Prologue

Beginning. Super-dee-duper special.

       I looked up at the blue sky and smiled to myself, striding to the beat of What I Got by Sublime. My backpack bounced with every step I took, and the contents inside rattled with the impact: my phone, my notebook, and my house keys. No one else was walking on the normally busy street, and for that I was grateful; I didn't want to deal with talking to anybody today. So, I strode along the sidewalk, taking in the fresh smells of spring. The breeze rustled my brown-almost-black hair, shooing it away from my face as I walked. The fluffy clouds gliding above my head dragged themselves across the sky lazily. I closed my eyes and sighed peacefully before continuing my walk to the park. It was such a beautiful day out, I couldn't help myself; I had to go to the park today.

               Excitement filled my blood stream. No one will be at the park. I'll have it all to myself, I thought, the happiness that I usually stored inside my brain spreading out across my face in a wide grin. I'll be golden! Alone, on a beautiful day, having nothing to do but swing on the swings and relax--

               My thoughts were stopped short by the sight of a person walking down the street. I froze in my tracks, feeling the blood disappear from my face. No, no, no... It was a middle-aged man, hair just beginning to turn gray at the roots, walking his dog--a boxer. An intimidating chain collar was tightened around the dog's neck, and they were keeping a steady pace down the sidewalk. I slowly moved out of my frozen state and turned up the volume on my iPod, nearly making myself deaf with the noise. It couldn't do anything to make the man's thoughts go away, though.

               I gotta do bills today. And I gotta wash the car, make sure Delilah's flight landed, and cook dinner. I wonder what she'll want for dinner...maybe I'll make a pork chop, the man's voice chimed in my head. I squinted my eyes shut and turned the volume up louder. Or maybe she'll want a steak. I could fire up the barbeque and make her  a nice, juicy steak. I know Delilah likes steak. I've been married to her for...my God, how long's it been?

               His thoughts were silenced momentarily, but they were quickly replaced by another voice inside my head. God damn, old man, when are you gonna figure out that I hate this damn collar? I mean, Jesus Christ, man! This thing is way too tight, first off, and second, it's too hard and cold on my skin. No dog likes collars, but the least you could do is get a nice one!

               The colors that I saw inside my eyelids were quickly changing colors: black, red, white, black again, yellow. I tried to turn up the volume more, but I had already turned it up as much as I could and the voices were still there. I opened my eyes and quickened my pace, trying to get past the man and the dog. The park wasn't that far away, but it seemed like endless miles with the two voices chanting inside my head. I squeezed my eyes shut once more, speeding up into a jog.

               ...15 years! Oh, my God, that is a long time. Am I really that old? The man laughed mentally. There I go again, asking myself questions inside my head. No one can hear them, so why do I ask them? I know I'll never get answers to them, unless I ask them out loud. So it's not really logical to ask them in the first place.... His thoughts trailed off as I left the man and his dog in the dust, jogging towards the park.

               If you haven't picked up on this already, I can read minds. It's not like I want to--I learn things I really don't want to that way--but it's just an abnormality that I gained somehow. Blame genes, blame bumping my head when I was born, blame whatever. But I have this curse, and it always annoys the crap out of me. I try to control it with my iPod, blaring my eardrums out whenever I can, and my headphones go out all the time. I've spent a fortune on headphones, all Skullcandy brand; those things can get loud. I haven't mastered the art of "mental wall-building" yet, but I'm working on it. So, for some release, I rely on my iPod.

               Jogging to the park, the song jumped from What I Got to Smoke Two Joints (both by Sublime if you didn't know that already). I neared the large oak tree that was used as a marker to signify your distance from the magnificent park, and a grin spread across my face once more. Almost free! I thought, happy to finally be alone.

               When I reached the oak, I skidded to a stop. There, on the swings and play structures, were kids. At least twenty of them. All thinking like maniacs.

               So much for my sweet escape idea.

Reviews

[Timothy Lawmowe]

Awesome work! Great concept. moving on to the next chapter immediately!

[Persephone Bones]

Nice ending. Love your creativity. Keepit going!

[Rae]

Really good! I like your descriptions and dialouge. Awesome!