713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzJy33sj7B9
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713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzwTsH8HkA0
DREAMS don't make sense. Yes, they do. No, they don't. Here, I'll prove it to you.
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1713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡd6UezVVZtt
713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiSYBwyRTs4
713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiSYBwyRTs4
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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. 713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVcr0QYP6CR
Dad turns to me and says, "You look sleepy. Mike. You've got a vein on your forehead."713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeeVDkseGmX
"Oh, yeah? Bizarre."713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBSzUir1YSl
"Yeah."713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnQFVNULnVC
"Ponderous, father," I say. "Simply ponderous."713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdcFIZ6dasK
"Something you want to talk about?"713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGaVpmabKih
"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.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWAUnKnIDrw
"I know," Dad says. "You're fading away."713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJbXhcQaMlT
"I know," I say. "It isn't fair."713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡynoK55m2Bz
"Maybe you should go to sleep," Dad offers.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4tmLYHkKt9
I consider the offer. 713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡasqG8Sp5Z4
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.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWhq8h27Sc1
I say, "You know what? Maybe you're right. I am tired."713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKYh262sekS
"Good. Go to sleep."713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2ZqInGrd2f
Suddenly, the mirror me is no more. Vanished. Into thin air. Into nothingness. I've faded away.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7SPDXjicXc
"I'm gone!" I say, not trying in the slightest to keep the astonishment out of my voice.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4qfFfneBOn
Dad says, "That's what you get, Mike. You're dead."
713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNbrBZKbPJUDad turns to me and says, "You look sleepy. Mike. You've got a vein on your forehead."713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeeVDkseGmX
"Oh, yeah? Bizarre."713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBSzUir1YSl
"Yeah."713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnQFVNULnVC
"Ponderous, father," I say. "Simply ponderous."713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdcFIZ6dasK
"Something you want to talk about?"713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGaVpmabKih
"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.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWAUnKnIDrw
"I know," Dad says. "You're fading away."713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJbXhcQaMlT
"I know," I say. "It isn't fair."713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡynoK55m2Bz
"Maybe you should go to sleep," Dad offers.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4tmLYHkKt9
I consider the offer. 713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡasqG8Sp5Z4
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.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWhq8h27Sc1
I say, "You know what? Maybe you're right. I am tired."713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKYh262sekS
"Good. Go to sleep."713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2ZqInGrd2f
Suddenly, the mirror me is no more. Vanished. Into thin air. Into nothingness. I've faded away.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7SPDXjicXc
"I'm gone!" I say, not trying in the slightest to keep the astonishment out of my voice.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4qfFfneBOn
Dad says, "That's what you get, Mike. You're dead."
2713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8DR1iopa0e
713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2pcp06k1FA
713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2pcp06k1FA
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.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVS8S5khDGu
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.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyVzqqTNldS
"Prick!" says my old friend Brandon from behind. "God damned Russian prick!"713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmf7DgMxiHT
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.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOD5GEJEBmv
The doll takes the abuse admirably, if I do say so. It doesn't even make a peep.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEs4Ie94PUM
"That's what you get for hitting my sister! Potato water–drinker! Snow-sucker! Filth! Rubbish! Filth!"713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡD6wn9sjqdJ
I'm confused. The more Brandon talks, the less Brandon sounds like Brandon.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHihCqwWxqX
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.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡybdGxY3JkV
"Filth! Rubbish! Filth!" is heard amidst cheers of "You get 'em, Branflakes!" and "Go, you!"713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡw4CYgkteaa
I shake my head and roll my eyes just as Brandon's dad, Brian, walks by.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUPI18iOunZ
"Drugs," he says cryptically.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsrsqzMl0pf
"Hmm?" I ask.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡL5KzrS54c3
"You heard me. Get out!" he screams, pointing to the front door.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIc1Zj5e1db
I ignore him and he walks onward, sitting in a rocking chair where he begins to knit an ugly ball of yarn.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHkAuxY7Obo
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?"713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQilG792948
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.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡf3g1qV4WtE
