Dreams

~Dreams~

A Tale Of The Most Beautiful Gift Mankind Could Receive...

Dreams. That's what leads me here. After miles and miles of walking, I got to absolutely nowhere. I looked around, a puzzled expression on my face. This was supposed to be the place. The place where my dreams come true; my heaven on earth. But alas, some dreams are too good to be true. Scanning the area, all my eyes see are mountains and barren dessert. My eyes rest on the horizon, so close, yet so far away. Suddenly, the gears turn, and I bring my hand down hard on my forehead. "Of course..." I whisper to the wind. I smile the biggest smile I've had in years. "OF COURSE." I yell out, my voice carrying throughout the nothingness. I zip up my coat, and venture out towards the big mountain.

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The nights when you cry yourself to sleep are the worst. Your nose gets stuffy, therefore keeping you awake. You're left to your own thoughts and that in itself is the worst punishment. That's why I left. I've had too much. I got out of bed, grabbed my backpack, and started throwing who knows what in there. All my mind could register was shirts, pants, boxers, a notebook, and other useless items. I thought getting out of the house was hard, slipping right through my parent's fingers. But it was nothing compared to what was to come. Checking my watch, I realized that my parents would be sound asleep, probably knocked out cold from the countless bottles of alcohol they consumed. But now I really didn't care. All they did was hurt me; Mom with her lip gloss smiles and Dad with the painful reassuring pats on the back. I'm not even sure they deserve that title anymore, Mom and Dad. They did nothing to help me.

Sooner or later, I realized that nightfall was my saving grace. I could change into a whole new person, a person that I actually liked. Overtime, my mind began to form ideas of a beautiful place, a place where I could be anybody. The problem was that my mind wouldn't tell me how to get there. There was, however, a voice in the back of my head, nagging me to do something that seemed so crazy. So I ignored it. Little did I know that the small, irritating voice that is my conscience would end up my best asset. By this point, I'd lost track of time, not caring how I looked or smelt. I could feel myself slowly going insane. The irony of it, I've wished myself out casted from the world, but hoped that I could be in the company of someone other than my messed up self. As the light turned from red to green, I crossed the street, lined with dozens of irrelevant bygones. You know how the saying goes; lonely in a crowded room. Looking around at the neon lights that burned my eyes and the sound of laughter that sickened my heart, I knew that I was completely alone, even in this big city.

Suddenly, my nose was filled with the unmistakable scent of smoke, laughter reaching my ears yet again. Wait... Smoke? Laughter? My head said to walk away, but my heart said to turn around. The voice came back, urging me to turn and face them, and for once I listened. I spun on my heels, and walked towards the six men. All of them looked quite distinguished; they definitely had money to spare, but my eyes locked on the man in the center. He looked like he was in his late thirties, dressed smartly in slacks and a button down shirt, his short cropped salt and pepper hair brushed to the side. He originally had a smile gracing his face, words of fun and games' dancing across his lips, but that was long gone. When my gaze met his, his eyes tried to avert elsewhere, but he couldn't seem to escape my hard stare. With much effort, he turned to his friends as a plastic smile appeared on his face. "Well, what do we have here?" he said in an Aussie accent, clapping his hands once. I took a long breath, and spoke, my voice cracking. "C-can you give me directions?"

Five men laughed, and asked what I was talking about, but I could tell that the man I spoke to was faking his giddiness. His eyes held drops of sadness and guilt in them, as if he knew what I was talking about; as if he pitied me. Sounding like he was mocking me, he opened his mouth. "Alright mate, here's what you do. Walk ten miles south, turn right at the nearest main road, and follow the horizon" He and his friends laughed, like they enjoyed seeing me quivering in fear. At this point I wasn't sure if I should believe him or not. Suddenly, the man who spoke swiftly bent down and growled into my ear. "Listen kid" he spat. "Don't drag me into your false hopes." As quickly as he bent down, he straightened up and continued laughing with his friends, as if nothing happened. "Now get out of here you foolish bloke!" He half screamed and half laughed, although his eyes were dead serious. Not knowing what to do, I did what I felt was right. I made way south.

Walking, eating, sleeping, repeat. That was my routine for who knows how long. Maybe it was days, maybe months. I was trudging at a snail's pace, because I had less than a shred of hope left. The only thing that kept me sane was the horizon, so close, yet so far away. I was in a very green place, on a single, deserted trail, when I almost broke. I remember one day, when I sat down at the curb and ate some crumbled crackers, I thought I heard someone call my name. I whipped my head around, and then realized that it was merely a figment of my imagination, just like my stupid dreams. I threw a fistful of dirt at no one in particular, and screamed. Everything from then on was a blur. Tugging at my hair, beating myself up; I was a mess, more so than usual. I just lay there, on a dirt road, completely numb. I don't really know how long I was there for. But what woke me up, however, was unforgettable. It was a flock of birds, high in the sky. They were cheery and seemed that they were migrating to somewhere better. I bolted upwards as the irony of the situation hit me. From then on, I was completely determined to get to wherever I was going, no matter what other obstacles came at me, and believe me when I say that there were many.

Climbing up that mountain, I realized something that I should've known years ago. Suddenly, I stopped dead in my tracks. What if this was the wrong decision? I quickly shook my head at the silly question. Of course this was the right decision. I was about to receive the greatest gift, even if I just realized what it was. I definitely was not expecting this, though. Who knew that such an empty, desert place could hold so many treasures? I wondered if anyone else had found such beauty here. It's hard not to see it. Taking a deep breath, I finished my way up the mountain.

So here I am, atop the colossal beast that is the mountain. I take in the scenery, bare and beautiful. I could feel my heartbeat escalating, but I knew that this was the right choice. I couldn't believe that I was brought here; it was exactly what I needed. No one would ever find me. I cautiously approached the edge of the mountain, slowly but surely, savoring every step. I rolled up my sleeves, reminiscing in my forgotten past. I thought of all the lives I have brought misery to. I bet that they would be jealous of me now though; look at me. Realizing that I'm stalling, I take a deep breath, and take one more look around, a small smile on my face as I get closer to the edge and then stop and look down. One more step and all my dreams come true.

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"What was that all about, Tom?" Scott asked, still laughing at the teenage boy that stopped to ask for directions. I nervously looked around at my so called friends, and then put on a forced smile as I said "I don't even want to know, nor do I care. It was all a bit of fun if you ask me." I took a puff of my cigarette as I looked down. I knew all too well what the lad was talking about; in fact I've gotten the same direction when I was a young man after I ran away from home. I got to a silly mountain in an empty desert, so I turned back. I made a life for myself, and now I'm a successful man with money in my pocket and girls falling at my feet. I always wondered why I was lead to the mountain. My eyes widened as it hit me. I always thought that dreams were the greatest gift mankind could receive, but I now realized that I was wrong my entire life. "You alright there Tom? You froze for a second there." Richard said, placing an arm on my shoulder. "Yeah, I'm fine mate, don't worry about it" I said, shrugging his hand off as everyone started to chat amongst themselves. I was astonished at what I just discovered, and hope that the boy understood what the directions meant. They lead you to the place where all your dreams came true. The greatest gift mankind could receive was not the dream itself after all. It was death.

~FIN~