766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkd77DU6btJ
-
766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKEaPgBGMN9
DREAMS don't make sense. Yes, they do. No, they don't. Here, I'll prove it to you.
766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqyCAFpxyOt
766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡW2TZnimek2
1766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXrq2UaIue6
766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyG8BqNdqWC
766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyG8BqNdqWC
766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlCCMeVar8Z
I'M in the living room, sitting on the couch with my father, watching Corner Gas reruns on the TV. So far, so normal. 766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3zgOnwy8Su
Dad turns to me and says, "You look sleepy. Mike. You've got a vein on your forehead."766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcktID8xL0t
"Oh, yeah? Bizarre."766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUlZsTxsROV
"Yeah."766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc6iLdSYpgF
"Ponderous, father," I say. "Simply ponderous."766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWCxz7Wemta
"Something you want to talk about?"766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxVOxtIn6Ei
"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.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuUmDdWOazE
"I know," Dad says. "You're fading away."766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4K6ldC2aEA
"I know," I say. "It isn't fair."766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc9GDYxnThy
"Maybe you should go to sleep," Dad offers.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcK4rxDctRN
I consider the offer. 766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1kMdjJDjFy
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.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMRaQLSvhOm
I say, "You know what? Maybe you're right. I am tired."766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQB6ZGEjkqp
"Good. Go to sleep."766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEB8udECcz3
Suddenly, the mirror me is no more. Vanished. Into thin air. Into nothingness. I've faded away.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvQAfGQ2mA5
"I'm gone!" I say, not trying in the slightest to keep the astonishment out of my voice.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYWeRYNrIk4
Dad says, "That's what you get, Mike. You're dead."
766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiJZ18RHOQhDad turns to me and says, "You look sleepy. Mike. You've got a vein on your forehead."766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcktID8xL0t
"Oh, yeah? Bizarre."766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUlZsTxsROV
"Yeah."766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc6iLdSYpgF
"Ponderous, father," I say. "Simply ponderous."766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWCxz7Wemta
"Something you want to talk about?"766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxVOxtIn6Ei
"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.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuUmDdWOazE
"I know," Dad says. "You're fading away."766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4K6ldC2aEA
"I know," I say. "It isn't fair."766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc9GDYxnThy
"Maybe you should go to sleep," Dad offers.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcK4rxDctRN
I consider the offer. 766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1kMdjJDjFy
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.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMRaQLSvhOm
I say, "You know what? Maybe you're right. I am tired."766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQB6ZGEjkqp
"Good. Go to sleep."766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEB8udECcz3
Suddenly, the mirror me is no more. Vanished. Into thin air. Into nothingness. I've faded away.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvQAfGQ2mA5
"I'm gone!" I say, not trying in the slightest to keep the astonishment out of my voice.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYWeRYNrIk4
Dad says, "That's what you get, Mike. You're dead."
2766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwICUl8WDwB
766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOnemVfjlZA
766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOnemVfjlZA
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.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtHsxbFTDyM
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.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhK3xqoXy6g
"Prick!" says my old friend Brandon from behind. "God damned Russian prick!"766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNDAHLBr9UL
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.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEFNwm8dLOC
The doll takes the abuse admirably, if I do say so. It doesn't even make a peep.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOp86u2a71i
"That's what you get for hitting my sister! Potato water–drinker! Snow-sucker! Filth! Rubbish! Filth!"766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgy6N0tbpeW
I'm confused. The more Brandon talks, the less Brandon sounds like Brandon.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNJ4icQRkdt
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.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡahLlOf3vir
"Filth! Rubbish! Filth!" is heard amidst cheers of "You get 'em, Branflakes!" and "Go, you!"766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmHNLi4RUa3
I shake my head and roll my eyes just as Brandon's dad, Brian, walks by.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOsNGMVAKd7
"Drugs," he says cryptically.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrqzdCTAhVo
"Hmm?" I ask.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwRG8PTRfcQ
"You heard me. Get out!" he screams, pointing to the front door.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrS6Wpz21Yx
I ignore him and he walks onward, sitting in a rocking chair where he begins to knit an ugly ball of yarn.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjvqktBb5eZ
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?"766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡf89c6MtWlR
