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783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrY92Bzs302
DREAMS don't make sense. Yes, they do. No, they don't. Here, I'll prove it to you.
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783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡowIDgkug57
1783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqyGmZjLWxs
783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnWd6PNIyy1
783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnWd6PNIyy1
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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. 783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlMoVtVkDfA
Dad turns to me and says, "You look sleepy. Mike. You've got a vein on your forehead."783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5RPuzEuygx
"Oh, yeah? Bizarre."783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOtPfOvAoB6
"Yeah."783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsHdL2i1qSr
"Ponderous, father," I say. "Simply ponderous."783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnTBjmqghYl
"Something you want to talk about?"783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpWlqPEm2B4
"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.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbtMDtXGD0I
"I know," Dad says. "You're fading away."783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡicfDQrKxzD
"I know," I say. "It isn't fair."783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWacXO6nqcb
"Maybe you should go to sleep," Dad offers.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqacEsqJWR1
I consider the offer. 783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlvgOp09zdO
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.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡih1mAQ2dVu
I say, "You know what? Maybe you're right. I am tired."783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqV0wd9IEFt
"Good. Go to sleep."783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlEIEXomAV6
Suddenly, the mirror me is no more. Vanished. Into thin air. Into nothingness. I've faded away.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKcuVsW1bvf
"I'm gone!" I say, not trying in the slightest to keep the astonishment out of my voice.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuZWyj61Unu
Dad says, "That's what you get, Mike. You're dead."
783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDxuxw1mxFwDad turns to me and says, "You look sleepy. Mike. You've got a vein on your forehead."783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5RPuzEuygx
"Oh, yeah? Bizarre."783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOtPfOvAoB6
"Yeah."783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsHdL2i1qSr
"Ponderous, father," I say. "Simply ponderous."783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnTBjmqghYl
"Something you want to talk about?"783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpWlqPEm2B4
"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.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbtMDtXGD0I
"I know," Dad says. "You're fading away."783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡicfDQrKxzD
"I know," I say. "It isn't fair."783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWacXO6nqcb
"Maybe you should go to sleep," Dad offers.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqacEsqJWR1
I consider the offer. 783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlvgOp09zdO
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.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡih1mAQ2dVu
I say, "You know what? Maybe you're right. I am tired."783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqV0wd9IEFt
"Good. Go to sleep."783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlEIEXomAV6
Suddenly, the mirror me is no more. Vanished. Into thin air. Into nothingness. I've faded away.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKcuVsW1bvf
"I'm gone!" I say, not trying in the slightest to keep the astonishment out of my voice.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuZWyj61Unu
Dad says, "That's what you get, Mike. You're dead."
2783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYd7WxsTy5y
783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxzvtWDX2om
783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxzvtWDX2om
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.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdVrhnAEktO
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.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqQAaj4CFZQ
"Prick!" says my old friend Brandon from behind. "God damned Russian prick!"783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPz6mpk3c8h
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.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLSZ85frik7
The doll takes the abuse admirably, if I do say so. It doesn't even make a peep.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5a6fEjgYkX
"That's what you get for hitting my sister! Potato water–drinker! Snow-sucker! Filth! Rubbish! Filth!"783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQHb2sCAbrI
I'm confused. The more Brandon talks, the less Brandon sounds like Brandon.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3ztMMFQTyk
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.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbqSzIhmUJX
"Filth! Rubbish! Filth!" is heard amidst cheers of "You get 'em, Branflakes!" and "Go, you!"783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡf12PIxtAf8
I shake my head and roll my eyes just as Brandon's dad, Brian, walks by.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnZr81L26oX
"Drugs," he says cryptically.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKVLSh8U811
"Hmm?" I ask.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsWhhROYTVZ
"You heard me. Get out!" he screams, pointing to the front door.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzFImm4qYY7
I ignore him and he walks onward, sitting in a rocking chair where he begins to knit an ugly ball of yarn.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPoM28ysLSa
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?"783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyvmEz6m2vJ
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.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5FDlv1FnCH
