Crack3d Picture Read online

  The summer ends and the fall begins. A new semester at Radcliffe University is about to commence. To come to Radcliffe University is to come to the place where Satan fell from Heaven and straight to hell. Or paradise as one would say. Buried in the heart of the North River Valley, it is miles from the interstate or anything resembling normal civilization. The Institution breathes and feeds economic life into the struggling city that surrounds it. The train tracks and road, only one of each leading in and out, slither through dead tree covered mountains with steep cliffs on each side that drop like the hopes and dreams of the students and townies, back down into the Valley which itself is gashed by a river with the undercurrent that swallows lives.

  One particular cattle car is the one carrying Tony. Tony is looking out the window, sitting with his feet on the seat and his arms around his shins, bare knees poking through the frayed holes in his denim jeans. He is unaware and uncaring of his surroundings. Lonely hoards of students fill out the rest of the space. His eyes are cold blue and his hair is shoulder length and golden, skin white as snow.

  Nausea is settling in the stomachs of the other sad students as all they see is sorrow and poverty. Every other house on the street looks abandoned or neglected by its tenant. Boards or cellophane cover windows, boards on the front porches are rotted and upended, roofs are caved in. This is the epitome of destitute. Students can’t live in those houses. Could they? Does the City of Radcliffe allow this? The University?

  All of the students eventually turn there attention to the Gate House. A large ominous, sprawling brick disaster of a building with an archway for the single lane train track and two long identical halls on each side with blacked out windows. The sign right above the key stone of the archway is supposed to read ‘Radcliffe University’ but some letters are missing so it actually reads ‘Ra-c-iff- Uni-ers-ty.’ Dead corn fields adorn the front of the flat lands of building. There seems to be spray-painted graffiti words on the two wings. As the cattle car train pulls closer and starts slowing, the words are visible: ‘Turn Around’ on the left wing and ‘Go Back’ on the right. Surprising it is that the University left this up for incoming students. The admissions office is located within. The black metal gate swings open allowing the lone train to pull through and drop the students off directly inside the University walls, where they find several desks with admissions officers ready and willing to tell each and every student where they will be staying. Tony steps off like a king, hair blowing in the breeze. He has only brought one rattle snake suitcase with him. It is all he needs. His gaze turns to the large twelve story dormitory, Fuse Hall. Fuse Hall is the largest of all dormitories, made of brick; it is the oldest as well. The cornerstone of the University, there are vines crawling up the front two wings which extend from the lobby in the middle. The wings are four stories tall and above the lobby the rooms form a tower that is capped off with a clock tower that can be seen from all over campus. The clock within has no hands and the numbers are in reverse order.

  Cars are scattered all along the parking lots of the dormitories, filled with the luggage of incoming students. The cars not parked are trying to find spaces and their horns are screaming at folks trying to do the same.

  “Not much luggage, did you bring everything you need?” says a young man, dressed as a concierge. He speaks with a caring, and nurturing tone. He is wearing a black suit and white gloves, although the fingertips of the gloves have been clipped off.

  “This is it. Just tell me where I am staying. You really don’t even need to walk me in,” says Tony.

  “Yes sir. As you wish sir. Do you have a ticket or some form of identification so I can assist you further?”

  Tony reaches into his pocket and pulls his ticket out, which the man looks at.

  “Fuse Hall, sir.”

  “I know where that is. Thanks.”

  “Please let me show you to your room.”

  They walk through the large lobby that has two elevators, both out of order, so they take the stairs to the second floor. The wing hallway is long and just wide enough for two people to walk side by side. They come to a door, which is already open and when they walk in. They see a tall, skinny, and very dark black man with buck teeth wearing a white tank top and athletic shorts. His hair is dyed bright orange and spiked with glue. He sees them and sashes over to them with his hand extended. “Heyyy, how you doin’? You must be Tony? My name is Fabian. We are roomies this year,” says the dark man with an overpowering lisp.

  Tony shakes his hand then looks down at his. He slowly places his suitcase on the floor without taking his eyes off of Fabian. “I’m just going to drop these off real quick to get my other stuff. We’ll be right back,” he says quickly. Tony turns and he and the young man leave shutting the door behind them.

  They begin their walk down the thin hallway again back outside. The young man cannot hide his curiosity much longer. “What seems to be the problem, sir?”

  “I did my half, all Mitch had to do was sign that damn form and I wouldn’t have Ru Paul as my roommate,” Tony responds.

  “Always someone else’s fault. I am sorry I should not have said that. Who is this Mitch you speak of?”

  “I have a bad feeling about this semester.”

  “I have never heard of a bad semester at Radcliffe University; the finest Institution in the North River Valley.”

  “Again, Mitch’s fault. Did that guy have nipple rings?” questions Tony.

  They dodge through luggage carrying people at the elevators and take the stairs back down to the lobby and then out the front door.

  “I sure hope Mitch gets here soon; he said he was going to be here at about one or so. Which actually means he will be here at three,” Tony continues. Each passing student or parent cannot look past his long blonde hair.

  “There’s something foreboding about this place. I can feel it. Something is speaking to me,” he sighs. His voice is beginning to break with static.

  They reach the quad outside Fuse Hall. Tony looks at a mother and son about to go their separate ways. The mother turns to him and looks into his eyes. Her tears begin as a slow drip here and there and then finally the levee breaks, she reaches over to her son, grabs him in her arms and her tears crash on his shoulder. Caught off guard he looks at her stunned for a moment and then lazily puts his arms around her. When she finally pulls away, Tony sees that her makeup has run down her face. What a terrible sight, he thinks to himself.

  “I love you, son,” she says through the buzzing and sniffling.

  “I love you too, mom. Please drive safe.” the son rewards her with a smile of confidence.

  “In a short time, you will be dead too.” the young concierge says. His mouth continues to move as his voice turns to white noise.

  The mother caresses the son’s face with the back of her hand. He merely stares at her hand as it glides from his temple to his chin.

  Tony watches the mother walk away, still wiping tears from her face. She hops in her minivan and pulls away. He turns and looks around campus and watches other students and their families. He looks at his building first floor to twelfth. Then down at his clothes. Something is not right. The feeling passes and now he does not care. An alarm sounds. The concierge disappears.

  “Fucking Mitch, man,” he scoffs.

  He turns walks alone down the side walk towards the other side of campus. Random people stop what they’re doing and stare at him; he just ignores and continues walking. He walks with his head down hoping to blend in. He occasionally looks up at the environment around. Not the people. All the dormitories are old and made of brick. Lawns lush green and freshly cut but only for the presentation of the opening semester. The sun is has yet to shine. He finally happens upon Morelit Hall which is a wide, three-story dormitory, second largest to Fuse Hall, by the amount of rooms. There is a nice quad, with a ledge, or stage, in front of the building.

