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vampires
1. It was as if my existence was predicated on a draft, of Stephen King's: Salem's Lot. I was burrowing my way into an arm chair, when I awoke. It had me in it's mouth, like a catcher's mitt. The night had invaded. An ocean of darkness was spilling in, through unseen windows. The foreign structure that I was enclosed in, was unsafe. I felt it. Blurry, pale faces were pressing in on me. Feeding off of my fear and my tears. Ghouls. Vampires. Making sounds, that are muffled and lost in my memory. I would have been 3, I couldn't have been any older. It's still my first memory. The opening scene. I was far too young to wonder why there weren't any balloons or confetti, awaiting my arrival. A big banner that said: “Welcome to the world!” Instead, my face was pressed against the leather. I could taste the tears. “In the end we're all alone. And no one's, coming to save you.” Jesus told me that. 2. There's a foggy post credits scene, where shadows are screaming. They're fighting, and furniture is moving through the air. And a jump cut, to a back seat. Dazed. New to this world. I yawned, and watched the lights pass by. A neon sign outside of a grocery store. Maybe a bottle shop. March 12th 2011 3. I gulped and inhaled, breathing in the depression. It was as if it was being funneled into my room, drop by drop. In a twisted heap, I was stuck on my bedroom floor. Like a spiritually deflated, balloon animal. Hopelessness had reduced my bones to glass. I was 15 years old, and I was just waiting. I was waiting for the stragglers to turn in for the night, so that I could slit my wrists. I'm not proud of it, but over time I've forgiven myself. There was an episode of my favorite show playing, but not even it could save me, I was never welcome here. And she was gone. My first real girlfriend. Whose house, inadvertently became my sanctuary. I hadn't stopped trying to find a hole in the code. Some sort of tunnel, out of reality. That little boy in the opening scene didn't stop running until he tripped and fell in 2010. And that's where I found her: We met across the street, but spent our time at the playground behind the local Library. I rambled and I played her music by a local artist, Rhys Zacher. And I told her about Laura; always Laura. Like, I had a mild case of Asperger’s. I was insensitive. The Grinch's heart hadn't yet grown three sizes. I cried on her a lot, I didn't know how to kiss her. It was a mess, but I was a teenager, who thought he was in love. Endorphins were doing their thing, and that terrified little boy, was being held. Warmth, a house that offered security. Food. Foster Care. She enveloped my undeveloped mind, and my depression. The storm that had positioned itself above me that year couldn't touch me. I was safe in her house. But, it wasn't September 2010 any more. It was March 12th 2011. And she was gone. They just needed to go to bed, and turn the lights out. Once they did, it would be safe to end it. 4. I wasn't supposed to be here. I didn't want to be here. The Vampires, and the creatures of the night were back; I couldn't wait. Once silence fell over the house, I made haste towards the exit. I slashed and cut until my hand was covered in so much blood that I couldn't hold the razor blade any more. My head was swimming. I was 15. But, I was still trying to burrow into the seat of that arm chair.
1999 5. It was a bottle shop. My eyes were beginning to adjust, to my new environment. The monsters. The violence. In this realm, danger was woven into the fabric of existence. So being alone, and being afraid. That was simply the price of admission. “You are not safe. No matter how many people are around. Or how clear the area looks. No matter what anyone says. No matter what you think. You are not safe.” A Sheriff's Deputy told me that. 6. Brakes squealed, and my eyes sprang open. A car was pulling out of the driveway. It's headlights flashed, and washed over the window. It was late, the middle of the night. Somehow, I was back in that foreign structure. With darkness huddled around me, rubbing my shoulder. I was alone. Like Chuckie Finster, lost in the woods. But, I was missing Tommy's ingenuity and Phill's bravery. Clutching my blanket, I looked to the doorway. That only offered deeper exploration, into the dark. There was a hallway. There was quiet, and there was cold. A great, dirty claw dug into the door frame.
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