bed.
There's an old friend. Down by the sycamore tree. The tree that was never there. Interesting. It's grown mighty tall since I was last here... when it was never here. I meet the friend. Nick. Used to sell me drugs. Good stuff, too.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0q1IGweNnT
"Hey, Nick."707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0GVGBik9LD
"Hey, Mike."707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4RBcTI2nBj
"What's good?"707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnmuU56NI5r
"Not much," he says with a sigh.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc5ORLuEHTO
"How come?"707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkaGdoi5kva
"Trouble is coming." He casts paranoid glances around and around.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHfFQnu1L8Q
"Where?"707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdQIwboaxqZ
"There." Nick aims a finger to my right, past my shoulder. 707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNtz0dbyYFV
Some wannabe-badass teen who walks from the portable classrooms to where Nick and I are standing. Under the sycamore tree.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzn2PfTjwUz
"Who's he?" I ask.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5dJPCz6cza
"Stanley," Wannabe says.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwyAAGQYd3h
"Oh."707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ89HeVDBO4e
Stanley wears a black leather jacket, and blue Levi's jeans. His brown hair is slicked back and he smokes a filtered cigarette. "Bitches, man," Stanley says.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkKKLfPWbxI
I knew a tirade was coming. I was right.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡp5mO20YJJm
"Becky says I can't smoke my Camels anymore. Dumb bitch. I smoke what I want to smoke. I'm hard."707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0QFqlf3cE1
Nick nods but doesn't say anything. I follow suit.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOQvuMrbf4f
Stanley looks at me with contempt. "Who the shit are you?"707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡodgIGBYnJF
"Mike."707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6FQNsBJrHU
"Yeah, well, I'm hard, Mike. Harder than you, okay?"707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYL3J5CH6Gy
I keep my yap shut.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnYkwxdQ3OK
"Yeah, I'm hard, alright. I'm the baddest kid around." Stanley takes a long drag off his cigarette.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡO16efj3Hod
He is a kid, alright. I say nothing.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡO6V7ojFVBq
Stanley offers the smoke to Nick, who declines.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡA4GLYLjzUG
"Alright, bitch. Suit yourself." Another pull.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrEoIHZB4sN
"Anything in that thing?" I ask him.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQwHtG1zXE4
"Like what? LSD?"707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPY3VD1MZK0
Sarcasm. Or maybe just stupid. Acid is destroyed at burning temperature. "No. Weed," I say.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8w2rtmA7tY
"I don't smoke that shit, bro. Not yet."707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPGuOdO7WgV
I laugh. What a badass. Wannabe badass. Plans his drug-induced future. What. When. Where. Why. How. Please.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKzgkiU5rDi
Stanley doesn't take my laughter kindly. "Easy, playa. I'm hard. Harder than you." Veins were popping out of his face in places I never knew veins existed. He looked about ready to pop. "I may not smoke drugs yet, but I will. What, you think I'm not bad? Huh? LOCKDOWN!"707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1FGCClhd88
Everything changes then.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAsMcKRKfbW
Kids come scurrying out of every hideaway hole and hovel imaginable.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyj7CXFYXan
Stanley gives me a hard shove. 707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡINbAQEt3gC
I fall on my ass, quickly get to my feet and try to run.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQZxhE7Ze51
Too many kids. In the way. "Move!" I say. 707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIxbj31LlRs
No one listens. They laugh.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUY6fvXPBBF
I try to get by a wall of rats when I feel two hands grip me around the kidneys. I look back and there's a smiling little girl. We've formed a chain. A chain of kids. Gripping each other. Gripping me. Let go. I don't like to be touched. Stop it!707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ87WO2e6Ckd
The pain is excruciating. Feels like fire. What the hell is wrong with them. They won't let go of me. I smack hands and attempt to remove them. They push harder. Feel the burn. Against my flesh. What is wrong with them. Why won't they stop.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXLDcPYjRQL
I'm driven mad as fingers pierce skin and blood is drawn. Bleeding out. A hand enters one side of me. Another hand. Other side. Feel a tug on my organs.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7DuTSLpmHM
A pull.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡalxolFlfFR
Rip.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXLlVOJg5JM
RIP.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaPqiyziquC
I'm dead.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTQDlMp4lKK
In bed.
707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTf6kydUv3L
707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbmS9BrZHpz
?
707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRxCGM9DtuF
THE Rain Has Fallen.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQelk4I201M
No. That's not it.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ37NyXewIfA
They Came After The Rain.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVPIw6iw9qY
There it is.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxSMeUUkwo2
That's the one.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTjNljsUgSM
The end.
ns3.12.163.14da2 No. That's not it.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ37NyXewIfA
They Came After The Rain.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVPIw6iw9qY
There it is.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxSMeUUkwo2
That's the one.707Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTjNljsUgSM
The end.
