I got bored today, and decided that since I wouldn't have much to do this summer, I took up writing a story, after I got fed up with watching how 9/11 unfolded.

Before I begin my story, I feel it would be important to give you a little bit of background about myself. My name is Carson Smith. I was, for a time, a timid computer nerd, you could say. My specialty was my wild imagination and desire to design games, like your fun "Call of Duty 4". I was 17 at the time, had blue highlights in my hair (Because I wanted to stand out with some simple strands of hair an unnatural color… God damn, I was silly back then.), and had close to no strength at all, never shot a gun, never would of thought of killing anyone, and had the belief that humanity would condemn itself, or flourish. I had the strong belief that religion is what causes war, what causes our own insanity (Assuming we were ever sane, in the first place) and should be left alone. But I knew it wouldn't be that simple… And I never would have thought it would evolve into such a conflict I had seen… No, experienced. War is a terrible thing. It destroys all logic in a human, and eliminates their faculty of reason… And that is a good attribute, mind you. If we all thought to ourselves if the man we were about to kill had a family and children waiting for him back home, then we would never pull the trigger. And to our misfortune, that would mean our own death. In crisis, it's kill or be killed.

I am living proof to that rule.

1

2009 P.S. (Pre-searing) 5/24

The plasma TV in the front of the living room continued to run its usual program, some silly racing channel was turned on, where one of my mother's friends sat with a sort of glare at the TV, almost hissing "You better not act up on me, this is my show right here.". I never seemed to hold any form of affection for my mother's colleagues, but a few acting classes here and there certainly helped to make certain nobody suspected anything. Her children were next to her on the leather couch that more than a single cow contributed to, with a very different look towards the TV, questioning why they were even watching some bloody people drive around a track repeatedly. Meanwhile, my mother, Maria Smith, was in the kitchen preparing a hefty memorial day meal, with my father, James, outside managing the grill. My two younger brothers, Danny and Aaron, were arguing over a cardboard scimitar, while I cooped myself in my bedroom, which I more than often sought for sanctuary, tapping away on my laptop, playing Flash flash revolution… Think the dancing game where you press the keys on the board in order to win, to a certain song. Only this version was scaled to a point where hand-eye coordination was life and death, and I was winning.

"Carson, get down here and be social! Susan only comes over once every two months, come down here and be kind to our guests!" Ugh. "I'll be down, just give me a second!" I replied, trying to hide my annoyed tone of voice. "You said that five minutes ago, NOW!" If there is one thing I would major in, besides game design, it would be psychology to understand why people do certain things, and if there is one thing I've learned about almost everyone, their personal traits do flips whenever around certain friends (I'm no exception to the rule). I quickly killed myself in my game, muttering to myself "The sooner I'm free, the better." I have to cringe when I say that, nowadays. I threw on my shirt, and flew down the spiral stairs to the front of what was my home. "Oh, you've finally decided to come down. I don't want you back upstairs anytime soon, got it?" Mom. "Yeah, yeah. When's the food gonna be ready?" "Soon enough."

I remember the scene before me very well, the large front door made of redwood, with a strange pattern engraved into the glass looking outside to the moist street. To the left of the door was the piano room, with multiple windows staring out to the yard filled with flowerbeds and the lone tree in the center of the yard, while the baby grand piano sat in the corner, weeping dust from how long it hasn't been played, while a massive cactus, which literally grew to the ceiling, comforted the piano. To the right, was the rarely used dining room, elegant candles sitting upon the tablecloth of the long table in the center of the room, along with the massive china cabinet behind, almost complementing the appearance of the candles rising from the table.

To this day, I never forgot just how peaceful this scene was.

"Bonk!" And then the scene was rudely interrupted by the commotion of my brothers play-fighting each other, and they decided I would be their victim of the hour, as a cardboard box made friends with the side of my head. "What the hell was that for?!" I cried out in frustration. For once, I was having a peaceful moment with nature, and of course those two decided to pop up and destroy it! "Hey, it was Danny's idea!" "No it wasn't, Aaron! You're always doing something stupid, why would he think I did it?" The wonder twins battled it out some more, and took it outside. "Good riddance." I would regret that statement later on. Aaron and Danny were both born at the same time, originally thought to be twins, but once their features became more noticeable, nobody would know better. Danny had a sort of red tint to his blonde hair, while Aaron held an almost white blonde in his hair. Danny seemed to follow in my steps, and became what was close to a lover with his computer, while Aaron was the rock star of the family.

"Dinner's on, folks!" The sound of my father's booming voice is never mistakable, and was always good at making himself stand out - in the good way, of course. The scent of well cooked meat followed his announcement, and my stomach complained. I was never one to endure hunger, so I moved through the hallway, which to my left, a massive mirror hung, showing my reflection. Someone in the mirror looked back at me, with blue-green eyes, red hair, with blue down the middle of the spiked hair, and small blemishes scattered across his pale face. I looked in disappointment at the reflection, and he followed suit. I moved onwards, saying goodbye to the reflection in my mind, and noticing a plethora of food and meat across the second table, set up in the kitchen. I sat down in the place I usually sat, across from more windows, looking out into the distance of what was my backyard, filled with trees, and a fence that protected from the massive forest beyond it. My mother was setting out the plates onto the table, and looked towards me, and said "By the way, have I told you that you're going to see your grandmother during the summer?". That's all my memory could remember, until a more later occurance.

