658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡD20SLblKgD
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658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlSKbnc3GJX
DREAMS don't make sense. Yes, they do. No, they don't. Here, I'll prove it to you.
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1658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwf9sLQ5fqO
658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUg9tNkxENT
658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUg9tNkxENT
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I'M in the living room, sitting on the couch with my father, watching Corner Gas reruns on the TV. So far, so normal. 658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIKSVGFA50X
Dad turns to me and says, "You look sleepy. Mike. You've got a vein on your forehead."658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaFpG2vcH8f
"Oh, yeah? Bizarre."658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPPQLcazGuz
"Yeah."658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ65FNfYWgBv
"Ponderous, father," I say. "Simply ponderous."658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiSqWbTTj5W
"Something you want to talk about?"658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQH0vFMq419
"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.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmqqED4jXFW
"I know," Dad says. "You're fading away."658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFTcfFEKIKh
"I know," I say. "It isn't fair."658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoYkMBKia4Q
"Maybe you should go to sleep," Dad offers.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmJCS7Q0snR
I consider the offer. 658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡn96SmAHJch
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.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyvvFlfUuX7
I say, "You know what? Maybe you're right. I am tired."658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3reaWcAXw3
"Good. Go to sleep."658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpsZsLklll2
Suddenly, the mirror me is no more. Vanished. Into thin air. Into nothingness. I've faded away.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoKLVI3VC0D
"I'm gone!" I say, not trying in the slightest to keep the astonishment out of my voice.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdH7fbiQ9As
Dad says, "That's what you get, Mike. You're dead."
658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdnekArqMRlDad turns to me and says, "You look sleepy. Mike. You've got a vein on your forehead."658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaFpG2vcH8f
"Oh, yeah? Bizarre."658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPPQLcazGuz
"Yeah."658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ65FNfYWgBv
"Ponderous, father," I say. "Simply ponderous."658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiSqWbTTj5W
"Something you want to talk about?"658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQH0vFMq419
"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.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmqqED4jXFW
"I know," Dad says. "You're fading away."658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFTcfFEKIKh
"I know," I say. "It isn't fair."658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoYkMBKia4Q
"Maybe you should go to sleep," Dad offers.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmJCS7Q0snR
I consider the offer. 658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡn96SmAHJch
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.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyvvFlfUuX7
I say, "You know what? Maybe you're right. I am tired."658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3reaWcAXw3
"Good. Go to sleep."658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpsZsLklll2
Suddenly, the mirror me is no more. Vanished. Into thin air. Into nothingness. I've faded away.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoKLVI3VC0D
"I'm gone!" I say, not trying in the slightest to keep the astonishment out of my voice.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdH7fbiQ9As
Dad says, "That's what you get, Mike. You're dead."
2658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNcJ3WMWwEe
658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbNigvdU9CH
658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbNigvdU9CH
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.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2ZDrZlJs3j
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.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvcbX9HY6ZN
"Prick!" says my old friend Brandon from behind. "God damned Russian prick!"658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvqn6a3Iwlf
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.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡi1bUQ8cUwc
The doll takes the abuse admirably, if I do say so. It doesn't even make a peep.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhkhB14vmWk
"That's what you get for hitting my sister! Potato water–drinker! Snow-sucker! Filth! Rubbish! Filth!"658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHxmUpuXdzG
I'm confused. The more Brandon talks, the less Brandon sounds like Brandon.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNm6JwcNBc9
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.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAh8sMOIlc5
"Filth! Rubbish! Filth!" is heard amidst cheers of "You get 'em, Branflakes!" and "Go, you!"658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBEWdV0nsxc
I shake my head and roll my eyes just as Brandon's dad, Brian, walks by.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡl2R7KMzmvW
"Drugs," he says cryptically.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZp4mT00x6x
"Hmm?" I ask.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNvQ34pIQjC
"You heard me. Get out!" he screams, pointing to the front door.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLasw6WzZiK
I ignore him and he walks onward, sitting in a rocking chair where he begins to knit an ugly ball of yarn.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbZwT7rgtOF
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?"658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡytOC640H5R
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.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwzIdPQG8F0
