One AnOther

PIGEON WATCHING

"Keller is not a killer."
"Keller Greene is not a killer...!"
"Kel...Keller is no-" "I'm... I... I didn't..."

Keller Greene, 26, sat with tears streaming down his face in the corner of a grimy blue room. He sits face to face with the, despondent, overworked face of a middle aged private eye by the name of PK Wells. After 27 hours worth of accusations slammed on the table you'd think even the innocent would confess their sins after the first 20. Keller, however, not only screamed the same four variations of the same five words through everything but also passed the lie detector test. Twice.

But Wells was certain. She had been in this filthy blue room one too many times with the same young man sitting across from her. With all the gallons of blood that has been photographed and studied then wiped from the floor, was Wells really about to lose the prime suspect yet again?

With every step towards her target another one of her colleagues would turn their back. This, being one of the very few things that wasn't because of Greene, made doing her job so much more difficult. The head of the team was a lunatic and Wells was the one getting pointer fingers lunged after her. What kind of bullshit was this supposed to be? To hell with the higher ups this was Well's town. There has to be some sense of justice.

Greene sat exhausted, with his back against the wall. Even when his intentions ran like clear water and his behaviours were all in line, Keller knew exactly how things had become this way. He knew exactly.

It all started with pigeon watching. The best day of Keller's life of his 26 years was also the worst. He just didn't know it then. All Keller remembered is lying on the dock at Greeper pier. Staring out at the clear blue sky watching the pigeons drag their feet against the pavement by the very new ice cream store, he listened to the crisp sound of the bell jingling as groups of two entered and exited the new talk of the town.

There had never really had anything of amusement in our town ever since Tinkler park was torn apart. Keller sat up, back against the water which sprinkled shards of sun whenever the doves flew down from the sky. While the other passerby's attention was drawn to the angelic mirrors that drifted behind him Keller had always been one to be attracted to the pedestrian than the pretty.

On the park bench sat Carla and Terry Jones. They were the definition of pedestrian. With their muted colours, from the faded blue in their irises to the seaweed coloured blazers, like everyone else in town they never strayed too far from their commercial ready lives inherited from their father's who inherited from their father's and so on.

He peered over at Kara Friensdeen with her face fifty metres deep into her cellular while her poor 3 monther wailed for attention. She had sworn in high school she was going to be the first to get out of this "annoying town" like in the movies but the majority of people are average like the pigeon; there really are very few doves to be found in societies these days; therefore, no one really gets out of this annoying town. Since the doves sprawled too far from our reach there is more we can find in common with your average pigeon. The pigeon is practically brainless, easy to manipulate, and easy to understand.

Ring ring

A gust of wind blew into my face and the birds came flocking over beside me. One of them scratched over beside me and I couldn't help but reach my hands out.

Ring ring

To my surprise, as I curled my fingers around it's neck, for a second there was no movement nor struggle.

Ring ring

There was a hint of disappointment to be honest. I was disappointed I didn't get the reaction but a part of me wanted to squeeze harder.

So I did. Until his very last breath was drained and his deflated chest sank and shrivelled against his rib cage.

When all the excitement died down I drowned my concerns, wiped my hands on my pant leg and finally answered my goddamned ringer. "Keller we're ready for you down here". "Ok, I'm walking over Sam".

He walked towards town, past the ice cream store and over to a botched brick building with old English lettering Sam's floral shop. White hydrangeas, they were Carrie's favourite. He picked up the last of his order and proceeded to the lime green civic parked a few metres from the store front. Throwing the hydrangeas in the back seat, he flopped down on the left side, put two hands on the wheel and painted the best smile Keller Greene could on put on his small scrawny face. The display on the stereo showed 8:34. He was just on schedule .

It hadn't seemed like much but, to Keller , the ivory carpet was stretched and perfectly laid adjacent to the two metre benches. The grass shone a killer bright green and the sun beamed a perfect crisp yellow that softened the harsh features from Carrie Marthen's face. She had always seemed to be stuck up, she was the type of a girl who really just carried out whatever would benefit her in the long run. She really wasn't very popular among others so people often wondered where she got her confidence from. After we started dating people often asked if she was draining the whole of it out from me.

"What the hell Keller!"
"I told you to be here before I got here! It was so embarrassing!"

Carrie was definitely an aggressive one but all in all she always means well.

"Well what are you doing just standing there? Help me get ready goddamn it I swear I do everything around here!"

"I was just admiring how beautiful you look hon I can't believe it, especially, today."

"I love you Carrie."

It was really seemed like a joyous day for Keller Greene.
A wedding day.
Except it wasn't a joyous day.
It wasn't Keller's day.

It was his Other's day.