784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1c9ph51XL0
-
784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUIWnVcun7f
DREAMS don't make sense. Yes, they do. No, they don't. Here, I'll prove it to you.
784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmy5ck0nliu
784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjJQGwhTvla
1784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ59FB7C1x5g
784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwGe1SGk6YJ
784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwGe1SGk6YJ
784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡf55EFUJWeK
I'M in the living room, sitting on the couch with my father, watching Corner Gas reruns on the TV. So far, so normal. 784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡm5dKbd0sSk
Dad turns to me and says, "You look sleepy. Mike. You've got a vein on your forehead."784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHjs3kEr3xq
"Oh, yeah? Bizarre."784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzsqe8NcKz3
"Yeah."784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyVZMgyFWca
"Ponderous, father," I say. "Simply ponderous."784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYiTi58Ilc9
"Something you want to talk about?"784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDd1f0E1iBf
"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.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡs2m7zzgd1z
"I know," Dad says. "You're fading away."784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyStucmd7mD
"I know," I say. "It isn't fair."784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYVq9FTanGb
"Maybe you should go to sleep," Dad offers.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcLCQZD7fxg
I consider the offer. 784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡj8WODeD01i
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.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1lP2MyqkpJ
I say, "You know what? Maybe you're right. I am tired."784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpwzUS7z0Ly
"Good. Go to sleep."784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbCznWsRW81
Suddenly, the mirror me is no more. Vanished. Into thin air. Into nothingness. I've faded away.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRocHTJHb9T
"I'm gone!" I say, not trying in the slightest to keep the astonishment out of my voice.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzrxfJQFw31
Dad says, "That's what you get, Mike. You're dead."
784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXrIKQBdGXeDad turns to me and says, "You look sleepy. Mike. You've got a vein on your forehead."784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHjs3kEr3xq
"Oh, yeah? Bizarre."784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzsqe8NcKz3
"Yeah."784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyVZMgyFWca
"Ponderous, father," I say. "Simply ponderous."784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYiTi58Ilc9
"Something you want to talk about?"784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDd1f0E1iBf
"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.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡs2m7zzgd1z
"I know," Dad says. "You're fading away."784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyStucmd7mD
"I know," I say. "It isn't fair."784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYVq9FTanGb
"Maybe you should go to sleep," Dad offers.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcLCQZD7fxg
I consider the offer. 784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡj8WODeD01i
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.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1lP2MyqkpJ
I say, "You know what? Maybe you're right. I am tired."784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpwzUS7z0Ly
"Good. Go to sleep."784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbCznWsRW81
Suddenly, the mirror me is no more. Vanished. Into thin air. Into nothingness. I've faded away.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRocHTJHb9T
"I'm gone!" I say, not trying in the slightest to keep the astonishment out of my voice.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzrxfJQFw31
Dad says, "That's what you get, Mike. You're dead."
2784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDtXWmk9xZW
784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuVFun8hk5Q
784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuVFun8hk5Q
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.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFrHhAQ5OrC
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.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIia2WPLbYM
"Prick!" says my old friend Brandon from behind. "God damned Russian prick!"784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTEXRf2y3fW
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.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡX48wCQVO0G
The doll takes the abuse admirably, if I do say so. It doesn't even make a peep.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhK4y2T2rN3
"That's what you get for hitting my sister! Potato water–drinker! Snow-sucker! Filth! Rubbish! Filth!"784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4FodfSB5oR
I'm confused. The more Brandon talks, the less Brandon sounds like Brandon.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3pLaVSMekt
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.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiGOTROqjZY
"Filth! Rubbish! Filth!" is heard amidst cheers of "You get 'em, Branflakes!" and "Go, you!"784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgsgDpBLJr5
I shake my head and roll my eyes just as Brandon's dad, Brian, walks by.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYZIhOP3fwe
"Drugs," he says cryptically.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLGDsJbgqsP
"Hmm?" I ask.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcNlNDIBmtY
"You heard me. Get out!" he screams, pointing to the front door.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRcmUO7MOv3
I ignore him and he walks onward, sitting in a rocking chair where he begins to knit an ugly ball of yarn.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoh5EdIS0Js
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?"784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡncQw21wpPN
