One-Shots

Strangers {P}

"Leave me alone, Howell! I don't like you any more! How much more clear can I be?" He yells at me. 

"Shut up, Lester!" 

"Why should I? Are you actually listening to me for once?" 

"I said shut up!" 

"Listen to me, Dan!" 

"Listen to me, Dan! You need to kick your legs! Pretend like you're gonna kick my face!" 

"But what if I do?" 

"Do what?"

"Kick your face."

"I doubt you could do much damage. You're too nice." 

Our park. When we were five. 

"Why should I?" I huff. 

"Because maybe I have a reason for this shit!" 

And so I shut up. 

He seems surprised. 

I was kinda surprised myself. 

"I can't feel anymore." 

"I can't feel anymore. Phil! I can't feel!" 

"Oh god Dan. I'll go get my mum." 

"What happened, Dan?" 

Phil pushed me off the swing.

"I fell off the swing." 

"I'll phone your mum."

Our park. My broken arm. When we were seven. 

"I can't feel you loving me anymore! I can't feel you making me happy anymore!"

"So I'm not good enough?" 

"No, Dan! I'm broken! How many years do we have to be friends for you to understand?" 

"How many years do we have to be friends for you to understand?"

"Understand what, Philly?" 

And for the first time since I've known him, he's quiet. 

"Phil?"

"To understand that they aren't coming back for me Dan!"

"Your parents you mean."

"Who else could I be talking about?"

I stayed quiet because I didn't think he'd like my answer. 

Our park. Nine years old.

"Well maybe if you didn't have so many goddamned problems with me, you'd get it!" I fire.

"You think I have problems with you?" He speaks quietly. 

"Why else would we be here?" 

"Why else would we be here?" 

"I thought you'd be okay with it."

"Okay with you smoking?"

"It's only cigarettes, Dan."

"Only?"

Our park. Our fading friendship. Age 11. 

"Dan! This isn't just on me! It was your fault too! If you hadn't left-!"

"If you hadn't slept with PJ!"

"Let me talk, Howell!"

And again, I was quiet. 

"If you hadn't left me -our apartment- I wouldn't have invited him over!"

"But you did!"

"Because of you!" 

"Because of you! It's because of you, Dan!"

"It is not my fault your parents decided to leave!" 

"You're right. It's my fucking fault."

"No, Phil. I didn't say that."

"But you meant it."

Our park. When we were 13.

"Yes, Phil! Because I told you to fuck our best friend! It's all my fault!" I smile sarcastically. 

"Point taken, but fuck you too. You're just an asshole!" 

"Yes, because I'm bottom. Nice one."

"Stop bringing your jokes into this! This is important!"

"This is important!" 

"I know!"

"We can't just let it die!" 

"We can't just let us die, Dan!" 

"There's nothing we can do!"

"There's nothing we can do to save us!" 

"It's going to drown!"

"It feels like we're drowning!" 

"Maybe it's the frog's time."

"Maybe it's our time." 

"No! We gotta save it!"

"We can save it!" 

"Goodbye, frog." 

"Goodbye, Phil." 

Our park when we were 14.

Our park when we were 18. 

Our park wasn't our park anymore.