788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqDePhI5W4n
-
788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4kBG4kh1i1
DREAMS don't make sense. Yes, they do. No, they don't. Here, I'll prove it to you.
788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡF4nRYmlAWM
788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxXYdf7s1aa
1788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJBdV9yFwV7
788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgYrlLdHDDl
788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgYrlLdHDDl
788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3Cy5sgNrOX
I'M in the living room, sitting on the couch with my father, watching Corner Gas reruns on the TV. So far, so normal. 788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfgBKydyHa5
Dad turns to me and says, "You look sleepy. Mike. You've got a vein on your forehead."788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmMLevYQFk0
"Oh, yeah? Bizarre."788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQ1PvLOM9Mj
"Yeah."788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡE03INNoeJn
"Ponderous, father," I say. "Simply ponderous."788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmTJ1yJxeW4
"Something you want to talk about?"788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ33MUizIz5P
"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.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6pIs3XI3Ut
"I know," Dad says. "You're fading away."788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPi0gCgFcJI
"I know," I say. "It isn't fair."788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTEPt1T2OCn
"Maybe you should go to sleep," Dad offers.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡz2jeoZO9Dw
I consider the offer. 788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZDNmu4zYmS
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.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTEpbSkdXtO
I say, "You know what? Maybe you're right. I am tired."788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxy3BFIweYk
"Good. Go to sleep."788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsMAkjv1WEi
Suddenly, the mirror me is no more. Vanished. Into thin air. Into nothingness. I've faded away.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfNtv9PkMKS
"I'm gone!" I say, not trying in the slightest to keep the astonishment out of my voice.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡw1JtekrzeW
Dad says, "That's what you get, Mike. You're dead."
788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmm4UmcGJrmDad turns to me and says, "You look sleepy. Mike. You've got a vein on your forehead."788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmMLevYQFk0
"Oh, yeah? Bizarre."788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQ1PvLOM9Mj
"Yeah."788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡE03INNoeJn
"Ponderous, father," I say. "Simply ponderous."788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmTJ1yJxeW4
"Something you want to talk about?"788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ33MUizIz5P
"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.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6pIs3XI3Ut
"I know," Dad says. "You're fading away."788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPi0gCgFcJI
"I know," I say. "It isn't fair."788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTEPt1T2OCn
"Maybe you should go to sleep," Dad offers.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡz2jeoZO9Dw
I consider the offer. 788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZDNmu4zYmS
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.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTEpbSkdXtO
I say, "You know what? Maybe you're right. I am tired."788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxy3BFIweYk
"Good. Go to sleep."788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsMAkjv1WEi
Suddenly, the mirror me is no more. Vanished. Into thin air. Into nothingness. I've faded away.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfNtv9PkMKS
"I'm gone!" I say, not trying in the slightest to keep the astonishment out of my voice.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡw1JtekrzeW
Dad says, "That's what you get, Mike. You're dead."
2788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTx7CzJkR87
788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkr8pHNtMA3
788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkr8pHNtMA3
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.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhA2Kxk6BGV
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.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ80TAk0IvMD
"Prick!" says my old friend Brandon from behind. "God damned Russian prick!"788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPFFUlh7JyE
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.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNXUINeTnub
The doll takes the abuse admirably, if I do say so. It doesn't even make a peep.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBaMWfDlt0t
"That's what you get for hitting my sister! Potato water–drinker! Snow-sucker! Filth! Rubbish! Filth!"788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvpk8uVlmdQ
I'm confused. The more Brandon talks, the less Brandon sounds like Brandon.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIy8wBoccf1
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.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlYpKFam9X5
"Filth! Rubbish! Filth!" is heard amidst cheers of "You get 'em, Branflakes!" and "Go, you!"788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpJMg8MRr1a
I shake my head and roll my eyes just as Brandon's dad, Brian, walks by.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDyBQB5rkWe
"Drugs," he says cryptically.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhJp5uRuc7Q
"Hmm?" I ask.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCOYtZAiR2R
"You heard me. Get out!" he screams, pointing to the front door.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0AHS3tSalD
I ignore him and he walks onward, sitting in a rocking chair where he begins to knit an ugly ball of yarn.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhPjEbxWVCn
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?"788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡA57L36sBVH
