782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaRl8YajFpN
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782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡe0zKskSWlK
DREAMS don't make sense. Yes, they do. No, they don't. Here, I'll prove it to you.
782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡllsqWcbkct
782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1RbMo5WaqX
1782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcaOpaCpS48
782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVWuateBQ5A
782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVWuateBQ5A
782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdYtCU0Zqq7
I'M in the living room, sitting on the couch with my father, watching Corner Gas reruns on the TV. So far, so normal. 782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyLcmtgHDmz
Dad turns to me and says, "You look sleepy. Mike. You've got a vein on your forehead."782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIItwVR5g8x
"Oh, yeah? Bizarre."782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡO9OGOTZm7Z
"Yeah."782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrXG8iTigZx
"Ponderous, father," I say. "Simply ponderous."782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3TgCFSRAgi
"Something you want to talk about?"782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAHW3Arr6xI
"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.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9idVJV7xrP
"I know," Dad says. "You're fading away."782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOdR9xl7Ml9
"I know," I say. "It isn't fair."782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡimZxnemc4x
"Maybe you should go to sleep," Dad offers.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8ZVLlGpWjY
I consider the offer. 782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSFPwgZkiKh
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.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLvOk19e4Qv
I say, "You know what? Maybe you're right. I am tired."782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgVEbNB53BR
"Good. Go to sleep."782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2d203DuI8s
Suddenly, the mirror me is no more. Vanished. Into thin air. Into nothingness. I've faded away.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡE3sNgQZRtW
"I'm gone!" I say, not trying in the slightest to keep the astonishment out of my voice.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡu2jT7AEy6Z
Dad says, "That's what you get, Mike. You're dead."
782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJOXzcRgJF9Dad turns to me and says, "You look sleepy. Mike. You've got a vein on your forehead."782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIItwVR5g8x
"Oh, yeah? Bizarre."782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡO9OGOTZm7Z
"Yeah."782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrXG8iTigZx
"Ponderous, father," I say. "Simply ponderous."782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3TgCFSRAgi
"Something you want to talk about?"782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAHW3Arr6xI
"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.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9idVJV7xrP
"I know," Dad says. "You're fading away."782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOdR9xl7Ml9
"I know," I say. "It isn't fair."782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡimZxnemc4x
"Maybe you should go to sleep," Dad offers.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8ZVLlGpWjY
I consider the offer. 782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSFPwgZkiKh
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.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLvOk19e4Qv
I say, "You know what? Maybe you're right. I am tired."782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgVEbNB53BR
"Good. Go to sleep."782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2d203DuI8s
Suddenly, the mirror me is no more. Vanished. Into thin air. Into nothingness. I've faded away.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡE3sNgQZRtW
"I'm gone!" I say, not trying in the slightest to keep the astonishment out of my voice.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡu2jT7AEy6Z
Dad says, "That's what you get, Mike. You're dead."
2782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGbNPruM85n
782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUbv15YamnI
782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUbv15YamnI
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.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjh1abC9LoX
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.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGWVQRgFOlj
"Prick!" says my old friend Brandon from behind. "God damned Russian prick!"782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡy7PheSl5iI
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.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡClHmcaoBO1
The doll takes the abuse admirably, if I do say so. It doesn't even make a peep.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPlb0KFIwo3
"That's what you get for hitting my sister! Potato water–drinker! Snow-sucker! Filth! Rubbish! Filth!"782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLiSRZHPaTF
I'm confused. The more Brandon talks, the less Brandon sounds like Brandon.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡd94lgtB1qZ
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.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡow1MxvFx8r
"Filth! Rubbish! Filth!" is heard amidst cheers of "You get 'em, Branflakes!" and "Go, you!"782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡy02U7W26ew
I shake my head and roll my eyes just as Brandon's dad, Brian, walks by.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvL6H41qEwC
"Drugs," he says cryptically.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0pVpMNcjeh
"Hmm?" I ask.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVCYLHoQeUW
"You heard me. Get out!" he screams, pointing to the front door.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡx3gK2dA7PB
I ignore him and he walks onward, sitting in a rocking chair where he begins to knit an ugly ball of yarn.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3bv4MrztD0
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?"782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkf2lH5lm6M
