718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsAvpl6xmoO
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718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡY2vIxhAPnV
DREAMS don't make sense. Yes, they do. No, they don't. Here, I'll prove it to you.
718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡx8WuOTr8RO
718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxosFvAMxmZ
1718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡABrKagjt7E
718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsQoIoKFz9U
718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsQoIoKFz9U
718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBZD4odRCqw
I'M in the living room, sitting on the couch with my father, watching Corner Gas reruns on the TV. So far, so normal. 718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3DourMzKJL
Dad turns to me and says, "You look sleepy. Mike. You've got a vein on your forehead."718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCSRqWyGHH2
"Oh, yeah? Bizarre."718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJACuQd4Egw
"Yeah."718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5eyewfDh5S
"Ponderous, father," I say. "Simply ponderous."718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5ewdqyQ02E
"Something you want to talk about?"718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡb7Oc7gzyjp
"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.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxZwoakNu7R
"I know," Dad says. "You're fading away."718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHiYfXjFCPm
"I know," I say. "It isn't fair."718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcjI9rvvYVU
"Maybe you should go to sleep," Dad offers.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHcVtj1xIxv
I consider the offer. 718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNKRwvUzHuL
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.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbTZlZZn8fI
I say, "You know what? Maybe you're right. I am tired."718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1WPVr3i2LI
"Good. Go to sleep."718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmK3cPPdi3u
Suddenly, the mirror me is no more. Vanished. Into thin air. Into nothingness. I've faded away.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtiaGDrBSP1
"I'm gone!" I say, not trying in the slightest to keep the astonishment out of my voice.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRljdfJnzNR
Dad says, "That's what you get, Mike. You're dead."
718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwGSu5Rf1MhDad turns to me and says, "You look sleepy. Mike. You've got a vein on your forehead."718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCSRqWyGHH2
"Oh, yeah? Bizarre."718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJACuQd4Egw
"Yeah."718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5eyewfDh5S
"Ponderous, father," I say. "Simply ponderous."718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5ewdqyQ02E
"Something you want to talk about?"718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡb7Oc7gzyjp
"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.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxZwoakNu7R
"I know," Dad says. "You're fading away."718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHiYfXjFCPm
"I know," I say. "It isn't fair."718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcjI9rvvYVU
"Maybe you should go to sleep," Dad offers.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHcVtj1xIxv
I consider the offer. 718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNKRwvUzHuL
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.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbTZlZZn8fI
I say, "You know what? Maybe you're right. I am tired."718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1WPVr3i2LI
"Good. Go to sleep."718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmK3cPPdi3u
Suddenly, the mirror me is no more. Vanished. Into thin air. Into nothingness. I've faded away.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtiaGDrBSP1
"I'm gone!" I say, not trying in the slightest to keep the astonishment out of my voice.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRljdfJnzNR
Dad says, "That's what you get, Mike. You're dead."
2718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoAAi34YUhR
718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMmNJSrRMhQ
718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMmNJSrRMhQ
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.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFxXVE56SY8
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.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmLMALsjV3c
"Prick!" says my old friend Brandon from behind. "God damned Russian prick!"718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡG3dBX6p9wd
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.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡa6pEbM6c4O
The doll takes the abuse admirably, if I do say so. It doesn't even make a peep.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwGvA5E9rLK
"That's what you get for hitting my sister! Potato water–drinker! Snow-sucker! Filth! Rubbish! Filth!"718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQk92hsaAmK
I'm confused. The more Brandon talks, the less Brandon sounds like Brandon.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVjBXdvlYNv
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.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSJTOh7JiOz
"Filth! Rubbish! Filth!" is heard amidst cheers of "You get 'em, Branflakes!" and "Go, you!"718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡykXktAOHpp
I shake my head and roll my eyes just as Brandon's dad, Brian, walks by.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ06S2DRLGTq
"Drugs," he says cryptically.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTlWbMypcxW
"Hmm?" I ask.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYanXrDsCph
"You heard me. Get out!" he screams, pointing to the front door.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyNbMNaKjim
I ignore him and he walks onward, sitting in a rocking chair where he begins to knit an ugly ball of yarn.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxv03wF2tFj
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?"718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdPBKy6qEH8
