A Glacial Tundra - Chapter 2

Chapter 2 - Drastic Measures and Drastic Changes

          From a bird's eye view, the crew marched, or in their case, trudged as slow as a herd of woolly mammoths. Considering the amount of gear they need, the crew could not travel as quickly as they would have liked. The cold and stinging wind bit at the small amounts of bare skin visible through the bulky fur coats. "How far have we even gotten?" wheezed Serith, exhausted by all of the walking, "I can still see our house on the horizon!"  Kerrick snapped back, " Nowhere if you keep whining like that!" Garrow frowned at Kerrick. "Kerrick! Leave him alone!" He looked back behind the group, and Serith was clearly right in his complaint. There it was on the horizon behind them: their old home. They had only left a day ago, and they had still not fully left behind the warm home they were bidding farewell to while on their journey. "Even if he is right, we keep going, and ford ahead." stated Coltanis, "There is no need to linger around here and not admit what we are all feeling. We all don't want to leave this home. We don't know what we will be running into out there, but it's better than just letting this Sub-Zero group continue what they are planning to do. We have to figure out where they will strike next." Diamera pointed ahead, her face shuddering from what could only be stated as a fear of the unknown, at something the bickering others did not see. A cloud standing out from the others crowding up the sky, was beginning to rumble in the sky to the west, in the direction of the homes that meant something even more to everyone. They were the homes of their parents and siblings.

          While the crew had seen storm clouds before, this storm cloud looked different from others. It was a shade of grey they had never seen in a storm cloud. As it loomed across the sky, it was heading on a direct route towards the homes. With no quick way to catch up to it and no knowledge of what is contained, there was no telling of what would come from this storm cloud. In an instant the footsteps of the crew sped up, no matter the weight of the gear. They were going to save them. They were determined to not lose those closest to them. Unfortunately, the cold air drained them of their speed and energy quickly, causing them to slow, yet still be filled with determination. Garrow led the group, and because of this, he was at the front. He could hear the sound of his friends behind him, and soon heard the sound of struggling yet swift footsteps coming up on his right. He turned and looked, and saw Regal had been trying to catch up with him. When the young hunter finally caught up to him, he was out of breath. With the cold weather, Garrow understood this. He wouldn't admit it, but he felt the same, and pretended that the cold air didn't affect his breathing in order to look tough. It was all he had ever learned growing up, and he knew he had to keep it up for the others so they would have someone to look up to. "Do you think our families are going to be okay?" asked Regal, with a worried expression on his face. Regal was one of their newest, and ergo, youngest members. He had not been away from where he grew up for that long, and because of this, he wasn't the most experienced fighter. Nevertheless, he was good at crafting weapons. The group hadn't had someone as creative with weapon-crafting until they met Regal. His weapons helped make hunting easier, as well as making sure the weapons didn't break as easily. He looked at Regal, and tried to convey a sense of hope in the young member of the group. "I'm sure they will be fine. They have weapons to defend themselves from any threat, and they can still fight despite their age. No need to worry." Of course, if it was the Sub-Zero, Garrow wasn't sure what to expect. In a world where familiarity and experience helps one to survive, a new threat can easily overcome someone not prepared.

          It wasn't until a day later that the group finally arrived back to their home village. At first, it seemed like nothing had changed. The town was messy, but in a way that was more than they were used to. The amount of loose materials scattered on the ground had doubled. "If there had been a fight here, wouldn't there be patches of red in the snow?" asked Andros. He was right. There was no sight of a fight whatsoever, which both scared the group and filled them with some hope that their families had fought off the threat. "Search for survivors! Fan out and find people!" ordered Diamera. She could tell something was awry, and she could sense the others knew this as well. After searching a few houses, no one could be found, so they chose to visit the village center's house. It stood out from the rest due to its size and clear fortified walls, intended to withstand any snowstorm or wild animal attacks. "Alright everyone," said Garrow, "Keep your eyes open. Look out for any survivors, enemy or ally. You find any enemies, you know what to do." Kerrick smiled. "You mean stabbing time may be near?" he cheekily remarked. Garrow rolled his eyes, but chuckled at the comment. As they entered, their faces because as pale as the snow outside. They had found the villagers, except there was something a bit different about them. There were nothing but ice sculptures in the room, and they all looked human-shaped.

