A burst of fire pressed Jack against the concrete behind him. He reached his hand out, but felt nothing gripping it back. The shouting jumbled his thoughts; the lights blinded his eyes. He didn’t think he was alone when he arrived, but he was alone now. He had to run, or the fire would overtake him.
There was a crowd of people with guns and bottles all around, packed in like sardines. An explosion disbursed the crowd, legs like shrapnel in the air. Jack spotted a familiar face in the crowd, a woman he met at McDonald's. He thought about approaching her, working together to escape the chaos, but as she plunged a piece of metal into a cop’s eye, he decided it was best he avoided her. Instead, Jack decided he had to find who he came with. In deciding that, it occurred to him that he had no idea how to determine who it was he came with, as all he could remember was how it felt to hold their hand. He considered holding as many people’s hands as he could till he found the right hand, as though his hand were a glass slipper, but when he saw a bomb blow a man’s hand into a bloody mist, he abandoned the idea.
The shouting became louder, and Jack’s thoughts became unreachable. Jack tried to determine why the shouting was so much louder, but couldn’t decern it. With his thoughts trapped, Jack resigned himself to running as fast as he could, pushing through the red pulp that coated every surface for miles. Something grabbed his leg, and he jumped back. A person with their jaw split open, and their leg missing was crying on the ground. He tried to speak, but the muscles in his face were pulverized, and all he could do was groan through the mass of bones and connective tissue. Jack knelt down, and held his hand. He couldn’t find any words, but didn’t want to leave the man alone. The groaning continued, with a bubbling gurgle added to the choir. Jack looked down. The man’s chest was caved in; his lungs collapsing with every breath. Jack looked back up in the man’s eyes. It was clear the man was afraid. His eyes told Jack he didn’t want to die, but knew he was dying. Jack squeezed his hand, and leaned in closer, kissing him on the forehead. Jack didn’t know what to say, but forced himself to speak.
“Its okay, I’ve got you.”
The man’s eyes became distant, as his arm fell limp. The light was gone. The man had died.
Jack began to cry, his mind fell into a panic, until all thoughts fused and became silent. The world was gone, and Jack was alone. Jack was gone. His mind carrying him away to a prison of its own creation, shielding him from the world around him. He was at once alone, and accompanied by himself. Or some form of himself, some aspect that had been hidden away into the far reaches of his mind. This aspect held him tightly, let him cry into her shoulder. She was warm, and safe. She kissed his forehead, and he began to sob. Her mouth moved, but no words left it. Jack touched his ear, and felt a wetness. Looking down, he saw his hand was covered in blood, and his heart began to race. The aspect held him even tighter, and his heart calmed once again. He blinked. He saw her lips move but no words escaped. Blink. A ringing overwhelmed his senses.
He opened his eyes to a silent wasteland. The crowd was gone, and he was covered in blood. The aspect was gone, but the ringing remained. He touched his ear. It was wet. He looked at his hand. It was covered in blood. He felt a pressure on his other hand. Looking towards it, he saw a man gripping it tightly. The man looked familiar, but he couldn’t place where he had met him. Maybe McDonald’s?
“Jack, can you hear me?” Said the man, “Can you see me? Its Adam, I’m here.”
The man was named Adam. Jack tried to place where he knew that name, but it was illusive. Yet he knew he could trust Adam, whoever he was.
“My ears are ringing.” Jack said, pointing to the bloody mess on the side of his head.
“Come on, let’s get you home.”
“Where’s Darla?” Asked Jack’s voice. Jack did not know who this Darla was.
“She’s at home, too. Damn it, she knew today was gonna be a shit-show; I should have listened to her.”
“What was today?” Jack asked.
Adam looked at Jack, like Jack had just given him some terrible news.
“Fuck, Jack; do you know who I am?”
“Of course I do!” Said Jack. He did not know who Adam was, not really. “You’re Adam!”
“Who am I to you?”
Jack searched his mind. An aspect whispered into his ear, but he couldn’t make out the words, only the meaning of them. Fiance.
“You’re my fiance!”
Adam sighed, “Okay, good; thank God. I could not handle you forgetting everything again. Come on, we need to go home. The protesters trashed our car, so we have to walk.”
“What happened today?” Jack asked again.
“A protest, supposedly!” Adam exclaimed, “got violent.”
“It wasn’t supposed to?”
Adam sighed, “I don’t know, Jack. I thought that we were different than the fascists. Turns out we all just want war.” Adam then laughed to himself, “Darla will be happy, at least. She’s been saying we need to start adopting the strategies of the fascists for months.”
“All cops are bastards.” Jack said. He wasn’t sure why he said it.
“That doesn’t mean they all deserve to die!” Adam insisted, “I thought we were on the same page here!”
Jack smiled, “I don’t know what page I’m on. I’m not sure what book this is.”
Adam laughed, “Yeah, sometimes I think I don’t know either.”
Adam’s eyes welled, “Just...so many people died; not just cops! We lost a lot of ours today. The cops were better equipped. Say what you will about the fascists, at least they win; we lost badly.”
“I’m sorry.” Jack said. He saw a flash of the man that died, and fell silent.
“Are you okay?”
Jack said nothing in reply, he was gone again, being held by his aspect. When he opened his eyes again, he was home, a woman handing him a cup of tea.