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.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaX50VW3Ypx
"I've been writing," I say, growing excited. I'm starved for human contact and connections.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaM2Gd402OE
"Oh yeah? Like a novel?"718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡq49vYbu8OZ
"I wish. No. I've been working on one but I haven't finished it yet. Short stories, I guess."718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCL5pHN7K8W
"So, how long are you?"718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbTv0uA1HGU
"I dunno. 14 pages, I think?"718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ03svfhfeHb
"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.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4u8Vp7jzrX
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.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmLMALsjV3c
"Prick!" says my old friend Brandon from behind. "God damned Russian prick!"718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡG3dBX6p9wd
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.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡa6pEbM6c4O
The doll takes the abuse admirably, if I do say so. It doesn't even make a peep.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwGvA5E9rLK
"That's what you get for hitting my sister! Potato water–drinker! Snow-sucker! Filth! Rubbish! Filth!"718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQk92hsaAmK
I'm confused. The more Brandon talks, the less Brandon sounds like Brandon.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVjBXdvlYNv
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.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSJTOh7JiOz
"Filth! Rubbish! Filth!" is heard amidst cheers of "You get 'em, Branflakes!" and "Go, you!"718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡykXktAOHpp
I shake my head and roll my eyes just as Brandon's dad, Brian, walks by.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ06S2DRLGTq
"Drugs," he says cryptically.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTlWbMypcxW
"Hmm?" I ask.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYanXrDsCph
"You heard me. Get out!" he screams, pointing to the front door.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyNbMNaKjim
I ignore him and he walks onward, sitting in a rocking chair where he begins to knit an ugly ball of yarn.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxv03wF2tFj
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?"718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdPBKy6qEH8
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.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaX50VW3Ypx
"I've been writing," I say, growing excited. I'm starved for human contact and connections.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaM2Gd402OE
"Oh yeah? Like a novel?"718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡq49vYbu8OZ
"I wish. No. I've been working on one but I haven't finished it yet. Short stories, I guess."718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCL5pHN7K8W
"So, how long are you?"718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbTv0uA1HGU
"I dunno. 14 pages, I think?"718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ03svfhfeHb
"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.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4u8Vp7jzrX
Bitch.
718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvWZf8sYb25
718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHs34Civ0Tt
3718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsstzj4Zfpr
718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmoZjOoBqSz
718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmoZjOoBqSz
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.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ60RJp2vZhI
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.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVCYfZN6CUq
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.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5MHUmKwmM2
Ginger is disturbed. Bear is perturbed.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfnIuOqyHU4
Some nerve.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBTIOqvXLVe
I crash into my chair. Time to relax.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡO9RnaZNOqG
Never mind.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5XXj03gNH6
There's a knock at the door. Who could it be?718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQxDVsFFaIX
I go to answer it. Two girls. Blonde Sarah. Brunette Fiona. What the hell do they want?718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwEZWDE8VWL
The door swings open.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOPcUcIJwHr
"Heeeeey!" I hear both girls say.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGmyy2xiXhx
"Hello."718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgirDl7KXtc
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.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLt67r1X6aO
"Abuse! Abuse!" they say.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCpRqNltSNV
"What in the steamed hobo scarves are you two talking about?"718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUwLSGNyHCT
"Abuse! Dogs, cats, food, poop!"718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡecqkoMfz91
Anger rising. Rage-foam forming at the corners of my mouth. Feel my hands tremble. What is this?718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlMMoNFHqTS
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.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBqHroQqK2t
"Oh my god! Oh my god! Oh my god!" they squeal. "Abuse!"718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡr1pp2fWnP3
Grab for the nearest shoulder. Spin the girl around. Speak into her face, "There's no abuse here."718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡs52mPQMEYZ
Fiona cringes and backs away. Sarah and her exit the house.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRmCwQY30Lf
Wonder what sent them packing. My breath, perhaps? I ponder such trivialities as I return to my chair.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTjrIW3ZwUc
I gaze into the reflection of my mouse. I'm dressed like Spider-Man.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGaKN7IpYIj
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.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVCYfZN6CUq