          "No." muttered Ellwyn. "That can't be them. It can't be." Garrow walked around taking a close look at the sculptures. He saw nothing but familiar faces. Faces he used to see everyday around the village he used to called his community. "I'm sorry Ellwyn. But it's them. I just...I just found yours." he stuttered to say. He stood there, looking at a couple holding themselves tight, frozen in an embrace, with it appearing that her father had attempted to protect his wife by sacrificing himself. But it was to no avail. Ellwyn walked slowly over to them, and as soon as she recognized them, she ran over, and hugged the statue tight, sobbing. "I never visited them enough. I took them for granted." she said through tears flowing down her face. In that moment, Garrow knew this could only have been done by the Sub-Zero. There was no other enemy they had known who would be this clean with their kills, and leave behind such a gruesome sight of defeat of the unprepared villagers. As they continued to look around for their family members, no one saw a figure step into the house. It was a figure in white, with armor made of ice, and a blade of pale white ice, with a visible vapor coming off of it. Distracted by their loss, the figure in white threw what appeared to be an ax with a white blade at the statue Ellwyn was still hugging. The target he was attempting to hit was a spot on and direct hit. Fortunately for Ellwyn, the target wasn't her. Unfortunately for her, it was the statue she was hugging. To her horror, she had to watch the statue shattered into a million pieces in front of her very eyes, watching what was once alive shatter into oblivion. Everyone turned around to see this figure, including Ellwyn. They didn't know what this figure was, but one thing was clear on everyone's mind. Even if they didn't know whether or not this figure caused this to happen, he would pay for what he had done. 

Society: Side Effects May Include Mood Swings

Everyone has their own view of what we call society,

and these views can differ completely,

whether it be due to political or religious views, 

or some other form of beliefs.

What is clear however is this one simple statement:

We have a love/hate relationship with our society.

Similar to how we seem to feel about violence,

we at times love the society that we live in,

or we believe it is falling apart at the seams. 

At times we attempt to sew the rips together again,

and we believe that we can finally view society in a nicer way once more.

But that's not how life works.

Society tears itself apart constantly, with the world being either hateful or too helpful,

whichever you choose to believe. 

We at times love society, and how wonderful humanity can be towards others,

and yet at other times we can say how it is falling apart and something that we despise,

due to all of the horrible things that are happening.

We can't win,

it's just the way society works.

We either enjoy the society we have,

or we are filled with animosity towards it,

due to simply the not so subtle nasty side of humanity.

And yet in the end, we learn to live with this relationship.

So in the end, should we point the blame for the ever constant shift on society,

or humanity, it's own creator?

Lost in an Empty Wasteland - Chapter 2

Chapter 2: A Reality Check

         Grant and his crew made sure everything was packed before leaving the girl's hideout. Knowing they wouldn't come back, they made sure to pack all they could. The amount of supplies that each duo had was combined, and would definitely help them all last at least a few days until they had to find more. With the boys each packing a gun or two, and the girls having a bow and two pistols, they could handle whatever came at them. As they left, Grant looked back at the hideout. He had seen this building so many times in the past from taking short walks out from his and Kevin's outpost, and had never expected to find two of his best friends in this building, trying to survive the same troubles that the outside could cause them. 

      It wasn't too long till the crew made it back to Grant and Kevin's and packing up was even simpler than before. "So, does anyone have any ideas where we should go next?" asked Kevin, wondering what the girls knew of the outside. "I know of a town that's not too far from here. We have seen it from our place. It's a decent size, and I'm sure there's probably more supplies that we could find there," said Rose. "Yeah, and I'm guessing in a town that big they may have a car of some sort. Getting out of here and to somewhere safer is what would probably be the best bet. Who knows how long till infected find our place," stated Jennifer. "We best take caution when going there. Who knows what could be down there, or even who," responded Grant. "Then it's settled. Let's get going!" exclaimed Kevin, cocking his gun. The other three smiled and packed up, and they were soon on their way to the town, unaware of what could be in this town.