"I've been writing," I say, growing excited. I'm starved for human contact and connections.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMSZGfsd39Y
"Oh yeah? Like a novel?"783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBS3ljs5b86
"I wish. No. I've been working on one but I haven't finished it yet. Short stories, I guess."783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhLGR1X9eZA
"So, how long are you?"783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxMQVqqVJ7z
"I dunno. 14 pages, I think?"783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbi5jqsLCzr
"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.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNDtAhCOEbc
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.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqQAaj4CFZQ
"Prick!" says my old friend Brandon from behind. "God damned Russian prick!"783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPz6mpk3c8h
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.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLSZ85frik7
The doll takes the abuse admirably, if I do say so. It doesn't even make a peep.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5a6fEjgYkX
"That's what you get for hitting my sister! Potato water–drinker! Snow-sucker! Filth! Rubbish! Filth!"783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQHb2sCAbrI
I'm confused. The more Brandon talks, the less Brandon sounds like Brandon.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3ztMMFQTyk
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.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbqSzIhmUJX
"Filth! Rubbish! Filth!" is heard amidst cheers of "You get 'em, Branflakes!" and "Go, you!"783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡf12PIxtAf8
I shake my head and roll my eyes just as Brandon's dad, Brian, walks by.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnZr81L26oX
"Drugs," he says cryptically.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKVLSh8U811
"Hmm?" I ask.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsWhhROYTVZ
"You heard me. Get out!" he screams, pointing to the front door.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzFImm4qYY7
I ignore him and he walks onward, sitting in a rocking chair where he begins to knit an ugly ball of yarn.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPoM28ysLSa
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?"783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyvmEz6m2vJ
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.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5FDlv1FnCH
"I've been writing," I say, growing excited. I'm starved for human contact and connections.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMSZGfsd39Y
"Oh yeah? Like a novel?"783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBS3ljs5b86
"I wish. No. I've been working on one but I haven't finished it yet. Short stories, I guess."783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhLGR1X9eZA
"So, how long are you?"783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxMQVqqVJ7z
"I dunno. 14 pages, I think?"783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbi5jqsLCzr
"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.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNDtAhCOEbc
Bitch.
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783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnYq61iiZui
3783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxCf4li6Dgz
783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMqjtTRlYVa
783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMqjtTRlYVa
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.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbg13Byklh3
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.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDAExP7by5t
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.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡillV55Q3Rj
Ginger is disturbed. Bear is perturbed.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrl2uMHw23y
Some nerve.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡa939guyQwZ
I crash into my chair. Time to relax.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzU94Qe1nO1
Never mind.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLf2RpsEry3
There's a knock at the door. Who could it be?783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPUSuxmn9rW
I go to answer it. Two girls. Blonde Sarah. Brunette Fiona. What the hell do they want?783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡERz014YLBn
The door swings open.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡo7w3FnJNGB
"Heeeeey!" I hear both girls say.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNW7QjqF7Nb
"Hello."783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMz2APajGpY
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.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1i6pKRd3A0
"Abuse! Abuse!" they say.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYklaWKLKGl
"What in the steamed hobo scarves are you two talking about?"783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmuAM0VmbDe
"Abuse! Dogs, cats, food, poop!"783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJ1qA07FlCK
Anger rising. Rage-foam forming at the corners of my mouth. Feel my hands tremble. What is this?783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡU8XBWUAGVK
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.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsHp3yITyuu
"Oh my god! Oh my god! Oh my god!" they squeal. "Abuse!"783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3oflHODJgL
Grab for the nearest shoulder. Spin the girl around. Speak into her face, "There's no abuse here."783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnUw2l0QPe3
Fiona cringes and backs away. Sarah and her exit the house.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwoOdNmG5D6
Wonder what sent them packing. My breath, perhaps? I ponder such trivialities as I return to my chair.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeQD8wrgBMY
I gaze into the reflection of my mouse. I'm dressed like Spider-Man.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZWKKuB3BkT
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.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDAExP7by5t
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.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡillV55Q3Rj
