x
553Please respect copyright.PENANAzztXxdpZ94
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553Please respect copyright.PENANAW4L9Yh9NVI
DREAMS don't make sense. Yes, they do. No, they don't. Here, I'll prove it to you.
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I'M in the living room, sitting on the couch with my father, watching Corner Gas reruns on the TV. So far, so normal. 553Please respect copyright.PENANA4S5EmZwjNS
Dad turns to me and says, "You look sleepy. Mike. You've got a vein on your forehead."553Please respect copyright.PENANAQLLVd8mwiF
"Oh, yeah? Bizarre."553Please respect copyright.PENANAwrQ1RhxgT8
"Yeah."553Please respect copyright.PENANAnxlbJ3Tfea
"Ponderous, father," I say. "Simply ponderous."553Please respect copyright.PENANA9b3ijhvBIq
"Something you want to talk about?"553Please respect copyright.PENANAGytAU4pVrJ
"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.553Please respect copyright.PENANA5WTUUCN9kd
"I know," Dad says. "You're fading away."553Please respect copyright.PENANA7qyBY8WmT5
"I know," I say. "It isn't fair."553Please respect copyright.PENANAIb2raaQL1z
"Maybe you should go to sleep," Dad offers.553Please respect copyright.PENANA6K6tztN7Yo
I consider the offer. 553Please respect copyright.PENANAJGMFt5GziA
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.553Please respect copyright.PENANAPBzjOxXdUS
I say, "You know what? Maybe you're right. I am tired."553Please respect copyright.PENANAWq7yV3iwVQ
"Good. Go to sleep."553Please respect copyright.PENANADUaV9uQ15D
Suddenly, the mirror me is no more. Vanished. Into thin air. Into nothingness. I've faded away.553Please respect copyright.PENANAwA5jB53L2E
"I'm gone!" I say, not trying in the slightest to keep the astonishment out of my voice.553Please respect copyright.PENANATF34l4DtOx
Dad says, "That's what you get, Mike. You're dead."
553Please respect copyright.PENANAH8GUU7Zlr6Dad turns to me and says, "You look sleepy. Mike. You've got a vein on your forehead."553Please respect copyright.PENANAQLLVd8mwiF
"Oh, yeah? Bizarre."553Please respect copyright.PENANAwrQ1RhxgT8
"Yeah."553Please respect copyright.PENANAnxlbJ3Tfea
"Ponderous, father," I say. "Simply ponderous."553Please respect copyright.PENANA9b3ijhvBIq
"Something you want to talk about?"553Please respect copyright.PENANAGytAU4pVrJ
"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.553Please respect copyright.PENANA5WTUUCN9kd
"I know," Dad says. "You're fading away."553Please respect copyright.PENANA7qyBY8WmT5
"I know," I say. "It isn't fair."553Please respect copyright.PENANAIb2raaQL1z
"Maybe you should go to sleep," Dad offers.553Please respect copyright.PENANA6K6tztN7Yo
I consider the offer. 553Please respect copyright.PENANAJGMFt5GziA
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.553Please respect copyright.PENANAPBzjOxXdUS
I say, "You know what? Maybe you're right. I am tired."553Please respect copyright.PENANAWq7yV3iwVQ
"Good. Go to sleep."553Please respect copyright.PENANADUaV9uQ15D
Suddenly, the mirror me is no more. Vanished. Into thin air. Into nothingness. I've faded away.553Please respect copyright.PENANAwA5jB53L2E
"I'm gone!" I say, not trying in the slightest to keep the astonishment out of my voice.553Please respect copyright.PENANATF34l4DtOx
Dad says, "That's what you get, Mike. You're dead."