         As the group arrived, they spotted a good size house that would make a good entry point to getting in the town without alerting anything in the town, whatever it may be. As they entered, they heard a growling noise, and took precaution. Grant and Rose traveled upstairs while Kevin and Jen explored the ground floor. Grant and Rose each explored rooms, and found a few supplies, but not a substantial amount. "GUYS!! HELP!!" called Jen from downstairs. Grant and Rose wasted no time getting down there, and were shocked by what they saw. Infected were crawling in through the windows of the living room of the house, and for every one that she or Kevin took out, another took its place. "We found three of them in the room, and the sound of our guns must have attracted the others!" yelled Kevin. As Grant watched the others kill off infected left and right, he turned around just in time to watch one break through the door, and try to bite Rose. Without a second thought, he shot the infected straight in the head, causing a bit of blood to spatter on Rose. "Thanks!" she said, a bit shaken up from almost losing her life. She loaded her bow, and took out at least two others who entered from the same door. Left and right, the crew was dispatching infected. Grant was shooting through the window, killing two, and then proceeded to bash another's head in that got a bit too close to him with the butt of his shotgun.. Jen kicked two in the legs, knocking them down and smashing their heads with a pipe she carried in her pack. Rose kept unloading arrows into the infected, making sure another arrow was loaded after the previous arrow hit. Kevin was hacking at infected left and right, slicing the infected's juggular or stabbed them straight in the chest with a machete in one hand and shooting at more with another. But no matter what they did, a large amount was still amassing outside the house. Kevin knew what had to be done. He backed himself up against Grant, and grabbed into the bag, still shooting at infected. He pulled out a small cylindrical object, with a ring-like pin attached to it. It was a grenade, and he and Grant had found only a few of these in their travels, but he knew that while they needed to save these as much as they could, this was one of the times it was necessary. He pulled the pin, and he tossed it out the open window, and in a moment, the house was filled with the echo of the explosion. Blood and innards splattered everywhere outside, but the sound of infected was no longer there. The door had been blown clear off the hinges, and luckily no one had been hit. It took a few minutes for the others to gather themselves together after the ringing high-pitched sound left their ears. Finally, as they gathered themselves together, Rose smiled, and hugged each of the others. "We did it guys! Look at what our teamwork can do! I'm so proud of you guys, and I'm so happy that we met again!" She began to tear up. "I've missed you two so much, and I can't wait to do more with you both! I'm gonna go see if I can find anything outside, and then we can keep on going! Together, no one can stop us!" As Rose walked out the door, it was clear that she was in the town now, with buildings left and right. She turned around to face the others, and with a big smile on her face, exclaimed, "Look out world! Here we co---." The sound of a gunshot echoed outside, and the three watched in horror, as in mere seconds, Rose collapsed to the ground, with a small pool of blood forming near her head. She was gone, and as her eyes went blank, a single tear rolled down the side of her face, joining the pool of blood.

********

"See anyone out there, sniper?"

"Yes miss. There appears to be something drawing infected towards one of the buildings"

The sound of a grenade exploding echoes throughout the area. 

"WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT?" 

"It appears that whoever is in there had a grenade of some sort and killed the rest of the infected there. It's a mess out there."

"Exactly. Which is why we are in here. Keep an eye out for anyone."

"Yes miss. Wait...I see someone. A girl. She's jumping around, looking all happy for dealing with the infected."

"Shoot her"

"I'm sorry miss?"

"You heard me. Shoot her." 

"But miss...I..." 

"NOW!!! OR I WILL DIRECT THOSE WORDS AT OTHERS TO DO TO YOU!!"

"Y...yes miss..."

She positioned her weapon at the window, and looked through the scope. She recognized this girl. Her face was familiar, but she had her orders. She aimed at the girl's head, and pulled the trigger. The girl dropped immediately. 

"She's dead miss."

"Excellent. But how many times must I tell you? Call me by my full title."

"Yes....Miss....Miss Renee." 