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.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWTv66WEnSw
"I've been writing," I say, growing excited. I'm starved for human contact and connections.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJDCojjMRyb
"Oh yeah? Like a novel?"782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡA5Ov00yA1p
"I wish. No. I've been working on one but I haven't finished it yet. Short stories, I guess."782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhjdezPZHOd
"So, how long are you?"782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkA7UOYMeOd
"I dunno. 14 pages, I think?"782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCz72kVP2bv
"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.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfYJCqFRSpl
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.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGWVQRgFOlj
"Prick!" says my old friend Brandon from behind. "God damned Russian prick!"782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡy7PheSl5iI
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.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡClHmcaoBO1
The doll takes the abuse admirably, if I do say so. It doesn't even make a peep.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPlb0KFIwo3
"That's what you get for hitting my sister! Potato water–drinker! Snow-sucker! Filth! Rubbish! Filth!"782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLiSRZHPaTF
I'm confused. The more Brandon talks, the less Brandon sounds like Brandon.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡd94lgtB1qZ
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.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡow1MxvFx8r
"Filth! Rubbish! Filth!" is heard amidst cheers of "You get 'em, Branflakes!" and "Go, you!"782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡy02U7W26ew
I shake my head and roll my eyes just as Brandon's dad, Brian, walks by.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvL6H41qEwC
"Drugs," he says cryptically.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0pVpMNcjeh
"Hmm?" I ask.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVCYLHoQeUW
"You heard me. Get out!" he screams, pointing to the front door.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡx3gK2dA7PB
I ignore him and he walks onward, sitting in a rocking chair where he begins to knit an ugly ball of yarn.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3bv4MrztD0
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?"782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkf2lH5lm6M
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.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWTv66WEnSw
"I've been writing," I say, growing excited. I'm starved for human contact and connections.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJDCojjMRyb
"Oh yeah? Like a novel?"782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡA5Ov00yA1p
"I wish. No. I've been working on one but I haven't finished it yet. Short stories, I guess."782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhjdezPZHOd
"So, how long are you?"782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkA7UOYMeOd
"I dunno. 14 pages, I think?"782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCz72kVP2bv
"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.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfYJCqFRSpl
Bitch.
782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡh4gNPn6jIy
782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjjP4YQwLBk
3782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6PrmAsROpc
782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡawk1zT5J6U
782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡawk1zT5J6U
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.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3e6mkKIQzu
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.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwFdITCj1jj
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.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTorSoBUzwY
Ginger is disturbed. Bear is perturbed.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡX4iS0aLz38
Some nerve.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡd1UvByUmbP
I crash into my chair. Time to relax.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxc8A9fR7U4
Never mind.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡA3mCuGrUtn
There's a knock at the door. Who could it be?782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4Lqh8gBe8i
I go to answer it. Two girls. Blonde Sarah. Brunette Fiona. What the hell do they want?782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQihBOBue7O
The door swings open.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7yivTBBZdu
"Heeeeey!" I hear both girls say.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVhJqKuqz3Z
"Hello."782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeazz4OBGac
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.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWxm8PplXyC
"Abuse! Abuse!" they say.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡETddAjUp8v
"What in the steamed hobo scarves are you two talking about?"782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡk9Owm7Fr52
"Abuse! Dogs, cats, food, poop!"782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfdh3lOLGWi
Anger rising. Rage-foam forming at the corners of my mouth. Feel my hands tremble. What is this?782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyLKJcoq6AA
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.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkixCpEiCb1
"Oh my god! Oh my god! Oh my god!" they squeal. "Abuse!"782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfdkbMhh3w0
Grab for the nearest shoulder. Spin the girl around. Speak into her face, "There's no abuse here."782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡykt0jfFZ0w
Fiona cringes and backs away. Sarah and her exit the house.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtNTSDjkgxp
Wonder what sent them packing. My breath, perhaps? I ponder such trivialities as I return to my chair.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIfjHg1i6aE
I gaze into the reflection of my mouse. I'm dressed like Spider-Man.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkeJpNLWjmA
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.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwFdITCj1jj