2553Please respect copyright.PENANAHV9fZtSSNa
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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.553Please respect copyright.PENANAgmDg9Vmt4a
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.553Please respect copyright.PENANA52P3boFPgJ
"Prick!" says my old friend Brandon from behind. "God damned Russian prick!"553Please respect copyright.PENANAx4NafoHqVk
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.553Please respect copyright.PENANA5tGSbczyt4
The doll takes the abuse admirably, if I do say so. It doesn't even make a peep.553Please respect copyright.PENANAozJzX6pEcU
"That's what you get for hitting my sister! Potato water–drinker! Snow-sucker! Filth! Rubbish! Filth!"553Please respect copyright.PENANAtoetzIOwte
I'm confused. The more Brandon talks, the less Brandon sounds like Brandon.553Please respect copyright.PENANAWBtiI1u2qy
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.553Please respect copyright.PENANAwYUuIPP2no
"Filth! Rubbish! Filth!" is heard amidst cheers of "You get 'em, Branflakes!" and "Go, you!"553Please respect copyright.PENANA6gt9e9wWeD
I shake my head and roll my eyes just as Brandon's dad, Brian, walks by.553Please respect copyright.PENANAaRQe5BCEAO
"Drugs," he says cryptically.553Please respect copyright.PENANApmCiXlGuA9
"Hmm?" I ask.553Please respect copyright.PENANAv32sOlbou1
"You heard me. Get out!" he screams, pointing to the front door.553Please respect copyright.PENANADvhJeuzZaW
I ignore him and he walks onward, sitting in a rocking chair where he begins to knit an ugly ball of yarn.553Please respect copyright.PENANAp17PGn4Nsx
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?"553Please respect copyright.PENANAIU3J1AJF7E
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.553Please respect copyright.PENANA2rxq8SNwp1
"I've been writing," I say, growing excited. I'm starved for human contact and connections.553Please respect copyright.PENANAtBFpRC2DRS
"Oh yeah? Like a novel?"553Please respect copyright.PENANAK8yxNZSeoP
"I wish. No. I've been working on one but I haven't finished it yet. Short stories, I guess."553Please respect copyright.PENANAxQp7STi2LG
"So, how long are you?"553Please respect copyright.PENANAGA4yvXFM61
"I dunno. 14 pages, I think?"553Please respect copyright.PENANAeb0Cm9g4mf
"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.553Please respect copyright.PENANA37RXWpDLMR
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.553Please respect copyright.PENANA52P3boFPgJ
"Prick!" says my old friend Brandon from behind. "God damned Russian prick!"553Please respect copyright.PENANAx4NafoHqVk
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.553Please respect copyright.PENANA5tGSbczyt4
The doll takes the abuse admirably, if I do say so. It doesn't even make a peep.553Please respect copyright.PENANAozJzX6pEcU
"That's what you get for hitting my sister! Potato water–drinker! Snow-sucker! Filth! Rubbish! Filth!"553Please respect copyright.PENANAtoetzIOwte
I'm confused. The more Brandon talks, the less Brandon sounds like Brandon.553Please respect copyright.PENANAWBtiI1u2qy
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.553Please respect copyright.PENANAwYUuIPP2no
"Filth! Rubbish! Filth!" is heard amidst cheers of "You get 'em, Branflakes!" and "Go, you!"553Please respect copyright.PENANA6gt9e9wWeD
I shake my head and roll my eyes just as Brandon's dad, Brian, walks by.553Please respect copyright.PENANAaRQe5BCEAO
"Drugs," he says cryptically.553Please respect copyright.PENANApmCiXlGuA9
"Hmm?" I ask.553Please respect copyright.PENANAv32sOlbou1
"You heard me. Get out!" he screams, pointing to the front door.553Please respect copyright.PENANADvhJeuzZaW
I ignore him and he walks onward, sitting in a rocking chair where he begins to knit an ugly ball of yarn.553Please respect copyright.PENANAp17PGn4Nsx
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?"553Please respect copyright.PENANAIU3J1AJF7E
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.553Please respect copyright.PENANA2rxq8SNwp1
"I've been writing," I say, growing excited. I'm starved for human contact and connections.553Please respect copyright.PENANAtBFpRC2DRS
"Oh yeah? Like a novel?"553Please respect copyright.PENANAK8yxNZSeoP
"I wish. No. I've been working on one but I haven't finished it yet. Short stories, I guess."553Please respect copyright.PENANAxQp7STi2LG
"So, how long are you?"553Please respect copyright.PENANAGA4yvXFM61
"I dunno. 14 pages, I think?"553Please respect copyright.PENANAeb0Cm9g4mf
"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.553Please respect copyright.PENANA37RXWpDLMR
Bitch.