"Thank you. Was that so hard? Didn't think so. Now come with me....um...what's your name again girl?"

"Britney"

"Ah yes, Britney. Come with me. You are taking a group down there to see if there were any others in that building. Find any at all, bring them straight to me."

********

         Before any of the others could do anything else, the door was smashed open. A man, who looked to be at least middle-aged, was pointing a shotgun at them. "Give me your supplies." "Come again sir?" said Derek, " Unfortunately, we don't have much, so you wouldn't really be walking off with---" The man fired his shotgun once upward, blasting through a few boards in the ceiling that was actually the floor for the second floor. "QUIET! I want everything. Hand it over now!" Fortunately for Natasha, he didn't notice her hiding behind the couch. She pulled out her small pistol, and aimed for his legs. As the man kept threatening the others, Natasha developed a plan in her head. She knew what was above those boards, probably barely being held up by the few that remained and that thing about the boards was a dresser. She put her plan into action. Firing at the man's legs, with the bullets reaching their target, she ran over, as the man fell backwards in agony. She quickly picked up the shotgun, and said to the man, "The only thing you'll be getting is this." She fired the shotgun at the ceiling once more, and dove out of the way. The shotgun blast destroyed the last few boards, and a large wooden mass fell, smashing the man's head, killing him instantly. The others stood there, mouths open, wide-eyed, and staring at Natasha. "What? Something had to be done." Derek was the first to speak. "I actually found it rather smashing. Especially for that man's head." Humor was an interesting way to deal with this situation, but in this case it worked. The others began to laugh. "But seriously though, great job Natasha, that was some quick thinking." said Molly, patting her friend on the shoulder. "But what about the door? It's completely off it's hinges and it wouldn't be easy to fix." pointed out Amy. Natasha sighed. She knew what they needed to do. "We need to leave. Others know we are around here, and it isn't safe here anymore." Derek frowned. "But we just got here." he said, "Where could we go?" Natasha looked at Molly and smiled. "We have friends a good walk away from here. They will help us. I hope so at least." Derek smiled once again, " And if they try to kill us, we can just drop a dresser on them again like we did that guy! Have any more of those up your sleeve, Tasha?" Natasha smiled, and laughed a bit at his little quip. "I don't think so Derek, but I'm sure we will be fine. Let's start packing." Derek looked at Amy, and shrugged his shoulders, smiling. "Already done." he said.

          Gretchen was sharpening her dagger, with two pistols by her side, easily within reach if needed. "I need this dagger ready in case of any attack" she thought to herself. While she and her friend Jackie, who was on lookout at the time, had been pretty safe in their home, it was always important to be prepared anyways. She had seen many others whom she had known perish due to the lack of being prepared and being ready for anything, and she didn't want herself or Jackie, or even anyone else close to her to meet the same fate as those unfortunate others did. With her light blonde hair and blue eyes, Gretchen always made sure every area of their home was secure, and not in danger of allowing an opening for an infected to get in. She heard the sound of footsteps, and almost reached for her gun, until she realized it was just Jackie coming down the stairs. "Gretchen there are people coming." Gretchen sat straight up at this, thinking the worst. "Who are they?" she said. Jackie looked outside at the window with her dark brown eyes and black hair. "I'm not fully sure. They looked like old friends of ours. Possibly Natasha and Molly, since two of them decently resemble them. But there are two others with them. Two who also have a sense of familiarity to them, but I still can't really tell." Gretchen grinned for a moment, happy to see some familiar faces, but her face became serious once again, knowing the mission of always being prepared would come first, even if they were their friends. "How far away were they when you first looked Jackie?" she asked. "A good amount away, but definitely coming here," responded Jackie. "Then let's be ready to meet them when they get here, but don't let down your guard in case infected are out there waiting." stated Gretchen. "While they are our friends, we still need to keep an eye out for those creatures, in case they are anywhere nearby." Jackie nodded, and went back up to keep a lookout, making sure nothing was waiting for their friends, and making sure they got here safely. People whom neither of them had seen in several months were coming to their door, and while they knew it was most likely a friendly visit, and were indeed happy to see them, enemies existed outside those doors, and while friendship and company was important in this land, survival was even more.

