Feet On The Ground At All Times

There were only four women who ever came to my room, at least as far as I knew. Maybe some magically appeared when I wasn't there, dunno.

The first was my mother, naturally. She was in there a lot until she died, cleaning, making my bed, looking for hidden nudie mags, the usual.

The second was Jane, my high school crush. She felt bad for me since my mother had died, but she rejected my advances.

The third was a few years later, 'Jasmine', who helped me get over Jane.

The fourth was the policewoman I showed Jasmine's body to.

Door Buzz

Every morning, the woman who lived in apartment Nineteen B would be in the lobby, checking through her purse, making sure she had everything, I could only assume. She would finish as I approached the front door, and be behind me as I buzzed it open. But then as I would go through the door, she would buzz it again, as if it might lock again.

This went on for months, and eventually I wanted to prove a point. So I waited, let her buzz, and then followed her out before the door closed.

And emerged somewhere different than usual.

Ball Control

Each culture has their own rituals, from the official, ceremonial ones to the casual ones that citizens wouldn't even recognize as rituals. The simple ones are the ones that truly teach you about the culture.

For instance, what the society deems as the 'correct' interaction for fathers and their sons. It's usually a sport, one with little chance of accidental physical contact, or even eye contact.

Maybe it involves killing an animal, maybe it involves creating something. Maybe it even involves more men.

But the main thing it teaches you is how badly they want men to remain emotionally stunted.

Blind Strip

Having to strip and reassemble your firearm blindfolded wasn't part of basic training, it was just a challenge we'd set each other for 'fun'. Then when I got good at it, it became a party piece we used to win bets. I knew it wasn't a useful skill, but I kept my eye in, so to speak.

Then the unexpected eclipse happened.

I'm not saying I saved the world, or even the base. But you gotta admit, every solider on the base having a checked and ready sidearm, despite being blind, when whatever they were invaded sure as shit helped.

Need To Know

He opened the door to find the woman he’d known since they were six.

“Do you find me attractive?” she asked with an accusatory voice. His eyes narrowed.

“Why are you asking me that?” he eventually managed.

“It’s a simple enough question.”

“Yes and no. The basic concept is simple, yes, but my answer can and will have a lot of variation based on why you’re asking me.”

She crossed her arms. “I’m not giving you any more information. Answer.”

“Well… Yes and no. Yes you’re attractive, but I don’t have interest in you that way. Happy?”

“Yes and no.”

The Black Car

The black car pulled up to the curb, silently waiting. Normal people wouldn't have noticed it, unless they were placing flyers. But I knew what it was.

I took my time finishing my coffee, as I considered my options. I could try running, but there were stories about that. I could run through the stages, but that didn't seem productive.

Instead I finished my last ever coffee, stood up, sent a text to my wife, telling her that I loved her, then got into the car.

Death looked at me, confused. He checked his notes and reached for a phone.

Where I Am

Every step of the journey I took seemed like the right one. They all followed each other, each new step logical, sane, correct. I cannot point to any part of the path from where I started to where I am now and tell you, honestly, that it was in error.

And yet...

This is not where I wanted to be, not where I thought I'd be, and certainly not where I should be. I'm in a dark place, and what I have done and has been done in my name, I should stop it. I should fix this.

And yet...