773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4NCJdx21W8
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773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6pjupbWvm5
DREAMS don't make sense. Yes, they do. No, they don't. Here, I'll prove it to you.
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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. 773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGyoRtIp2u3
Dad turns to me and says, "You look sleepy. Mike. You've got a vein on your forehead."773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhdQIEtlZhQ
"Oh, yeah? Bizarre."773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfPiqcx8wLA
"Yeah."773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrNdRrPHaSx
"Ponderous, father," I say. "Simply ponderous."773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0CrV2jaFvS
"Something you want to talk about?"773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjmP7AQpQVC
"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.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDmNb5iA1LR
"I know," Dad says. "You're fading away."773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡL11lEPUw65
"I know," I say. "It isn't fair."773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSiQMlXJbBP
"Maybe you should go to sleep," Dad offers.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhbcPJH9Vdp
I consider the offer. 773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfkUSyxkUmA
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.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmxkzb84egT
I say, "You know what? Maybe you're right. I am tired."773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZvrIEq83RU
"Good. Go to sleep."773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQDJGW75iTb
Suddenly, the mirror me is no more. Vanished. Into thin air. Into nothingness. I've faded away.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoeAKs3z4ec
"I'm gone!" I say, not trying in the slightest to keep the astonishment out of my voice.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcqUF4gkNDz
Dad says, "That's what you get, Mike. You're dead."
773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnrlki1cZu1Dad turns to me and says, "You look sleepy. Mike. You've got a vein on your forehead."773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhdQIEtlZhQ
"Oh, yeah? Bizarre."773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfPiqcx8wLA
"Yeah."773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrNdRrPHaSx
"Ponderous, father," I say. "Simply ponderous."773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0CrV2jaFvS
"Something you want to talk about?"773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjmP7AQpQVC
"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.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDmNb5iA1LR
"I know," Dad says. "You're fading away."773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡL11lEPUw65
"I know," I say. "It isn't fair."773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSiQMlXJbBP
"Maybe you should go to sleep," Dad offers.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhbcPJH9Vdp
I consider the offer. 773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfkUSyxkUmA
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.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmxkzb84egT
I say, "You know what? Maybe you're right. I am tired."773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZvrIEq83RU
"Good. Go to sleep."773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQDJGW75iTb
Suddenly, the mirror me is no more. Vanished. Into thin air. Into nothingness. I've faded away.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoeAKs3z4ec
"I'm gone!" I say, not trying in the slightest to keep the astonishment out of my voice.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcqUF4gkNDz
Dad says, "That's what you get, Mike. You're dead."
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773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmNe0pgB8Y5
773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmNe0pgB8Y5
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.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZH559sxeKc
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.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKWYNN9HBRg
"Prick!" says my old friend Brandon from behind. "God damned Russian prick!"773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYmrTGwRIUa
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.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡACYlEiGIBU
The doll takes the abuse admirably, if I do say so. It doesn't even make a peep.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡN96OvzVu45
"That's what you get for hitting my sister! Potato water–drinker! Snow-sucker! Filth! Rubbish! Filth!"773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQ69tTyIWPM
I'm confused. The more Brandon talks, the less Brandon sounds like Brandon.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMMNx18vXrN
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.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRdUMamkidW
"Filth! Rubbish! Filth!" is heard amidst cheers of "You get 'em, Branflakes!" and "Go, you!"773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZGw191mFYR
I shake my head and roll my eyes just as Brandon's dad, Brian, walks by.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡANJGUh0Fy6
"Drugs," he says cryptically.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡy56UHrPyuG
"Hmm?" I ask.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSPLHMlWjuL
"You heard me. Get out!" he screams, pointing to the front door.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHedwXgQApO
I ignore him and he walks onward, sitting in a rocking chair where he begins to knit an ugly ball of yarn.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡK4Jal6qU3P
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?"773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpNLtP6FgAo
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.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGNsL3K9oDo
"I've been writing," I say, growing excited. I'm starved for human contact and connections.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡneHv3mEWAS