Society's Relationship with Violence

I’m over this whole love/hate relationship that America has with violence.

How they keep going back and forth with loving each other, with violence pulling the rope

 Towards its side, and always winning in this unending game of tug-of-war.

With violence being in movies, video games, and TV shows,

And just about anything else.

Everyone is always aware of it, but in a blissful way where we say how bad violence is, yet still

 Go back to it at the end of the day, because they just seem to enjoy it so much, like a drug that

they can’t get enough of.

And when they’ve had their fix, they soon become numb to it,

And it just becomes commonplace.

Sex doesn’t even get looked at ever. It is always stared at for a while,

Until someone takes up an issue with it.

And the whole worrying about the effect of children, sexual acts of sorts on TV are to blame,

Yet violence runs rampant all over the networks.

Then when something bad happens, like a shooting at a school, violence is blamed.

Then people go off about how it is so bad,

And with how game and movie violence should be regulated more.

Of course, once this blows over, like a friend dealing with a smoker who says they’re going to quit soon, it just resumes.

The hate that America has for violence disappears,

And it shows up again in our media and entertainment.

How we as a nation are able to just go back to violence, and let it tell us once again,

How “everything is going to be okay”

And we believe it, even though we know deep down that

Nothing is going to change, and that violence is only here to take our money.

Even knowing a lot about media violence, knowing what it does,

We still turn a blind eye to it, like we are just a person affected by the bystander effect,

And see a problem, yet do nothing to stop it and solve the problem.

How odd it is that many years ago,

That our form of entertainment was watching someone fall,

Through a little trapdoor on the floor,

And hang by a noose, choking to death.

We think that because the hero in games or movies

Is justified to use violence to beat the bad guys,

And we root for those heroes when the bad guys die.

No matter how violent it may be, they are still the hero,

 And they are the person we are supposed to be rooting for,

 Rooting for them to win the fight and defeat the evil villain.

Maybe nothing has changed since our days of going to the gallows for entertainment,

 Except the form that we receive our entertainment in,

 And maybe things will just remain the same in this unending relationship

 Between our lovely Lady America and violence.

Nice Things to Do on a Do-Nothing Day

On a day where you have no real plans, and nowhere specific to be,

Here are some things for you to do on your do-nothing day.

Find a place to read a book, whether it is outside or inside.

Take a nap in your bed, unless that’s not your thing.

Go on your own little picnic.

Call your parents, because you haven’t talked with them in quite a while

Go outside and lie in the grass, and stare at the sky.

Fly a kite in the sky in the local park.

Eat food in your room, and eat as much as you want.

Binge watch TV shows on Netflix, because you wanna catch up to where your friends are.

Sing along to your favorite song, and don’t care who hears it.

Play that game on your computer or game system that you normally don’t have time to play.

Hang with friends and just do fun stuff like play a game or whatever the hell you feel like doing.

Call someone on your cellphone who you haven’t talked to in a while.

Go for a drive if you’ve got a car, and take a drive around.

Go swimming or just relax in a hot tub.

Watch that movie you’ve seen so many damn times that you just about know all the lines.

Cuddle with that special someone, and enjoy their company.

Write a story or a poem, because your mind is exploding with ideas.

End the day with observing the stars in the sky, and enjoy the sound of crickets.

Do the same thing you always do on these do-nothing days, or something completely different.

You could do all of these things on any day really,

But on this day you have the freedom to do all of these things, and more

Or just do nothing, just because you can.