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.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5MHUmKwmM2
Ginger is disturbed. Bear is perturbed.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfnIuOqyHU4
Some nerve.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBTIOqvXLVe
I crash into my chair. Time to relax.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡO9RnaZNOqG
Never mind.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5XXj03gNH6
There's a knock at the door. Who could it be?718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQxDVsFFaIX
I go to answer it. Two girls. Blonde Sarah. Brunette Fiona. What the hell do they want?718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwEZWDE8VWL
The door swings open.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOPcUcIJwHr
"Heeeeey!" I hear both girls say.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGmyy2xiXhx
"Hello."718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgirDl7KXtc
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.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLt67r1X6aO
"Abuse! Abuse!" they say.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCpRqNltSNV
"What in the steamed hobo scarves are you two talking about?"718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUwLSGNyHCT
"Abuse! Dogs, cats, food, poop!"718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡecqkoMfz91
Anger rising. Rage-foam forming at the corners of my mouth. Feel my hands tremble. What is this?718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlMMoNFHqTS
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.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBqHroQqK2t
"Oh my god! Oh my god! Oh my god!" they squeal. "Abuse!"718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡr1pp2fWnP3
Grab for the nearest shoulder. Spin the girl around. Speak into her face, "There's no abuse here."718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡs52mPQMEYZ
Fiona cringes and backs away. Sarah and her exit the house.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRmCwQY30Lf
Wonder what sent them packing. My breath, perhaps? I ponder such trivialities as I return to my chair.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTjrIW3ZwUc
I gaze into the reflection of my mouse. I'm dressed like Spider-Man.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGaKN7IpYIj
Huh. Funny dat.
718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxtaA1cynbG
718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlnRRPyRFYO
4
718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVzbw5gV0S2
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?718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqIbUS3BEXp
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.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBUNNHZSyGq
"Hey, Nick."718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuew5hA8WIy
"Hey, Mike."718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBX1B8EEMnE
"What's good?"718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoOyHGpTqh6
"Not much," he says with a sigh.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIPFUWloIjf
"How come?"718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVHGWcJKCGy
"Trouble is coming." He casts paranoid glances around and around.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡChDVzSNhxD
"Where?"718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZWTwctDokU
"There." Nick aims a finger to my right, past my shoulder. 718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjKSlxSfY8e
Some wannabe-badass teen who walks from the portable classrooms to where Nick and I are standing. Under the sycamore tree.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4R79XilVXg
"Who's he?" I ask.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ35bQx3lijk
"Stanley," Wannabe says.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFBjU8sYFos
"Oh."718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡV1lyfjcik1
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.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzkkc4Meo8y
I knew a tirade was coming. I was right.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvDi8t5ZGF6
"Becky says I can't smoke my Camels anymore. Dumb bitch. I smoke what I want to smoke. I'm hard."718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1WAcF1e0rh
Nick nods but doesn't say anything. I follow suit.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjBSZY9sWfs
Stanley looks at me with contempt. "Who the shit are you?"718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVbQYrTyjZ7
"Mike."718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVwQNQFJxWS
"Yeah, well, I'm hard, Mike. Harder than you, okay?"718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0Y5X0UqkOv
I keep my yap shut.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPBsBSpGXCK
"Yeah, I'm hard, alright. I'm the baddest kid around." Stanley takes a long drag off his cigarette.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡz5e6SBDXut
He is a kid, alright. I say nothing.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDXsmbHeCJP
Stanley offers the smoke to Nick, who declines.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBVE8ccmLtc
"Alright, bitch. Suit yourself." Another pull.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvRaYcFpUFx
"Anything in that thing?" I ask him.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPGyJpgrMMG
"Like what? LSD?"718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBu4F9tQHtf
Sarcasm. Or maybe just stupid. Acid is destroyed at burning temperature. "No. Weed," I say.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjrHf0lqi1V
"I don't smoke that shit, bro. Not yet."718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcJW6WfII7q
I laugh. What a badass. Wannabe badass. Plans his drug-induced future. What. When. Where. Why. How. Please.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoUqMqRocyQ
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!"718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzf8Z2q2roU
Everything changes then.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡG6nrWMvEai
Kids come scurrying out of every hideaway hole and hovel imaginable.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡD4ijjaiLu4
Stanley gives me a hard shove. 718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCjnmYU0EYE
I fall on my ass, quickly get to my feet and try to run.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5ZUFhj3SCz
