657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0Fi1Zret8J
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657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeZOx4ufjbp
DREAMS don't make sense. Yes, they do. No, they don't. Here, I'll prove it to you.
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657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPV9aAVjGfy
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657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlr0zElDmoV
657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlr0zElDmoV
657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEBp90COgAT
I'M in the living room, sitting on the couch with my father, watching Corner Gas reruns on the TV. So far, so normal. 657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUT6x8c1Klr
Dad turns to me and says, "You look sleepy. Mike. You've got a vein on your forehead."657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡk42HqEK7rd
"Oh, yeah? Bizarre."657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2vrRrT8BSA
"Yeah."657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9QXnr95BHZ
"Ponderous, father," I say. "Simply ponderous."657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQh3vY9lpSQ
"Something you want to talk about?"657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWCC8RG7l1M
"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.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4Oyts4nTWK
"I know," Dad says. "You're fading away."657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKRjNHMQ6Z9
"I know," I say. "It isn't fair."657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdWiFbW4Iv0
"Maybe you should go to sleep," Dad offers.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2d2LpKfmDC
I consider the offer. 657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzk8mcdm3cV
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.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVoHpFRx5SJ
I say, "You know what? Maybe you're right. I am tired."657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpnir02EGX4
"Good. Go to sleep."657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqxeLil1AkU
Suddenly, the mirror me is no more. Vanished. Into thin air. Into nothingness. I've faded away.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYtsP0mEJVp
"I'm gone!" I say, not trying in the slightest to keep the astonishment out of my voice.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPKqPSM8ypS
Dad says, "That's what you get, Mike. You're dead."
657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsz9IpP51duDad turns to me and says, "You look sleepy. Mike. You've got a vein on your forehead."657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡk42HqEK7rd
"Oh, yeah? Bizarre."657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2vrRrT8BSA
"Yeah."657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9QXnr95BHZ
"Ponderous, father," I say. "Simply ponderous."657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQh3vY9lpSQ
"Something you want to talk about?"657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWCC8RG7l1M
"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.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4Oyts4nTWK
"I know," Dad says. "You're fading away."657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKRjNHMQ6Z9
"I know," I say. "It isn't fair."657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdWiFbW4Iv0
"Maybe you should go to sleep," Dad offers.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2d2LpKfmDC
I consider the offer. 657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzk8mcdm3cV
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.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVoHpFRx5SJ
I say, "You know what? Maybe you're right. I am tired."657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpnir02EGX4
"Good. Go to sleep."657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqxeLil1AkU
Suddenly, the mirror me is no more. Vanished. Into thin air. Into nothingness. I've faded away.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYtsP0mEJVp
"I'm gone!" I say, not trying in the slightest to keep the astonishment out of my voice.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPKqPSM8ypS
Dad says, "That's what you get, Mike. You're dead."
2657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHucfQrJZrw
657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQ0KnNj8kMC
657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQ0KnNj8kMC
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.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkFzfebhVmg
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.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWG9EDKB0yn
"Prick!" says my old friend Brandon from behind. "God damned Russian prick!"657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNFaraZOD0c
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.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡX1rMYNq1KW
The doll takes the abuse admirably, if I do say so. It doesn't even make a peep.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYeWag9UNIz
"That's what you get for hitting my sister! Potato water–drinker! Snow-sucker! Filth! Rubbish! Filth!"657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYIhHHwCKte
I'm confused. The more Brandon talks, the less Brandon sounds like Brandon.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3n4Pij8io0
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.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoG8v1dIUg2
"Filth! Rubbish! Filth!" is heard amidst cheers of "You get 'em, Branflakes!" and "Go, you!"657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAqQ51DZX5U
I shake my head and roll my eyes just as Brandon's dad, Brian, walks by.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡF7ZVkHKWQK
"Drugs," he says cryptically.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMIR8ZP81Ks
"Hmm?" I ask.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcseOYjIc7g
"You heard me. Get out!" he screams, pointing to the front door.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUbuL1be5mN
I ignore him and he walks onward, sitting in a rocking chair where he begins to knit an ugly ball of yarn.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNIkeVwzwoJ
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?"657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbWHnQOho97