  Tony walks in the front door, turns right and continues to walk down the hall. At
the end of the hallway to the right is the elevator which he rides. After getting out of the elevator at the third floor, he turns left down the hallway. There at the other end is Bryan, an old friend of Tony’s, wearing American Eagle’s finest; a tee shirt, plaid shorts and flip flops. He has a beard, no mustache and short dark hair. He double-glances Tony and mumbles something disparaging under his breathe. “What you know good, bro?” yells an over joyous Bryan, who throws his hands in the air in faux celebration.

  “My importance to you is scary. What the fuck are you wearing? Did the country punk turn pretty?” Tony asks in a disgusted voice.

  “You’re one to talk. Where is your bandana and studded belt?”

  “They wouldn’t let me wear them on the train. I’ll be ready by tonight.”

  “Same here so get off my ass,” says Bryan as they walk down the hall towards his room.

  “My bad dude,” Tony says smiling, enjoying the reaction he pulled from his friend. “Your roommate got here yet?”

  “I hope he doesn’t show up. I called this dude a few days ago to go over some details, and I couldn’t understand a damn thing he said. He’s from some hick part of the state and his accent and slang had feeling down about this semester. I have to live with that for the next four months?”

  They finally reach Bryan’s room. He pulls his key out, unlocks the door and opens it. The room is barren except for two twin beds, two desks and one dresser with a large mirror attached. Brad merely throws his luggage on the ground by the door and says, “I need some smokes let’s get outta here.”

  Tony and Bryan walk on the outskirts of the University on the sidewalk. People are parked on medians and on the side of the roads still unloading and carrying luggage. It seemingly never ends.

  “These parents have no idea what their kids are going to do once they leave. Freedom is a drug, made to be abused,” Tony says.

  “Well I am sure they won’t end up like us. They couldn’t handle doing the things we do,” Bryan says confidently.

  “Freedom is a scary thing to possess, if you know what it means to you,” Tony runs his fingers through his hair.

  “Do anything fun over the summer?”

  “Besides work, no. I bought a new pickup truck; four wheel drive, big ass super swampers,” Bryan says giggling.

  “The anarchistic redneck.”

  “Damn right. Dude I am thinking about a nickname.”

  “For you?”

  “Yes”

  “What?”

  “Mongoose.”

  “Mongoose?”

  “Mongoose, bro! Look!”

  Bryan lifts up his shirt to show his flabby stomach, and a Mongoose head tattoo on his chest. Tony looks at is disgust. It looks like prison ink.

  “You’re a fucking clown, dude,” Tony mutters.

  They finally make it to the convenience store, which is packed with humans. All of the visitors are inside buying drinks, snacks, magazine, etc. Tony and Bryan fight their way through the front door to the counter and get in the long line that wraps around the store. The shelves and coolers look barren. They buy packs of Marlboro Red 100s, the long harsh cigarettes, and fight their way back out of the store, and back to Bryan’s dormitory.

  “Where’s the sunshine at?” Bryan questions.

  “Fuck if I know. I don’t care to see it anyways,” Tony responds.

  “Well I have some stuff in my bag that will brighten us up.”

  “I was hoping you would say that.”

  “I think I might actually start charging you.”

  “You enjoy my company far too much to charge me,” Tony quips with a grin.

  Tony looks to the sky and notices the clouds are getting darker for an impending storm. The wind not only shakes the colored leaves off the branches and to the ground, but also sends his hair flowing astray. The skies erupt and the rains pours. The students and parents that were outside unpacking, start hustling and running inside to avoid being wet. Tony and Bryan keep strolling along towards the dormitory and get there without a care in the world.

  They walk along the hallway to the elevator, which they ride to the third floor, and finally get to Bryan’s room. Once they walk inside, Bryan goes to the side pocket of his larger suitcase and pulls out a small baggie with some pot in it. Tony digs into his pocket and pulls out a small two piece bowl which he screws together. Bryan hands him the bag and he sits on the table, puts a few pinches of green on the bowl and lights. The room instantly becomes smoky and hazy.

  “Dude hold on, man, I have to shut the door,” Bryan shouts running towards the door to shut and lock it.

  Tony just carelessly waves him off and continues smoking. He takes another hit and finally hands it over to Bryan who does the same.

  All of the sudden the door lock begins to shake and rattle. Tony sprints over to the window to open it and try to let some smoke out. Bryan rifles through his bag and finds a can of smoke neutralizer and begins to spray it all around the room. Nothing helps. The door opens wildly and-

  “Yoooo, what’s good schnig?” shouts this red haired kid, about nineteen years old with a slight tan. His hair is short on the sides with some length on top which is curls. He looks like Jerry Lee Lewis. “Ch-yeah! Dale-bo is finally at Rad-town!”

  Tony and Bryan are shocked, but relieved and slightly confused at what has just transpired.

  “What’d he just say?” Tony whispers to Bryan.

  “I have no earthly idea.”

  “That’s d-block slang baby. Woo!” shouts Dale overexcited. “It smells fresh in here.”

  “Sure does,” Tony giggles; as all he can breathe in is the smoke in the air, which is starting to add to the buzz he was initially getting.

  “Mind if I jump in? I got my own, too,” Dale adds.

  “I am never ever going to have to pay, sweet!” Tony says. “Well, I already feel fine now that I have gotten that into my life, so I will step aside and let you two get acquainted. I also need to snake my stuff before my roommate starts sniffing my underpants.”

  “Just imagine what he was thinking when you walked in that room with that long, golden hair of yours?” quips Bryan laughing.

  “I will be right back. While I am gone, how about you go fuck yourself,” says Tony frustrated.

  Tony is standing outside of his door at Fuse Hall, hesitant to go in. He takes a deep breath, looks up at the ceiling, exhales and walks in. No one’s there. Tony goes to one of the beds in the room where Fabian put his bag. It is still unzipped, so he stayed out. He unzips the case, grabs a few clothes out, a bag with toiletries and runs in the bathroom. He is thinking of a shower that merely consists of a once over of soap and shampoo. He decided against taking a shower. He walks over and looks into the mirror, tries running a brush through his long hair and becomes fixated on his reflection. Like Narcissus. He looks down at the counter and sees his black bandana on the top of his clothes. He smiles, and puts on his black heavy metal tee shirt. He pulls his studded belt through every loop in his pants but leaves the belt buckle cocked to the side of his hip. Lastly he slides the bandana over his hair and teases it out so it lies out over top. He looks at himself and smiles, he is now comfortable.

