735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2Uuzl9vPTv
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735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvGJ3vBais6
DREAMS don't make sense. Yes, they do. No, they don't. Here, I'll prove it to you.
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzMu9VX23ut
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdv14YqnPZs
1735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡllN3IuczUo
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoSFrtJ1gJS
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoSFrtJ1gJS
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAaj20V6JVN
I'M in the living room, sitting on the couch with my father, watching Corner Gas reruns on the TV. So far, so normal. 735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqQB8AQgkUa
Dad turns to me and says, "You look sleepy. Mike. You've got a vein on your forehead."735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiYutacqjso
"Oh, yeah? Bizarre."735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1NUk4m8KPO
"Yeah."735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEr0gBoFp0l
"Ponderous, father," I say. "Simply ponderous."735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfjs2ZEawnL
"Something you want to talk about?"735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRbq1oOQ3Ps
"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.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEODiTSjj3c
"I know," Dad says. "You're fading away."735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtZ1Cexx2MO
"I know," I say. "It isn't fair."735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzJKzDXGlbm
"Maybe you should go to sleep," Dad offers.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ82UaYD14UD
I consider the offer. 735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡg00bKpj6gw
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.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1yEpmHAzhP
I say, "You know what? Maybe you're right. I am tired."735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGFqQq862mp
"Good. Go to sleep."735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiO2K1UKKQ4
Suddenly, the mirror me is no more. Vanished. Into thin air. Into nothingness. I've faded away.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuEiV7tzfH4
"I'm gone!" I say, not trying in the slightest to keep the astonishment out of my voice.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7QsiOoM9Ez
Dad says, "That's what you get, Mike. You're dead."
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡT1afOcqgnVDad turns to me and says, "You look sleepy. Mike. You've got a vein on your forehead."735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiYutacqjso
"Oh, yeah? Bizarre."735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1NUk4m8KPO
"Yeah."735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEr0gBoFp0l
"Ponderous, father," I say. "Simply ponderous."735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfjs2ZEawnL
"Something you want to talk about?"735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRbq1oOQ3Ps
"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.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEODiTSjj3c
"I know," Dad says. "You're fading away."735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtZ1Cexx2MO
"I know," I say. "It isn't fair."735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzJKzDXGlbm
"Maybe you should go to sleep," Dad offers.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ82UaYD14UD
I consider the offer. 735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡg00bKpj6gw
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.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1yEpmHAzhP
I say, "You know what? Maybe you're right. I am tired."735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGFqQq862mp
"Good. Go to sleep."735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiO2K1UKKQ4
Suddenly, the mirror me is no more. Vanished. Into thin air. Into nothingness. I've faded away.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuEiV7tzfH4
"I'm gone!" I say, not trying in the slightest to keep the astonishment out of my voice.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7QsiOoM9Ez
Dad says, "That's what you get, Mike. You're dead."
2735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeB1DIlUBZQ
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡB9A0XRSil0
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡB9A0XRSil0
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.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdUkX6A2Q90
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.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHncq9ZnCwm
"Prick!" says my old friend Brandon from behind. "God damned Russian prick!"735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ58zOTXgYyK
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.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAr5gy0rwg3
The doll takes the abuse admirably, if I do say so. It doesn't even make a peep.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZVtuF76ycr
"That's what you get for hitting my sister! Potato water–drinker! Snow-sucker! Filth! Rubbish! Filth!"735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJaq4kleBgZ
I'm confused. The more Brandon talks, the less Brandon sounds like Brandon.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCOiBSuCcOV
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.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡj0gCQlihcm
"Filth! Rubbish! Filth!" is heard amidst cheers of "You get 'em, Branflakes!" and "Go, you!"735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMPrknYBB5s
I shake my head and roll my eyes just as Brandon's dad, Brian, walks by.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ01a2q6lreE
"Drugs," he says cryptically.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyGaMj9UgSN
"Hmm?" I ask.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVk2dtDibo0
"You heard me. Get out!" he screams, pointing to the front door.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡREGmZtbV1w
I ignore him and he walks onward, sitting in a rocking chair where he begins to knit an ugly ball of yarn.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2XayJhqD6Z
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?"735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCdylrcOa40