"Oh yeah? Like a novel?"773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaVcrbmgttk
"I wish. No. I've been working on one but I haven't finished it yet. Short stories, I guess."773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdgg7giyHWG
"So, how long are you?"773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZtdSr4fQSj
"I dunno. 14 pages, I think?"773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5gy9x8pRhy
"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.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡW3G9F1bkXU
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.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKWYNN9HBRg
"Prick!" says my old friend Brandon from behind. "God damned Russian prick!"773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYmrTGwRIUa
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.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡACYlEiGIBU
The doll takes the abuse admirably, if I do say so. It doesn't even make a peep.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡN96OvzVu45
"That's what you get for hitting my sister! Potato water–drinker! Snow-sucker! Filth! Rubbish! Filth!"773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQ69tTyIWPM
I'm confused. The more Brandon talks, the less Brandon sounds like Brandon.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMMNx18vXrN
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.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRdUMamkidW
"Filth! Rubbish! Filth!" is heard amidst cheers of "You get 'em, Branflakes!" and "Go, you!"773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZGw191mFYR
I shake my head and roll my eyes just as Brandon's dad, Brian, walks by.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡANJGUh0Fy6
"Drugs," he says cryptically.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡy56UHrPyuG
"Hmm?" I ask.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSPLHMlWjuL
"You heard me. Get out!" he screams, pointing to the front door.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHedwXgQApO
I ignore him and he walks onward, sitting in a rocking chair where he begins to knit an ugly ball of yarn.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡK4Jal6qU3P
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?"773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpNLtP6FgAo
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.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGNsL3K9oDo
"I've been writing," I say, growing excited. I'm starved for human contact and connections.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡneHv3mEWAS
"Oh yeah? Like a novel?"773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaVcrbmgttk
"I wish. No. I've been working on one but I haven't finished it yet. Short stories, I guess."773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdgg7giyHWG
"So, how long are you?"773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZtdSr4fQSj
"I dunno. 14 pages, I think?"773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5gy9x8pRhy
"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.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡW3G9F1bkXU
Bitch.
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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.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAbbwwNa5Ta
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.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2GCeFIb9Y7
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.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTfdSTWf7SE
Ginger is disturbed. Bear is perturbed.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWy8tLgtc0L
Some nerve.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSJS1Oea8BP
I crash into my chair. Time to relax.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ15NvYMiJpM
Never mind.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkoPR27A34X
There's a knock at the door. Who could it be?773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5VshC9tUUb
I go to answer it. Two girls. Blonde Sarah. Brunette Fiona. What the hell do they want?773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8vfzVCeGCP
The door swings open.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0P2uSM28A1
"Heeeeey!" I hear both girls say.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVPa0he4Gn8
"Hello."773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡihxLZpSAZe
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.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9rmRNZCIqS
"Abuse! Abuse!" they say.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ12dLQgWN4Y
"What in the steamed hobo scarves are you two talking about?"773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaqhmP5KhFm
"Abuse! Dogs, cats, food, poop!"773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFsYNmIJhFf
Anger rising. Rage-foam forming at the corners of my mouth. Feel my hands tremble. What is this?773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTEB3rJeb3Q
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.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeiNgTN2di8
"Oh my god! Oh my god! Oh my god!" they squeal. "Abuse!"773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXt3X2qee3w
Grab for the nearest shoulder. Spin the girl around. Speak into her face, "There's no abuse here."773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYhPRtA9SFb
Fiona cringes and backs away. Sarah and her exit the house.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ03UvzAn59V
Wonder what sent them packing. My breath, perhaps? I ponder such trivialities as I return to my chair.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8DwEc9J8fL
I gaze into the reflection of my mouse. I'm dressed like Spider-Man.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVWKxaFZFw2
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.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2GCeFIb9Y7
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.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTfdSTWf7SE
Ginger is disturbed. Bear is perturbed.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWy8tLgtc0L
Some nerve.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSJS1Oea8BP