  Back at Morelit Hall, he merely strolls around the halls looking at room numbers, peering into other peoples rooms and finally goes to the staircase to the third floor. He struggles up the three flights of stairs and finally gets to the third floor. He sees Dale and Bryan’s room but just walks by. Walking clear across the building he finally spots room number 301 and is compelled to walk in. Mitch is there unloading his luggage. Mitch is tall, slender, and shaggy haired. He is also Tony’s best friend; maybe his only real friend. Mitch is unpacking his bags and placing finely folded clothes into the dresser drawers. This room looks different than the other rooms he has seen or peered into. There are three beds, two are bunked. The room has a large window with a wonderful full view of the University.

  Mitch finally takes notice of Henry. “Wha
t’s good man?”

  “Same old shit brother.”

  They come together, clasps hands, and shoulder pump.

  “Man, you’re not going to believe what happened on my way up here.”

  “Get lost?”

  “I did bro. I ran over one of those shredded tires that you see on the highways. The tire wrapped around my fucking axle and I had to pull over on the side of the road and cut the damn thing off. Luckily I had this.”

  Mitch pulls out an eight inch deer hunting knife. Extremely sharp.

  “I don’t think you’re allowed to have that here. But I’m glad you’re alright, man. Oh by the way I’m moving in.”

  “Good. So far I’m the only one living here. No roommate yet.”

  “Well I have a story for you too. Since you didn’t take care of your end of our room deal, I was placed with a roommate who is a gay black dude; like flaming gay, like I’m afraid to pass out drunk in my room gay. My own mother was laughing at me.”

  Mitch puts his hands over his face and laughs hysterically.

  “Oh my god that sucks!”

  “Yeah. Yeah it does. Glad you think it is so funny. It’s your fault. Come on man hurry up and get ready. We’re pre gaming in Bryan’s room. They’re just right down the hall.”

  “This is definitely going to be a crazy semester.” Mitch says as they both walk out the door and down the hallway, without locking their door.

  “So what’s good for tonight?” Mitch asks.

  “You know I never make plans.”

  “Right, right. I need cigarettes.”

  “Just smoke some of mine. I don’t feel like waiting for your pokey ass anymore.”

  Tony and Mitch just push a door open and smoke files out. Tony jumps in between Dale and Bryan and starts smoking as well. Dale and Bryan don’t say much as they are already stoned outside of their mind. Mitch just watches. He does however reach into a refrigerator and grabs two cans of Milwaukee’s Best Light, the Beast. He pops the tops of his and Tony’s then hands one to Tony, who immediately throws it to his lips and chugs.

  “Shit, I feel vegetation coming over me.” Tony says slowly.

  “So where are we going tonight?” Bryan asks.

  “Who knows, there’s always something here,” Tony answers. “I assume that there has to be something because there’s nothing else to do.”

  “When there’s nothing to do, get tore up, right?” interjects Dale.

  “I guess,” says Mitch.

  “Well, let’s just walk around and see if we find something that interests us. There has to be some sort of fraternity party to celebrate the opening weekend of the new semester,” says Bryan.

  “New dean this year I heard. I heard he wants to make some changes. He doesn’t like the reputation this school has. Him and the Sheriff are working together,” adds Dale.

  “The university and the city are thinking of better ways to fuck us out of more money? Parking tickets and drunk in publics just aren’t enough anymore are they?” says Tony.

  They all laugh. Tony just shakes his head.

  “This is true. New rules; they’re trying to clean things up. They don’t like the party school things, drugs in the streets, homeless people, budget and whatever else. It’s all about change man,” Mitch advises.

  “Change, change, change. Are they going to cut out sex too? They must know about this place’s reputation for promiscuous, unprotected sex,” questions Tony. “It is all so archaic to me.”

  “Something you don’t take advantage of,” Mitch says looking at Tony, who just stares back at Mitch.

  “I’ll leave. Fuck that,” yells Bryan.

  “Well, I know frats don’t throw down as often. Dude from the rugby team told me earlier. They’re not even going to throw down on Thursday’s anymore. They used to have parties all the time there,” adds Mitch.

  “If you’re not on ‘roids you’re not getting laid there with all the girls wanting rugby guys,” says Tony. “I am ready to get the hell out of here before I literally become cemented in this room. Let’s go.”

  When the sun goes down, the phrase “freaks come out at night” never rang truer. The brick buildings look older and monstrous. The streets are as dirty as the townie mountain men cooking meth in their trailer home bathrooms.

  Tony, Dale, and Bryan venture to the ‘far side’ of campus, where University housing is naught. The houses were built in the 1860s and without renovations. The students renting the rundown houses and apartments yell and scream and laugh. The guys are having the worst time walking. Their legs are heavy and heads swimming. They aimlessly walk the streets, only lit by faint porch lights. They finally find themselves at the door of a town house. It is a group off four town homes combined with a front porch for all. Trash is scattered on the porch. Cigarette butts and boxes, dead plants and beer cans decorate what could be a comfortable lounge area. Tony knocks.

  “Who is it?” calls the voice from the other side of the door.

  “Axl Rose,” answers Tony, looking at the other guys laughing.

  The tenant opens the door. He’s a 22 year old geek. It oozed off of him but he tried to cover it up by nice clothes and a cocky smugness.

  “Is there a party here?” asks Tony.

  “Get the fuck off my porch!” yells the geek, trying to be tough.

  “Clean your damn porch,” says Dale.

  The tenant walks through the doorway looking for confrontation, but they jump off the side of the porch, laughing and still antagonizing him as they run up the street.

  “What about that house up there?” Bryan says exhausted, his run turning into a jog.

  The street sharply turns straight up the side of a mountain and at the end of the street is the Theta Chi frat house. No one answers but they continue to run up the street, the mountain. Their legs are getting extremely tired. They are no longer running; they are walking but pushing off of their legs with their arms. It has become a full body workout. Their cigarette ravaged lungs are not holding up. They are wheezing badly. Bryan is on the verge of passing out. But as soon as they begin to fade, they make it to the driveway of the house where people are already outside drinking and smoking. There are also people in the porch to the side of the house, and also people under the porch hidden by the dark. No telling what they are doing.

  “I hope they have water here, damn. How much to get it?” says Tony, absolutely exasperated.

  “No charge, man. These frats can’t charge anymore. Unless they pay the University or city,” says Mitch.

  “Hell yeah! I am glad because I didn’t bring any money.”

