When I was 15 I used to hang out at this collective called the Pit House. It was probably one of the most interesting points in my life. It was in the slums, so we got away with a lot of chaos for a long time. They would do folk-punk shows there every night. A lot of the time no one would even have instruments. I once saw someone add to the rhythm section by sweeping the ground with a broom aggressively. It was pots and pans bands. On Saturday nights they’d host panty parties. We’d all mosh and skank in our underwear outside or in the basement. I’d leave covered in sweat and sneak into a private beach where I’d pass out until I knew my dad was in bed. There were four bedrooms and 26 people living there. Not to mention the people like me who would pop in whenever they felt like they needed a safe place. Sometimes there was food. Sometimes not. The backyard was fenced in, but there was a cliché fence board that could swing out so the residents could sneak into the neighbor’s yard and steal food off the grill. Most of the time the water was turned off and we would run the neighbor’s garden hose to a kiddie pool in the backyard. The cops were called all of the time. We were loud. We were wild. There were too many people coming and going. At one point during the summer there were two dogs, a squirrel, and 18 cats living in the house. Plus chickens outside. The bathroom and kitchen were constantly covered in feathers and fur and with the lack of running water every surface was filthy. I didn’t eat there even when there was food. I never wore shoes then, and there were animal droppings everywhere. I caught E Coli that summer, and it made sex painful. That was the first time I was raped. It never stopped after that. I spent more time in the safe haven these kids had created, avoiding the rest of my life. Towards the last days of summer the cops were being called on us every day. The landlord finally said no more when some of the guys staged a protest in front of the house to “riot for the right to noise.” They had a week to evacuate. I was there the day they broke all the windows. We spray painted every wall. Three bands played in the living room simultaneously and we moshed through every room. We threw each other into walls in order to break them down. People were crowd surfing to get a better angle to punch the ceilings down. Three girls swung from the ceiling fan to pull it down to the floor. We lit fireworks in the kitchen and bedrooms and fireplace. They set the animals free. They took lighters and spray paint to scorch the walls and floors. And when everyone was worn out and had released their wild, we climbed on the roof to watch the sun set. Some of the guys took turns jumping from the roof to the kiddie pool. We threw the rest of the fireworks from the roof, already lit. They’d explode too close to the ground, and some of them caught in the grass. I left early and slept on the beach. The police came that night and everyone who was left was held over night. They never got the deposit back on the house.

*disclaimer - name of collective has been changed to avoid revealing any participating parties.

“We could get arrested for this you know.”

“Duh. Why else do you think we’re doing it?”

“I thought you wanted to piss off your dad.”

“Exactly.”

“You make no sense.”

“Just shut up and follow me!”

“Of course. Because that totally doesn’t make me an accomplice to the crime.”

“Are you serious? Okay, you know what? You can be my hostage. Does that sound better?”

”...fine.”

“Then it’s all good. Now just get in the car.”

“Where are we driving to?”

“The highway.”

“Ok but like where from the highway?”

“The highway.”

“Whoa wait... you’re gonna crash the car aren’t you?”

”...Amy?”

“Of course not. We’re just going to speed a little.”

“Oh right speed a little in a cop car with your best-friend-hostage sorta situation. How could I not see this coming?”

“Because you’re a dimwit with barely enough braincells to put on a seatbelt.”

“My seatbelt is on just fine- DID YOU JUST TURN ON THE SIREN?”

“Oops.”

“Oops? OOPS?! That’s what you have to say to this?”

“Musta accidentally hit the button. What’s the big deal?”

“I swear I am going to strangle you the second- JESUS FUCKING CHRIST WOMAN DID YOU JUST DRIVE OVER A ROAD SIGN?!”

“Hey stop it! No distracting the driver.”

“Just let me do the damn steering before you kill us both.”

“Don’t worry! All the cars keep making room for us!”

“BECAUSE YOU TURNED ON THE SIREN ON A STOLEN COP CAR.”

“Chill ok? And quit the damn yelling. We’re just borrowing the car, anyways.”

“You. Don’t. Just. ‘Borrow’. Your. Dad’s. Car.”

“Don’t worry your pretty little head about anything. The real police should be here soon anyways.”

“Well they can’t get here fast enough! You’re gonna make the car crash at some point I know it.”

“No I won’t. I got this-”

“SHIT.”

“Ok. Fine. I admit it. You called that.”

“Chris?”