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.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWTySfXwQt5
"I've been writing," I say, growing excited. I'm starved for human contact and connections.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqFaTSMHY68
"Oh yeah? Like a novel?"766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcXeNxAPpFk
"I wish. No. I've been working on one but I haven't finished it yet. Short stories, I guess."766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHZx4uCp57b
"So, how long are you?"766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGYckYai2TE
"I dunno. 14 pages, I think?"766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6n1lljb5z7
"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.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡu3nzSJm4xp
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.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhK3xqoXy6g
"Prick!" says my old friend Brandon from behind. "God damned Russian prick!"766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNDAHLBr9UL
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.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEFNwm8dLOC
The doll takes the abuse admirably, if I do say so. It doesn't even make a peep.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOp86u2a71i
"That's what you get for hitting my sister! Potato water–drinker! Snow-sucker! Filth! Rubbish! Filth!"766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgy6N0tbpeW
I'm confused. The more Brandon talks, the less Brandon sounds like Brandon.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNJ4icQRkdt
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.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡahLlOf3vir
"Filth! Rubbish! Filth!" is heard amidst cheers of "You get 'em, Branflakes!" and "Go, you!"766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmHNLi4RUa3
I shake my head and roll my eyes just as Brandon's dad, Brian, walks by.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOsNGMVAKd7
"Drugs," he says cryptically.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrqzdCTAhVo
"Hmm?" I ask.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwRG8PTRfcQ
"You heard me. Get out!" he screams, pointing to the front door.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrS6Wpz21Yx
I ignore him and he walks onward, sitting in a rocking chair where he begins to knit an ugly ball of yarn.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjvqktBb5eZ
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?"766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡf89c6MtWlR
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.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWTySfXwQt5
"I've been writing," I say, growing excited. I'm starved for human contact and connections.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqFaTSMHY68
"Oh yeah? Like a novel?"766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcXeNxAPpFk
"I wish. No. I've been working on one but I haven't finished it yet. Short stories, I guess."766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHZx4uCp57b
"So, how long are you?"766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGYckYai2TE
"I dunno. 14 pages, I think?"766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6n1lljb5z7
"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.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡu3nzSJm4xp
Bitch.
766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡteQwkteeeJ
766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡY0dfIAZlOo
3766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAWAgahhfX1
766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfzL4im93N4
766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfzL4im93N4
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.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5XhJf78eWM
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.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNjD2Cobq0R
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.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhYFedTQvRJ
Ginger is disturbed. Bear is perturbed.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4SrKfyhnEH
Some nerve.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiDtF9x0AZ7
I crash into my chair. Time to relax.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡltbKvUZ6NI
Never mind.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoXMrgdZapV
There's a knock at the door. Who could it be?766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlU08xFlQA8
I go to answer it. Two girls. Blonde Sarah. Brunette Fiona. What the hell do they want?766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡazUVj6RHwh
The door swings open.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡg4d1yDWXV0
"Heeeeey!" I hear both girls say.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcKjouI42Dd
"Hello."766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEb7q8EroWT
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.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQZmg3p2tRb
"Abuse! Abuse!" they say.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZMMXZdzNFl
"What in the steamed hobo scarves are you two talking about?"766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0uVTjoS1GF
"Abuse! Dogs, cats, food, poop!"766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGg2Np4VKNK
Anger rising. Rage-foam forming at the corners of my mouth. Feel my hands tremble. What is this?766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡG8nR7lyMOg
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.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMHT0GfnQcq
"Oh my god! Oh my god! Oh my god!" they squeal. "Abuse!"766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLxODDqZ3MX
Grab for the nearest shoulder. Spin the girl around. Speak into her face, "There's no abuse here."766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyvC6QpKh90
Fiona cringes and backs away. Sarah and her exit the house.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcp6fCnkwTj
Wonder what sent them packing. My breath, perhaps? I ponder such trivialities as I return to my chair.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRr90BPgnAW
I gaze into the reflection of my mouse. I'm dressed like Spider-Man.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡu5Njxu88lD
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.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNjD2Cobq0R
