824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFbJSDhvJIw
-
824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDFD95ZGkhH
DREAMS don't make sense. Yes, they do. No, they don't. Here, I'll prove it to you.
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824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXa5Klu51lg
824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXa5Klu51lg
824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSB5R6A9y4W
I'M in the living room, sitting on the couch with my father, watching Corner Gas reruns on the TV. So far, so normal. 824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡln67LtPxTY
Dad turns to me and says, "You look sleepy. Mike. You've got a vein on your forehead."824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlOJq3nXN2v
"Oh, yeah? Bizarre."824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3DyohVLjrl
"Yeah."824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0G6r4PQBux
"Ponderous, father," I say. "Simply ponderous."824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ181FJTBGZ1
"Something you want to talk about?"824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjqCIWY0w1o
"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.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡp8Ohxn4mky
"I know," Dad says. "You're fading away."824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjtljtSSCud
"I know," I say. "It isn't fair."824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxCxbZa4vGE
"Maybe you should go to sleep," Dad offers.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFpEvVlfwJg
I consider the offer. 824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCDOaTtHB59
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.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJeyTAoElyX
I say, "You know what? Maybe you're right. I am tired."824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8n45ML6uZt
"Good. Go to sleep."824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEM6JO9eId8
Suddenly, the mirror me is no more. Vanished. Into thin air. Into nothingness. I've faded away.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbzgCjFMEZk
"I'm gone!" I say, not trying in the slightest to keep the astonishment out of my voice.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtAxCrkNVQO
Dad says, "That's what you get, Mike. You're dead."
824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQ00V5SdGHdDad turns to me and says, "You look sleepy. Mike. You've got a vein on your forehead."824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlOJq3nXN2v
"Oh, yeah? Bizarre."824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3DyohVLjrl
"Yeah."824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0G6r4PQBux
"Ponderous, father," I say. "Simply ponderous."824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ181FJTBGZ1
"Something you want to talk about?"824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjqCIWY0w1o
"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.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡp8Ohxn4mky
"I know," Dad says. "You're fading away."824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjtljtSSCud
"I know," I say. "It isn't fair."824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxCxbZa4vGE
"Maybe you should go to sleep," Dad offers.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFpEvVlfwJg
I consider the offer. 824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCDOaTtHB59
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.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJeyTAoElyX
I say, "You know what? Maybe you're right. I am tired."824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8n45ML6uZt
"Good. Go to sleep."824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEM6JO9eId8
Suddenly, the mirror me is no more. Vanished. Into thin air. Into nothingness. I've faded away.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbzgCjFMEZk
"I'm gone!" I say, not trying in the slightest to keep the astonishment out of my voice.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtAxCrkNVQO
Dad says, "That's what you get, Mike. You're dead."
2824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuG9fhY1tCy
824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡO0rqZTl5zZ
824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡO0rqZTl5zZ
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.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCM457xl0np
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.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡb3J6rA58nk
"Prick!" says my old friend Brandon from behind. "God damned Russian prick!"824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZ51hA0SdRw
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.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKmtiO4Mtdr
The doll takes the abuse admirably, if I do say so. It doesn't even make a peep.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSud6bveoWr
"That's what you get for hitting my sister! Potato water–drinker! Snow-sucker! Filth! Rubbish! Filth!"824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7E5vXor2gz
I'm confused. The more Brandon talks, the less Brandon sounds like Brandon.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPHn5xwtx1j
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.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkn1syFFZwj
"Filth! Rubbish! Filth!" is heard amidst cheers of "You get 'em, Branflakes!" and "Go, you!"824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9rVv5MGn2U
I shake my head and roll my eyes just as Brandon's dad, Brian, walks by.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0tYuKbsgTM
"Drugs," he says cryptically.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡo7RswQI8cX
"Hmm?" I ask.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaf6L5IGIM1
"You heard me. Get out!" he screams, pointing to the front door.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5jzzhaWSI7
I ignore him and he walks onward, sitting in a rocking chair where he begins to knit an ugly ball of yarn.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXlvR5fdMwQ
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?"824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6FafV8mCfx
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.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgLgC3RitnY