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.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlwBebYj54i
"I've been writing," I say, growing excited. I'm starved for human contact and connections.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpZoK6XRZym
"Oh yeah? Like a novel?"657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaXtdj2cIrX
"I wish. No. I've been working on one but I haven't finished it yet. Short stories, I guess."657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuZyon3yJYI
"So, how long are you?"657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7SCSE67Gc7
"I dunno. 14 pages, I think?"657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfmmaPM6dNR
"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.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVnoyxr15GS
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.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWG9EDKB0yn
"Prick!" says my old friend Brandon from behind. "God damned Russian prick!"657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNFaraZOD0c
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.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡX1rMYNq1KW
The doll takes the abuse admirably, if I do say so. It doesn't even make a peep.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYeWag9UNIz
"That's what you get for hitting my sister! Potato water–drinker! Snow-sucker! Filth! Rubbish! Filth!"657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYIhHHwCKte
I'm confused. The more Brandon talks, the less Brandon sounds like Brandon.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3n4Pij8io0
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.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoG8v1dIUg2
"Filth! Rubbish! Filth!" is heard amidst cheers of "You get 'em, Branflakes!" and "Go, you!"657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAqQ51DZX5U
I shake my head and roll my eyes just as Brandon's dad, Brian, walks by.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡF7ZVkHKWQK
"Drugs," he says cryptically.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMIR8ZP81Ks
"Hmm?" I ask.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcseOYjIc7g
"You heard me. Get out!" he screams, pointing to the front door.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUbuL1be5mN
I ignore him and he walks onward, sitting in a rocking chair where he begins to knit an ugly ball of yarn.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNIkeVwzwoJ
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?"657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbWHnQOho97
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.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlwBebYj54i
"I've been writing," I say, growing excited. I'm starved for human contact and connections.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpZoK6XRZym
"Oh yeah? Like a novel?"657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaXtdj2cIrX
"I wish. No. I've been working on one but I haven't finished it yet. Short stories, I guess."657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuZyon3yJYI
"So, how long are you?"657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7SCSE67Gc7
"I dunno. 14 pages, I think?"657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfmmaPM6dNR
"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.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVnoyxr15GS
Bitch.
657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxbl8JSUFLA
657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJy7bYLmyQD
3657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡF8WUaO1HKS
657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPLWKouH9HS
657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPLWKouH9HS
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.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXjqZhqx7gr
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.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpwReRllTEz
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.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWdx4OLAMCY
Ginger is disturbed. Bear is perturbed.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3kQaAvh5Pr
Some nerve.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHHji0cza8T
I crash into my chair. Time to relax.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnrgHvDMDTV
Never mind.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjHESSAKIMG
There's a knock at the door. Who could it be?657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcXWjCSFrYf
I go to answer it. Two girls. Blonde Sarah. Brunette Fiona. What the hell do they want?657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡakF6mHvKel
The door swings open.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBeoOoURsMw
"Heeeeey!" I hear both girls say.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqa9OAxFPzM
"Hello."657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeVDdD8cLCV
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.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡST7Fel00pt
"Abuse! Abuse!" they say.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ09NVWbMWc0
"What in the steamed hobo scarves are you two talking about?"657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3i0U1CIAAu
"Abuse! Dogs, cats, food, poop!"657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNAd7gBAInm
Anger rising. Rage-foam forming at the corners of my mouth. Feel my hands tremble. What is this?657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7MpAJsbquq
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.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpl4U0sa7Qm
"Oh my god! Oh my god! Oh my god!" they squeal. "Abuse!"657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRnBFDV5vIZ
Grab for the nearest shoulder. Spin the girl around. Speak into her face, "There's no abuse here."657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7nf3lcRzUR
Fiona cringes and backs away. Sarah and her exit the house.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ57y3kSMT3N
Wonder what sent them packing. My breath, perhaps? I ponder such trivialities as I return to my chair.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLTbnmyZoN5
I gaze into the reflection of my mouse. I'm dressed like Spider-Man.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJR4iuPgozF
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.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpwReRllTEz