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.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhYFedTQvRJ
Ginger is disturbed. Bear is perturbed.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4SrKfyhnEH
Some nerve.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiDtF9x0AZ7
I crash into my chair. Time to relax.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡltbKvUZ6NI
Never mind.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoXMrgdZapV
There's a knock at the door. Who could it be?766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlU08xFlQA8
I go to answer it. Two girls. Blonde Sarah. Brunette Fiona. What the hell do they want?766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡazUVj6RHwh
The door swings open.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡg4d1yDWXV0
"Heeeeey!" I hear both girls say.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcKjouI42Dd
"Hello."766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEb7q8EroWT
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.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQZmg3p2tRb
"Abuse! Abuse!" they say.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZMMXZdzNFl
"What in the steamed hobo scarves are you two talking about?"766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0uVTjoS1GF
"Abuse! Dogs, cats, food, poop!"766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGg2Np4VKNK
Anger rising. Rage-foam forming at the corners of my mouth. Feel my hands tremble. What is this?766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡG8nR7lyMOg
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.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMHT0GfnQcq
"Oh my god! Oh my god! Oh my god!" they squeal. "Abuse!"766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLxODDqZ3MX
Grab for the nearest shoulder. Spin the girl around. Speak into her face, "There's no abuse here."766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyvC6QpKh90
Fiona cringes and backs away. Sarah and her exit the house.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcp6fCnkwTj
Wonder what sent them packing. My breath, perhaps? I ponder such trivialities as I return to my chair.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRr90BPgnAW
I gaze into the reflection of my mouse. I'm dressed like Spider-Man.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡu5Njxu88lD
Huh. Funny dat.
766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuw58uK8d0E
766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcsiILXHHdy
4
766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ520Z0Uyd0E
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?766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2HEuBvpgt3
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.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNd16lSNvhU
"Hey, Nick."766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEDYyQi6rLa
"Hey, Mike."766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDIqe4uzD5u
"What's good?"766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEBT6QG5do1
"Not much," he says with a sigh.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡL6gRHd4Oqz
"How come?"766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyaZ14pXlmp
"Trouble is coming." He casts paranoid glances around and around.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrZdLkPsv1k
"Where?"766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCWCBFkr2s7
"There." Nick aims a finger to my right, past my shoulder. 766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMAldkbnMdo
Some wannabe-badass teen who walks from the portable classrooms to where Nick and I are standing. Under the sycamore tree.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9TLhlqAM7G
"Who's he?" I ask.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡL2xU29L3Vn
"Stanley," Wannabe says.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAsM2OqaZQB
"Oh."766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsesUfxzZE2
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.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFFpfNCGaXi
I knew a tirade was coming. I was right.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡq6IhGPPwrI
"Becky says I can't smoke my Camels anymore. Dumb bitch. I smoke what I want to smoke. I'm hard."766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡl5RbhrJSle
Nick nods but doesn't say anything. I follow suit.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhtlcrhAkBj
Stanley looks at me with contempt. "Who the shit are you?"766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRrEcralXGi
"Mike."766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgzETBfKgDo
"Yeah, well, I'm hard, Mike. Harder than you, okay?"766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRbKoOFpQTT
I keep my yap shut.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOZfsUeRI4i
"Yeah, I'm hard, alright. I'm the baddest kid around." Stanley takes a long drag off his cigarette.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlVcfHLuyCX
He is a kid, alright. I say nothing.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWL8RaDjfaF
Stanley offers the smoke to Nick, who declines.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡESs3BJBXqc
"Alright, bitch. Suit yourself." Another pull.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTtdY55x3dU
"Anything in that thing?" I ask him.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPGAyDpsizF
"Like what? LSD?"766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpI1fGbdo6N
Sarcasm. Or maybe just stupid. Acid is destroyed at burning temperature. "No. Weed," I say.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbecSxlhH1s
"I don't smoke that shit, bro. Not yet."766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzhuJjEEBRA
I laugh. What a badass. Wannabe badass. Plans his drug-induced future. What. When. Where. Why. How. Please.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡI46oj0zBbi
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!"766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDBxRAZ8dzN
Everything changes then.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡd2WXtpFSLh
Kids come scurrying out of every hideaway hole and hovel imaginable.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9o9guulFRr
Stanley gives me a hard shove. 766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzW1FTAnFHK
I fall on my ass, quickly get to my feet and try to run.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmGCX6WXYp4