"I've been writing," I say, growing excited. I'm starved for human contact and connections.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoj8egZeLyy
"Oh yeah? Like a novel?"824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVjAPvCreCI
"I wish. No. I've been working on one but I haven't finished it yet. Short stories, I guess."824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7Ro5AF2k2Q
"So, how long are you?"824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhi3k26TuwE
"I dunno. 14 pages, I think?"824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfEFI3ZpDco
"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.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtq3neVJ1yT
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.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡb3J6rA58nk
"Prick!" says my old friend Brandon from behind. "God damned Russian prick!"824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZ51hA0SdRw
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.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKmtiO4Mtdr
The doll takes the abuse admirably, if I do say so. It doesn't even make a peep.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSud6bveoWr
"That's what you get for hitting my sister! Potato water–drinker! Snow-sucker! Filth! Rubbish! Filth!"824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7E5vXor2gz
I'm confused. The more Brandon talks, the less Brandon sounds like Brandon.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPHn5xwtx1j
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.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkn1syFFZwj
"Filth! Rubbish! Filth!" is heard amidst cheers of "You get 'em, Branflakes!" and "Go, you!"824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9rVv5MGn2U
I shake my head and roll my eyes just as Brandon's dad, Brian, walks by.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0tYuKbsgTM
"Drugs," he says cryptically.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡo7RswQI8cX
"Hmm?" I ask.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaf6L5IGIM1
"You heard me. Get out!" he screams, pointing to the front door.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5jzzhaWSI7
I ignore him and he walks onward, sitting in a rocking chair where he begins to knit an ugly ball of yarn.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXlvR5fdMwQ
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?"824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6FafV8mCfx
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.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgLgC3RitnY
"I've been writing," I say, growing excited. I'm starved for human contact and connections.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoj8egZeLyy
"Oh yeah? Like a novel?"824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVjAPvCreCI
"I wish. No. I've been working on one but I haven't finished it yet. Short stories, I guess."824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7Ro5AF2k2Q
"So, how long are you?"824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhi3k26TuwE
"I dunno. 14 pages, I think?"824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfEFI3ZpDco
"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.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtq3neVJ1yT
Bitch.
824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhdapBBEj3E
824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZLHQIUXnMV
3824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡldi0K8SpPL
824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGee0rryJhU
824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGee0rryJhU
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.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡX20KKiKVtL
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.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6B3I8nFBGh
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.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMAD0Oy1uq1
Ginger is disturbed. Bear is perturbed.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡb1pMau5mQB
Some nerve.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡet7fQNeuYm
I crash into my chair. Time to relax.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡd83fQQcxAj
Never mind.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGFgmsLkHoj
There's a knock at the door. Who could it be?824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiV8ScSSZrm
I go to answer it. Two girls. Blonde Sarah. Brunette Fiona. What the hell do they want?824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpUggqK1xIS
The door swings open.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcMTqr6M3fu
"Heeeeey!" I hear both girls say.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdTnTN68XLU
"Hello."824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeGjvphozJe
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.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ93ocOhudX3
"Abuse! Abuse!" they say.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRMsizoqYCi
"What in the steamed hobo scarves are you two talking about?"824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVRMhKCAUHZ
"Abuse! Dogs, cats, food, poop!"824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCd9BUvvKlm
Anger rising. Rage-foam forming at the corners of my mouth. Feel my hands tremble. What is this?824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJByd5LQ1dS
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.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYB1CgmhYPO
"Oh my god! Oh my god! Oh my god!" they squeal. "Abuse!"824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxh0OpD8YKH
Grab for the nearest shoulder. Spin the girl around. Speak into her face, "There's no abuse here."824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡE0TmFUJJ0s
Fiona cringes and backs away. Sarah and her exit the house.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyfr4j4NOVV
Wonder what sent them packing. My breath, perhaps? I ponder such trivialities as I return to my chair.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡe14IxWP3Nb
I gaze into the reflection of my mouse. I'm dressed like Spider-Man.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCEjsTc7upJ
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.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6B3I8nFBGh
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.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMAD0Oy1uq1