2

2009 PS 6/20

6:05 AM

By this time, I had already graduated from high school, and from what seemed like forever, had finally ended. My few years of basic study were now over, and I was free to do almost whatever I pleased. Today was the day I would be flying off to my grandmother's home in sun city, California.

"Explain to me why I'm going to her home again?" I asked, half asleep. It was only six o' clock in the morning, and I had gotten up at four in the morning, to go to the airport. "Because you never came with us to your cousin's wedding, and I already had your place ticket. You packed everything you needed, right?" Oh right. Some random cousin that I never knew, or bothered to know, was getting married, and ironically enough, this was on the exact same day of my senior prom. I had already bought tickets when I realized that I was supposed to be in California on that exact same day. I lucked out however, and I was allowed the liberty to stay home alone. And this is apparently my mother's payback for it, so I get to have more than enough time to familiarize myself with the people related in blood to me. Damn. "Yes, I have everything I need. She's going to be there to pick me up on time, right?" "Of course, honey! Now hop on, or you're going to miss your flight!"

It had occurred to me that this would be the first time that I would be in a place foreign to me, alone, and I did NOT like the idea of it at all, dreading the limitless possibilities of something going wrong. But my grandmother had a sort of tenacity that would make anyone proud, and has survived broken bones, weakness, and the holocaust. She was no doubt a very tough individual, and I trusted her, so I decided to quit worrying myself with my imagination, and went forward into the gate. Looking back, I saw my mother shed a small tear, and waved goodbye to me. Ignorant to what would happen in the future, I just gave back a goofy smile, and waved back.

That was the last time I saw my mother.

With my laptop bag in hand, and boarding pass in the other, I walked forward, not knowing what to expect what would happen in what I thought would only be a week of being with grandma. My mother had a very high up status in her profession, and managed to get me a first-class ticket on the plane, complete with a meal and drinks. Next to me, was a business man who looked to be in his thirties, reading the Austin Statesman. Typical businessman. The other seat was empty, so it was just me and Mr. Business. This should be a pretty calm flight, I won't have to deal with any crying babies or anything, so I can relax… I thought to myself. "You look awfully young to be traveling by yourself, you know." His voice was surprisingly high, almost meek, and when I took a good look at the man, I would prove my prediction correct. He had a sort of exhausted look around him, semi-tan from being outside often, from what I believed, and gray hair was already beginning to grow around his temples. Looked like your over worked every-man from the thirties, when the depression was in, and happiness was out. "Yeah, I suppose I am." I replied, with a yawn proceeding my statement. "hehe, you're in your prime, alright. My name is David Wright, by the way. It looks like we may be friends for a little while, so we might as well get acquainted, right?" Mr. Wright chuckled a bit, and his cheeks began to show some color in them. This guy looks sort of lonely, almost. Eh, what the hell? Wouldn't hurt to be friendly, I suppose. Mr. Wright stretched out his long right arm towards me, symbolically requesting a handshake. I returned the favor and said "My name's Carson, Mr. Wright, wha-" "Please, no formalities with me. You can call me Dave, for short." Yup, this guy was pretty friendly from what I could tell. "Dave, ok. What do you do for a living, exactly? You look like you're ready to march into a courtroom or something." "Right you are… in a way. I manage federal cases, generally when someone angry wants to sue the government for not doing their job correctly," Dave breathed out a heavy sigh, and continued "I happen to be the man they depend on most to get them out of these ruts…" Dave looked down, with a sort of exhausted expression on his face, while his hands reached out for his knees, and pushed himself back up, almost assuring that he wouldn't fall over on his face. "But enough about me, I'm curious about you. What's a boy doing alone on a flight to California?" The color reached back into his expression, and looked towards me with the eyes a five year old would have when he finds something new. "I'm visiting my grandmother for a week, I never signed up for it." Dave laughed a bit, "Enjoy the time you get to spend with your elders, you'll be amazed at what they can teach you. That and they may not live much longer for the world, and they almost dread it. Death of old age was never high on my list of ways to die." Dave's eyes wandered a bit, and seemed to look out into space for some time, and the color dissipated from his cheeks again, while his eyes almost sparkled… Maybe this guy lost someone like his father recently? I wondered to myself, but I wouldn't dare ask about it.

"Attention passengers, we have finished boarding, and will begin the take-off procedures immediately. Please fasten your seat belts and…" The flight attendant at the front of the plane droned on, conveying her robotic message to the rest of the public, while I set my laptop bag down at my feet, and laid back into the chair. Everything seemed to fade out, as my exhaustion finally caught up with me, and I fell asleep once we were in the air.

Discuss, tell me what I can improve, what to keep, etc. etc.

~V~

P.S. Had a huge ass chocolate cake earlier, it was AMAZING.