  After walking through the front door, they’re immediately in the dirty kitchen. The yellow tile floor is covered in a thin layer of muddy water from the shoes of all the people inside. To the right, there’s a room lit with neon lights and a hookah in the center of people sitting in a circle. Frats dudes, random chicks take hits. The boys proceed to the back room with wooden floors; a slightly lit room with a keg in the far corner which is surrounded by drunk students filling their plastic cups. They get their cups and proceed to the back whilst looking around for people for girls. All of the windows are covered with black bed sheets.

  “Keg stand!” shots a random frat brother.

  A hot blonde girl, in a short skirt and heels, gets snagged by two frat brothers who grab her ankles and lift her in the air to take a keg stand. The crowd chants her time all together. Her friends are around her cheering her on. After a lousy twelve seconds she taps out her face is red and her mouth and nose covered in beer. Her and her friends get a laugh.

  “She isn’t that hot,” says Tony.

  “She might be easy!” laughs Bryan.

  “Perfect for you, Tone. You need someone who doesn’t know the word no,” says Mitch.

  “This place blows. Where’s Dale?” says Tony.

  Dale has slipped them without notice. They turn to go out the room. The crowd is growing and space is shrinking. Every step they
get knocked back and forth and finally realize that Dale has found his way in the circle of frat dudes and cling-on folk. He seems to have fit in well with them; probably lying to them about wanting to join their frat. They’re enjoying it and thinking about the things they’re going to do to him while he rushes. Their smiles are slightly evil and over long, evilly hyperactive. Tony sees the smiles are growing longer than usual. Dale is getting over excited. The hoses from the hookah pass around and white smoke fills the room. Tony just merely rubs his eyes and turns away.

  “Yo dick, you alright, we’re leaving,” Mitch says to Tony, startling him for a second.

  “What the fuck we just got here!” answers Tony. “Don’t forget the leech in the smoke.”

  Bryan walks in angrily on a mission, grabs Dale by the collar of his shirt and yanks him out of his seat. “Get the fuck up! Let’s go.”

  “Where are we going?” asks Dale.

  “Out.”

  The guys spill out of the house. The night is darker, blacker. People are walking everywhere. Some drunk and stumbling, others just aimlessly walking hoping to find somewhere to drink. Smoke.

  “Bryan, you may have to finally call your girlfriend. I’m sure they are doing something,” says Tony.

  “She told me to hit her up, but I really didn’t want to.”

  “She has hot friends, right?” asks Dale.

  “Let’s hope,” says Tony.

  “Beer pong? I would really like to play some beer pong,” chimes Mitch.

  “Damn right. You know what would be cool; if they had their very own room. Like a beer pong stadium,” says Tony, envisioning it in his mind.

  “I’m not really worried about that. I just want to play. It’s better than just standing stationary until getting a beer. At least we could all do something competitive,” says Mitch.

  “I think I am going to join that frat. Those dudes seem alright. They was telling me the get laid whenever they want, get their smoke for free. Wouldn’t that be sweet,” says Dale.

  “Go ahead bro. you would be their little bitch for months,” says Bryan. “I hope you know how to clean shit from toilets, wipe the brothers’ asses, eat cheerios out of a bowl of beer, drink bong water mixed with piss, and drink the left over beers from parties after they’ve already sat hot overnight-”

  “Alright I get it,” interrupt Dale.

  “All for their entertainment,” Bryan says proudly.

  “I’m debating you doing all that stuff for our entertainment,” says Tony getting a laugh from everyone, except Dale who feels slightly embarrassed. “Besides, man, there is something about those dudes, I didn’t’ like. They seemed; fake. Not real.”

  “Ch-yeah. Maybe you right,” Dale says.

  “Fucking whitey,” says Bryan under his breath.

  Bryan’s girlfriend Kristian struts from the front door to the front lawn to meet the guys as they come. She is way out of Bryan’s league. Tall, long legged and tan she shakes her brown hair around and it flails like angels hair. Tony cannot help but wonder why she is wearing short shorts with the weather the way it is.

  “Hey boys!” Kristian says voice smooth. She looks to Tony in particular and says, “Polar bear. The Keg’s inside.”

  Her and Bryan walk in the house. Mitch and Tony stay outside and light cigarettes. Dale follows Bryan.

  “Polar bear?” Mitch asks. “Does this chick even know you?”

  “I assume it is on account of my pale ass skin,” Tony answers.

  “Kind of fucked up.”

  “She looks like a slut anyways; she probably has the gifts that keep on giving.”

  “So. You probably have more STDs than Jim Morrison and James Bond combined.”

  Tony looks at Mitch in amazement at what he just said. Taken aback and offended. He takes a drag off his cigarette and blows the smoke in Mitch’s face and walks toward the door.

  “If I were you I would get myself checked out!”

  Tony walks into the living and is drawn to another long haired man sitting on a sofa, guitar in hand playing and singing folk songs. The crowd gathered around him is swaying back and forth completely taken in by the gentle chords. Tony tries to find another room as quick as possible.

  He makes his way into the kitchen where the table takes up one half of the kitchen. The kitchen itself looks very 1960s, lots of yellows and oranges and plastic furniture. In the corner of the kitchen by the refrigerator stands the keg, still cold and in a large blue tote and no line to wait. Beer pong is going on in the adjacent sunroom.

  “Hey dude, go sign us up for the next game,” shouts Tony at Mitch who is at the keg filling his cup.

  Mitch hands his cup to Tony. “You got it boss.”

  Bryan walks in adjusting his belt buckle with Kristian following closely behind holding his hand; he is trying to let everyone know he just got laid with his huge shit eating grin.

  “Yeah! Yes I did!” Bryans says laughing.

  “I didn’t fucking say anything,” says Tony. “If not you it would’ve been someone else.”

  “Get ready man, we’re next. Bread and butter baby,” Mitch says.

  “Fifteen games in a row son!” Mitch shouts.

  Tony is sitting on a brick ledge behind Morelit Hall. Rain is falling and there are people sliding down the hill behind them on trash bags.

  “I’m sorry, what?” Tony says, seemingly lost.

  “We dominated beer pong, fifteen games in a row. We were beating everyone. Random people just kept coming up and trying their hand. All failed. Everybody was getting pissed at themselves, and even at us. Bryan and Dale in particular. Bryan more so. He started throwing balls against the walls and yelling at Dale. Hilarious. We just kept continuing to make shots. These two girl partners were shaking their asses and showing their boobs to try and distract us, but to no avail. We’re pros and we have seen it all before man.