Too many kids. In the way. "Move!" I say. 718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0c4Cdf4fm4
No one listens. They laugh.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaJXCxrEUH5
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!718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ562qI9erer
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.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRzjKDevHbT
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.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡShVqvyVAcx
A pull.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡi0XIO9YyLF
Rip.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnUTt5Mq5SU
RIP.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8TnLQ3R2ZZ
I'm dead.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAmdaLk50vM
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.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBUNNHZSyGq
"Hey, Nick."718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuew5hA8WIy
"Hey, Mike."718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBX1B8EEMnE
"What's good?"718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoOyHGpTqh6
"Not much," he says with a sigh.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIPFUWloIjf
"How come?"718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVHGWcJKCGy
"Trouble is coming." He casts paranoid glances around and around.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡChDVzSNhxD
"Where?"718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZWTwctDokU
"There." Nick aims a finger to my right, past my shoulder. 718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjKSlxSfY8e
Some wannabe-badass teen who walks from the portable classrooms to where Nick and I are standing. Under the sycamore tree.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4R79XilVXg
"Who's he?" I ask.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ35bQx3lijk
"Stanley," Wannabe says.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFBjU8sYFos
"Oh."718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡV1lyfjcik1
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.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzkkc4Meo8y
I knew a tirade was coming. I was right.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvDi8t5ZGF6
"Becky says I can't smoke my Camels anymore. Dumb bitch. I smoke what I want to smoke. I'm hard."718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1WAcF1e0rh
Nick nods but doesn't say anything. I follow suit.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjBSZY9sWfs
Stanley looks at me with contempt. "Who the shit are you?"718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVbQYrTyjZ7
"Mike."718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVwQNQFJxWS
"Yeah, well, I'm hard, Mike. Harder than you, okay?"718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0Y5X0UqkOv
I keep my yap shut.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPBsBSpGXCK
"Yeah, I'm hard, alright. I'm the baddest kid around." Stanley takes a long drag off his cigarette.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡz5e6SBDXut
He is a kid, alright. I say nothing.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDXsmbHeCJP
Stanley offers the smoke to Nick, who declines.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBVE8ccmLtc
"Alright, bitch. Suit yourself." Another pull.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvRaYcFpUFx
"Anything in that thing?" I ask him.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPGyJpgrMMG
"Like what? LSD?"718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBu4F9tQHtf
Sarcasm. Or maybe just stupid. Acid is destroyed at burning temperature. "No. Weed," I say.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjrHf0lqi1V
"I don't smoke that shit, bro. Not yet."718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcJW6WfII7q
I laugh. What a badass. Wannabe badass. Plans his drug-induced future. What. When. Where. Why. How. Please.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoUqMqRocyQ
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!"718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzf8Z2q2roU
Everything changes then.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡG6nrWMvEai
Kids come scurrying out of every hideaway hole and hovel imaginable.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡD4ijjaiLu4
Stanley gives me a hard shove. 718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCjnmYU0EYE
I fall on my ass, quickly get to my feet and try to run.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5ZUFhj3SCz
Too many kids. In the way. "Move!" I say. 718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0c4Cdf4fm4
No one listens. They laugh.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaJXCxrEUH5
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!718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ562qI9erer
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.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRzjKDevHbT
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.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡShVqvyVAcx
A pull.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡi0XIO9YyLF
Rip.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnUTt5Mq5SU
RIP.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8TnLQ3R2ZZ
I'm dead.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAmdaLk50vM
In bed.
718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCXWYDQJv3L
718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡE2d9GE1Db0
?
718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRQaVd2XCXU
THE Rain Has Fallen.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjWAFMkotxW
No. That's not it.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡo0TNDFI8nm
They Came After The Rain.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhJvGeXa0xk
There it is.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJM9CNWM0f4
That's the one.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWQwzZaHXTp
The end.
ns3.135.209.247da2 No. That's not it.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡo0TNDFI8nm
They Came After The Rain.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhJvGeXa0xk
There it is.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJM9CNWM0f4
That's the one.718Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWQwzZaHXTp
The end.