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.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4wjDqn0K2o
"I've been writing," I say, growing excited. I'm starved for human contact and connections.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡt9zNcmy8KH
"Oh yeah? Like a novel?"784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsMShTsAbuu
"I wish. No. I've been working on one but I haven't finished it yet. Short stories, I guess."784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzQpCA8Idrf
"So, how long are you?"784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡK8CMjzfleQ
"I dunno. 14 pages, I think?"784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ78AQef6qg4
"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.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqPn0ur8S8D
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.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIia2WPLbYM
"Prick!" says my old friend Brandon from behind. "God damned Russian prick!"784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTEXRf2y3fW
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.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡX48wCQVO0G
The doll takes the abuse admirably, if I do say so. It doesn't even make a peep.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhK4y2T2rN3
"That's what you get for hitting my sister! Potato water–drinker! Snow-sucker! Filth! Rubbish! Filth!"784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4FodfSB5oR
I'm confused. The more Brandon talks, the less Brandon sounds like Brandon.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3pLaVSMekt
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.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiGOTROqjZY
"Filth! Rubbish! Filth!" is heard amidst cheers of "You get 'em, Branflakes!" and "Go, you!"784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgsgDpBLJr5
I shake my head and roll my eyes just as Brandon's dad, Brian, walks by.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYZIhOP3fwe
"Drugs," he says cryptically.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLGDsJbgqsP
"Hmm?" I ask.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcNlNDIBmtY
"You heard me. Get out!" he screams, pointing to the front door.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRcmUO7MOv3
I ignore him and he walks onward, sitting in a rocking chair where he begins to knit an ugly ball of yarn.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoh5EdIS0Js
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?"784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡncQw21wpPN
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.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4wjDqn0K2o
"I've been writing," I say, growing excited. I'm starved for human contact and connections.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡt9zNcmy8KH
"Oh yeah? Like a novel?"784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsMShTsAbuu
"I wish. No. I've been working on one but I haven't finished it yet. Short stories, I guess."784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzQpCA8Idrf
"So, how long are you?"784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡK8CMjzfleQ
"I dunno. 14 pages, I think?"784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ78AQef6qg4
"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.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqPn0ur8S8D
Bitch.
784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyYuyMA9f6x
784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvfY4M2BJxe
3784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPiWI4Z2zSj
784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7x2koupdlw
784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7x2koupdlw
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.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNeXHWkpifO
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.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmgiysiO7AM
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.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡErOaiJoSBS
Ginger is disturbed. Bear is perturbed.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjZvk6LJcTB
Some nerve.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEEpyILvOLP
I crash into my chair. Time to relax.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2X0bFgEbBM
Never mind.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6Cv4qlpc5g
There's a knock at the door. Who could it be?784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ88uvi1sFzK
I go to answer it. Two girls. Blonde Sarah. Brunette Fiona. What the hell do they want?784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgjI3BeLFTT
The door swings open.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡr1LCPmkrlv
"Heeeeey!" I hear both girls say.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeaEaW70EcE
"Hello."784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfnOmlN8Map
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.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkBSPgr1hTi
"Abuse! Abuse!" they say.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6eLrOsMnJA
"What in the steamed hobo scarves are you two talking about?"784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡULvkccXmmU
"Abuse! Dogs, cats, food, poop!"784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkDpcx0i96r
Anger rising. Rage-foam forming at the corners of my mouth. Feel my hands tremble. What is this?784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfiQYEcxVim
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.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCOlBCEElVz
"Oh my god! Oh my god! Oh my god!" they squeal. "Abuse!"784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcIdfEocxDS
Grab for the nearest shoulder. Spin the girl around. Speak into her face, "There's no abuse here."784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0sot9PXqnN
Fiona cringes and backs away. Sarah and her exit the house.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOXNePWirr7
Wonder what sent them packing. My breath, perhaps? I ponder such trivialities as I return to my chair.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUHQwsPD8wl
I gaze into the reflection of my mouse. I'm dressed like Spider-Man.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOfKgeddMX1
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.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmgiysiO7AM