  “That’s never happened to me before man. Holy fuck,” Tony says, still confused but starting to feel more comfortable.

  “Bryan and Dale were really getting hot man. I thought Bryan was going to fuck Dale up. He just started beaming the pong balls at the cups.”

  Tony is sitting motionless, peering off into the sky; almost looking for something in the dark, cloudy heavens.

  “What’s up man, you alright? Drink too much?” Mitch asks with concern.

  “This is what it’s all about man: living a dream. Not a care in the world. This is freedom.” Tony surmises.

  Mitch just nods, agreeing but not knowing where this is all coming from. “Living a dream.”

  “Sometimes when a night goes this well,” Tony stops and pulls a crushed pack of cigarettes from his pocket. All the cigarettes look broken. “I just wait for a catastrophe.”

  Tony and Mitch are sitting together in auditorium classroom; Tony pretending to take notes and Mitch falling asleep with a thick textbook and folder on his lap

  A teacher’s voice comes in and out to Tony-“…in the 17th century however, that’s when there were great strides in the development in the study of geology…”

  Tony looks over at Mitch who is sleeping, but with his eyes open.

  “…this was one of the major points in religion against science. The geology and origin of the Earth…” says the teacher whose words still evaporates and hangs in the air.

  A girl is sitting beside Tony is text messaging, clearly in her own little world. She is a little on the hefty side with dyed back hair. The constant tapping and clicking begins to peck at Tony

  Mitch’s head keeps bobbing and moving around. His eye balls are moving around rapidly.

  “Damn, I should be high right now,” says the girl under her breath as she exhales in boredom.

  “Me too,” Tony says injecting himself into her own conversation.

  “You smoke?”

  “Are you serious? Everyday. The long hair didn’t give it away?”

  “Oh yeah sorry, what was I thinking?” she says sarcastically.
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  “So what are you doing after class?” asks Tony.

  “Nothing comes to mind.”

  “…next week we’ll get into more of engineering geology and how it affects our current environment,” again says the teacher.

  “Well how about that,” says Tony.

  “How about that,” mutters the girl, her eyes back to her phone.

  The sounds of her clicking and tapping on her phone are starting to eat at Tony.”

  “Could you please fucking stop that? Who is that fucking important,” Tony angrily whispers almost coming out of his seat.

  “It is my mom, you son a bitch. Her sister has just been diagnosed with diabetes.”

  Tony is embarrassed and feels small. He slowly situates himself back into his chair. “I am sorry to hear that.”

  “I am sure you are. I am leaving” says the girl, who grabs her book bag and leaves.

  Tony gets up too and follows her out of the classroom. Tony intentionally holds his notebook out to hit Mitch in the face to wake him up. It doesn’t work.

  Tony catches her outside of the classroom door.

  “Look I really am sorry, is there anything I can do to make up for it?”

  The girl stops and turns around quickly and walks back to Tony.

  “Look I am seriously about to pull a knife out of my back a stab you with it.”

  Tony stops and puts his hands up and quickly says “I can get some smoke.”

  The girl squints, wanting to hear more.

  “I can get some Northern Lights, for the both of us, if you’d like. You said you wanted to smoke and what better way to forget life’s problems.”

  She lowers her guard and says, “Let’s go then.”

  They exit the hall and walk the sidewalks; Tony has no idea what he is going to do. Until he finally remember Bryan may have some if hasn’t smoked it all already. Tony gets excited about his idea and walks quicker making it harder for the girl to keep up with him.

  The campus is already buzzing with activity. Students are walking out of their dormitory halls going to class, the cafeteria hall, maybe someone else’s room. There are small stand along the sidewalk as well some selling University shirts and some stands are frats or sororities recruiting new prospects.

  “Slow down,” calls out the girl who is getting further and further away.

  Tony make is to Morelit Hall and walks in the door and finally realizes that the girl he just met isn’t there. He becomes worried and looks around. Nothing.

  He turns around to walk back inside-

  “Why did you run away!” shouts the girl.

  Tony jumps back frightened but relieved.

  “It is inside, I will go get it, and you stay right here.”

  Tony runs through the door and down the hallway to the elevator. He pushes the button to open the door but nothing. He turns and goes the stair way and runs up the three flights of stairs and gets to Bryan and Dale’s room. He knocks on the door but no one answers. He turns the door knob, it is unlocked and he opens the door slowly. No one is there. He runs over to Bryan’s unpacked bags and starts digging in his belongings throwing shirts and jeans all over the room. He goes to the drawers in starts flipping through the folded clothes and finds an old pair of camouflaged shorts hidden in the sock drawer. He sticks his hand in the pocket and pulls out a zip lock bag with a small amount of marijuana inside. He stuffs the bag in his pocket and exits the room quickly, locking the door behind him. He checks the halls for activity but it is empty so takes flight back down the stairs to the hallways and back out the front door to meet the girl who is still standing in the same spot as Tony told her to.

  “Ok all ready, want to go to your place,” says Tony out of breath.

  “Sure. My roommates are there so don’t act suspicious.”

  “Got it.”

  They walk away from the Morelit Hall quad and off campus entirely. Tony walks slightly behind the girl. He hasn’t even asked her what her name is. Nor does he really care. She doesn’t either. They pass a small convenience store which has metal bars over the windows with a few homeless people standing behind it. However behind the store is the girl’s house, which she rents with a few roommates. The girl takes her key ring out and unlocks the door. They walk in and her three roommates are sitting on a sofa directly in front of them watching a movie on the television, oblivious to them. the proceed down the hallway which is a straight shot from the front door, hang a left at the end of the hallway and make an immediate right into the girls room.

  The girl pulls out a huge multi colored bong, a bubbler to be exact, from behind her vanity. It has to be about three feet tall. Tony has never seen anything like this and isn’t quite ready for it. She’s obviously done this many times before. She packs the bong and hands it to Tony with a smile. Her first one directed his way. Tony grabs the bong without a clue what to do; staring at it nervously.

  “What the hell are you doing? It isn’t going to bite you” she asks agitated.

  “What is this?”

  She thinks she’s with an amateur. In many regards she is. She grabs the bong from him.

  “Watch,” she says.

  She lights the shotgun and the greenies burn. She ever so softly draws smoke up the tube and when smoke completely fills the tube she pulls at the shotgun and with one good pull, gets all the smoke. She holds for a second and exhales, again ever so softly. Another smile. Tony sits in amazement. He has never even seen a guy do that.

  “Wow, you’re good,” he says. “Ok my turn.”