Memories Hidden

Memories Hidden

By: Gavin Warren

Standing by the side of the road, Patrick watched the cars go past, knowing what had happened here several years before. The smell of gasoline brought back memories of that day, one that would be stuck in his head for the rest of his life. He knew that it had been mostly his fault. It had been such a windy day that fateful winter morning. It was a day that he relived in his head much more than he wanted to. He was only 15 when it day happened. He and his friend Collin had just been goofing around on the side of the road, off to the side in the bushes where a car couldn’t see them. They were having fun throwing nice, well-packed together snowballs at the cars coming around the bend. They got a few horns to honk at them, even though the drivers couldn’t see them. Then it came. That one car he would always remember coming around the bend. It was a Toyota Camry, with a tan coat of paint. Collin tossed a nice packed snowball to him, and chuckled a bit, since this was such a good form of entertainment for them. Patrick leaned his arm back, and swung his arm forward, watching the snowball fly through the air, and, in the most unexpected turn of events, through the open window of the car. The cushioning yet cold sound of the snowball hitting the driver, and the immediate sound of brakes screeching and sliding on the icy and snowy road were noises that still rang in Patrick’s head years later. The car did not stop, and slid off of the road, and as it tried to turn to stop, it slammed full force into a tree on the driver’s side of the car. Patrick and Collin both froze, but knew they had to leave there as soon as possible.

 After the car had crashed, the two boys just stared at what they had done, and as Patrick turned back once more to look at the wreckage, he turned his head back towards where Collin was, to see him fast-walking away from the road, deeper into the forest, on his way out of there, not wanting to get caught. When the boys got back home, they discussed the situation, and both agreed to never tell anyone about it. Surprisingly, they were able to do so. It wasn’t until later that they both found out about the crash, and how the driver had been killed instantly upon hitting the tree. Yet, they were still able to keep things under wraps.

Now at 19 years old, Patrick still had the thoughts in his head, and had had nightmares about it the past several nights. He still saw Collin plenty, but Collin had done a good job of shutting it out of his mind. Patrick however, had not. It popped up at least once or so every other day. His way of coping with it was unorthodox, but he convinced himself that he had had nothing to do with the accident, and that it had been ice on the road. Of course, this belief would not last. He saw it so many times in his dreams; he knew it couldn’t have been ice. He knew that he hadn’t meant to cause this man’s death, yet he knew he couldn’t own up to what had happened.  As of now however, he was on his way now to a date with a beautiful girl, who he had met in the same writing class the other day at the community college they both attended. Her name was Julie, and she was one of the most beautiful girls that he had ever seen.

As he thought about the horrible day once again, since it crossed his mind at least several times a day (especially when driving on that specific road), yet he just kept suppressing the memory, he was on his way to a quaint little diner to meet up with Julie. He was happy to have something to take his mind off of that horrible event. She was a wonderful girl, and he was very happy that she said “Yes” to a date. He hoped that the date would go well. He smiled at the thought of the first memory and meeting he had with her. They were discussing their favorite James Bond movie, and having a very informative discussion about them, and who their favorite actor was for playing the famous 007 spy. Those movies were a big obsession of his, and it wasn’t often that he met someone who seemed to love it as much as he did. He wanted to get to know this girl even more. So, by the end of their first big conversation, he asked her out on a date. Julie giggled flirtatiously at the idea, and told him that she would love to. And with that, Patrick had a date with this wonderful James Bond-loving girl.