“--it didn’t have to.” She said, looking to her left. Adam was sitting in a chair, his face covered in ash.
Jack looked down, ash too covered his body.
“Hey, I think he’s back.” Adam said, looking over at Jack.
“Jack!” Said the woman, holding him tightly, like the aspect.
“Darla?” Jack questioned.
“Yes Jack, what do you need?”
“Why am I covered in ash?”
“Building on third collapsed, we were this close to getting crushed.” Adam said, “you saved my life, in fact.” Adam rubbed his chin, “No matter what you said, I still will not forget that.”
“What did I say?” Jack asked.
“Some hurtful things,” replied Darla, “but that doesn’t matter now; you both are back and alive.”
“I don’t remember saying anything; I don’t remember a building falling.” Jack said, leaning forward. He took a sip of tea. It was earl gray sweetened with artificial sugar.
“I know, hon.” Said Darla, “You were miles away; I’m just glad you’re back.”
Jack smiled, “me too.”
Darla stood back up, as she groaned, he knees crackling, “I need to get back to work; keep an eye on him?”
Adam sighed, “I don’t think its gonna do any good.”
“What choice do we have? The fascists have documentation; they have a central philosophy, a goal! We need to be organized!”
“We don’t have to involve ourselves. I can work remotely from anywhere. We can go to another state, another country.”
“I won’t abandon my home, Adam; you can leave if you want to, but I won’t follow you.” Darla said.
Adam sighed, “Okay. What do you think, Jack?”
Jack smiled, “you care what I think?”
Adam laughed, “Of course I do! We’re partners, I love you.”
“I want to stay. I don’t want to leave Darla alone, not with what its like out there.” Jack said.
Adam smiled, “Then that’s that; we stay.”
Darla hugged Adam, and then Jack, “I’ll get back to work! You can join on as an author if you want; either of you.”
“I was always a lousy writer, and Jack is hardly in the condition to be working.” Adam said.
“You could be part of the new world.” Darla replied.
“We will be whether we like it or not. I’ll contribute by giving you a place to work, and attending protests when I can; nothing more.” Adam said.
Darla shrugged, “if that’s what you want. Jack, do you want to work on the manifesto with me?”
Jack shrugged, “I don’t know what a manifesto is.”
There was a knock on the door, all three shot their heads to look.
“BPD, open up!” Shouted the gravely voice of a smoker.
“Fuck!” Darla whispered, before she ran to the other room.
Adam took a breath, and walked towards the door. Unlocking the lock, the police then opened the door on their own.
“BPD, coming in.” Said the officer. He was shorter than Adam, with a gray 5 o’clock shadow and a beer gut. The officer pushed passed Adam. “We’re looking for a Darla Greaves, you happen to know where she might be?”
Adam swallowed, “Darla Greaves? I haven’t seen her in a long time.”
The officer looked over at Jack.
“That’s Jack Greaves, right? Your, uh, ‘partner’?”
Adam scowled, “yes, yes he is.”
The officer gave a smug look of superiority, “look, I don’t care what you fairies get up to when we aren’t looking; just tell me where Darla is.”
“Like I said, I haven’t seen Darla is years.”
“Years? Well that’s funny, because we’ve got it on good authority that she was seen outside this apartment just the other night. What do you know about that?”
“Not a thing, officer.”
“So you won’t mind if we take a look around?”
“Do you have a warrant?”
The officer laughed, “As a matter of fact, we do! Now move, we are taking a look around.”
Two more officers burst in from the hallway, their hands on their guns, as they searched the apartment.
“Place is a fucking pigsty.” said one of the officers.
“You would know.” Adam said under his breath.
“What was that, faggot?” Said the beer gut cop.
Adam bit down on his lip, “Nothing, sir. Just, you would know that my apartment is too small to hide anyone, so I don’t know why you think we could be hiding anyone.”
The cop scratched his face, “yeah, well, you wouldn’t be the first academic to hide your psycho friends.”
Another cop spit on the floor, “Fucking academics.”
“God damn it!” Shouted another officer from the back of the apartment, “place is empty!”
“Bullshit, let me check!” replied the beer gut officer.
He charged to the only other room in the apartment, before there was a loud bang.
“Fuck!” Shouted the cop, “where the fuck did she go? We had it on good fucking authority that she was here!”
“I don’t know sherif…” replied one of the cops, nervously.
“God fucking damn it! Faggot, get in here, right the fuck now. And bring your fucking ‘partner’ while you’re at it!”
The cop drew his gun, cocking it, and pointing it directly at Jack and Adam.
Jack’s heart stopped.
“Alright fags, you’re gonna tell me where you’re hiding Darla Greaves right the fuck now, or I’m putting a hole in your head!”
Jack froze. He couldn’t speak. Adam spoke for him.
“Please, I promise we don’t know.”
“Sherif, we can’t have another scandal…” Said the nervous officer.
The beer gut cop’s face turned red, as he put his gun back in its holster.
“Fine, fuck it! Search the surrounding area, we’ll find the bitch.”
The police then left the building.
Darla then crawled out of the large ventilation shaft where she had been hiding.
“I can’t believe that fucking worked….” Adam said.
Darla smiled, “I told you, pigs are stupid.”
Jack’s heart started again. He felt his aspect become closer, as his grip on the world slipped again.