  Tony grabs the bong takes a huge rip, which he repeats. The girl grabs the bong and takes hers. They both start laughing. The girl walks over to a jewelry box and pulls out another small bag; this bag containing white powder. She sprinkles a little on top and passes it to Tony who takes another hit, and then he freezes. The girl laughs at him but Tony is completely unable to defend himself.

  Tony cannot move. He looks relaxed but looking terribly high. The girl and her roommates come in and out of his vision, their faces long and eyes blood shot. Then the eyes transform into mirrors so he can see himself. But he doesn’t recognize himself as himself. He can hear people talking around him. All of their voices are distorted, like people talking with marbles in their mouth and fading as if someone else is adjusting the volumes of the voices. Their bodies stretch and then fold over top of him. The walls elongate and race into a black vanishing point.

  The voices fade into the oblivion as Tony begins to sink into the floor. The room turns black. Every word that has ever been uttered to Tony is racing through his head. Some things he has never heard and don’t have meaning also. The words are layered on top of each other.

  Mitch finally comes in the room he looks at the girls, who look as if Tony may have just somehow ended up there without them knowing. He reaches over to Tony and claps his hands in his face trying to get a response.

  The girls start doing tribal dances around him.

  “Wake up” Mitch says but the words and his mouth aren’t matching. He finally grabs Tony by his feet and drags him out of the room, down the small then large hallway, then out of the front door to his car which is parked outside. He leaves a limp Tony on the ground as he goes to the passenger side door, opens it and puts Tony inside. He slams the door shut, gets in the driver seat and pulls away from the house.

  Tony looks up and stares through the moon roof. He rises from his seat with Mitch merely watching. He opens the moon roof and pokes his head out. His hair flies back from the wind. He looks up at the night sky as the grey and purple clouds swirl within the black air rapidly.

  Tony rolls over, awakened, by Mitch kicking his bed, looking like hell.

  “Damn son, you look like shit. You go home with that chick?” says Mitch.

  “Mmm, yeah sure,” says Tony unsure.

  “Do any good?”

  “Good buzz I think. I don’t remember much.”

  “Yeah, you know, it’s probably for the best. Just be
cause you look like a rock star, doesn’t mean you can live like one.”

  “Practice makes perfect.”

  “Get up and let’s go out back and smoke a cig?”

  “Definitely, I think I am a little hungry though.”

  “Alright, yeah, a burger sounds good.”

  Tony struggles to get up and falls out of the bed prompting Mitch to lend a hand. Tony adjusts the bandana on his head once he gets to his feet and they walk out the door, down the hallway to the elevator and wait for it to open. The stairs are definitely not an option.

  Once the door opens, there is a small red haired girl standing innocently in the back corner of the elevator. She gets frightened when Tony walks in, trying to make herself as small as possible. Right before the door closes she sprints through them. Tony relishes the moment. “Dude you eyes are so red right now it’s sickening.”

  “Good”

  The elevator ride comes to an end at the first floor where they meet Dale and Bryan just coming back from class.

  “We’re getting some food, want some?” Tony asks.

  “Yeah, I’m starving. I’m craving a burger,” answers Bryan.

  “I’m down,” says Dale. “Speaking of who’s throwing down tonight? Anybody?”

  “I don’t even think I’m going out man. My stomach has been hurting like a bitch.”

  “You might want to get the sand out of your vagina too,” says Mitch.

  “Yeah man. Your pussy bleeding?” says Tony.

  “Fuck you. No man. Lately I’ve just been feeling like I want to puke but can’t and I have this sharp pain in my side. It’s hard too.”

  “Beer helps. Always eases my pain,” says Tony.

  They walk out the front entrance door and Tony takes in a huge gulp of moist air.

  “Dope too.” says Dale.

  “I doubt it. Look I am going back in. You all go without me.”

  “Fallen soldier,” says Mitch.

  “Dude you cannot be serious,” says Tony, who is growing frustrated. “I have lost my appetite I am going back inside too.”

  “You know what, if you find something good, maybe.”

  “Thank you. Attaboy. I still don’t have an appetite though.”

  On a bulletin board on the wall, adjacent to the front, there are fliers posted. Tony notices a fluorescent pink one in particular and pulls it off and starts reading.

  “Hey guys, look at this,” shouts Tony.

  “What the hell is that?” inquires Mitch.

  “It says there’s a sorority auction,” says Tony.

  “What’s that?” asks Bryan.

  “I have no idea. Says you come and they auction off the girls for a night,” says Tony.

  “Tony, you’re the man,” says Mitch.

  “Seems weird to me. It reminds me of this one time I took my truck to hooters for a topless car wash and they washed everything except the top of the damn truck!” says Bryan.

  “Well, to me, it sounds like university endorsed prostitution. I’m in. Anyone want to go halves?” says Tony whose eyes grow large and hearts beats fast.

  “Fuck it. I’m down,” answers Mitch.

  “I’ll think about it,” says Bryan, wincing with pain and grabbing at the left side of his abdomen with both hands, his face going pale.

  “Can you bring them to our room after you’re done?” says Dale

  “No.” says Tony.

  “Let’s get them to do Mad Dog hands?” says Mitch.

  “What?” asks Tony.

  “If they absolutely have to do anything we say, we tell them that we are going tape Mad Dogs to their hands and they can’t take them off until they finish.”

  “Mitch, you’re the man! We can probably get them to clean the room too; can’t be a sexual thing, unless they really want to. You got to be crazy to think that.”

  Nestled inside a conference room, stands a small stage, four long bench tables and a podium in the center. At the front of the room is a group of girls dressed in their finest dresses and skirts, looking really sultry and whorish in nature, or Radcliffe classy. There are chairs set up for people to sit facing the stage. Tony and Mitch stand against the back wall because no seats are available. There’s got to be at least two hundred guys and girls there. At the podium, the president of the sorority is getting papers together and ready to start the bidding.

  “Welcome gentlemen. And ladies!” says the sorority president.

  The audience begins to cheer obnoxiously. Tony and Mitch merely clap, and examine the girls.

  “This is the first annual Alpha Sigma Alpha sister auction. Now I want to reiterate that this is in no way sexual. And you only get the girls for 24 hours. That’s really it. Let’s start the bidding. “

  The crowd erupts again.

  Two sorority sisters stumble across the stage, already wasted. Both in where short black dresses, one is tall the other short, both have blonde hair. Tony looks over at Mitch and smiles.

  “I hope you brought your wallet,” says Tony.

  Mitch pulls it out, opens it for Tony, revealing several crisp bills. So fresh you can almost smell the tree from which they came from.