"I've been writing," I say, growing excited. I'm starved for human contact and connections.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHv57l9KCdS
"Oh yeah? Like a novel?"713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡl0kQBpRt8e
"I wish. No. I've been working on one but I haven't finished it yet. Short stories, I guess."713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡic8JErv3ZP
"So, how long are you?"713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWabubssLis
"I dunno. 14 pages, I think?"713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡShkGebd74W
"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.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFgfB0OqQQE
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.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyVzqqTNldS
"Prick!" says my old friend Brandon from behind. "God damned Russian prick!"713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmf7DgMxiHT
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.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOD5GEJEBmv
The doll takes the abuse admirably, if I do say so. It doesn't even make a peep.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEs4Ie94PUM
"That's what you get for hitting my sister! Potato water–drinker! Snow-sucker! Filth! Rubbish! Filth!"713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡD6wn9sjqdJ
I'm confused. The more Brandon talks, the less Brandon sounds like Brandon.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHihCqwWxqX
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.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡybdGxY3JkV
"Filth! Rubbish! Filth!" is heard amidst cheers of "You get 'em, Branflakes!" and "Go, you!"713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡw4CYgkteaa
I shake my head and roll my eyes just as Brandon's dad, Brian, walks by.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUPI18iOunZ
"Drugs," he says cryptically.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsrsqzMl0pf
"Hmm?" I ask.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡL5KzrS54c3
"You heard me. Get out!" he screams, pointing to the front door.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIc1Zj5e1db
I ignore him and he walks onward, sitting in a rocking chair where he begins to knit an ugly ball of yarn.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHkAuxY7Obo
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?"713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQilG792948
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.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡf3g1qV4WtE
"I've been writing," I say, growing excited. I'm starved for human contact and connections.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHv57l9KCdS
"Oh yeah? Like a novel?"713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡl0kQBpRt8e
"I wish. No. I've been working on one but I haven't finished it yet. Short stories, I guess."713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡic8JErv3ZP
"So, how long are you?"713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWabubssLis
"I dunno. 14 pages, I think?"713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡShkGebd74W
"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.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFgfB0OqQQE
Bitch.
713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSGD5scVVkV
713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTVD8GQ7KfQ
3713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvAaqA4X9wl
713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvse6osHMj0
713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvse6osHMj0
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.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYHTci48mDb
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.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2XAB9w0CCp
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.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMkeGd4pvhz
Ginger is disturbed. Bear is perturbed.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBifU0kXjCl
Some nerve.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqZguTn6OwK
I crash into my chair. Time to relax.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKaGMNLma79
Never mind.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpFfh0hN5tV
There's a knock at the door. Who could it be?713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6vTNocmiul
I go to answer it. Two girls. Blonde Sarah. Brunette Fiona. What the hell do they want?713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtrM9Ut28WV
The door swings open.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdGzFCmkxOY
"Heeeeey!" I hear both girls say.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡp1YNJwDGY7
"Hello."713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1F86Yclt7W
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.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFKH7lLMriN
"Abuse! Abuse!" they say.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaiCon0UYLW
"What in the steamed hobo scarves are you two talking about?"713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXKapNvLcxn
"Abuse! Dogs, cats, food, poop!"713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3AhdRDMPUo
Anger rising. Rage-foam forming at the corners of my mouth. Feel my hands tremble. What is this?713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTvLHcy7Ip4
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.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZFeQxbIG4x
"Oh my god! Oh my god! Oh my god!" they squeal. "Abuse!"713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQsF21BYYXS
Grab for the nearest shoulder. Spin the girl around. Speak into her face, "There's no abuse here."713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5chCKBvBgF
Fiona cringes and backs away. Sarah and her exit the house.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpo9XJgcqf3
Wonder what sent them packing. My breath, perhaps? I ponder such trivialities as I return to my chair.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8roTTSb7x3
I gaze into the reflection of my mouse. I'm dressed like Spider-Man.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsDCQA0KDFS
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.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2XAB9w0CCp