"I've been writing," I say, growing excited. I'm starved for human contact and connections.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMEmPUgJmya
"Oh yeah? Like a novel?"658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZkSGNmlfrB
"I wish. No. I've been working on one but I haven't finished it yet. Short stories, I guess."658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyG7gnNGKLh
"So, how long are you?"658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBMaeaoJTC6
"I dunno. 14 pages, I think?"658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0dEkhz8Pz6
"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.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPvMKyWuu3s
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.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvcbX9HY6ZN
"Prick!" says my old friend Brandon from behind. "God damned Russian prick!"658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvqn6a3Iwlf
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.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡi1bUQ8cUwc
The doll takes the abuse admirably, if I do say so. It doesn't even make a peep.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhkhB14vmWk
"That's what you get for hitting my sister! Potato water–drinker! Snow-sucker! Filth! Rubbish! Filth!"658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHxmUpuXdzG
I'm confused. The more Brandon talks, the less Brandon sounds like Brandon.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNm6JwcNBc9
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.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAh8sMOIlc5
"Filth! Rubbish! Filth!" is heard amidst cheers of "You get 'em, Branflakes!" and "Go, you!"658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBEWdV0nsxc
I shake my head and roll my eyes just as Brandon's dad, Brian, walks by.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡl2R7KMzmvW
"Drugs," he says cryptically.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZp4mT00x6x
"Hmm?" I ask.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNvQ34pIQjC
"You heard me. Get out!" he screams, pointing to the front door.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLasw6WzZiK
I ignore him and he walks onward, sitting in a rocking chair where he begins to knit an ugly ball of yarn.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbZwT7rgtOF
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?"658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡytOC640H5R
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.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwzIdPQG8F0
"I've been writing," I say, growing excited. I'm starved for human contact and connections.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMEmPUgJmya
"Oh yeah? Like a novel?"658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZkSGNmlfrB
"I wish. No. I've been working on one but I haven't finished it yet. Short stories, I guess."658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyG7gnNGKLh
"So, how long are you?"658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBMaeaoJTC6
"I dunno. 14 pages, I think?"658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0dEkhz8Pz6
"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.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPvMKyWuu3s
Bitch.
658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoNrTGYC7t2
658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4PrFm8yAE4
3658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCMAMtATlHk
658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkTkX8d9Fbw
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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.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrypzQy4RRh
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.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSSQrJdEmaZ
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.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGO5VjiJcbQ
Ginger is disturbed. Bear is perturbed.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHBuLrPhH9U
Some nerve.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡil8PmZ03Ry
I crash into my chair. Time to relax.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5N2m4SKYmf
Never mind.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlgOKFFev3c
There's a knock at the door. Who could it be?658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡggyJ1Lw1a2
I go to answer it. Two girls. Blonde Sarah. Brunette Fiona. What the hell do they want?658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQOM0qBnWFy
The door swings open.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0GXmZKXQvW
"Heeeeey!" I hear both girls say.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNmBtMd3bCb
"Hello."658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7ggf3j2U5T
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.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡC7OTWLfV0h
"Abuse! Abuse!" they say.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDCF8MQSiUd
"What in the steamed hobo scarves are you two talking about?"658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡR6GjjWNaRd
"Abuse! Dogs, cats, food, poop!"658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwCa7OTfdH9
Anger rising. Rage-foam forming at the corners of my mouth. Feel my hands tremble. What is this?658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmUjryUSpwx
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.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYYmbIOmayW
"Oh my god! Oh my god! Oh my god!" they squeal. "Abuse!"658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYER3qxXlbL
Grab for the nearest shoulder. Spin the girl around. Speak into her face, "There's no abuse here."658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJwhXLD7Yr3
Fiona cringes and backs away. Sarah and her exit the house.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlCpjGKMzoY
Wonder what sent them packing. My breath, perhaps? I ponder such trivialities as I return to my chair.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡR3RtphZ5xN
I gaze into the reflection of my mouse. I'm dressed like Spider-Man.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9pLt7tcNeZ
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.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSSQrJdEmaZ
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.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGO5VjiJcbQ
Ginger is disturbed. Bear is perturbed.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHBuLrPhH9U
Some nerve.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡil8PmZ03Ry
I crash into my chair. Time to relax.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5N2m4SKYmf
Never mind.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlgOKFFev3c
There's a knock at the door. Who could it be?658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡggyJ1Lw1a2
I go to answer it. Two girls. Blonde Sarah. Brunette Fiona. What the hell do they want?658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQOM0qBnWFy
The door swings open.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0GXmZKXQvW
"Heeeeey!" I hear both girls say.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNmBtMd3bCb
"Hello."658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7ggf3j2U5T
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.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡC7OTWLfV0h
"Abuse! Abuse!" they say.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDCF8MQSiUd
"What in the steamed hobo scarves are you two talking about?"658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡR6GjjWNaRd
"Abuse! Dogs, cats, food, poop!"658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwCa7OTfdH9
Anger rising. Rage-foam forming at the corners of my mouth. Feel my hands tremble. What is this?658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmUjryUSpwx
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.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYYmbIOmayW
"Oh my god! Oh my god! Oh my god!" they squeal. "Abuse!"658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYER3qxXlbL
Grab for the nearest shoulder. Spin the girl around. Speak into her face, "There's no abuse here."658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJwhXLD7Yr3
Fiona cringes and backs away. Sarah and her exit the house.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlCpjGKMzoY
Wonder what sent them packing. My breath, perhaps? I ponder such trivialities as I return to my chair.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡR3RtphZ5xN
I gaze into the reflection of my mouse. I'm dressed like Spider-Man.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9pLt7tcNeZ
Huh. Funny dat.
658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQTHyy4NWgP
658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdcuOsVdKxB
4
658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwjhJl3AtBY
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?658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0YsJLXZtpG
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.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAsrzvEnQOK
"Hey, Nick."658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0cpwlIdiDz
"Hey, Mike."658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRBYEdF1O0c
"What's good?"658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7qrLyKAoRo
"Not much," he says with a sigh.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0XgA6OHI4O
"How come?"658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqC62C1fWkt
"Trouble is coming." He casts paranoid glances around and around.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFzrLP7yvqF
"Where?"658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRsHyDkE2Lr
"There." Nick aims a finger to my right, past my shoulder. 658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡj4q3PD5QfH
Some wannabe-badass teen who walks from the portable classrooms to where Nick and I are standing. Under the sycamore tree.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0ob8KNDRyF
"Who's he?" I ask.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVsTctFZwTr
"Stanley," Wannabe says.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEjkk5lLq0w
"Oh."658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡivdWFJDMA8
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.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3zmzFprkwJ
I knew a tirade was coming. I was right.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxCxaNEu3yW
"Becky says I can't smoke my Camels anymore. Dumb bitch. I smoke what I want to smoke. I'm hard."658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbNjKheyT1W
Nick nods but doesn't say anything. I follow suit.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSKy4IiTUos
Stanley looks at me with contempt. "Who the shit are you?"658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡU6Y4xkm4BS
"Mike."658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOQUaAS69cV
"Yeah, well, I'm hard, Mike. Harder than you, okay?"658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡm7wr44OCSw
I keep my yap shut.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqGjDqoZu0Y
"Yeah, I'm hard, alright. I'm the baddest kid around." Stanley takes a long drag off his cigarette.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfIVBkWbBV1
He is a kid, alright. I say nothing.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHESpPs8UAv
Stanley offers the smoke to Nick, who declines.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6KfMliztA5
"Alright, bitch. Suit yourself." Another pull.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqW737JthBU
"Anything in that thing?" I ask him.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqpUmLqcFGM
"Like what? LSD?"658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8N1taD15TH
Sarcasm. Or maybe just stupid. Acid is destroyed at burning temperature. "No. Weed," I say.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡscuNb0QbU3
"I don't smoke that shit, bro. Not yet."658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRRGi9GeQ0Q
I laugh. What a badass. Wannabe badass. Plans his drug-induced future. What. When. Where. Why. How. Please.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSsE2ADcEQY
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!"658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKriyRJeGRy
Everything changes then.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvAfU4j6f9p
Kids come scurrying out of every hideaway hole and hovel imaginable.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZk2V1OxDuz
Stanley gives me a hard shove. 658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcbnP476rt1
I fall on my ass, quickly get to my feet and try to run.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡU2j1uqPNeb