  “Alright our first two ladies are a pair, they are Beth and Tina. They both, obviously enjoy to party and know how to have a great time”-

  “$20!” shouts Tony with his hand raised.

  “I hear $20, how about $30?” says the president.

  “$30!” shouts a random voice from the crowd.

  “$50!” says Tony, looking around for whoever is trying to out bid him.

  “Ok $50, do I hear $60? Going, once, going twice, sold the long haired guy in the back!”

  Mad Dog drinks are getting duct taped to two sorority girls’ hands by Tony. Mitch is trying to tidy up the room a bit, but dirty clothes are piled by the opened window to air out and their small metal trash can is overflowing.

  “I don’t want both hands,” Beth giggling.

  “Me neither. This is a poor black man’s drink,” says Christina.

  “Why’s it got to be a race thing? Shut up and drink. We bought you remember,” says Tony

  “Wait they still have a room to clean, right?”

  “Yes, you are right. Let’s start there.”

  “Why do you have trash bags on your bed?” asks Christina smugly. “This room is disgusting.”

  “That’s none of your business. They’re my bed sheets,” answers Tony.“Alright, look, we seem to have gotten started off on the wrong foot here. I’ll tell you what; we have four mad dogs here. Out of the kindness of my heart and liver, I’ll tape two to my hands and you two get just one each. Deal?

  “Sure you want to do this?” Mitch whispers to Tony.

  “Fuck it. Why not?”

  Tony gets the girls to tape the Mad Dogs to both of his hands. The girls start randomly picking things up and throwing some things away. Tony holds his hands up for someone to open one of his drinks. Mitch obliges.

  “Hey, one of our friends from this other frat is having a birthday party; kind of a 80s birthday party. I think we should all go,” says Beth.

  “I’m obviously ready but, well we got to get Cinderella over here ready for the ball,” says Tony, motioning to Mitch who isn’t in the room anymore.

  “What do you mean, we are already dressed up,” says Christina again with smugness.

  Beth sits down on Mitch unmade bed to get off her heels for a minute. She crosses her legs and her short black dress rises up and reveals that she has no panties on.

  Tony cannot take his eyes off.

  Mitch finally walks back into the room.

  “Dude, she has no panties on,” he whispers to Mitch.

  “What? Are you serious?”

  “The tall, blonde one. No panties. Look,” he says motioning cautiously. Her vagina is more evident then before. Shaved, clean and tan.

  “Oh my God, dude.”

  “I have to show Bryan and Dale, hold on.”

  Tony exit’s the
room quickly and turns down the hallway and into a full on sprint. He reaches Bryan and Dale’s room, peaks his head in and is completely out of breath.

  “Dude, I have to show you something, come see this,” says and exhausted Tony.

  “What up?” asks Dale, sitting at his desk staring at his laptop.

  “You wouldn’t believe it if I told you let’s go.”

  Dale gets out of his chair quickly, while poor Bryan fights to get out of his bed. There is a small bucket by the head of the bed.

  Tony has already taken off back to the room. Dale catches up quickly while Bryan walks slowly.

  Tony gets to his door first then stops and waits for Dale and Bryan. Dale comes first, with an unsure expression on his face. Bryan struggles to stand up straight as the pain is making him double over.

  “Ok before we go, I have to fill you in. Whatever you see, don’t make a big deal out of it.”

  “You bought a girl didn’t you?” asks Bryan through his teeth.

  “Why do you have Mad Dogs taped your hands your hands?” asks Dale.

  “I like to party. You’ll be glad I did this for you guys!” says Tony.

  The door opens to-

  “YAY! You’re back,” yells Beth.

  Dale and Bryan smile.

  “Yeah I just wanted my boys to join in on the party. This is Bryan and this is Dale,” says Tony motioning to them both.

  Tony walks to Mitch small refrigerator and gets them both a beer.

  “Look at that one. Just look at her legs,” Tony whispers in Bryan’s ear.

  Bryan stares as Beth crosses her legs again. Bryan’s mouth is a gape.

  “So you’re coming out with us tonight right?” says Tony. “Funny how the pain just evaporates.”

  Bryan just nods his head, almost in a trance.

  Beth notices Bryan staring at her crotch, gets uneasy, and pulls her skirt down.

  Tony raises his arm and chugs one of the Mad Dogs in one monstrous gulp. Everyone looks at him in awe. He wipes his mouth with the same arm and throws the other drink to his face and over fills his stomach. The wonder in the girls faces immediately turns to repulsion.

  Everyone is stumbling down the street, drunk and laughing. The girls swing back and forth putting their arms around the guys as they all walk. They aren’t the only ones out. The streets are alive with humanity. The roads are slick having just been rained upon. The temperature is dropping rapidly.

  Outside of a seemingly well put together frat house, Beth knocks on the door and almost falls over from laughing so hard. Tony is gnawing away at the tape on his hands to rid himself of the Mad Dog bottles.

  A dude opens the door, recognizes Beth and Christina and invites them all in. he is a muscular guy with tattoos crawling up his neck, several piercing’s in his eye brows and nose and a faux hawk. He is skeptical about the guys coming in, but they could care less and push through.

  “That dude was grilling you hard man. He either wanted to fuck or fight you,” Tony says to Bryan.

  “He’s a clown.”

  “You should go tell him that,” advises Tony.

  “I know that dude; actually, he is a fucking clown. I’ll go tell him, watch.”

  Tony stands by the counter in the kitchen and watches Bryan walk up to the brother and they have an inaudible conversation. Bryan is doing his best Lyndon Johnson close talk impression. The brother looks uncomfortable as Bryan keeps mouthing the word ‘clown’. The brother starts to laugh and walks away leaving Bryan defeated.

  Tony notices a cake on the counter that no one is touching. A fully decorated cake. Tony starts pulling drawers open until he finds what he is looking for. A fork. Tony starts digging into the cake without a care in the world.

  “Excuse me?” says an unfamiliar feminine voice from behind him.

  Tony doesn’t acknowledge.

  “UM, HELLO. EXCUSE ME,” shouts the girl wildly.

  “What woman? What! What! What?!” says a perturbed Tony.

  Tony turns around and sees the girl for the first time and isn’t impressed at all.

  “That’s my fucking cake! I baked it for my friend!” says the girl angrily.

  “It’s really good. Excuse me.”

  Tony gives the cold shoulder and turns back to the cake and eats again.

  “What are you doing man? That’s her cake!” says Mitch.

  “I’m taking her cake and eating it too. Besides, she needs no cake. Look,” says Tony motioning to the girl. His words are starting slur deficiently.