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.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMkeGd4pvhz
Ginger is disturbed. Bear is perturbed.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBifU0kXjCl
Some nerve.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqZguTn6OwK
I crash into my chair. Time to relax.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKaGMNLma79
Never mind.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpFfh0hN5tV
There's a knock at the door. Who could it be?713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6vTNocmiul
I go to answer it. Two girls. Blonde Sarah. Brunette Fiona. What the hell do they want?713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtrM9Ut28WV
The door swings open.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdGzFCmkxOY
"Heeeeey!" I hear both girls say.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡp1YNJwDGY7
"Hello."713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1F86Yclt7W
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.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFKH7lLMriN
"Abuse! Abuse!" they say.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaiCon0UYLW
"What in the steamed hobo scarves are you two talking about?"713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXKapNvLcxn
"Abuse! Dogs, cats, food, poop!"713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3AhdRDMPUo
Anger rising. Rage-foam forming at the corners of my mouth. Feel my hands tremble. What is this?713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTvLHcy7Ip4
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.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZFeQxbIG4x
"Oh my god! Oh my god! Oh my god!" they squeal. "Abuse!"713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQsF21BYYXS
Grab for the nearest shoulder. Spin the girl around. Speak into her face, "There's no abuse here."713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5chCKBvBgF
Fiona cringes and backs away. Sarah and her exit the house.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpo9XJgcqf3
Wonder what sent them packing. My breath, perhaps? I ponder such trivialities as I return to my chair.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8roTTSb7x3
I gaze into the reflection of my mouse. I'm dressed like Spider-Man.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsDCQA0KDFS
Huh. Funny dat.
713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8mkL7BIB0f
713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqZasChxfeo
4
713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUHpbJwa6kG
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?713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvqsE46WftW
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.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVnwj9ZP9F5
"Hey, Nick."713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLuX4z2Q6HY
"Hey, Mike."713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgYKhEnqg4Z
"What's good?"713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkIewflyP43
"Not much," he says with a sigh.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLXZLcJ8wVh
"How come?"713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSCYYvjkzKy
"Trouble is coming." He casts paranoid glances around and around.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfEKYcWIbN2
"Where?"713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0nrvmy0nie
"There." Nick aims a finger to my right, past my shoulder. 713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzIJ9fdO1Yt
Some wannabe-badass teen who walks from the portable classrooms to where Nick and I are standing. Under the sycamore tree.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQUuadJFwXN
"Who's he?" I ask.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEpcKz4C5Xu
"Stanley," Wannabe says.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡd8SxbqzsED
"Oh."713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLuylbw0N6h
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.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKCxVoriQtm
I knew a tirade was coming. I was right.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8JMpq8Vryy
"Becky says I can't smoke my Camels anymore. Dumb bitch. I smoke what I want to smoke. I'm hard."713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUUyjISQALa
Nick nods but doesn't say anything. I follow suit.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1WcxHWsuAC
Stanley looks at me with contempt. "Who the shit are you?"713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbUdfEYbKKF
"Mike."713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJUkdW8S0vy
"Yeah, well, I'm hard, Mike. Harder than you, okay?"713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtux1P47ep1
I keep my yap shut.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNELidsET6w
"Yeah, I'm hard, alright. I'm the baddest kid around." Stanley takes a long drag off his cigarette.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUi9xWIPOwl
He is a kid, alright. I say nothing.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiPPvVXpi4S
Stanley offers the smoke to Nick, who declines.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgNa0PXeUEV
"Alright, bitch. Suit yourself." Another pull.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8QG47AvEBQ
"Anything in that thing?" I ask him.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsJ5EUFpjvF
"Like what? LSD?"713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzYsx6m4h5F
Sarcasm. Or maybe just stupid. Acid is destroyed at burning temperature. "No. Weed," I say.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnujnjMDVrz
"I don't smoke that shit, bro. Not yet."713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0X1ZvA5Gm4
I laugh. What a badass. Wannabe badass. Plans his drug-induced future. What. When. Where. Why. How. Please.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGnDz7EV4kB
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!"713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡz3HpAtS1BG
Everything changes then.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4HxuK7LpDS
Kids come scurrying out of every hideaway hole and hovel imaginable.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8BeMRyyoFr
Stanley gives me a hard shove. 713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfLAX4mMVlo
I fall on my ass, quickly get to my feet and try to run.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmgu8Z0FSvj
