One, two, three, four.. Ah, who cares. I lost count a while back. Strong shit, too. I'm sitting here at the local pub of a lowly city, washing down my sadness with the comfort of my friend Jack Daniel. There are a bunch of others here, too, despite the time of night. Friends celebrating, losers trying to get lucky, non drinkers hanging out around the billiards table. Me? I fucked up big time, and I'm forcing my shame onto my liver. Not the best way to deal with problems, but hey, it works. My name is Kyle. I've just gotten the call that my application to play one of the leading roles in a movie, which is going to be a big hit might I add, has been declined.
Yeah, I'm an actor. Or at least I was going to be. I took an acting class for three years, and I was suggested by my instructor to try applying at a nearby studio. I was so confident that I'd make it that I quit my previous job ahead of time. Except that I didn't get the job. Rent's due this weekend and I don't have enough time to find another job. So here I am.
Thinking I've had enough for the night, I started to stand and felt immense dizzinesss wash over my senses. Probably had one too many, I thought, as I started to stagger out of the bar. "Hey! You didn't pay for that last round." I turned to face the bartender and replied, "Put it on my tab, Mike. I'll get it to you Monday." He rolled his eyes, and went back to serving the other losers like me.
I stumbled out into the chilly fall air, and took a deep breath. This city was quite empty for being so crowded. This wasn't one of those small towns where everybody knew one another. Chances are that if you saw someone once, you wouldn't meet them again. Yet the streets were very rarely packed, let alone catching people walking on the sidewalk or taking the bus. I shrugged and turned to head home. Walking was kind of difficult, it makes me glad that I didn't drive out here. I didn't really expect to see anyone, like usual, however there was someone walking on the opposite side of the street.
This fella was out awful late, I thought, as I checked my phone for the time. Two in the morning. I shrugged it off and continued to my destination. To each their own, I suppose. He's smart for wearing a hooded coat, it's fucking freezing out here. I walked at a steady pace, not really giving anything a second glance. However something didn't seem right. I glanced over to my left, to the other side of the street.
That person that I saw earlier seemed to be headed in the same direction as me. Huh, weird, I thought. He was walking in the opposite direction that I was going earlier. Maybe he forgot something at his house. I kept going, turning a corner onto my home's street. I glanced back and noticed that the man was no longer there.
"Strange," I whispered. "Maybe I've had too much to drink tonight." As I walked along the street, my eyes felt like they were playing tricks on me. You know how when you're paranoid you see movement in your peripheral vision? I kept seeing dark images darting around to my left and right, but every time I turned my head to look directly at them, they were just dark alleys. I just want to get home and sleep this off, I told myself. I rolled around through my thoughts, and got that feeling of being watched again.
I glanced around, but saw nothing. I sighed, and silently promised myself not to drink this much again. This is giving me the creeps. I knew I wouldn't live up to it, though. Suddenly, I heard a sound that made every hair on my body stand on end. A low, dark laugh wavered out from one of the dark alleyways. I stopped dead in my tracks, swinging my head wildly to find the source of the cackle. Doing so, though, reminded me of my trip to the bar earlier and nearly made me vomit.
I bent over and breathed hard, trying to gather my bearings. I looked up and called out, "Hey! Who ever's out there.. just fuck off, alright?!" The only response I got was the howl of the wind, so I warily continued walking. I came upon my apartment building shortly after. I walked up the stairs and headed to my apartment. I reached for my keys, grabbed them from my coat pocket, inserted the one to my door and started to turn the knob when I noticed it.