  “There’s a late night at Kappa Sig. The girls have disappeared,” says Mitch

  “Where’d they go?”

  “Upstairs.”

  “I see. That was quick wasn’t it? I can’t see straight.”

  The stairs to the basement of the Kappa Sigma house are steep and covered in beer and piss which flows to the floor. Tony, Mitch, Bryan and Dale carefully walk down the stairs. Tony is doing is best to make every foot land properly, but he slips and has to kept upright by Mitch. Beer is served right at the door and in the middle of the floor girls are scantily dressed and dancing dirty with other girls and guys. The bass is pounding so hard from the speakers it is disrupting everyone’s heart rhythm. The boys grab beers and start pounding. Beth and Christina have made their way here and start yelling for the boys to come in the middle of them and their friends to start dancing.

  “Being with chicks like this makes me feel like a rock star,” yells Tony whose voice can barely be heard over the music.

  “You are a rock star,” shouts back Bryan sarcastically.

  “I want to hear you sing,” says Beth.

  “What?” shouts Tony.

  “I want to hear you sing,” shouts Beth.

  “Oh not tonight, I’m too hammered!”

  “That’s when you’ll be at your best,” says Bryan.

  Tony stands there as Christina and Beth walk over to a friend of theirs in the frat. He signals for Tony to walk over there. Tony stumbles over to him.

  “You want to sing dude?” says their friend.

  “Sure why not, fuck it.”

  “Come over here and pick.”

  Tony flips through a book of CD’s and pulls one out and hands it to the guy.

  “Track number one man.”

  “Hell yeah you got it, bro. Nice choice.”

  Another frat guy hands Tony the microphone and says, “Knock ‘me dead, kid.”

  Tony looks around, throws his head back and his mouth opens. No one at the party notices him. They are unmoved. Tony stands there motionless in the chaos. The frat guy slowly grabs the microphone from him without him noticing. Tony looks for Beth and Christina but they are lost in the crowd, as is Mitch, Dale and Bryan. They must have left.

  Tony walks back to the piss covered stairs and exits the basement. The temperature has dropped drastically. His breath is thick as it escapes his lungs. The only sounds around are that of crickets.

  “Here man, take this. I don’t want it,” says a partygoer frightening Tony.

  After gathering his nerves he blurts, “I don’t want your fucking book bag. Get the fuck away from me.

  “Just take it.”

  The book bag guy drops the bag at Tony’s feet and runs off. He stares at the book bag and unzips it to find a case of unopened Natural Light cans.

  “Jackpot.”

  Tony cracks the top of two cans and double fists the beers only adding to his inebriated state of mind. Tony lifts the bag and starts walking home and is stumbling everywhere. All the booze has caught up. He can’t remember how to get back to the dormitory. The rain starts to pour violently. He opens another beer. Tony passes random building and can’t make out any familiar landmarks.

  He stumbles into concrete some concrete steps. He grabs at the thin steel rails in the middle of the steps. He swings himself to the top of the stairs and slams into the metal door of a brick building. Tony takes his drivers license out of his wallet and swipes it in the locked
door. He can barely stand and is swinging on the door handles trying to stay upright.

  Blue lights appear and a siren screams. An officer steps out of his patrol car, flash light in hand, and shines it on Tony.

  “Sir, can I help you?” asks the officer.

  “She went in here,” Tony slurs.

  “What are you trying to do here? Have you been drinking, sir?”

  “The girl went in here, can you get her? I just want to talk to her.”

  “This is archives sir. No one lives here. I’m going to ask you to come with me.”

  The officer grabs Tony by the arm which he pulls away viciously causing him to fall down the concrete stairs. As the officer comes down the stairs, Tony comes back to his feet swaying.

  “Fuck your mother,” he shouts, flipping the officer two middle fingers and laughing.

  “GET ON THE FUCKING GROUND, SIR!”

  The officer pounces on Tony, throws on the ground, and puts cuff on him.

  Tony is walking along another dirty, dingy Radcliffe street. There is a steady rain but nothing strong. The noises from parties have disappeared into the vast black hole. Thick steam rises from the street vents. His breath is thick as if he was exhaling lungs full of smoke. There are faint voices however that seem to be coming from nowhere and everywhere. He sees beer cans and bottles rolling up the street. The leaves are on the trees are swaying from stiff winds, but Tony hears nothing but the faint voices. His view follows the bottles and cans up the street and the voices grow. He is transfixed on an object: a man or being. The being is walking towards Tony with a quick pace. Tony can’t make out much from the distance but the steps are getting quicker but choppier. The first detail he sees, dirt, mud. The being’s clothes are covered in it. The voices grow louder. His heart is pounding like a double bass drum. The next feature, long, dirty hair. His hair is frozen hard from the cold. The man draws closer. The voices get louder. And louder. The man is talking within himself. The man does not notice Tony. Tony cannot move. The steps quicken. The voices grow loud. The decibels are unnerving. Tony grimaces. He grinds his teeth. The man is feet from him. The voices are so loud they are incomprehensible. He is here! He passes through Tony as if he was invisible. Silence. Tony is awestruck and in shock. He stand motionless, his mouth is slightly open. A light wind shakes his hair. It is so silence he can finally hear the clicking and clanking of the aluminum beer cans. He can hear the hollow rolls of the glass bottles. He here the leaves dance. He hears the chain linked fences from an unknown yard rattle. He turns around slowly. At ease. There is the being! A monster! Tony is staring at the monster: himself. The monster is seething through sharpened teeth. The monster slowly starts to wrinkle. First around the eyes, then lips. The bandana beings to fray and slowly fall to the dampened ground. His mud covered hair begins to grow. It becomes scraggily with patches of gray. His cheeks begin to suck into his face. A beard grows but is so coarse and scraggily you can still see his skin. His eyes begin to sow shut. He brutally tears at his eyes in pain only to leave scratch marks. They are fused shut. His rock and roll clothes have turned into a brown trench coat. His faced is getting older, more weather beaten. His nose is wide and long, the tip hanging to the top of his upper lip. His stench is unbearable.

  Tony is engrossed and entrapped in the monster’s aura. He takes a step closer, almost examining this man. The man slowly raises his head without much effort. At the top of his stance opens his mouth extremely wide. Wide enough to swallow Tony’s head. He is looking as if he dislocated his jaw like a hungry serpent. The monster lets out a silent scream blowing Tony’s hair back and quickly astray. Tony can only grab his ears and cringes. He grabs so hard is begins to slowly rip them off his head. Tony falls to his knees. Bowing to the monster.

  II