Betrayal is so odd It’s always the ones you love the most That do it to the point where you’re so hurt A pain that takes over like A knife went strait through your Back and they pulled it strait back out To make the pain unbearable

The big hand on the clock reached twelve and, the door slammed open, casting a crimson light that felt like an entrance to some other world. I blinked my eyes open and shakily reached for my beer.

“That’s enough for you, ain’t it, Tori?”

I whipped my head around to see Adam staring at me, his piercing blue eyes reflecting a mix of curiosity and concern. “Tori?”

A toothpick dangled from the corner of his mouth, and I suddenly realized I’d never seen him without one. I turned back toward the door and muttered something I can barely remember.

“It’s midnight.” At this point, my throat was drier than a desert, despite the copious amount of beers I had drunk. “Someone is lookin’ for me.”

Adam walked from behind the counter and shut the door. His voice was low and soft as he approached me, gently prying the beer from my trembling hands. “I told Tony I’d get ya home.” he said, “You need to—“

Before he could finish his sentence, the door slammed open again but, this time, someone walked in. I wanted to be surprised but I had called it just seconds before. Malachai had found me.

It was the summer, and the only thing I cared about was the pool being open. I had broke my wrist climbing a tree the week before so I could only put my lower body in the water.

I had only just gotten in when a sight caught my eye. Behind the gates, there stood a boy, his presence so subtle that it took me a while to notice him. His eyes were ones I’d never forget, empty yet full of pain.

“Hey!” I shouted out. “Do you want me to open the gate?”

But the boy stayed quiet.

“Tori?” Malachai’s voice was the same as I remembered and his eyes were too. “You still comin’ round to this bar?”

Adam moved in front of me and held his hands up. “Look, guy, we ain’t lookin’ for no trouble. Why don’t you let me walk ya out?”

Malachai’s gaze met mine. I felt frozen in fear and he could tell the way a small smile tugged on the corner of he lips. “You didn’t tell him about us, darlin’?”

I struggled to get words out. “I ain’t seen you for years.”

His smile dropped, replaced by a look of bitterness. “So, we’re strangers again? That’s how this is?”

In the fifth grade, there was this ongoing joke about a kid called ‘Shooter’ who supposedly didn’t have any parents. Like anyone else, I played into it, but truth be told, I had no idea who Shooter was and I surely didn’t think him not having parents was funny.

One day, I was rather lonely during recess and walked over to the only other kid that was alone. I didn’t have a chance to ask him anything because once he looked up at me, I saw those same empty eyes from the day at the pool.

A chill ran down my spine but my curiosity overpowered my fear. “What’s your name?” I asked.

“Shooter.” He replied.

“How’d you get that name?”

In response, he extended his thumb and index finger, forming the shape of a gun and aimed it straight at me. Pulling the trigger, he exclaimed, “Bang!”

That’s when I met Malachai.

“Would you like a glass of the Pinot?” Deena asked.

The attractive older couple continued talking. The server nodded and swerved back into the cocktail party.

“I’m ready to leave whenever you are Petra.”

“We just got here. We have to do a couple of circuits to pretend we care or I’ll never snag Wanda as a new board member. “

“ All right two laps then Murphy fade. “

Petra and Goodman linked arms and began walking around the lavish pool.

“Don’t look now but Petra has you in her sights,” Carla whispered into the hostess’s ear. Wanda downed her martini and slipped into her house. She hid in one of the powder rooms.

“Have you seen my wife?” James asked.

“Wanda yes she was right here. I don’t see her now. Sir I have to talk to you about done irregularities. Why are the clients’ accounts only funded for one year’s worth of payments? Sir—“

James pushed past the little man. “Later.”

“The girls said it was always this way with the big settlements. That’s very umm irregular,” Cameron said. “We have to discuss this.”

“I said later.”

James tapped his index finger on Cameron’s chest with each word. James stalked away in search of his wife before she got too drunk and gave a school another endowment.

“You look like you could use a nice Pinot,” Deena said offering him a glass. Cameron looked at the expensive bottles and the palatial pool, the luxury cars and the mansion. Cameron looked around and did the math.