553Please respect copyright.PENANAJSvwZEbVp4
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3553Please respect copyright.PENANAeb5WxPRYVq
553Please respect copyright.PENANAUcEDp8jMtm
553Please respect copyright.PENANAUcEDp8jMtm
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.553Please respect copyright.PENANADDGfYmrHZk
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.553Please respect copyright.PENANARVEoXYEIw2
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.553Please respect copyright.PENANARazRf4YlUH
Ginger is disturbed. Bear is perturbed.553Please respect copyright.PENANAnQcCWgtkVt
Some nerve.553Please respect copyright.PENANA7FEaxjQlry
I crash into my chair. Time to relax.553Please respect copyright.PENANAU5J372Cw8V
Never mind.553Please respect copyright.PENANA5yx2vpQUwK
There's a knock at the door. Who could it be?553Please respect copyright.PENANAfFSsB0kC6W
I go to answer it. Two girls. Blonde Sarah. Brunette Fiona. What the hell do they want?553Please respect copyright.PENANA8LP9gjopw7
The door swings open.553Please respect copyright.PENANASD7NOll9GQ
"Heeeeey!" I hear both girls say.553Please respect copyright.PENANAnQMtFuLJVp
"Hello."553Please respect copyright.PENANAEl7NKO8bCl
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.553Please respect copyright.PENANA3xyVPFmuG3
"Abuse! Abuse!" they say.553Please respect copyright.PENANA3jLKjWgmHl
"What in the steamed hobo scarves are you two talking about?"553Please respect copyright.PENANA3lJouWP8LL
"Abuse! Dogs, cats, food, poop!"553Please respect copyright.PENANAsb8JQjaZjH
Anger rising. Rage-foam forming at the corners of my mouth. Feel my hands tremble. What is this?553Please respect copyright.PENANA6LFi1jw3o0
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.553Please respect copyright.PENANAbeI2h4i8g2
"Oh my god! Oh my god! Oh my god!" they squeal. "Abuse!"553Please respect copyright.PENANAqMLkDUlCBX
Grab for the nearest shoulder. Spin the girl around. Speak into her face, "There's no abuse here."553Please respect copyright.PENANApDsgz7bEaP
Fiona cringes and backs away. Sarah and her exit the house.553Please respect copyright.PENANACFYtO8HL1x
Wonder what sent them packing. My breath, perhaps? I ponder such trivialities as I return to my chair.553Please respect copyright.PENANA6mmUv8uGOJ
I gaze into the reflection of my mouse. I'm dressed like Spider-Man.553Please respect copyright.PENANAdpXR1kwoE0
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.553Please respect copyright.PENANARVEoXYEIw2
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.553Please respect copyright.PENANARazRf4YlUH
Ginger is disturbed. Bear is perturbed.553Please respect copyright.PENANAnQcCWgtkVt
Some nerve.553Please respect copyright.PENANA7FEaxjQlry
I crash into my chair. Time to relax.553Please respect copyright.PENANAU5J372Cw8V
Never mind.553Please respect copyright.PENANA5yx2vpQUwK
There's a knock at the door. Who could it be?553Please respect copyright.PENANAfFSsB0kC6W
I go to answer it. Two girls. Blonde Sarah. Brunette Fiona. What the hell do they want?553Please respect copyright.PENANA8LP9gjopw7
The door swings open.553Please respect copyright.PENANASD7NOll9GQ
"Heeeeey!" I hear both girls say.553Please respect copyright.PENANAnQMtFuLJVp
"Hello."553Please respect copyright.PENANAEl7NKO8bCl
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.553Please respect copyright.PENANA3xyVPFmuG3
"Abuse! Abuse!" they say.553Please respect copyright.PENANA3jLKjWgmHl
"What in the steamed hobo scarves are you two talking about?"553Please respect copyright.PENANA3lJouWP8LL
"Abuse! Dogs, cats, food, poop!"553Please respect copyright.PENANAsb8JQjaZjH
Anger rising. Rage-foam forming at the corners of my mouth. Feel my hands tremble. What is this?553Please respect copyright.PENANA6LFi1jw3o0
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.553Please respect copyright.PENANAbeI2h4i8g2
"Oh my god! Oh my god! Oh my god!" they squeal. "Abuse!"553Please respect copyright.PENANAqMLkDUlCBX
Grab for the nearest shoulder. Spin the girl around. Speak into her face, "There's no abuse here."553Please respect copyright.PENANApDsgz7bEaP
Fiona cringes and backs away. Sarah and her exit the house.553Please respect copyright.PENANACFYtO8HL1x
Wonder what sent them packing. My breath, perhaps? I ponder such trivialities as I return to my chair.553Please respect copyright.PENANA6mmUv8uGOJ
I gaze into the reflection of my mouse. I'm dressed like Spider-Man.553Please respect copyright.PENANAdpXR1kwoE0
Huh. Funny dat.