Ginger is disturbed. Bear is perturbed.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡb1pMau5mQB
Some nerve.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡet7fQNeuYm
I crash into my chair. Time to relax.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡd83fQQcxAj
Never mind.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGFgmsLkHoj
There's a knock at the door. Who could it be?824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiV8ScSSZrm
I go to answer it. Two girls. Blonde Sarah. Brunette Fiona. What the hell do they want?824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpUggqK1xIS
The door swings open.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcMTqr6M3fu
"Heeeeey!" I hear both girls say.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdTnTN68XLU
"Hello."824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeGjvphozJe
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.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ93ocOhudX3
"Abuse! Abuse!" they say.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRMsizoqYCi
"What in the steamed hobo scarves are you two talking about?"824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVRMhKCAUHZ
"Abuse! Dogs, cats, food, poop!"824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCd9BUvvKlm
Anger rising. Rage-foam forming at the corners of my mouth. Feel my hands tremble. What is this?824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJByd5LQ1dS
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.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYB1CgmhYPO
"Oh my god! Oh my god! Oh my god!" they squeal. "Abuse!"824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxh0OpD8YKH
Grab for the nearest shoulder. Spin the girl around. Speak into her face, "There's no abuse here."824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡE0TmFUJJ0s
Fiona cringes and backs away. Sarah and her exit the house.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyfr4j4NOVV
Wonder what sent them packing. My breath, perhaps? I ponder such trivialities as I return to my chair.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡe14IxWP3Nb
I gaze into the reflection of my mouse. I'm dressed like Spider-Man.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCEjsTc7upJ
Huh. Funny dat.
824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMsdznkqJgB
824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4gkvbCArzt
4
824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZs8DEdLyP6
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?824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGI0hxjClnh
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.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGSkJtAT2lR
"Hey, Nick."824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡd8xhPXQGow
"Hey, Mike."824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgBMP6wgVBj
"What's good?"824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8T2JWkr5na
"Not much," he says with a sigh.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6lAZW10UYL
"How come?"824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwIR8gqYx4l
"Trouble is coming." He casts paranoid glances around and around.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYZOa6E3pIe
"Where?"824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgTjPaOVA6m
"There." Nick aims a finger to my right, past my shoulder. 824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡH5b89ho7JC
Some wannabe-badass teen who walks from the portable classrooms to where Nick and I are standing. Under the sycamore tree.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡB6itM7m545
"Who's he?" I ask.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiwnsd8SNRS
"Stanley," Wannabe says.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ50zEUWnskk
"Oh."824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFh6FsUNiJV
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.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4Ip3BTHWau
I knew a tirade was coming. I was right.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmEhmK98DEp
"Becky says I can't smoke my Camels anymore. Dumb bitch. I smoke what I want to smoke. I'm hard."824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFZ99Rtd40s
Nick nods but doesn't say anything. I follow suit.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLyu3ZFAaZA
Stanley looks at me with contempt. "Who the shit are you?"824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡls9bRwkYGv
"Mike."824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzu1XHJ5Tck
"Yeah, well, I'm hard, Mike. Harder than you, okay?"824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2fVcUJB5Kz
I keep my yap shut.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkUEcE13PIk
"Yeah, I'm hard, alright. I'm the baddest kid around." Stanley takes a long drag off his cigarette.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCCBaQEMy84
He is a kid, alright. I say nothing.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOpuYoSJVHg
Stanley offers the smoke to Nick, who declines.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIAmST5pXTJ
"Alright, bitch. Suit yourself." Another pull.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdZ5dvgOxkO
"Anything in that thing?" I ask him.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZAwji1w1pA
"Like what? LSD?"824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ94etHEOOHx
Sarcasm. Or maybe just stupid. Acid is destroyed at burning temperature. "No. Weed," I say.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLm36HtyoVD
"I don't smoke that shit, bro. Not yet."824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuNcVlrVqPw
I laugh. What a badass. Wannabe badass. Plans his drug-induced future. What. When. Where. Why. How. Please.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKQwKR1U3yf
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!"824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyQ4vv5Oe5l
Everything changes then.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOGpeUYzjqs
Kids come scurrying out of every hideaway hole and hovel imaginable.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡd53N3jY4Ra
Stanley gives me a hard shove. 824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyymekDsFRl
I fall on my ass, quickly get to my feet and try to run.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3xW2pM2YVX