“Thank you I appreciate it. But I have to keep a clear head for an important call. “

En fin de compte

3 years after pt1

Therapist: so this is our final session how does that make you feel?

Me: “like I can finally be free”

I can understand that smiles

“It’s taken this long to feel my worth”

Has your ex-wife tried to contact you?

“No she hasn’t”

You both went through a lot to have peace, I am glad that there is no bad blood.

“I bear no grudge”

Don’t repeat the cycle Pete.

Peter…

Peter…?

Wake up…!

Sir!!

“Yes…where am I?”

You fell asleep…

“Shit! Did I miss it?”

No, your wife just gave birth

“Fuck”

new born girl cries

smiles

“Hello Lena”

…..

The End

…..

“Drink this. It’ll make you feel better,” Zaira said handing over a shot of what Silas thought he had been needing. But not before pouring in a bit of that special ingredient, only and pinch. “Yes yes, you did your job you can leave now” Silas demanded still angered by the whole situation. A hand waved in the air shooing her away. His second mistake that day. Zaira would never enjoy being shooed away, even it was by the kings son, the prince of Edethos, which left her blood boiling once more. After a couple more shots Silas was left wasted. He’d ordered his dancers to come in and drink with him, dance for him. “Dance, dance, dance!” He said, one of those beautiful lady’s sat on his leg, he looked into those eyes of hers, a sparkling blue, she only gave him a lopsided smile. For a moment he smiled back wickedly, before that smile faded and replaced with the furrowing of his brow. He inclined his chin to the side telling her to leave. Something felt off. Something was missing. Adelia. Something in that woman reminded him of the that woman that wasn’t quite his. Yet. Something in gut seemed to overflow with anger he didn’t even know where was coming from. He sat up and yelled at all the dancers to leave. Only Noah remained. Silas walked over to him saying, “You will prepare a horse for me,” Noah only nodded following the prince’s orders. Adelia had been on her way to the library, on the look for that book of maps. She need it for the mission. Though Silas very clearly told her she shouldn’t and it was to dangerous for a woman like her to go. She didn’t care, it was the right thing to do. All she need to do was look at on of the books on this shelf and she’d be ready. “Your majesty where are you going in the first place?” “Adelia.” Was the only thing that came out of his mouth. Nothing else was in that twisted mind of his right now. “I don’t think that’s—“ She searched and searched until—Aha! She pulled the book out of its shelf and opened it up to see if it was the right one. Yes, it was and she was overjoyed with her find. A step to towards the door until she saw Silas right in her very presence. He pinned her against the bookshelf “I’ve been,” he searched her face a moment. “Looking for you,” Her heart raced, “Gods blood, what are you doing Silas?” A huff of his breath and she immediately knew. “You’re drunk.” She shook her head not like the smell at all. Wasn’t he with Idabel? Adelia didn’t think he was the type to do this. “You need to stop. If anyone sees us like this they will gets the wrong idea, especially since you’re with—“ “With who? Who are you speaking of?” He questioned. As far as he knew he’d been single. “Your majesty there you are. Gods flesh, what are you doing with the commoner?”

1 I go about my daily life as usual, going through the same routine. I eat breakfast, brush my hair and teeth, and start out the door for my morning walk. I yawn as I pass by the commercial district. Jerry, my neighbor, is about ten feet in front of me. I start to bring up my hand to wave, but he just walks on by. Rude, I think, I try not to let it get to me however, after all Jerry’s always been a little stuck up. What did I need from the store again; oh yeah, butter! I smile at the fact that I was able to remember. I’m about one block from the store when I have to dodge out of the way of someone riding a bike. Man, people just don’t seem to notice me today! I look up to find Jane not too far in front of me. Finally a friendly face. I go to wave, but that’s when something incredibly strange happens. Jane passes through my body, like I’m a ghost, a figment of my own imagination. I fall to the ground in a coughing spit. What the HELL was That??? Can-can noone see me?! What’s going on?? I let out a panicked scream and that’s when everyone turns to look in my general direction.