Ginger is disturbed. Bear is perturbed.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrl2uMHw23y
Some nerve.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡa939guyQwZ
I crash into my chair. Time to relax.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzU94Qe1nO1
Never mind.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLf2RpsEry3
There's a knock at the door. Who could it be?783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPUSuxmn9rW
I go to answer it. Two girls. Blonde Sarah. Brunette Fiona. What the hell do they want?783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡERz014YLBn
The door swings open.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡo7w3FnJNGB
"Heeeeey!" I hear both girls say.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNW7QjqF7Nb
"Hello."783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMz2APajGpY
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.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1i6pKRd3A0
"Abuse! Abuse!" they say.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYklaWKLKGl
"What in the steamed hobo scarves are you two talking about?"783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmuAM0VmbDe
"Abuse! Dogs, cats, food, poop!"783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJ1qA07FlCK
Anger rising. Rage-foam forming at the corners of my mouth. Feel my hands tremble. What is this?783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡU8XBWUAGVK
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.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsHp3yITyuu
"Oh my god! Oh my god! Oh my god!" they squeal. "Abuse!"783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3oflHODJgL
Grab for the nearest shoulder. Spin the girl around. Speak into her face, "There's no abuse here."783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnUw2l0QPe3
Fiona cringes and backs away. Sarah and her exit the house.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwoOdNmG5D6
Wonder what sent them packing. My breath, perhaps? I ponder such trivialities as I return to my chair.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeQD8wrgBMY
I gaze into the reflection of my mouse. I'm dressed like Spider-Man.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZWKKuB3BkT
Huh. Funny dat.
783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyGlPHBaUri
783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvL0aKwxpJo
4
783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4k5NK7YsOO
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?783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4J9L3AZl96
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.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡda4Xh5eG0O
"Hey, Nick."783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7d1yEMYqgn
"Hey, Mike."783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfifgqkcFg6
"What's good?"783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0Meg7a2fBD
"Not much," he says with a sigh.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPOsj5pVG3Y
"How come?"783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeQoYRQpcf0
"Trouble is coming." He casts paranoid glances around and around.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmelqyZwYMf
"Where?"783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgWSAPHnXFK
"There." Nick aims a finger to my right, past my shoulder. 783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTc8lTMN6Hv
Some wannabe-badass teen who walks from the portable classrooms to where Nick and I are standing. Under the sycamore tree.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLs8MFGeKR3
"Who's he?" I ask.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFy3bZKQUjj
"Stanley," Wannabe says.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡizjEBNlO50
"Oh."783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeZE640GOhS
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.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzrU6kpgzup
I knew a tirade was coming. I was right.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNWwdzWHE5y
"Becky says I can't smoke my Camels anymore. Dumb bitch. I smoke what I want to smoke. I'm hard."783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgmHC6Tij1z
Nick nods but doesn't say anything. I follow suit.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8llO4Dn8Av
Stanley looks at me with contempt. "Who the shit are you?"783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQTVNmfGnWA
"Mike."783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtkcnKgnov6
"Yeah, well, I'm hard, Mike. Harder than you, okay?"783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIyfPJvSeAq
I keep my yap shut.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgA59NgpEs9
"Yeah, I'm hard, alright. I'm the baddest kid around." Stanley takes a long drag off his cigarette.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjiwQ1WI4oW
He is a kid, alright. I say nothing.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYQw58UreH3
Stanley offers the smoke to Nick, who declines.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqynkosOysi
"Alright, bitch. Suit yourself." Another pull.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUxUZaPC04t
"Anything in that thing?" I ask him.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8KYJ9oSubz
"Like what? LSD?"783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdGggWG9lds
Sarcasm. Or maybe just stupid. Acid is destroyed at burning temperature. "No. Weed," I say.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlooTqx8tBy
"I don't smoke that shit, bro. Not yet."783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTOFfdVjgoC
I laugh. What a badass. Wannabe badass. Plans his drug-induced future. What. When. Where. Why. How. Please.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOI6E2SLG2c
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!"783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6cTOTCZ5wx
Everything changes then.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXD1tEzTLTR
Kids come scurrying out of every hideaway hole and hovel imaginable.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrOzs7vc3Yj
Stanley gives me a hard shove. 783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUiF8ysbNDS
I fall on my ass, quickly get to my feet and try to run.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpeAew2RR8P