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.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdXiHL0HAt5
"I've been writing," I say, growing excited. I'm starved for human contact and connections.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiQHxwFda1u
"Oh yeah? Like a novel?"788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ49a93Sbfuu
"I wish. No. I've been working on one but I haven't finished it yet. Short stories, I guess."788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIwtnM56pPA
"So, how long are you?"788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdNsWimmliW
"I dunno. 14 pages, I think?"788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCXAnhksWnh
"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.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡs26bdmatPB
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.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ80TAk0IvMD
"Prick!" says my old friend Brandon from behind. "God damned Russian prick!"788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPFFUlh7JyE
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.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNXUINeTnub
The doll takes the abuse admirably, if I do say so. It doesn't even make a peep.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBaMWfDlt0t
"That's what you get for hitting my sister! Potato water–drinker! Snow-sucker! Filth! Rubbish! Filth!"788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvpk8uVlmdQ
I'm confused. The more Brandon talks, the less Brandon sounds like Brandon.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIy8wBoccf1
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.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlYpKFam9X5
"Filth! Rubbish! Filth!" is heard amidst cheers of "You get 'em, Branflakes!" and "Go, you!"788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpJMg8MRr1a
I shake my head and roll my eyes just as Brandon's dad, Brian, walks by.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDyBQB5rkWe
"Drugs," he says cryptically.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhJp5uRuc7Q
"Hmm?" I ask.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCOYtZAiR2R
"You heard me. Get out!" he screams, pointing to the front door.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0AHS3tSalD
I ignore him and he walks onward, sitting in a rocking chair where he begins to knit an ugly ball of yarn.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhPjEbxWVCn
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?"788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡA57L36sBVH
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.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdXiHL0HAt5
"I've been writing," I say, growing excited. I'm starved for human contact and connections.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiQHxwFda1u
"Oh yeah? Like a novel?"788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ49a93Sbfuu
"I wish. No. I've been working on one but I haven't finished it yet. Short stories, I guess."788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIwtnM56pPA
"So, how long are you?"788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdNsWimmliW
"I dunno. 14 pages, I think?"788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCXAnhksWnh
"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.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡs26bdmatPB
Bitch.
788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQtDqzzDiQI
788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsRrh2QSw73
3788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2s0bxWQ31K
788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡF96IziNcoW
788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡF96IziNcoW
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.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjo6xlEyS4L
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.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡChP5AoUEb4
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.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcjXea1ZtG2
Ginger is disturbed. Bear is perturbed.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡl3B3YDfxuA
Some nerve.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡk3xEjL92ON
I crash into my chair. Time to relax.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYx9tOX5nfs
Never mind.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnf5x3uiJQO
There's a knock at the door. Who could it be?788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbpuwzdq9jk
I go to answer it. Two girls. Blonde Sarah. Brunette Fiona. What the hell do they want?788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRfKu2hlvoL
The door swings open.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡomKJwTkgP4
"Heeeeey!" I hear both girls say.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6k3LYrOecW
"Hello."788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpIO2WBLPPr
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.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoOzasqAnac
"Abuse! Abuse!" they say.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZgkdDeYct2
"What in the steamed hobo scarves are you two talking about?"788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxfFHhIWZ1U
"Abuse! Dogs, cats, food, poop!"788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXMEqHNpgUq
Anger rising. Rage-foam forming at the corners of my mouth. Feel my hands tremble. What is this?788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTu90hho8MT
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.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjwWTjcuu2A
"Oh my god! Oh my god! Oh my god!" they squeal. "Abuse!"788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡflXfJ2m5sw
Grab for the nearest shoulder. Spin the girl around. Speak into her face, "There's no abuse here."788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPIPYB74qdA
Fiona cringes and backs away. Sarah and her exit the house.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbknoPEluFW
Wonder what sent them packing. My breath, perhaps? I ponder such trivialities as I return to my chair.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPgMUWaAzpc
I gaze into the reflection of my mouse. I'm dressed like Spider-Man.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3KygxB3mNN
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.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡChP5AoUEb4