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.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWdx4OLAMCY
Ginger is disturbed. Bear is perturbed.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3kQaAvh5Pr
Some nerve.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHHji0cza8T
I crash into my chair. Time to relax.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnrgHvDMDTV
Never mind.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjHESSAKIMG
There's a knock at the door. Who could it be?657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcXWjCSFrYf
I go to answer it. Two girls. Blonde Sarah. Brunette Fiona. What the hell do they want?657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡakF6mHvKel
The door swings open.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBeoOoURsMw
"Heeeeey!" I hear both girls say.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqa9OAxFPzM
"Hello."657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeVDdD8cLCV
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.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡST7Fel00pt
"Abuse! Abuse!" they say.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ09NVWbMWc0
"What in the steamed hobo scarves are you two talking about?"657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3i0U1CIAAu
"Abuse! Dogs, cats, food, poop!"657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNAd7gBAInm
Anger rising. Rage-foam forming at the corners of my mouth. Feel my hands tremble. What is this?657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7MpAJsbquq
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.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpl4U0sa7Qm
"Oh my god! Oh my god! Oh my god!" they squeal. "Abuse!"657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRnBFDV5vIZ
Grab for the nearest shoulder. Spin the girl around. Speak into her face, "There's no abuse here."657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7nf3lcRzUR
Fiona cringes and backs away. Sarah and her exit the house.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ57y3kSMT3N
Wonder what sent them packing. My breath, perhaps? I ponder such trivialities as I return to my chair.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLTbnmyZoN5
I gaze into the reflection of my mouse. I'm dressed like Spider-Man.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJR4iuPgozF
Huh. Funny dat.
657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡakzqipP5Vr
657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeHPMizTeY5
4
657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLTvr6pkjKb
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?657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGsKdR4FuQQ
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.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGYTzkb633s
"Hey, Nick."657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPjE66piLtU
"Hey, Mike."657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWjNCf4ubF0
"What's good?"657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHKtWguBHuR
"Not much," he says with a sigh.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡW9Bedjexh8
"How come?"657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkqolzLklRJ
"Trouble is coming." He casts paranoid glances around and around.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnBnUtgFK20
"Where?"657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYUToAukm9u
"There." Nick aims a finger to my right, past my shoulder. 657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNSpS8S2Cg0
Some wannabe-badass teen who walks from the portable classrooms to where Nick and I are standing. Under the sycamore tree.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡH15FfMpua4
"Who's he?" I ask.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡekYJQ8JWhU
"Stanley," Wannabe says.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡT8s3ZstBYA
"Oh."657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyivM7J9m6o
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.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUc4BP4hTzJ
I knew a tirade was coming. I was right.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMc9ZKR0QV8
"Becky says I can't smoke my Camels anymore. Dumb bitch. I smoke what I want to smoke. I'm hard."657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡE6BVYuQ481
Nick nods but doesn't say anything. I follow suit.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcEFM7NKlPF
Stanley looks at me with contempt. "Who the shit are you?"657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPBMTMaPwfg
"Mike."657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnmrVZ3ZizY
"Yeah, well, I'm hard, Mike. Harder than you, okay?"657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcix1gXphRG
I keep my yap shut.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnVgPy6rpwL
"Yeah, I'm hard, alright. I'm the baddest kid around." Stanley takes a long drag off his cigarette.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvh7Y6F7wrs
He is a kid, alright. I say nothing.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxg2KCRPds3
Stanley offers the smoke to Nick, who declines.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRRMDYPI4zC
"Alright, bitch. Suit yourself." Another pull.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9xdzxhG6vp
"Anything in that thing?" I ask him.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTp4wlWj5uA
"Like what? LSD?"657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSNlc9yLEr3
Sarcasm. Or maybe just stupid. Acid is destroyed at burning temperature. "No. Weed," I say.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoZNReR0qj6
"I don't smoke that shit, bro. Not yet."657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrNfztSee4R
I laugh. What a badass. Wannabe badass. Plans his drug-induced future. What. When. Where. Why. How. Please.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3ctc8gLuLF
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!"657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhs90lwXajj
Everything changes then.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡE7apA9e0nM
Kids come scurrying out of every hideaway hole and hovel imaginable.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOF6digRABm
Stanley gives me a hard shove. 657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡycINDlMvh3
I fall on my ass, quickly get to my feet and try to run.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ22ysBoj5IE