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.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtpMjsR2sZn
"I've been writing," I say, growing excited. I'm starved for human contact and connections.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrOVW7ZCOCp
"Oh yeah? Like a novel?"735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8PXx7I0oqN
"I wish. No. I've been working on one but I haven't finished it yet. Short stories, I guess."735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgd8PL0zTSC
"So, how long are you?"735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7yKwVqZNhp
"I dunno. 14 pages, I think?"735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzb3LiEUk8a
"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.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsjgy61YVI4
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.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHncq9ZnCwm
"Prick!" says my old friend Brandon from behind. "God damned Russian prick!"735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ58zOTXgYyK
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.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAr5gy0rwg3
The doll takes the abuse admirably, if I do say so. It doesn't even make a peep.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZVtuF76ycr
"That's what you get for hitting my sister! Potato water–drinker! Snow-sucker! Filth! Rubbish! Filth!"735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJaq4kleBgZ
I'm confused. The more Brandon talks, the less Brandon sounds like Brandon.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCOiBSuCcOV
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.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡj0gCQlihcm
"Filth! Rubbish! Filth!" is heard amidst cheers of "You get 'em, Branflakes!" and "Go, you!"735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMPrknYBB5s
I shake my head and roll my eyes just as Brandon's dad, Brian, walks by.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ01a2q6lreE
"Drugs," he says cryptically.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyGaMj9UgSN
"Hmm?" I ask.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVk2dtDibo0
"You heard me. Get out!" he screams, pointing to the front door.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡREGmZtbV1w
I ignore him and he walks onward, sitting in a rocking chair where he begins to knit an ugly ball of yarn.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2XayJhqD6Z
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?"735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCdylrcOa40
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.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtpMjsR2sZn
"I've been writing," I say, growing excited. I'm starved for human contact and connections.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrOVW7ZCOCp
"Oh yeah? Like a novel?"735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8PXx7I0oqN
"I wish. No. I've been working on one but I haven't finished it yet. Short stories, I guess."735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgd8PL0zTSC
"So, how long are you?"735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7yKwVqZNhp
"I dunno. 14 pages, I think?"735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzb3LiEUk8a
"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.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsjgy61YVI4
Bitch.
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOUk87Az6ZD
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡA4VUqsCxo8
3735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlst0k4PWeY
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIav2P6mnoC
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIav2P6mnoC
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.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3XkuaO9bG0
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.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQ6EvWUt9mJ
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.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0oYQd12ma3
Ginger is disturbed. Bear is perturbed.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcrBkfbBS1D
Some nerve.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzisIAm9Q4n
I crash into my chair. Time to relax.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1KtlQR9CFx
Never mind.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVqpZH82hUP
There's a knock at the door. Who could it be?735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqZLXIqw2wt
I go to answer it. Two girls. Blonde Sarah. Brunette Fiona. What the hell do they want?735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡW0zSFWL5wk
The door swings open.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBDxUudc0nU
"Heeeeey!" I hear both girls say.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEQXosPwNTv
"Hello."735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZWQipWooUi
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.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrRTwYCrDjj
"Abuse! Abuse!" they say.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡY313qcyDW1
"What in the steamed hobo scarves are you two talking about?"735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZCXs3rmDBW
"Abuse! Dogs, cats, food, poop!"735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2Ibg56kFMf
Anger rising. Rage-foam forming at the corners of my mouth. Feel my hands tremble. What is this?735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPJFP7ymwdW
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.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡA138KnJsZx
"Oh my god! Oh my god! Oh my god!" they squeal. "Abuse!"735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5uaoaB7Xq3
Grab for the nearest shoulder. Spin the girl around. Speak into her face, "There's no abuse here."735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡagXOxqOWLv
Fiona cringes and backs away. Sarah and her exit the house.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXTuHbJY0kd
Wonder what sent them packing. My breath, perhaps? I ponder such trivialities as I return to my chair.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbX9g0RyFhG
I gaze into the reflection of my mouse. I'm dressed like Spider-Man.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4r6fPLXhqW
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.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQ6EvWUt9mJ