553Please respect copyright.PENANAUbmNIRGNMz
553Please respect copyright.PENANAfq6W1eWnWG
4
553Please respect copyright.PENANAk2i72Wd0XH
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?553Please respect copyright.PENANAzkkONT6P2q
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.553Please respect copyright.PENANAgROTzNxqZ0
"Hey, Nick."553Please respect copyright.PENANA47zoFqcUnr
"Hey, Mike."553Please respect copyright.PENANA4jp7NVDD2e
"What's good?"553Please respect copyright.PENANAKI1LLiejVU
"Not much," he says with a sigh.553Please respect copyright.PENANA4huTsVIv6G
"How come?"553Please respect copyright.PENANAYjb7nmmT8R
"Trouble is coming." He casts paranoid glances around and around.553Please respect copyright.PENANAgypEHU9CBC
"Where?"553Please respect copyright.PENANA9cMNUTxSdb
"There." Nick aims a finger to my right, past my shoulder. 553Please respect copyright.PENANAW0EfaPnquS
Some wannabe-badass teen who walks from the portable classrooms to where Nick and I are standing. Under the sycamore tree.553Please respect copyright.PENANAwdxW5Ount1
"Who's he?" I ask.553Please respect copyright.PENANAgsSWYEjOp6
"Stanley," Wannabe says.553Please respect copyright.PENANAWAjaAJqwtW
"Oh."553Please respect copyright.PENANAfDTK0Lw0kG
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.553Please respect copyright.PENANAJOPdOfc1t5
I knew a tirade was coming. I was right.553Please respect copyright.PENANAenW3SSe4Mx
"Becky says I can't smoke my Camels anymore. Dumb bitch. I smoke what I want to smoke. I'm hard."553Please respect copyright.PENANAWgEyTjWoaf
Nick nods but doesn't say anything. I follow suit.553Please respect copyright.PENANAHbfuHEdr4W
Stanley looks at me with contempt. "Who the shit are you?"553Please respect copyright.PENANAI7q3PCX4l0
"Mike."553Please respect copyright.PENANAExxwx1DbHQ
"Yeah, well, I'm hard, Mike. Harder than you, okay?"553Please respect copyright.PENANA2kqb0FlAnp
I keep my yap shut.553Please respect copyright.PENANAnh535YM2yF
"Yeah, I'm hard, alright. I'm the baddest kid around." Stanley takes a long drag off his cigarette.553Please respect copyright.PENANAkCEClnX3xE
He is a kid, alright. I say nothing.553Please respect copyright.PENANA7MtojJBLKj
Stanley offers the smoke to Nick, who declines.553Please respect copyright.PENANAznXiQqtOH7
"Alright, bitch. Suit yourself." Another pull.553Please respect copyright.PENANAavB3benez2
"Anything in that thing?" I ask him.553Please respect copyright.PENANAIUSu5569qk
"Like what? LSD?"553Please respect copyright.PENANAQwT5QqobmM
Sarcasm. Or maybe just stupid. Acid is destroyed at burning temperature. "No. Weed," I say.553Please respect copyright.PENANALR9lKyHcMp
"I don't smoke that shit, bro. Not yet."553Please respect copyright.PENANAimtsuKmuOl
I laugh. What a badass. Wannabe badass. Plans his drug-induced future. What. When. Where. Why. How. Please.553Please respect copyright.PENANA2U5PMJnwcN
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!"553Please respect copyright.PENANAuzpU0JHN1t
Everything changes then.553Please respect copyright.PENANA7HRTUYuG9T
Kids come scurrying out of every hideaway hole and hovel imaginable.553Please respect copyright.PENANApZ6fApZByG
Stanley gives me a hard shove. 553Please respect copyright.PENANApAJT0DkdhP
I fall on my ass, quickly get to my feet and try to run.553Please respect copyright.PENANAQuF4wBLYuj
Too many kids. In the way. "Move!" I say. 553Please respect copyright.PENANAo8MMLXjjHB
No one listens. They laugh.553Please respect copyright.PENANAl2lQHyHNnd
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!553Please respect copyright.PENANANIo1e8mJm5
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.553Please respect copyright.PENANAjyoxuFiPS6
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.553Please respect copyright.PENANAf3qjDDCjqJ
A pull.553Please respect copyright.PENANAV63ZJvivak
Rip.553Please respect copyright.PENANAIp3yenQYui
RIP.553Please respect copyright.PENANANF3K7QfjO3
I'm dead.553Please respect copyright.PENANAfh9MVDOZJT
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.553Please respect copyright.PENANAgROTzNxqZ0
"Hey, Nick."553Please respect copyright.PENANA47zoFqcUnr
"Hey, Mike."553Please respect copyright.PENANA4jp7NVDD2e
"What's good?"553Please respect copyright.PENANAKI1LLiejVU