2 What-what was that?? A scream?? I hear people whispering around me, looking around, trying to figure out what just happened. Since noone was clearly in danger some just went about their day, but I can’t help but shake the feeling that THIS scream was different . . . abnormal somehow. One girl even falls to the ground . . . gasping for air?

1 Did I just make that noise? Why is noone making eye contact with me? Shaking, I slowly bring my hand to my mouth. I stare at the gravel in shock. The noise that had escaped my mouth, wasn’t my own.

3 I fall to the ground, gasping for air. Shock written on my face, as memories fly by my eyes. Was that noise? Wait it can’t be. But what if it was? What if that was the noise I heard so many years ago? What if something bad is about to happen again, just like the events that followed the very same noise I had just heard now, I had heard before. My mind flashes back and forth between present and past memories until it all starts to feel numb.

2 Why is it so cold? Why do I feel numb?

1 Di-did I cause this c-cold? My body feels numb.

The summer heat is unbearable, and the days are dragging by as Ariel sat at her desk and watched the sun finally set into the distance. Her mind reeling from nightmares of before when she was younger, and had been witness to a horrific crime , having her life threatened by the killer forced her into silence and forever changing the way this little girl will look at the world. She has spent years trying to figure out clues from her past and from her flashbacks of the event. And yet she still fears that he will return to follow through with his threat and kill her and all the ones she loves.

Mark was an average Joe. He was in his mid-thirties living in Jonesboro, Arkansas. He never really got out much. He generally felt lonesomeness clawing at him. He worked at a small movie store, his pay wasn’t astounding, but it was an appreciable amount. His apartment was located in the “not so nice” part of town, which isn’t saying much, considering the town he lived in is extremely underprivileged. He arrived home one evening, Tuesday, January 16th. The coldness creeping into his cracked windows caused him an enormous amount of discomfort. He popped a microwaveable meal into his toaster oven, hoping that would warm him up. He tore off his work shirt, and slid into something more appropriate for the occasion. Slithering into a blanket, he crashed onto the couch, and waited for his meal to cook. He grabbed his cell phone from his pocket, and scrolled through the media, in hopes to find a beautiful girl to attempt to talk to. His intentions weren’t questionable, he just wanted some company. To his surprise, he found a woman who was around his age, her name was Anna, she was local also. He couldn’t help but to investigate. He swiped through all of her feed, and made an executive decision to message her. His message read… “Hello! My name is Mark. I am also from Arkansas, and I was wondering if you’d like to meet for coffee? And maybe chat a bit?😊” He was bewildered when he saw the three dots bobbing around. Anna replied with a message, her words exactly were… “Sure! Where are you?”
They continued talking and they scheduled a date to meet. Things were starting to look up for Mark, his lonely days were finally over! So he thought.

January 19th, Friday morning, they agreed to meet at a well known coffee shop in Mark’s town. Mark’s heart raced as he quickly got ready and stumbled out of his apartment, running late, which was typical for Mark. He squirted a few sprits of a random $6 cologne on his neck as he drove down the street, after some time, he arrived at his destination. Seeing Anna standing on the sidewalk next to the outside tables, he felt so relieved. He pulled in, parked his car, and stepped out of his vehicle, and was greeted by the most beautiful woman he believed he had ever saw. She was on the taller side, slim but not quite fit. Long blonde hair with red lips and rosy cheeks, she looked like she had fallen from Heaven, her smile could light up a room, and she smelled amazing. A musky vanilla scent that really caught Mark’s attention. Mark didn’t necessarily have a well-put-together look like Anna did. He was decently attractive, his smile was crooked and his nose was large, but he wasn’t hideous. His shaggy brown hair was hardly ever combed, and his tall appearance made him insecure. He slouched over as he stood, but something about his look made Anna crazy… maybe too crazy.