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.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcjXea1ZtG2
Ginger is disturbed. Bear is perturbed.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡl3B3YDfxuA
Some nerve.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡk3xEjL92ON
I crash into my chair. Time to relax.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYx9tOX5nfs
Never mind.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnf5x3uiJQO
There's a knock at the door. Who could it be?788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbpuwzdq9jk
I go to answer it. Two girls. Blonde Sarah. Brunette Fiona. What the hell do they want?788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRfKu2hlvoL
The door swings open.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡomKJwTkgP4
"Heeeeey!" I hear both girls say.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6k3LYrOecW
"Hello."788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpIO2WBLPPr
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.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoOzasqAnac
"Abuse! Abuse!" they say.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZgkdDeYct2
"What in the steamed hobo scarves are you two talking about?"788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxfFHhIWZ1U
"Abuse! Dogs, cats, food, poop!"788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXMEqHNpgUq
Anger rising. Rage-foam forming at the corners of my mouth. Feel my hands tremble. What is this?788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTu90hho8MT
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.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjwWTjcuu2A
"Oh my god! Oh my god! Oh my god!" they squeal. "Abuse!"788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡflXfJ2m5sw
Grab for the nearest shoulder. Spin the girl around. Speak into her face, "There's no abuse here."788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPIPYB74qdA
Fiona cringes and backs away. Sarah and her exit the house.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbknoPEluFW
Wonder what sent them packing. My breath, perhaps? I ponder such trivialities as I return to my chair.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPgMUWaAzpc
I gaze into the reflection of my mouse. I'm dressed like Spider-Man.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3KygxB3mNN
Huh. Funny dat.
788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPSRVenXZ0j
788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJx34PArXX9
4
788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoJY5QklaJR
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?788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡC6e5OC2x87
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.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvb4VM6SdTO
"Hey, Nick."788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIPq4YFzwmw
"Hey, Mike."788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9YypJJTTwB
"What's good?"788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwU47FtaGnN
"Not much," he says with a sigh.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbw1oyav5ou
"How come?"788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡazN7aYih9J
"Trouble is coming." He casts paranoid glances around and around.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡP8wQqmNlpx
"Where?"788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5FXJry1ILE
"There." Nick aims a finger to my right, past my shoulder. 788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡehnWKxh8vi
Some wannabe-badass teen who walks from the portable classrooms to where Nick and I are standing. Under the sycamore tree.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡElSseNC3RF
"Who's he?" I ask.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8BjbOSLIOs
"Stanley," Wannabe says.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcG89FduKGg
"Oh."788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ60aqKCpQf0
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.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLP2R6dtGWK
I knew a tirade was coming. I was right.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaKz7irB5xQ
"Becky says I can't smoke my Camels anymore. Dumb bitch. I smoke what I want to smoke. I'm hard."788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXrw1oSkHyv
Nick nods but doesn't say anything. I follow suit.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvalmS4Yzc5
Stanley looks at me with contempt. "Who the shit are you?"788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaVYTd69dAW
"Mike."788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSZWg2qHkjQ
"Yeah, well, I'm hard, Mike. Harder than you, okay?"788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGmVaEos5cY
I keep my yap shut.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNPYhvLve0p
"Yeah, I'm hard, alright. I'm the baddest kid around." Stanley takes a long drag off his cigarette.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNZjSBCRTjD
He is a kid, alright. I say nothing.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2oEUvhUUG5
Stanley offers the smoke to Nick, who declines.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4gifaRsyGk
"Alright, bitch. Suit yourself." Another pull.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCIOQsEYFFf
"Anything in that thing?" I ask him.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9uqIgtwKNN
"Like what? LSD?"788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡobxL0i44mk
Sarcasm. Or maybe just stupid. Acid is destroyed at burning temperature. "No. Weed," I say.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHR4IKgq775
"I don't smoke that shit, bro. Not yet."788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCe2Mq1nqHw
I laugh. What a badass. Wannabe badass. Plans his drug-induced future. What. When. Where. Why. How. Please.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpzh7kCYUwG
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!"788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0cbn0X3Csw
Everything changes then.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJdJpt2kYYt
Kids come scurrying out of every hideaway hole and hovel imaginable.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZGBOJ7YS1T
Stanley gives me a hard shove. 788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVsAyw4TlQ8
I fall on my ass, quickly get to my feet and try to run.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡinzmzPqJdS
Too many kids. In the way. "Move!" I say. 788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTGMPEkV7hF
No one listens. They laugh.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQPE0oBIPTb
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!788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6ueRayWGCt
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.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRNIadIlRHm
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.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGb8aVbFdAj
A pull.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOAVbBiGw7h
Rip.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPSAhQtJsgv
RIP.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡreU8Kp5gE6
I'm dead.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡglwJVDk0o0
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.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvb4VM6SdTO
"Hey, Nick."788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIPq4YFzwmw
"Hey, Mike."788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9YypJJTTwB
"What's good?"788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwU47FtaGnN
"Not much," he says with a sigh.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbw1oyav5ou
"How come?"788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡazN7aYih9J
"Trouble is coming." He casts paranoid glances around and around.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡP8wQqmNlpx
"Where?"788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5FXJry1ILE
"There." Nick aims a finger to my right, past my shoulder. 788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡehnWKxh8vi
Some wannabe-badass teen who walks from the portable classrooms to where Nick and I are standing. Under the sycamore tree.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡElSseNC3RF
"Who's he?" I ask.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8BjbOSLIOs
"Stanley," Wannabe says.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcG89FduKGg
"Oh."788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ60aqKCpQf0
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.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLP2R6dtGWK
I knew a tirade was coming. I was right.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaKz7irB5xQ
"Becky says I can't smoke my Camels anymore. Dumb bitch. I smoke what I want to smoke. I'm hard."788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXrw1oSkHyv
Nick nods but doesn't say anything. I follow suit.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvalmS4Yzc5
Stanley looks at me with contempt. "Who the shit are you?"788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaVYTd69dAW
"Mike."788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSZWg2qHkjQ
"Yeah, well, I'm hard, Mike. Harder than you, okay?"788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGmVaEos5cY
I keep my yap shut.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNPYhvLve0p
"Yeah, I'm hard, alright. I'm the baddest kid around." Stanley takes a long drag off his cigarette.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNZjSBCRTjD
He is a kid, alright. I say nothing.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2oEUvhUUG5
Stanley offers the smoke to Nick, who declines.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4gifaRsyGk
"Alright, bitch. Suit yourself." Another pull.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCIOQsEYFFf
"Anything in that thing?" I ask him.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9uqIgtwKNN
"Like what? LSD?"788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡobxL0i44mk
Sarcasm. Or maybe just stupid. Acid is destroyed at burning temperature. "No. Weed," I say.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHR4IKgq775
"I don't smoke that shit, bro. Not yet."788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCe2Mq1nqHw
I laugh. What a badass. Wannabe badass. Plans his drug-induced future. What. When. Where. Why. How. Please.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpzh7kCYUwG
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!"788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0cbn0X3Csw
Everything changes then.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJdJpt2kYYt
Kids come scurrying out of every hideaway hole and hovel imaginable.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZGBOJ7YS1T
Stanley gives me a hard shove. 788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVsAyw4TlQ8
I fall on my ass, quickly get to my feet and try to run.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡinzmzPqJdS
Too many kids. In the way. "Move!" I say. 788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTGMPEkV7hF
No one listens. They laugh.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQPE0oBIPTb
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!788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6ueRayWGCt
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.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRNIadIlRHm
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.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGb8aVbFdAj
A pull.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOAVbBiGw7h
Rip.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPSAhQtJsgv
RIP.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡreU8Kp5gE6
I'm dead.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡglwJVDk0o0
In bed.
788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXMbfI7Uhhl
788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQu7styzNHR
?
788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJevMbeS80b
THE Rain Has Fallen.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9LgmpkId8d
No. That's not it.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhiwQGSnPoc
They Came After The Rain.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWDt4EWEbU6
There it is.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeE4T82LDKJ
That's the one.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtdowHsO0PE
The end.
ns216.73.216.65da2 No. That's not it.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhiwQGSnPoc
They Came After The Rain.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWDt4EWEbU6
There it is.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeE4T82LDKJ
That's the one.788Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtdowHsO0PE
The end.