Too many kids. In the way. "Move!" I say. 658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJRMMjfC4oz
No one listens. They laugh.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2D38Ufsh8i
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!658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡz0qJsFFSOv
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.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmsy9QVZ4Ip
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.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbBUnkhmoBG
A pull.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3TXlXcy0gy
Rip.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDUwUkG5oCv
RIP.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKTRrOW3xHg
I'm dead.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡh5ySe2XbOJ
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.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAsrzvEnQOK
"Hey, Nick."658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0cpwlIdiDz
"Hey, Mike."658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRBYEdF1O0c
"What's good?"658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7qrLyKAoRo
"Not much," he says with a sigh.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0XgA6OHI4O
"How come?"658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqC62C1fWkt
"Trouble is coming." He casts paranoid glances around and around.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFzrLP7yvqF
"Where?"658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRsHyDkE2Lr
"There." Nick aims a finger to my right, past my shoulder. 658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡj4q3PD5QfH
Some wannabe-badass teen who walks from the portable classrooms to where Nick and I are standing. Under the sycamore tree.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0ob8KNDRyF
"Who's he?" I ask.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVsTctFZwTr
"Stanley," Wannabe says.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEjkk5lLq0w
"Oh."658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡivdWFJDMA8
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.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3zmzFprkwJ
I knew a tirade was coming. I was right.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxCxaNEu3yW
"Becky says I can't smoke my Camels anymore. Dumb bitch. I smoke what I want to smoke. I'm hard."658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbNjKheyT1W
Nick nods but doesn't say anything. I follow suit.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSKy4IiTUos
Stanley looks at me with contempt. "Who the shit are you?"658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡU6Y4xkm4BS
"Mike."658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOQUaAS69cV
"Yeah, well, I'm hard, Mike. Harder than you, okay?"658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡm7wr44OCSw
I keep my yap shut.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqGjDqoZu0Y
"Yeah, I'm hard, alright. I'm the baddest kid around." Stanley takes a long drag off his cigarette.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfIVBkWbBV1
He is a kid, alright. I say nothing.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHESpPs8UAv
Stanley offers the smoke to Nick, who declines.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6KfMliztA5
"Alright, bitch. Suit yourself." Another pull.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqW737JthBU
"Anything in that thing?" I ask him.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqpUmLqcFGM
"Like what? LSD?"658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8N1taD15TH
Sarcasm. Or maybe just stupid. Acid is destroyed at burning temperature. "No. Weed," I say.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡscuNb0QbU3
"I don't smoke that shit, bro. Not yet."658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRRGi9GeQ0Q
I laugh. What a badass. Wannabe badass. Plans his drug-induced future. What. When. Where. Why. How. Please.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSsE2ADcEQY
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!"658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKriyRJeGRy
Everything changes then.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvAfU4j6f9p
Kids come scurrying out of every hideaway hole and hovel imaginable.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZk2V1OxDuz
Stanley gives me a hard shove. 658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcbnP476rt1
I fall on my ass, quickly get to my feet and try to run.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡU2j1uqPNeb
Too many kids. In the way. "Move!" I say. 658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJRMMjfC4oz
No one listens. They laugh.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2D38Ufsh8i
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!658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡz0qJsFFSOv
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.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmsy9QVZ4Ip
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.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbBUnkhmoBG
A pull.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3TXlXcy0gy
Rip.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDUwUkG5oCv
RIP.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKTRrOW3xHg
I'm dead.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡh5ySe2XbOJ
In bed.
658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsPziL5Lrhb
658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡm4wjfzFzsD
?
658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡs1dwIIH4vT
THE Rain Has Fallen.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡR4oTJ5iPat
No. That's not it.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2DUU82gJfu
They Came After The Rain.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBiqZ9D11eY
There it is.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUS7tPSwAzG
That's the one.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYraWA8sdaQ
The end.
ns 15.158.61.48da2 No. That's not it.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2DUU82gJfu
They Came After The Rain.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBiqZ9D11eY
There it is.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUS7tPSwAzG
That's the one.658Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYraWA8sdaQ
The end.