I crash into my chair. Time to relax.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ15NvYMiJpM
Never mind.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkoPR27A34X
There's a knock at the door. Who could it be?773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5VshC9tUUb
I go to answer it. Two girls. Blonde Sarah. Brunette Fiona. What the hell do they want?773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8vfzVCeGCP
The door swings open.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0P2uSM28A1
"Heeeeey!" I hear both girls say.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVPa0he4Gn8
"Hello."773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡihxLZpSAZe
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.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9rmRNZCIqS
"Abuse! Abuse!" they say.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ12dLQgWN4Y
"What in the steamed hobo scarves are you two talking about?"773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaqhmP5KhFm
"Abuse! Dogs, cats, food, poop!"773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFsYNmIJhFf
Anger rising. Rage-foam forming at the corners of my mouth. Feel my hands tremble. What is this?773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTEB3rJeb3Q
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.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeiNgTN2di8
"Oh my god! Oh my god! Oh my god!" they squeal. "Abuse!"773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXt3X2qee3w
Grab for the nearest shoulder. Spin the girl around. Speak into her face, "There's no abuse here."773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYhPRtA9SFb
Fiona cringes and backs away. Sarah and her exit the house.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ03UvzAn59V
Wonder what sent them packing. My breath, perhaps? I ponder such trivialities as I return to my chair.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8DwEc9J8fL
I gaze into the reflection of my mouse. I'm dressed like Spider-Man.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVWKxaFZFw2
Huh. Funny dat.
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4
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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?773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHxm1ERPkpJ
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.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtEjXcgQ50A
"Hey, Nick."773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvwtBp9lKNO
"Hey, Mike."773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOcqdygoALy
"What's good?"773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ87NfaaEpBA
"Not much," he says with a sigh.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAsBZKXPNy0
"How come?"773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKxVSKIQukJ
"Trouble is coming." He casts paranoid glances around and around.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9vfGwLoqJT
"Where?"773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdAt4W58lAm
"There." Nick aims a finger to my right, past my shoulder. 773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLsqK9NvXqg
Some wannabe-badass teen who walks from the portable classrooms to where Nick and I are standing. Under the sycamore tree.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡd3zoSvXgmc
"Who's he?" I ask.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNCuqxVaYtj
"Stanley," Wannabe says.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbLWMkVajyF
"Oh."773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡF2CKuH0lcD
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.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡksPOqVp1RY
I knew a tirade was coming. I was right.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhZ56v6RxGb
"Becky says I can't smoke my Camels anymore. Dumb bitch. I smoke what I want to smoke. I'm hard."773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWiQnVO9K4e
Nick nods but doesn't say anything. I follow suit.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbeK9nGMFT6
Stanley looks at me with contempt. "Who the shit are you?"773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9aybmwXlzP
"Mike."773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5L2VUew3LR
"Yeah, well, I'm hard, Mike. Harder than you, okay?"773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvkHmZENVix
I keep my yap shut.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLWxb9tDBRe
"Yeah, I'm hard, alright. I'm the baddest kid around." Stanley takes a long drag off his cigarette.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcMB3nu33XW
He is a kid, alright. I say nothing.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeInIts65Ob
Stanley offers the smoke to Nick, who declines.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUz084VOdk6
"Alright, bitch. Suit yourself." Another pull.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNlyegKZtrY
"Anything in that thing?" I ask him.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUcWgyMHLNb
"Like what? LSD?"773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkVdJOq5y8K
Sarcasm. Or maybe just stupid. Acid is destroyed at burning temperature. "No. Weed," I say.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4FIgjQr9WP
"I don't smoke that shit, bro. Not yet."773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQJOijWjMmM
I laugh. What a badass. Wannabe badass. Plans his drug-induced future. What. When. Where. Why. How. Please.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBSpWawwnpk
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!"773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6EV1mp2mNx
Everything changes then.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvYLDytZcHg
Kids come scurrying out of every hideaway hole and hovel imaginable.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4bHbyqNWwX
Stanley gives me a hard shove. 773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHNY7m2a05m
I fall on my ass, quickly get to my feet and try to run.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0Skl0SM75B
Too many kids. In the way. "Move!" I say. 773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGqcCsxJbFL
No one listens. They laugh.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡf4uEav71uj
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!773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLEUhe8i2Wq
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.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfWGlubuzYF
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.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡISD3W7GhtI
A pull.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcRDS8BRONR
Rip.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWIjiPwlKDb
RIP.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3MU9HVrvtz
I'm dead.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6LSVKzDF7u
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.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtEjXcgQ50A
"Hey, Nick."773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvwtBp9lKNO
"Hey, Mike."773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOcqdygoALy
"What's good?"773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ87NfaaEpBA
"Not much," he says with a sigh.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAsBZKXPNy0
"How come?"773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKxVSKIQukJ
"Trouble is coming." He casts paranoid glances around and around.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9vfGwLoqJT
"Where?"773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdAt4W58lAm
"There." Nick aims a finger to my right, past my shoulder. 773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLsqK9NvXqg
Some wannabe-badass teen who walks from the portable classrooms to where Nick and I are standing. Under the sycamore tree.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡd3zoSvXgmc
"Who's he?" I ask.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNCuqxVaYtj
"Stanley," Wannabe says.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbLWMkVajyF
"Oh."773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡF2CKuH0lcD
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.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡksPOqVp1RY
I knew a tirade was coming. I was right.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhZ56v6RxGb
"Becky says I can't smoke my Camels anymore. Dumb bitch. I smoke what I want to smoke. I'm hard."773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWiQnVO9K4e
Nick nods but doesn't say anything. I follow suit.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbeK9nGMFT6
Stanley looks at me with contempt. "Who the shit are you?"773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9aybmwXlzP
"Mike."773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5L2VUew3LR
"Yeah, well, I'm hard, Mike. Harder than you, okay?"773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvkHmZENVix
I keep my yap shut.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLWxb9tDBRe
"Yeah, I'm hard, alright. I'm the baddest kid around." Stanley takes a long drag off his cigarette.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcMB3nu33XW
He is a kid, alright. I say nothing.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeInIts65Ob
Stanley offers the smoke to Nick, who declines.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUz084VOdk6
"Alright, bitch. Suit yourself." Another pull.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNlyegKZtrY
"Anything in that thing?" I ask him.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUcWgyMHLNb
"Like what? LSD?"773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkVdJOq5y8K
Sarcasm. Or maybe just stupid. Acid is destroyed at burning temperature. "No. Weed," I say.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4FIgjQr9WP
"I don't smoke that shit, bro. Not yet."773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQJOijWjMmM
I laugh. What a badass. Wannabe badass. Plans his drug-induced future. What. When. Where. Why. How. Please.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBSpWawwnpk
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!"773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6EV1mp2mNx
Everything changes then.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvYLDytZcHg
Kids come scurrying out of every hideaway hole and hovel imaginable.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4bHbyqNWwX
Stanley gives me a hard shove. 773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHNY7m2a05m
I fall on my ass, quickly get to my feet and try to run.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0Skl0SM75B
Too many kids. In the way. "Move!" I say. 773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGqcCsxJbFL
No one listens. They laugh.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡf4uEav71uj
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!773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLEUhe8i2Wq
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.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfWGlubuzYF
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.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡISD3W7GhtI
A pull.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcRDS8BRONR
Rip.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWIjiPwlKDb
RIP.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3MU9HVrvtz
I'm dead.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6LSVKzDF7u
In bed.
773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmuMnQ4ib8e
773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0RVmr6KPdu
?
773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡe07JGeXk4W
THE Rain Has Fallen.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6NJ0e8RxAq
No. That's not it.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2H9wGjrYyq
They Came After The Rain.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7br9yLvHmq
There it is.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFD4E3lVr62
That's the one.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡK7JoYr4xMr
The end.
ns216.73.216.197da2 No. That's not it.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2H9wGjrYyq
They Came After The Rain.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7br9yLvHmq
There it is.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFD4E3lVr62
That's the one.773Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡK7JoYr4xMr
The end.