"Not much," he says with a sigh.553Please respect copyright.PENANA4huTsVIv6G
"How come?"553Please respect copyright.PENANAYjb7nmmT8R
"Trouble is coming." He casts paranoid glances around and around.553Please respect copyright.PENANAgypEHU9CBC
"Where?"553Please respect copyright.PENANA9cMNUTxSdb
"There." Nick aims a finger to my right, past my shoulder. 553Please respect copyright.PENANAW0EfaPnquS
Some wannabe-badass teen who walks from the portable classrooms to where Nick and I are standing. Under the sycamore tree.553Please respect copyright.PENANAwdxW5Ount1
"Who's he?" I ask.553Please respect copyright.PENANAgsSWYEjOp6
"Stanley," Wannabe says.553Please respect copyright.PENANAWAjaAJqwtW
"Oh."553Please respect copyright.PENANAfDTK0Lw0kG
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.553Please respect copyright.PENANAJOPdOfc1t5
I knew a tirade was coming. I was right.553Please respect copyright.PENANAenW3SSe4Mx
"Becky says I can't smoke my Camels anymore. Dumb bitch. I smoke what I want to smoke. I'm hard."553Please respect copyright.PENANAWgEyTjWoaf
Nick nods but doesn't say anything. I follow suit.553Please respect copyright.PENANAHbfuHEdr4W
Stanley looks at me with contempt. "Who the shit are you?"553Please respect copyright.PENANAI7q3PCX4l0
"Mike."553Please respect copyright.PENANAExxwx1DbHQ
"Yeah, well, I'm hard, Mike. Harder than you, okay?"553Please respect copyright.PENANA2kqb0FlAnp
I keep my yap shut.553Please respect copyright.PENANAnh535YM2yF
"Yeah, I'm hard, alright. I'm the baddest kid around." Stanley takes a long drag off his cigarette.553Please respect copyright.PENANAkCEClnX3xE
He is a kid, alright. I say nothing.553Please respect copyright.PENANA7MtojJBLKj
Stanley offers the smoke to Nick, who declines.553Please respect copyright.PENANAznXiQqtOH7
"Alright, bitch. Suit yourself." Another pull.553Please respect copyright.PENANAavB3benez2
"Anything in that thing?" I ask him.553Please respect copyright.PENANAIUSu5569qk
"Like what? LSD?"553Please respect copyright.PENANAQwT5QqobmM
Sarcasm. Or maybe just stupid. Acid is destroyed at burning temperature. "No. Weed," I say.553Please respect copyright.PENANALR9lKyHcMp
"I don't smoke that shit, bro. Not yet."553Please respect copyright.PENANAimtsuKmuOl
I laugh. What a badass. Wannabe badass. Plans his drug-induced future. What. When. Where. Why. How. Please.553Please respect copyright.PENANA2U5PMJnwcN
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!"553Please respect copyright.PENANAuzpU0JHN1t
Everything changes then.553Please respect copyright.PENANA7HRTUYuG9T
Kids come scurrying out of every hideaway hole and hovel imaginable.553Please respect copyright.PENANApZ6fApZByG
Stanley gives me a hard shove. 553Please respect copyright.PENANApAJT0DkdhP
I fall on my ass, quickly get to my feet and try to run.553Please respect copyright.PENANAQuF4wBLYuj
Too many kids. In the way. "Move!" I say. 553Please respect copyright.PENANAo8MMLXjjHB
No one listens. They laugh.553Please respect copyright.PENANAl2lQHyHNnd
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!553Please respect copyright.PENANANIo1e8mJm5
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.553Please respect copyright.PENANAjyoxuFiPS6
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.553Please respect copyright.PENANAf3qjDDCjqJ
A pull.553Please respect copyright.PENANAV63ZJvivak
Rip.553Please respect copyright.PENANAIp3yenQYui
RIP.553Please respect copyright.PENANANF3K7QfjO3
I'm dead.553Please respect copyright.PENANAfh9MVDOZJT
In bed.
553Please respect copyright.PENANAT10erfuKwm
553Please respect copyright.PENANA2Qlh1Wjk0p
?
553Please respect copyright.PENANAcHz2yAtqGO
THE Rain Has Fallen.553Please respect copyright.PENANAc0QwlxT6OE
No. That's not it.553Please respect copyright.PENANAdgQA75Vp9Z
They Came After The Rain.553Please respect copyright.PENANAhlnA7GYH3l
There it is.553Please respect copyright.PENANAs6hE5qWc3o
That's the one.553Please respect copyright.PENANAWxpKKpavgc
The end.
ns 172.70.131.183da2 No. That's not it.553Please respect copyright.PENANAdgQA75Vp9Z
They Came After The Rain.553Please respect copyright.PENANAhlnA7GYH3l
There it is.553Please respect copyright.PENANAs6hE5qWc3o
That's the one.553Please respect copyright.PENANAWxpKKpavgc
The end.