Too many kids. In the way. "Move!" I say. 713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡA3JKUER4j2
No one listens. They laugh.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5StqiT3Ci7
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!713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfHrSDfiPwJ
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.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJ00SkAItbi
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.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSo8bjrgUqb
A pull.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvbKpqxQjXP
Rip.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKMeDOXLvWH
RIP.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZ4DPvvBUmN
I'm dead.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxnKLRgUvUH
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.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVnwj9ZP9F5
"Hey, Nick."713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLuX4z2Q6HY
"Hey, Mike."713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgYKhEnqg4Z
"What's good?"713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkIewflyP43
"Not much," he says with a sigh.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLXZLcJ8wVh
"How come?"713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSCYYvjkzKy
"Trouble is coming." He casts paranoid glances around and around.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfEKYcWIbN2
"Where?"713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0nrvmy0nie
"There." Nick aims a finger to my right, past my shoulder. 713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzIJ9fdO1Yt
Some wannabe-badass teen who walks from the portable classrooms to where Nick and I are standing. Under the sycamore tree.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQUuadJFwXN
"Who's he?" I ask.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEpcKz4C5Xu
"Stanley," Wannabe says.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡd8SxbqzsED
"Oh."713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLuylbw0N6h
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.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKCxVoriQtm
I knew a tirade was coming. I was right.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8JMpq8Vryy
"Becky says I can't smoke my Camels anymore. Dumb bitch. I smoke what I want to smoke. I'm hard."713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUUyjISQALa
Nick nods but doesn't say anything. I follow suit.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1WcxHWsuAC
Stanley looks at me with contempt. "Who the shit are you?"713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbUdfEYbKKF
"Mike."713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJUkdW8S0vy
"Yeah, well, I'm hard, Mike. Harder than you, okay?"713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtux1P47ep1
I keep my yap shut.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNELidsET6w
"Yeah, I'm hard, alright. I'm the baddest kid around." Stanley takes a long drag off his cigarette.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUi9xWIPOwl
He is a kid, alright. I say nothing.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiPPvVXpi4S
Stanley offers the smoke to Nick, who declines.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgNa0PXeUEV
"Alright, bitch. Suit yourself." Another pull.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8QG47AvEBQ
"Anything in that thing?" I ask him.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsJ5EUFpjvF
"Like what? LSD?"713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzYsx6m4h5F
Sarcasm. Or maybe just stupid. Acid is destroyed at burning temperature. "No. Weed," I say.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnujnjMDVrz
"I don't smoke that shit, bro. Not yet."713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0X1ZvA5Gm4
I laugh. What a badass. Wannabe badass. Plans his drug-induced future. What. When. Where. Why. How. Please.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGnDz7EV4kB
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!"713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡz3HpAtS1BG
Everything changes then.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4HxuK7LpDS
Kids come scurrying out of every hideaway hole and hovel imaginable.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8BeMRyyoFr
Stanley gives me a hard shove. 713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfLAX4mMVlo
I fall on my ass, quickly get to my feet and try to run.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmgu8Z0FSvj
Too many kids. In the way. "Move!" I say. 713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡA3JKUER4j2
No one listens. They laugh.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5StqiT3Ci7
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!713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfHrSDfiPwJ
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.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJ00SkAItbi
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.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSo8bjrgUqb
A pull.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvbKpqxQjXP
Rip.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKMeDOXLvWH
RIP.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZ4DPvvBUmN
I'm dead.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxnKLRgUvUH
In bed.
713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuO9TkPvpmc
713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjB1ueQgFBa
?
713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuua1FztqWL
THE Rain Has Fallen.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvXL3dWYGpp
No. That's not it.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡF6AEDGhz5A
They Came After The Rain.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhitCUoPHhq
There it is.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡs37lyrmYCN
That's the one.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjUqCpmmx1E
The end.
ns13.58.65.3da2 No. That's not it.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡF6AEDGhz5A
They Came After The Rain.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhitCUoPHhq
There it is.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡs37lyrmYCN
That's the one.713Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjUqCpmmx1E
The end.