Too many kids. In the way. "Move!" I say. 783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdayMIU7rI9
No one listens. They laugh.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlJ9RWtWaba
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!783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡL9XAspMTQh
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.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdqmyiaBCid
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.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYJXMMBbagf
A pull.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtKytzC8Daj
Rip.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZXuFmvlq1r
RIP.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1QuqI9eP9D
I'm dead.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7q08mghqBt
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.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡda4Xh5eG0O
"Hey, Nick."783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7d1yEMYqgn
"Hey, Mike."783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfifgqkcFg6
"What's good?"783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0Meg7a2fBD
"Not much," he says with a sigh.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPOsj5pVG3Y
"How come?"783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeQoYRQpcf0
"Trouble is coming." He casts paranoid glances around and around.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmelqyZwYMf
"Where?"783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgWSAPHnXFK
"There." Nick aims a finger to my right, past my shoulder. 783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTc8lTMN6Hv
Some wannabe-badass teen who walks from the portable classrooms to where Nick and I are standing. Under the sycamore tree.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLs8MFGeKR3
"Who's he?" I ask.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFy3bZKQUjj
"Stanley," Wannabe says.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡizjEBNlO50
"Oh."783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeZE640GOhS
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.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzrU6kpgzup
I knew a tirade was coming. I was right.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNWwdzWHE5y
"Becky says I can't smoke my Camels anymore. Dumb bitch. I smoke what I want to smoke. I'm hard."783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgmHC6Tij1z
Nick nods but doesn't say anything. I follow suit.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8llO4Dn8Av
Stanley looks at me with contempt. "Who the shit are you?"783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQTVNmfGnWA
"Mike."783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtkcnKgnov6
"Yeah, well, I'm hard, Mike. Harder than you, okay?"783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIyfPJvSeAq
I keep my yap shut.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgA59NgpEs9
"Yeah, I'm hard, alright. I'm the baddest kid around." Stanley takes a long drag off his cigarette.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjiwQ1WI4oW
He is a kid, alright. I say nothing.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYQw58UreH3
Stanley offers the smoke to Nick, who declines.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqynkosOysi
"Alright, bitch. Suit yourself." Another pull.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUxUZaPC04t
"Anything in that thing?" I ask him.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8KYJ9oSubz
"Like what? LSD?"783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdGggWG9lds
Sarcasm. Or maybe just stupid. Acid is destroyed at burning temperature. "No. Weed," I say.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlooTqx8tBy
"I don't smoke that shit, bro. Not yet."783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTOFfdVjgoC
I laugh. What a badass. Wannabe badass. Plans his drug-induced future. What. When. Where. Why. How. Please.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOI6E2SLG2c
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!"783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6cTOTCZ5wx
Everything changes then.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXD1tEzTLTR
Kids come scurrying out of every hideaway hole and hovel imaginable.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrOzs7vc3Yj
Stanley gives me a hard shove. 783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUiF8ysbNDS
I fall on my ass, quickly get to my feet and try to run.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpeAew2RR8P
Too many kids. In the way. "Move!" I say. 783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdayMIU7rI9
No one listens. They laugh.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlJ9RWtWaba
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!783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡL9XAspMTQh
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.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdqmyiaBCid
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.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYJXMMBbagf
A pull.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtKytzC8Daj
Rip.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZXuFmvlq1r
RIP.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1QuqI9eP9D
I'm dead.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7q08mghqBt
In bed.
783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYpvPqUxH4m
783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlI94Tmiu0s
?
783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyA3pOQPZSe
THE Rain Has Fallen.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHwsCeSW7Vb
No. That's not it.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡO8aseztMVx
They Came After The Rain.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnFrxU90mUz
There it is.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKwtrKic1dP
That's the one.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXxHiq7HS9M
The end.
ns216.73.216.6da2 No. That's not it.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡO8aseztMVx
They Came After The Rain.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnFrxU90mUz
There it is.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKwtrKic1dP
That's the one.783Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXxHiq7HS9M
The end.