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.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡErOaiJoSBS
Ginger is disturbed. Bear is perturbed.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjZvk6LJcTB
Some nerve.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEEpyILvOLP
I crash into my chair. Time to relax.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2X0bFgEbBM
Never mind.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6Cv4qlpc5g
There's a knock at the door. Who could it be?784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ88uvi1sFzK
I go to answer it. Two girls. Blonde Sarah. Brunette Fiona. What the hell do they want?784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgjI3BeLFTT
The door swings open.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡr1LCPmkrlv
"Heeeeey!" I hear both girls say.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeaEaW70EcE
"Hello."784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfnOmlN8Map
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.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkBSPgr1hTi
"Abuse! Abuse!" they say.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6eLrOsMnJA
"What in the steamed hobo scarves are you two talking about?"784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡULvkccXmmU
"Abuse! Dogs, cats, food, poop!"784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkDpcx0i96r
Anger rising. Rage-foam forming at the corners of my mouth. Feel my hands tremble. What is this?784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfiQYEcxVim
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.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCOlBCEElVz
"Oh my god! Oh my god! Oh my god!" they squeal. "Abuse!"784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcIdfEocxDS
Grab for the nearest shoulder. Spin the girl around. Speak into her face, "There's no abuse here."784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0sot9PXqnN
Fiona cringes and backs away. Sarah and her exit the house.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOXNePWirr7
Wonder what sent them packing. My breath, perhaps? I ponder such trivialities as I return to my chair.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUHQwsPD8wl
I gaze into the reflection of my mouse. I'm dressed like Spider-Man.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOfKgeddMX1
Huh. Funny dat.
784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBGCOwwfI1Z
784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRyi8P2Dm1k
4
784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGa1Feu1lAY
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?784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS1EtOJWOwU
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.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyD4ZtQF3BM
"Hey, Nick."784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeuAojLVtDm
"Hey, Mike."784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEFJ7BzfbSD
"What's good?"784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmHhyNHhhrt
"Not much," he says with a sigh.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡalTeLqVVpv
"How come?"784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrwccDXctPQ
"Trouble is coming." He casts paranoid glances around and around.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡU1SjRtOaBU
"Where?"784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpI7BKqjnd1
"There." Nick aims a finger to my right, past my shoulder. 784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡN8dDeMO6qp
Some wannabe-badass teen who walks from the portable classrooms to where Nick and I are standing. Under the sycamore tree.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUq3JI5kH2y
"Who's he?" I ask.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡItuxFehqh7
"Stanley," Wannabe says.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVlaVbxTuEG
"Oh."784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡo4TQyOwpEV
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.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMjCf8prS74
I knew a tirade was coming. I was right.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmIYidGCHwC
"Becky says I can't smoke my Camels anymore. Dumb bitch. I smoke what I want to smoke. I'm hard."784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2zZZAd4IM4
Nick nods but doesn't say anything. I follow suit.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnMJ5fDksAN
Stanley looks at me with contempt. "Who the shit are you?"784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdrvl0ApWj5
"Mike."784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQg8SR2CwxQ
"Yeah, well, I'm hard, Mike. Harder than you, okay?"784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYbdzXNlbCI
I keep my yap shut.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRDBxRwwmc7
"Yeah, I'm hard, alright. I'm the baddest kid around." Stanley takes a long drag off his cigarette.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡI2VsqpnikK
He is a kid, alright. I say nothing.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡA15VERGz4m
Stanley offers the smoke to Nick, who declines.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTSr42pPb7o
"Alright, bitch. Suit yourself." Another pull.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWWNN3sm0NU
"Anything in that thing?" I ask him.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSbkbN89YaW
"Like what? LSD?"784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡw0U4M6BGKo
Sarcasm. Or maybe just stupid. Acid is destroyed at burning temperature. "No. Weed," I say.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUlrQqLbFHB
"I don't smoke that shit, bro. Not yet."784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjhSRqlbAhe
I laugh. What a badass. Wannabe badass. Plans his drug-induced future. What. When. Where. Why. How. Please.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzuJe28nyiQ
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!"784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOYjgSijtE4
Everything changes then.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRK6t6FscKW
Kids come scurrying out of every hideaway hole and hovel imaginable.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ39tFoHNmLO
Stanley gives me a hard shove. 784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhXQoHSWsiA
I fall on my ass, quickly get to my feet and try to run.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcW1JXBysMW