Too many kids. In the way. "Move!" I say. 766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBfH2OL2UfA
No one listens. They laugh.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0EHuoJpxbd
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!766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAd9vveWYT2
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.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDiTK0axqRH
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.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvwCOO2c2FT
A pull.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡL41shMbVJc
Rip.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhpx5ByLgvZ
RIP.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡz3yjRaGvYy
I'm dead.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBSnzGDmzNt
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.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNd16lSNvhU
"Hey, Nick."766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEDYyQi6rLa
"Hey, Mike."766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDIqe4uzD5u
"What's good?"766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEBT6QG5do1
"Not much," he says with a sigh.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡL6gRHd4Oqz
"How come?"766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyaZ14pXlmp
"Trouble is coming." He casts paranoid glances around and around.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrZdLkPsv1k
"Where?"766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCWCBFkr2s7
"There." Nick aims a finger to my right, past my shoulder. 766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMAldkbnMdo
Some wannabe-badass teen who walks from the portable classrooms to where Nick and I are standing. Under the sycamore tree.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9TLhlqAM7G
"Who's he?" I ask.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡL2xU29L3Vn
"Stanley," Wannabe says.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAsM2OqaZQB
"Oh."766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsesUfxzZE2
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.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFFpfNCGaXi
I knew a tirade was coming. I was right.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡq6IhGPPwrI
"Becky says I can't smoke my Camels anymore. Dumb bitch. I smoke what I want to smoke. I'm hard."766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡl5RbhrJSle
Nick nods but doesn't say anything. I follow suit.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhtlcrhAkBj
Stanley looks at me with contempt. "Who the shit are you?"766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRrEcralXGi
"Mike."766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgzETBfKgDo
"Yeah, well, I'm hard, Mike. Harder than you, okay?"766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRbKoOFpQTT
I keep my yap shut.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOZfsUeRI4i
"Yeah, I'm hard, alright. I'm the baddest kid around." Stanley takes a long drag off his cigarette.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlVcfHLuyCX
He is a kid, alright. I say nothing.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWL8RaDjfaF
Stanley offers the smoke to Nick, who declines.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡESs3BJBXqc
"Alright, bitch. Suit yourself." Another pull.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTtdY55x3dU
"Anything in that thing?" I ask him.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPGAyDpsizF
"Like what? LSD?"766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpI1fGbdo6N
Sarcasm. Or maybe just stupid. Acid is destroyed at burning temperature. "No. Weed," I say.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbecSxlhH1s
"I don't smoke that shit, bro. Not yet."766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzhuJjEEBRA
I laugh. What a badass. Wannabe badass. Plans his drug-induced future. What. When. Where. Why. How. Please.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡI46oj0zBbi
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!"766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDBxRAZ8dzN
Everything changes then.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡd2WXtpFSLh
Kids come scurrying out of every hideaway hole and hovel imaginable.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9o9guulFRr
Stanley gives me a hard shove. 766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzW1FTAnFHK
I fall on my ass, quickly get to my feet and try to run.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmGCX6WXYp4
Too many kids. In the way. "Move!" I say. 766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBfH2OL2UfA
No one listens. They laugh.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0EHuoJpxbd
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!766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAd9vveWYT2
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.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDiTK0axqRH
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.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvwCOO2c2FT
A pull.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡL41shMbVJc
Rip.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhpx5ByLgvZ
RIP.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡz3yjRaGvYy
I'm dead.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBSnzGDmzNt
In bed.
766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmWxJtKBFdl
766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ96WA4L0RKO
?
766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9RPKR2UFGh
THE Rain Has Fallen.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxcFZR2WRii
No. That's not it.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgtYLr4fBUz
They Came After The Rain.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuS3p2mg5wQ
There it is.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJz5CS0Fcx0
That's the one.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdqcGBorQx9
The end.
ns216.73.216.154da2 No. That's not it.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgtYLr4fBUz
They Came After The Rain.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuS3p2mg5wQ
There it is.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJz5CS0Fcx0
That's the one.766Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdqcGBorQx9
The end.