 Finally, after driving for about 10 minutes or so, he arrived. Once parked, he walked into the diner. Seeing Julie sitting there in the waiting area, he smiled. She looked beautiful with her brown eyes and black hair, and when she saw him, she smiled back. “Hey Patrick”, she said, “I’m glad you could make it, I’ve been looking forward to this.” Patrick had zoned out a bit once again, entranced by her beauty, and snapped back into reality when she finished speaking. “Me too, you look beautiful.” He replied. She smiled back, and she stood up, and went over to Patrick and gave him a big hug. As he felt her arms go around him, Patrick knew that he was happy. He knew that she was special. Something seemed different about Julie, like he knew her somehow from the past, but couldn’t figure out why. The look of her face reminded himself of a man, a man who looked similar enough to be related to her. However, he couldn’t put his finger on it with anyone that he really knew that looked like her. Just of a face, a face that stuck in his mind for whatever reason. For now, he just decided to shake off this idea. As the waitress directed them to their booth, Patrick hoped that this date would go well. He knew in his heart that he really liked this girl.  After being seated, they both ordered water and began to look at the menu. “So Julie was it a long drive to get here?” asked Patrick, eager to start chatting with this girl. She giggled a bit at this, and it appeared to Patrick that she was in a very good mood. “Well to see someone as cute as you, it didn’t seem too long. But I’m not too far from here. I drove that piece of shit car I have to get here.” “Oh nice, heh heh…” chuckled Patrick. “Which one is yours?” She pointed to a car between a red pickup truck, and a blue Honda Civic. Patrick’s jaw dropped at the sight of it. It looked nearly the same as the car from the incident. “Did…did you get it from your parents?” he asked, fearful of the answer. Julie blew one of her bangs out of her face, and her face became a bit more solemn at his question. “My mom got it for me, from the money that we got from…from….” she seemed to have a hard time uttering the last bit, “from my father’s car crash that killed him. He was on his way home to us, and he lost control on this one road and crashed into a tree on the driver’s side. He was…he was killed instantly. After his death, my mom was distraught, yet was eventually able to pull herself again for my two younger siblings and I. She ended up working two jobs, and we didn’t have much. At times, we didn’t have much around the house. Our relatives helped us eventually get back on our feet, but…but….I know living that way for several years of my life wasn’t good. I’m sorry for putting this all on you Patrick, I just…I just…miss him a lot… ” Patrick did his best to hold himself together after hearing all that. She had no idea that he was the reason her father hadn’t made it home that night, and that he was the reason for why she was upset right now. All these years he had been reliving those events in his head, not realizing that this man he had watched die was this poor girl’s father. He couldn’t imagine what it would have been like if she could see into his mind, and watch the clip on replay in his head. He had taken her father away from her, and he had no idea what to do or say. “I have to go to the bathroom. Be right back”, he said as he stood up to leave, and walked past her, patting her on the shoulder in order to comfort her, even if it was just a small amount.

He fast-walked into the bathroom and went to the sink. He turned the knobs, cupped some water in his hands, and splashed in on his face. “I can’t tell her….I just…I can’t let her know. It would destroy her. She was near tears already, and I don’t know how she will take it”, he muttered to himself. “I can’t do it…” he said once again. “Yes you can” said a voice. Patrick looked up, and saw a man in the mirror. He had short dark black hair, and brown eyes, the same color as Julie’s. Patrick knew who this man was. It was her father, her dead father. This wasn’t the first time this had happened. Patrick had been haunted by this ghost for years, but had no reason to talk to it till now. Whenever he had seen it before, he chose to just look away, until now, when he couldn’t take his eyes off of this man. “You must tell her what happened, young man”, Julie’s father said. “But…but…I can’t!” exclaimed Patrick. “I can’t bear to tell her that I’m the reason that you aren’t there!” The man walked closer to Patrick. “My daughter has been dealing with this pain for the past several years, and so has my wife. Tell her so she can finally move on. Do it for my sake.” He said, with a sad yet accepting look on his face. Patrick thought about what Julie’s father had said, staring down at the sink. “You’re right”, he said, “You’re right. I will tell…” he looked up and saw no one. Scared by what had just happened, he splashed a bit more water on his face, and left the bathroom.

