Zmote on the Pen

 Whenever he saw her, he couldn’t help it. Couldn’t help his heart smile. Physically you probably wouldn’t notice anything. One could argue that quite the opposite was the case even. When people saw him, they saw darkness and hatred. Steely eyes, eyebrows tight and eyes resigned. He couldn’t help it though, the past shaped every man and woman in its own way. And his past was filled with people looking at him in disgust. For a long time, he didn’t understand. Why they’d look at him as though he was vermin. As if he was a ticking time bomb that might go off anytime. When he was younger, he’d greet the people on the street, he’d say “Hello” in a cheery voice and would smile at them. Few would greet him back and always with an air of confusion. And the older he became, the less people would greet him back, just look at him with eyes filled by hatred and disgust. After a while, he could sense it even. He thought that might be when it started. When his happiness and the hope for a better...

There in the distance a faint glow - a red flickering ball in the blue sky above. I see black smoke rising and a whisper of men and women screaming resounds in my ears. “Where am I?” I wonder, scoping my surroundings in curiosity. The floor is tinted in a bluish gray - the ground I’m seated on feels hard. I look to my right and see a steep hill rising. There are lush greens on the top, but the rising is a deep brown. “Uh- ah-” A tiny voice awakens left to me. I turn around and am amazed. There is a small girl lying just next to me dressed in an all gray gown. I observe her for a moment. I wonder if she’s alright. “Who are you little girl?” I ask her. Maybe I should have started with how are you doing, but my curiosity got the better of me. “Where-” she starts “am I? Who are you? What!” She stops in mid-sentence as she catches a glimpse of her clothing. “WHAT HAPPENED TO MY DRESS!” she calls out to me. “Calm down, will you? How should I know, I’m just as surp...