Too many kids. In the way. "Move!" I say. 657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAFhOp5TsBT
No one listens. They laugh.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiObLnWDff1
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!657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZjmkVFD9S9
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.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSbo18AFZqH
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.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDgJ4F0vW3K
A pull.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDSaWpkqraM
Rip.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJM52oOS6Xk
RIP.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaeBNWS726X
I'm dead.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrIPYZZ8Kwh
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.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGYTzkb633s
"Hey, Nick."657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPjE66piLtU
"Hey, Mike."657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWjNCf4ubF0
"What's good?"657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHKtWguBHuR
"Not much," he says with a sigh.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡW9Bedjexh8
"How come?"657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkqolzLklRJ
"Trouble is coming." He casts paranoid glances around and around.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnBnUtgFK20
"Where?"657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYUToAukm9u
"There." Nick aims a finger to my right, past my shoulder. 657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNSpS8S2Cg0
Some wannabe-badass teen who walks from the portable classrooms to where Nick and I are standing. Under the sycamore tree.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡH15FfMpua4
"Who's he?" I ask.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡekYJQ8JWhU
"Stanley," Wannabe says.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡT8s3ZstBYA
"Oh."657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyivM7J9m6o
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.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUc4BP4hTzJ
I knew a tirade was coming. I was right.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMc9ZKR0QV8
"Becky says I can't smoke my Camels anymore. Dumb bitch. I smoke what I want to smoke. I'm hard."657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡE6BVYuQ481
Nick nods but doesn't say anything. I follow suit.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcEFM7NKlPF
Stanley looks at me with contempt. "Who the shit are you?"657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPBMTMaPwfg
"Mike."657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnmrVZ3ZizY
"Yeah, well, I'm hard, Mike. Harder than you, okay?"657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcix1gXphRG
I keep my yap shut.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnVgPy6rpwL
"Yeah, I'm hard, alright. I'm the baddest kid around." Stanley takes a long drag off his cigarette.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvh7Y6F7wrs
He is a kid, alright. I say nothing.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxg2KCRPds3
Stanley offers the smoke to Nick, who declines.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRRMDYPI4zC
"Alright, bitch. Suit yourself." Another pull.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9xdzxhG6vp
"Anything in that thing?" I ask him.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTp4wlWj5uA
"Like what? LSD?"657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSNlc9yLEr3
Sarcasm. Or maybe just stupid. Acid is destroyed at burning temperature. "No. Weed," I say.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoZNReR0qj6
"I don't smoke that shit, bro. Not yet."657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrNfztSee4R
I laugh. What a badass. Wannabe badass. Plans his drug-induced future. What. When. Where. Why. How. Please.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3ctc8gLuLF
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!"657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhs90lwXajj
Everything changes then.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡE7apA9e0nM
Kids come scurrying out of every hideaway hole and hovel imaginable.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOF6digRABm
Stanley gives me a hard shove. 657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡycINDlMvh3
I fall on my ass, quickly get to my feet and try to run.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ22ysBoj5IE
Too many kids. In the way. "Move!" I say. 657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAFhOp5TsBT
No one listens. They laugh.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiObLnWDff1
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!657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZjmkVFD9S9
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.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSbo18AFZqH
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.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDgJ4F0vW3K
A pull.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDSaWpkqraM
Rip.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJM52oOS6Xk
RIP.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaeBNWS726X
I'm dead.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrIPYZZ8Kwh
In bed.
657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRG3ZCJ2j48
657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡofulQxtCiW
?
657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtFe952v3qj
THE Rain Has Fallen.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7DSU7p9wol
No. That's not it.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuQPObgqZ5i
They Came After The Rain.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBemnUcasBJ
There it is.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡb3zJCVFJPl
That's the one.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsFvQxZHbHu
The end.
ns 15.158.61.51da2 No. That's not it.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuQPObgqZ5i
They Came After The Rain.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBemnUcasBJ
There it is.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡb3zJCVFJPl
That's the one.657Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsFvQxZHbHu
The end.