            Sitting back down with Julie, Patrick knew what he had to do. He looked at her face, appearing to have been a bit bored since he had been gone. “Julie…there’s something important that I need to tell you”, he said in the most serious tone he could, even if he was still a bit terrified. Julie lifted her head up, eager to hear. “What is it Patrick?” she asked, in a very quizzical tone of voice, wondering what it could be. “I…I…I am the reason why your father didn’t make it home that night. I was throwing snowballs at cars with my friend a few years ago on the side of Ridgewood Road, the one that leads to this diner; I think you know what I am talking about. A...a…anyways, so…I threw a snowball, and your dad’s window was open, and it hit him, and….and…it caused him to crash. I’m so sorry, Julie. I was foolish and young then, and I know I can never make up for it. But…now that I found out who he was to you, I just had to tell you. I had to.” He said, finishing his speech. He looked at Julie, curious with how she was taking the news. Her eyes were welling up with tears, and she looked like she was about to start sobbing, until all of a sudden, her face shifted to a face of pure anger instead. “YOU? YOU’RE THE REASON WHY MY DADDY NEVER MADE IT HOME THAT NIGHT? BECAUSE OF YOUR STUPID “BOYISH ANTICS”, I WAS LEFT WITHOUT A FATHER, CAUSING MY MOM TO WORK FULL TIME, AND CAUSING ME THEN TO HAVE TO RAISE MYSELF? AS WELL AS CAUSING THE LIVES OF MY SIBLINGS TO BE JUST AS SHITTY? YOU REALLY THINK YOU CAN JUST APOLOGIZE LIKE THAT, AND TAKE BACK ALL THE PAIN YOU HAVE UNKNOWINGLY CAUSED ME THESE PAST FEW YEARS? FUCK YOU PATRICK! FUCK YOU TO HELL AND BACK AGAIN. I HOPE YOU SUFFER FOR THE REST OF YOUR LIFE WITH THIS GUILT, OR BETTER YET, I HOPE YOU ROT IN JAIL, YOU FILTHY PIECE OF SHIT!!!” With a very forceful swing of her hand, she smacked Patrick across the face with all the strength she could muster with this anger. It felt like he had been punched in the face instead of a slap for Patrick, and it took him a while to register it, just long enough for him to realize her dumping both glasses of ice cold water on his head. He didn’t see her leave, but he knew she had gone. Once he had gathered himself together, with all eyes in the diner on him, he got up, and walked out of the diner. Her car was already gone, but he knew that she had been there by his car with all the clear dent marks left in the side door and back of the car. He climbed into his car, turned on the ignition, and started driving home.

            He made himself go back down that road where it had all happened. He was just about to turn around the bend, when he saw what he wasn’t expecting. Several cop cars, an ambulance, and Julie’s car, slammed into a tree. It looked just like her father’s crash, and for a moment, he thought it was, until he saw the paramedic open the passenger side door, and pull out ever so slowly, a lifeless body with long black hair. Patrick just about lost it at this moment, seeing the girl who’s life he had ruined now over and now a lifeless corpse, but was able to hold himself together just a bit longer, long enough to make it to the cop car. He opened the door to the back of the cop car, and was just about to climb in, when a cop stopped him. “Hey boy! What are you doing?” he bellowed. “Going where I belong.” Said Patrick, as he climbed into the cop car and closed the door. He was just about to start sobbing when he felt a presence on both sides of him. He thought it was cops, but when he looked up, he instead saw two people. It was a man and a girl who looked similar enough to be father and daughter. It was Julie and her father. They both just looked straight head, and said nothing. Patrick knew what they were. Their ghosts, doomed to haunt him forever, no matter where he went. And with this realization, he began sobbing.

A Hospital Visit

Hospital Visit

I am in the hospital. It is a place I am quite familiar with. I am only about 5 or 6 years old. There are many hospital beds near me. I see other people lying in beds as well. I look to my left and I see a doctor, smiling at me, and talking to someone to my right. I look. It’s my mom and dad. I am happy to see them again. I just woke up a bit ago, and what I can remember is being is in a room with a bunch of doctors a while back. I had a needle in my chest, and they had just put “milky medicine” in it.  I don’t know why, but I don’t remember what happened. Why would that be? The milky medicine being injected in is the last thing I remember. It felt calming and then I closed my eyes. Anyways, back to my parents and the hospital bed. They have the things I look forward to after these, what I think are called….spinal taps? I don’t know. I’m always excited for them because I get things from my parents afterwards. Ooh, there they are! The gifts! They are small boxes of sugary cereal, usually Froot Loops, and Pokémon cards. I’m excited to see them. My parents are happy to see me smiling and awake. I give them a hug and a kiss. It is nice to see them. I know why I am here, but not what the spinal tap was for. I have leukemia. My parents take me here a lot to help me feel better. I like the nurses and doctors that I have met. The one to my left is very familiar to me. I remember her in the room with all of the other doctors. I wonder when the next operation like this will be. I don’t get sugary cereals or Pokémon cards too often, especially since I usually only get enough money for Pokémon cards. I hope it’s soon.