Too many kids. In the way. "Move!" I say. 824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwwPDQdEULp
No one listens. They laugh.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJG0tCwtoyT
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!824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnxlPiC4CFk
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.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡU0VcuBICOS
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.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWHYH0qiZkQ
A pull.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9MSpi7wtGI
Rip.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡw3l76PYA3A
RIP.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡao0HAyftyw
I'm dead.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGI3vpieVbz
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.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGSkJtAT2lR
"Hey, Nick."824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡd8xhPXQGow
"Hey, Mike."824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgBMP6wgVBj
"What's good?"824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8T2JWkr5na
"Not much," he says with a sigh.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6lAZW10UYL
"How come?"824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwIR8gqYx4l
"Trouble is coming." He casts paranoid glances around and around.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYZOa6E3pIe
"Where?"824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgTjPaOVA6m
"There." Nick aims a finger to my right, past my shoulder. 824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡH5b89ho7JC
Some wannabe-badass teen who walks from the portable classrooms to where Nick and I are standing. Under the sycamore tree.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡB6itM7m545
"Who's he?" I ask.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiwnsd8SNRS
"Stanley," Wannabe says.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ50zEUWnskk
"Oh."824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFh6FsUNiJV
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.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4Ip3BTHWau
I knew a tirade was coming. I was right.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmEhmK98DEp
"Becky says I can't smoke my Camels anymore. Dumb bitch. I smoke what I want to smoke. I'm hard."824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFZ99Rtd40s
Nick nods but doesn't say anything. I follow suit.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLyu3ZFAaZA
Stanley looks at me with contempt. "Who the shit are you?"824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡls9bRwkYGv
"Mike."824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzu1XHJ5Tck
"Yeah, well, I'm hard, Mike. Harder than you, okay?"824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2fVcUJB5Kz
I keep my yap shut.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkUEcE13PIk
"Yeah, I'm hard, alright. I'm the baddest kid around." Stanley takes a long drag off his cigarette.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCCBaQEMy84
He is a kid, alright. I say nothing.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOpuYoSJVHg
Stanley offers the smoke to Nick, who declines.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIAmST5pXTJ
"Alright, bitch. Suit yourself." Another pull.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdZ5dvgOxkO
"Anything in that thing?" I ask him.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZAwji1w1pA
"Like what? LSD?"824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ94etHEOOHx
Sarcasm. Or maybe just stupid. Acid is destroyed at burning temperature. "No. Weed," I say.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLm36HtyoVD
"I don't smoke that shit, bro. Not yet."824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuNcVlrVqPw
I laugh. What a badass. Wannabe badass. Plans his drug-induced future. What. When. Where. Why. How. Please.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKQwKR1U3yf
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!"824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyQ4vv5Oe5l
Everything changes then.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOGpeUYzjqs
Kids come scurrying out of every hideaway hole and hovel imaginable.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡd53N3jY4Ra
Stanley gives me a hard shove. 824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyymekDsFRl
I fall on my ass, quickly get to my feet and try to run.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3xW2pM2YVX
Too many kids. In the way. "Move!" I say. 824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwwPDQdEULp
No one listens. They laugh.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJG0tCwtoyT
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!824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnxlPiC4CFk
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.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡU0VcuBICOS
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.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWHYH0qiZkQ
A pull.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9MSpi7wtGI
Rip.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡw3l76PYA3A
RIP.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡao0HAyftyw
I'm dead.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGI3vpieVbz
In bed.
824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsmjPbLdrwM
824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGA2MicnX1K
?
824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpiAuo4jsBV
THE Rain Has Fallen.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4UYSsfCGrs
No. That's not it.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8nwG1ywnF3
They Came After The Rain.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡREUiJ3QIVd
There it is.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡf2PS0evPIY
That's the one.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpztpqWCDkw
The end.
ns216.73.216.82da2 No. That's not it.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8nwG1ywnF3
They Came After The Rain.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡREUiJ3QIVd
There it is.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡf2PS0evPIY
That's the one.824Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpztpqWCDkw
The end.