Too many kids. In the way. "Move!" I say. 784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkd7ZRoyBxd
No one listens. They laugh.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjayKrMwj84
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!784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡP1AxYBaSz8
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.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYZ6gRpQfTa
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.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPigk2r75sg
A pull.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZkLfW5UbNg
Rip.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhW1nSICSM8
RIP.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAnPtwaEt0h
I'm dead.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡl7qqzGGLcr
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.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyD4ZtQF3BM
"Hey, Nick."784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeuAojLVtDm
"Hey, Mike."784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEFJ7BzfbSD
"What's good?"784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmHhyNHhhrt
"Not much," he says with a sigh.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡalTeLqVVpv
"How come?"784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrwccDXctPQ
"Trouble is coming." He casts paranoid glances around and around.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡU1SjRtOaBU
"Where?"784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpI7BKqjnd1
"There." Nick aims a finger to my right, past my shoulder. 784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡN8dDeMO6qp
Some wannabe-badass teen who walks from the portable classrooms to where Nick and I are standing. Under the sycamore tree.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUq3JI5kH2y
"Who's he?" I ask.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡItuxFehqh7
"Stanley," Wannabe says.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVlaVbxTuEG
"Oh."784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡo4TQyOwpEV
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.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMjCf8prS74
I knew a tirade was coming. I was right.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmIYidGCHwC
"Becky says I can't smoke my Camels anymore. Dumb bitch. I smoke what I want to smoke. I'm hard."784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2zZZAd4IM4
Nick nods but doesn't say anything. I follow suit.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnMJ5fDksAN
Stanley looks at me with contempt. "Who the shit are you?"784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdrvl0ApWj5
"Mike."784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQg8SR2CwxQ
"Yeah, well, I'm hard, Mike. Harder than you, okay?"784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYbdzXNlbCI
I keep my yap shut.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRDBxRwwmc7
"Yeah, I'm hard, alright. I'm the baddest kid around." Stanley takes a long drag off his cigarette.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡI2VsqpnikK
He is a kid, alright. I say nothing.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡA15VERGz4m
Stanley offers the smoke to Nick, who declines.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTSr42pPb7o
"Alright, bitch. Suit yourself." Another pull.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWWNN3sm0NU
"Anything in that thing?" I ask him.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSbkbN89YaW
"Like what? LSD?"784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡw0U4M6BGKo
Sarcasm. Or maybe just stupid. Acid is destroyed at burning temperature. "No. Weed," I say.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUlrQqLbFHB
"I don't smoke that shit, bro. Not yet."784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjhSRqlbAhe
I laugh. What a badass. Wannabe badass. Plans his drug-induced future. What. When. Where. Why. How. Please.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzuJe28nyiQ
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!"784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOYjgSijtE4
Everything changes then.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRK6t6FscKW
Kids come scurrying out of every hideaway hole and hovel imaginable.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ39tFoHNmLO
Stanley gives me a hard shove. 784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhXQoHSWsiA
I fall on my ass, quickly get to my feet and try to run.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcW1JXBysMW
Too many kids. In the way. "Move!" I say. 784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkd7ZRoyBxd
No one listens. They laugh.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjayKrMwj84
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!784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡP1AxYBaSz8
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.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYZ6gRpQfTa
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.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPigk2r75sg
A pull.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZkLfW5UbNg
Rip.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhW1nSICSM8
RIP.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAnPtwaEt0h
I'm dead.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡl7qqzGGLcr
In bed.
784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNbHEN5Yk0d
784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEVxw2DeCbp
?
784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfhPmsdNPAq
THE Rain Has Fallen.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEcbvclgWnI
No. That's not it.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡg2Ni3tOhgZ
They Came After The Rain.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0z4wlu5Ee9
There it is.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlnvNhAASEt
That's the one.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJB0WsSlEE9
The end.
ns216.73.216.25da2 No. That's not it.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡg2Ni3tOhgZ
They Came After The Rain.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0z4wlu5Ee9
There it is.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlnvNhAASEt
That's the one.784Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJB0WsSlEE9
The end.