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.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTorSoBUzwY
Ginger is disturbed. Bear is perturbed.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡX4iS0aLz38
Some nerve.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡd1UvByUmbP
I crash into my chair. Time to relax.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxc8A9fR7U4
Never mind.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡA3mCuGrUtn
There's a knock at the door. Who could it be?782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4Lqh8gBe8i
I go to answer it. Two girls. Blonde Sarah. Brunette Fiona. What the hell do they want?782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQihBOBue7O
The door swings open.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7yivTBBZdu
"Heeeeey!" I hear both girls say.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVhJqKuqz3Z
"Hello."782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeazz4OBGac
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.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWxm8PplXyC
"Abuse! Abuse!" they say.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡETddAjUp8v
"What in the steamed hobo scarves are you two talking about?"782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡk9Owm7Fr52
"Abuse! Dogs, cats, food, poop!"782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfdh3lOLGWi
Anger rising. Rage-foam forming at the corners of my mouth. Feel my hands tremble. What is this?782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyLKJcoq6AA
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.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkixCpEiCb1
"Oh my god! Oh my god! Oh my god!" they squeal. "Abuse!"782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfdkbMhh3w0
Grab for the nearest shoulder. Spin the girl around. Speak into her face, "There's no abuse here."782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡykt0jfFZ0w
Fiona cringes and backs away. Sarah and her exit the house.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtNTSDjkgxp
Wonder what sent them packing. My breath, perhaps? I ponder such trivialities as I return to my chair.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIfjHg1i6aE
I gaze into the reflection of my mouse. I'm dressed like Spider-Man.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkeJpNLWjmA
Huh. Funny dat.
782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJHjYPN8zTx
782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkzXCz6ZtBt
4
782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQrvzfxnMuI
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?782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjNhwVdV6oI
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.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBfHPTeA3SS
"Hey, Nick."782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡx9GxefWT4Z
"Hey, Mike."782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7InJJZmh1F
"What's good?"782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwadUTnqc4H
"Not much," he says with a sigh.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOSlKSGq9hl
"How come?"782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡm90TD6Uzh1
"Trouble is coming." He casts paranoid glances around and around.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZJvlc0VJGf
"Where?"782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFITU1OF968
"There." Nick aims a finger to my right, past my shoulder. 782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWR7M17r0ie
Some wannabe-badass teen who walks from the portable classrooms to where Nick and I are standing. Under the sycamore tree.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwXtF4Fz9Pg
"Who's he?" I ask.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6VS25oV8UO
"Stanley," Wannabe says.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡycKjtJBWAA
"Oh."782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpA6wXJwkDS
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.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCoFA5INdqV
I knew a tirade was coming. I was right.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLSIWMEwxhm
"Becky says I can't smoke my Camels anymore. Dumb bitch. I smoke what I want to smoke. I'm hard."782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS0brcHwLcE
Nick nods but doesn't say anything. I follow suit.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5KxucpX7WH
Stanley looks at me with contempt. "Who the shit are you?"782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2x9YuLCWld
"Mike."782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ465eL6Z9dc
"Yeah, well, I'm hard, Mike. Harder than you, okay?"782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbAT7UhyHhM
I keep my yap shut.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrBJ3Jf5UOU
"Yeah, I'm hard, alright. I'm the baddest kid around." Stanley takes a long drag off his cigarette.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvUSOlK5TAH
He is a kid, alright. I say nothing.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSmeodc3Nut
Stanley offers the smoke to Nick, who declines.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyvTfAPNyy2
"Alright, bitch. Suit yourself." Another pull.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8miGryPegZ
"Anything in that thing?" I ask him.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHiaW8IaB0u
"Like what? LSD?"782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpLIqyYss5r
Sarcasm. Or maybe just stupid. Acid is destroyed at burning temperature. "No. Weed," I say.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpkwlrNaDvO
"I don't smoke that shit, bro. Not yet."782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGRUxxpSGXJ
I laugh. What a badass. Wannabe badass. Plans his drug-induced future. What. When. Where. Why. How. Please.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKHdr9jS993
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!"782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjTCBhqNlhb
Everything changes then.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡy3IK3K5HYI
Kids come scurrying out of every hideaway hole and hovel imaginable.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbRSeoREfTc
Stanley gives me a hard shove. 782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXsQTsNRjQc
I fall on my ass, quickly get to my feet and try to run.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8lWttyWllc
Too many kids. In the way. "Move!" I say. 782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVna5M35Upk
No one listens. They laugh.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvTRYOfQe7f
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!782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvLbR9rKjIy
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.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjCznYBOc1C
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.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmF36UtZhao
A pull.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡExs9aQKArl
Rip.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGdPni7mrXi
RIP.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡU2Vs7c3cVP
I'm dead.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ92FKWoUaLU
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.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBfHPTeA3SS
"Hey, Nick."782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡx9GxefWT4Z
"Hey, Mike."782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7InJJZmh1F
"What's good?"782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwadUTnqc4H
"Not much," he says with a sigh.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOSlKSGq9hl
"How come?"782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡm90TD6Uzh1
"Trouble is coming." He casts paranoid glances around and around.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZJvlc0VJGf
"Where?"782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFITU1OF968
"There." Nick aims a finger to my right, past my shoulder. 782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWR7M17r0ie
Some wannabe-badass teen who walks from the portable classrooms to where Nick and I are standing. Under the sycamore tree.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwXtF4Fz9Pg
"Who's he?" I ask.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6VS25oV8UO
"Stanley," Wannabe says.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡycKjtJBWAA
"Oh."782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpA6wXJwkDS
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.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCoFA5INdqV
I knew a tirade was coming. I was right.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLSIWMEwxhm
"Becky says I can't smoke my Camels anymore. Dumb bitch. I smoke what I want to smoke. I'm hard."782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS0brcHwLcE
Nick nods but doesn't say anything. I follow suit.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5KxucpX7WH
Stanley looks at me with contempt. "Who the shit are you?"782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2x9YuLCWld
"Mike."782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ465eL6Z9dc
"Yeah, well, I'm hard, Mike. Harder than you, okay?"782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbAT7UhyHhM
I keep my yap shut.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrBJ3Jf5UOU
"Yeah, I'm hard, alright. I'm the baddest kid around." Stanley takes a long drag off his cigarette.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvUSOlK5TAH
He is a kid, alright. I say nothing.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSmeodc3Nut
Stanley offers the smoke to Nick, who declines.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyvTfAPNyy2
"Alright, bitch. Suit yourself." Another pull.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8miGryPegZ
"Anything in that thing?" I ask him.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHiaW8IaB0u
"Like what? LSD?"782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpLIqyYss5r
Sarcasm. Or maybe just stupid. Acid is destroyed at burning temperature. "No. Weed," I say.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpkwlrNaDvO
"I don't smoke that shit, bro. Not yet."782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGRUxxpSGXJ
I laugh. What a badass. Wannabe badass. Plans his drug-induced future. What. When. Where. Why. How. Please.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKHdr9jS993
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!"782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjTCBhqNlhb
Everything changes then.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡy3IK3K5HYI
Kids come scurrying out of every hideaway hole and hovel imaginable.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbRSeoREfTc
Stanley gives me a hard shove. 782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXsQTsNRjQc
I fall on my ass, quickly get to my feet and try to run.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8lWttyWllc
Too many kids. In the way. "Move!" I say. 782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVna5M35Upk
No one listens. They laugh.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvTRYOfQe7f
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!782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvLbR9rKjIy
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.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjCznYBOc1C
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.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmF36UtZhao
A pull.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡExs9aQKArl
Rip.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGdPni7mrXi
RIP.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡU2Vs7c3cVP
I'm dead.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ92FKWoUaLU
In bed.
782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlQgIzhBnKN
782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7majotBhMh
?
782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUfaKWqJISZ
THE Rain Has Fallen.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFFNfwK5vVe
No. That's not it.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqq7En6yVrn
They Came After The Rain.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGAjvkUnIdO
There it is.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMhcsDRs5H9
That's the one.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZi0CxTuVRx
The end.
ns216.73.216.6da2 No. That's not it.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqq7En6yVrn
They Came After The Rain.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGAjvkUnIdO
There it is.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMhcsDRs5H9
That's the one.782Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZi0CxTuVRx
The end.