“Are you ok?”

“Chris??”

“I swear on everything that is holy, if your dad doesn’t kill you, I sure as fuck will.”

----

HUGE shoutout to the little kids that decided to play pretend around the library and state the line, “You can be my hostage!” to inspire this piece.

Guy 1:"Remember Mike Andrews?"

Guy 2:"Valedictorian, high school right?"

Guy1:"Yup! That dude!"

Guy2:"What about him?"

Guy1:"Dude's gay!"

Guy2:"Dude, that's fake news, Mike had bitches on bitches, not buying it."

Both guys approach the register and place thier orders.

Guy2:"Iced coffee, very light ice please."

Guy1:"Medium coffee for me, extra cream, extra sugar with vanilla."

Guy2:"How do you know he's gay?"

Guy1:"You know my cousin Joseph right?"

Guy2:"Yeah, now THAT motherfucker is gay!"

The barista brings their drinks and they pay. I place my order and pay as well, the two guys pick a table and sit. I'm now invested in this conversation, so I sit near them I didn't hear what was said while I waited for my drink, but when I sat down, guy 1 was calling someone, I found out later who.

(The phone rang and a effeminite voice answers)

PhoneGuy: "Hey Nick wussup?"

Guy1 (Nick): "Jo-Jo, I'm with Lew, yo, I told him Mike Andrews was gay but he doesn't believe me."

PhoneGuy (Joseph): "Niiiiiiick, why is it important if he's gay?"

Guy1: "Because, I told Lewis all through high school that dude was gay, NOBODY believed me till you told me. I want him to know I was right! Just answer yes or no, did you fuck that dude?"

PhoneGuy: "That is the last time I tell you shit!" (He then sighs) "Yes, he's gay, we dated in high school and YES before you ask we slept together a few times. He broke up with me when his parents found out."

Guy1(under his voice) to Guy2: "I told you! I fuckin told you!"

Guy1: "Thanks man, I just wanted to prove this asshole wrong."

PhoneGuy: "Whatever, bye." He hung up the phone.

Guy2: "That's fucking crazy! Didn't he date Chelsea Rivers too?"

Guy1: "Sure did! Jo-Jo said that to keep up his straight act, Mike was actually fucking them both, he didn't know till later though, after the breakup."

Guy2: "Fuuuuuuuuuuuck."

Guy1: "Yup! So what do you wanna do after this? I just bought some green from Kevin if you wanna smoke."

Guy2: "I'm with that, lets roll." They then take their drinks and leave.

For the eyes of the universe has looked upon him with favor, with a promise that everyone in the world shall know his name.

But the eyes of the sea looked upon him with jealousy, cursing his life to pain and misery.

And above the hill, under the caress of the sycamore tree, the boy with the golden eyes drifted soundly to sleep.

We buried a friend of mine last week. He passed away from pancreatic cancer. I'm still trying to cope with his passing. But it remind me two facts in life:

Fact 1: Cancer is a fucking thief. No doubt about it.

Fact 2: Life can be short sometimes, and we often overlook this fact.

I hope everyone is living the most of their lives either with their family and friends, doing the things they love, or going on an adventure. You never know when it could be its end.

She was only ten years old when she first found the doorway. It didn’t look like any kind of door she had ever seen before, in fact, she didn’t even see it the first time. One minute she was exploring the field behind the new house she and her mother had just moved into, and the next she was standing in an ancient forest, vines snaking every which way, and huge leaved plants dwarfing her.

I had been driving my truck for so many days, I had lost count. The only reason I still had feeling in my legs was because of the sciatica I could feel traveling up towards my back; the pain was unreal. The smell in my small Ford was growing more and more pungent due to the water bottle filled with pee that I kept in the cup holder, and the fact that I hadn’t showered properly in God knows how long.

It had been a week since Ferick's death, a week spent obsessing over the hard drives Erica had recovered. She had poured over accounting files, notes, contact bios, and line of business documents. The obsession, the drive to devour as much information pertaining to Ferick's small criminal empire had no tangible origin; yet Erica had spent night after night laying in bed with her laptop while Lauren slept.

I awoke in a puddle of blood, wearing strange clothes I don't remember owning. At that moment, a willowy, dark haired woman walked into the room and said "Look, you don't remember me, and I'll explain what's going on, but if we don't leave right now the wolves will drag you to prison." I got to my feet and said "Mom, of course I remember you."