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.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0oYQd12ma3
Ginger is disturbed. Bear is perturbed.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcrBkfbBS1D
Some nerve.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzisIAm9Q4n
I crash into my chair. Time to relax.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1KtlQR9CFx
Never mind.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVqpZH82hUP
There's a knock at the door. Who could it be?735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqZLXIqw2wt
I go to answer it. Two girls. Blonde Sarah. Brunette Fiona. What the hell do they want?735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡW0zSFWL5wk
The door swings open.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBDxUudc0nU
"Heeeeey!" I hear both girls say.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEQXosPwNTv
"Hello."735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZWQipWooUi
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.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrRTwYCrDjj
"Abuse! Abuse!" they say.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡY313qcyDW1
"What in the steamed hobo scarves are you two talking about?"735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZCXs3rmDBW
"Abuse! Dogs, cats, food, poop!"735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2Ibg56kFMf
Anger rising. Rage-foam forming at the corners of my mouth. Feel my hands tremble. What is this?735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPJFP7ymwdW
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.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡA138KnJsZx
"Oh my god! Oh my god! Oh my god!" they squeal. "Abuse!"735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5uaoaB7Xq3
Grab for the nearest shoulder. Spin the girl around. Speak into her face, "There's no abuse here."735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡagXOxqOWLv
Fiona cringes and backs away. Sarah and her exit the house.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXTuHbJY0kd
Wonder what sent them packing. My breath, perhaps? I ponder such trivialities as I return to my chair.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbX9g0RyFhG
I gaze into the reflection of my mouse. I'm dressed like Spider-Man.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4r6fPLXhqW
Huh. Funny dat.
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡThQQFi8TFN
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsb2GNTho1V
4
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqTbnS85Yt0
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?735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVfGip69acd
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.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRUqDO89s1E
"Hey, Nick."735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFyzp50rh6I
"Hey, Mike."735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfeOyGcGnzB
"What's good?"735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6uc0b2DBxK
"Not much," he says with a sigh.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQ4pOGksA9q
"How come?"735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaIeAcuxSMU
"Trouble is coming." He casts paranoid glances around and around.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxuJYTslAgj
"Where?"735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡO6GqeUQDn3
"There." Nick aims a finger to my right, past my shoulder. 735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡllf2CVuJ6T
Some wannabe-badass teen who walks from the portable classrooms to where Nick and I are standing. Under the sycamore tree.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyIfrCTUgs0
"Who's he?" I ask.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCRZn7YsJ43
"Stanley," Wannabe says.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmkNIpYzq3n
"Oh."735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeSGphOcVlE
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.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZPjxQsysWe
I knew a tirade was coming. I was right.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡw0LmXOhZlp
"Becky says I can't smoke my Camels anymore. Dumb bitch. I smoke what I want to smoke. I'm hard."735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡM2ENmi7zRC
Nick nods but doesn't say anything. I follow suit.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBpmejoWDxF
Stanley looks at me with contempt. "Who the shit are you?"735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJrxpUcJl7o
"Mike."735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAfCrKhQnNy
"Yeah, well, I'm hard, Mike. Harder than you, okay?"735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡltA7vCB9Yu
I keep my yap shut.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbTbE8JTPHG
"Yeah, I'm hard, alright. I'm the baddest kid around." Stanley takes a long drag off his cigarette.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1GOPOchnRt
He is a kid, alright. I say nothing.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1Tf60MzZfi
Stanley offers the smoke to Nick, who declines.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5X0I7vLV6m
"Alright, bitch. Suit yourself." Another pull.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPeDm7mvxqJ
"Anything in that thing?" I ask him.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc2YMsAa8Qe
"Like what? LSD?"735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡr9YVDzWK5w
Sarcasm. Or maybe just stupid. Acid is destroyed at burning temperature. "No. Weed," I say.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqfCwmpTOSk
"I don't smoke that shit, bro. Not yet."735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNO87pfWphp
I laugh. What a badass. Wannabe badass. Plans his drug-induced future. What. When. Where. Why. How. Please.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1vqDKNuMcs
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!"735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2SohELTqpG
Everything changes then.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡe95zdj8tau
Kids come scurrying out of every hideaway hole and hovel imaginable.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWYvfoipZHS
Stanley gives me a hard shove. 735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaVW1FWgnxY
I fall on my ass, quickly get to my feet and try to run.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEBTym5GPUN