They joined each other, chatting among themselves as they entered the cafe. They ordered a plate of mini donuts and a pitcher of coffee, which they would share. Anna began to ask Mark simple “get to know me” questions, like his favorite food, his favorite color, and his hobbies outside of work. Mark did the same for Anna. Their answers weren’t anything special, just simple replies. They laughed and smiled with one another, Anna felt grateful to meet Mark, she believed she needed him. After a couple hours of conversation, they felt as if they connected. Anna asked to bring Mark to her home, naturally Mark agreed. He didn’t see any reason why he shouldn’t. Hello? A beautiful girl invited him to her house! How could he say no? Obviously he thought he would be getting lucky, but how could he not? Anna was making apparent romance advances. They arrived at Anna’s house, it was quite big for one person, Mark just thought she was wealthy, which wasn’t a problem for him, considering his current situation. They walked in, and Mark immediately noticed a smell. It wasn’t a pleasant smell, it was a burnt almost rotten smell. He realized there were candles lit, and he thought maybe one of them had gotten blown out. He lived a fairly filthy life, he wasn’t one to judge. Anna showed him around the place, she showed him the kitchen, the living room, the dining area, her bedroom, and her bathroom. Mark noticed another door, his curiosity got the best of him and he reached for the handle. Anna yelled, she shouted at him to “NEVER GO IN THERE!!” She told Mark that it was another bathroom, and that the plumber hadn’t fixed the pipes that bursted. Which made perfect sense to Mark, it was freezing outside. They sat down to watch a movie, Anna, knowing Mark’s job, asked him which movie he wanted to watch. He chose Gone With The Wind, it’s evident where it was heading with these two.

The lights were low, the movie played on, Mark noticed a slight pressure on his shoulder, Anna had laid her head on his shoulder. It brought him such a great deal of confidence, that he couldn’t help but kiss her. A make out sesh broke loose, but it was short lived, it was interrupted by something Mark had noticed earlier. The smell, it was back with a vengeance. He pulled away from Anna, telling her he had to use the bathroom. She began to ramble on about how to NOT go into the room he tried to enter before, he gave her his word and headed down the hallway. He noticed the smell was much more intense, he couldn’t ignore it much longer. He did what Anna said not to, he approached the door, covering his nose as he opened it. He could not believe what he was witnessing, he must be having a nightmare.

You’re waiting in a classroom For the lectures to begin You’ve been there for thirteen hours Pondering your sins

Tommy Lee he’s at the Big H Scratching off a ticket He ain’t been to school for weeks He’s been busy with Bridget

Sammy’s driving doughnuts In an old Manchester lot The police they are after her She’s minutes off from caught

And the holy dove sits in its cage It’s waiting to be bought Sold and bought and sold again As is Big Man’s plot For he’s determined it won’t be free Everyone must pay For just to chance to touch its wings And tell it what they say For hope that will answer prayers We all it will not For Big Man he will tire soon And then it will be shot

Tommy meets you after class he’s been skipping again He paid the dues and paid the costs but he cannot be bought So you walk down Lay in the grass And dream about your youth You realise that he still has his It feels so damn uncouth Unfair you think That all your effort Leaves you just a cog While Tommy he does nothing much And he never gets bogged

Well Sammy thinks herself a rebel Some kind of old hero But once the cops Have locked her up She’ll look more Nero And Big Man he will visit her Wearing a smug grin She will fight and scream and she will not give it But in the end Her rebel dreams Won’t keep her out the pen

While Tommy lives free from their system With no dreams at all You’ll wonder if when push comes shove He ever truly falls Or if uncaring He just keeps A’doing what he does And sweeps his losses right away under another rug

Maybe he’s a rebel too Just off a different kind For Big Man will never catch him Or entrap his young mind So maybe he is better off Or maybe he is lost But either way You’ll never say That Tommy has been caught

Exactly like clockwork, it’s every single Sunday. I can almost anticipate it now because it’s every Sunday. Like clockwork. Exact.

Why do I feel this way? I feel it in my body. In my mind. My body is in flight mode. My mind is a Bugatti, never quite finding the finish line.

It’s a weekly existential crisis and I’m both the interviewer and interviewee. Who? What? When? Where? Why? How?

The sun rises and sets. The moon waxes and wanes. I rotate through the 9 x 3 cycle.

Yet, today was not the same. Today, Sunday, was not exact and it was not like clockwork. It was like the tide shifted and I flowed with it, body and mind present.

I’ll still take that Bugatti, but now I’m in the driver’s seat.