Too many kids. In the way. "Move!" I say. 735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡapFFgDhYLf
No one listens. They laugh.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0BLKWBYl0t
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!735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXlOs4TmNEW
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.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqr6suZz3hn
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.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡthF8oshoHk
A pull.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuSNJwJ2Tls
Rip.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDkP38szAKl
RIP.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡntgQynY1NM
I'm dead.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡByaBuJ0BXg
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.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRUqDO89s1E
"Hey, Nick."735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFyzp50rh6I
"Hey, Mike."735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfeOyGcGnzB
"What's good?"735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6uc0b2DBxK
"Not much," he says with a sigh.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQ4pOGksA9q
"How come?"735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaIeAcuxSMU
"Trouble is coming." He casts paranoid glances around and around.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxuJYTslAgj
"Where?"735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡO6GqeUQDn3
"There." Nick aims a finger to my right, past my shoulder. 735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡllf2CVuJ6T
Some wannabe-badass teen who walks from the portable classrooms to where Nick and I are standing. Under the sycamore tree.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyIfrCTUgs0
"Who's he?" I ask.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCRZn7YsJ43
"Stanley," Wannabe says.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmkNIpYzq3n
"Oh."735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeSGphOcVlE
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.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZPjxQsysWe
I knew a tirade was coming. I was right.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡw0LmXOhZlp
"Becky says I can't smoke my Camels anymore. Dumb bitch. I smoke what I want to smoke. I'm hard."735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡM2ENmi7zRC
Nick nods but doesn't say anything. I follow suit.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBpmejoWDxF
Stanley looks at me with contempt. "Who the shit are you?"735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJrxpUcJl7o
"Mike."735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAfCrKhQnNy
"Yeah, well, I'm hard, Mike. Harder than you, okay?"735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡltA7vCB9Yu
I keep my yap shut.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbTbE8JTPHG
"Yeah, I'm hard, alright. I'm the baddest kid around." Stanley takes a long drag off his cigarette.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1GOPOchnRt
He is a kid, alright. I say nothing.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1Tf60MzZfi
Stanley offers the smoke to Nick, who declines.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5X0I7vLV6m
"Alright, bitch. Suit yourself." Another pull.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPeDm7mvxqJ
"Anything in that thing?" I ask him.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc2YMsAa8Qe
"Like what? LSD?"735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡr9YVDzWK5w
Sarcasm. Or maybe just stupid. Acid is destroyed at burning temperature. "No. Weed," I say.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqfCwmpTOSk
"I don't smoke that shit, bro. Not yet."735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNO87pfWphp
I laugh. What a badass. Wannabe badass. Plans his drug-induced future. What. When. Where. Why. How. Please.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1vqDKNuMcs
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!"735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2SohELTqpG
Everything changes then.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡe95zdj8tau
Kids come scurrying out of every hideaway hole and hovel imaginable.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWYvfoipZHS
Stanley gives me a hard shove. 735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaVW1FWgnxY
I fall on my ass, quickly get to my feet and try to run.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEBTym5GPUN
Too many kids. In the way. "Move!" I say. 735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡapFFgDhYLf
No one listens. They laugh.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0BLKWBYl0t
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!735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXlOs4TmNEW
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.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqr6suZz3hn
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.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡthF8oshoHk
A pull.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuSNJwJ2Tls
Rip.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDkP38szAKl
RIP.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡntgQynY1NM
I'm dead.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡByaBuJ0BXg
In bed.
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBi2gq22CzV
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡU9BCTIx1K4
?
735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrG24dBQDmW
THE Rain Has Fallen.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLr2y6ORgbO
No. That's not it.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbyc0wpZ4Tv
They Came After The Rain.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCydql7Du6z
There it is.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlYsFVAcmhy
That's the one.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLR2ewQ8jxE
The end.
ns3.133.83.123da2 No. That's not it.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbyc0wpZ4Tv
They Came After The Rain.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCydql7Du6z
There it is.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlYsFVAcmhy
That's the one.735Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLR2ewQ8jxE
The end.
