Trapped part VI
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It's been a while. Let's see if I can pick up where I left off.
DISCLAIMER: Contains drug refs, violence and adult themes, as well as male/male sex. Don't like it, piss off.
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Chapter 6.
I was standing in a field. The air was still and sweet. Behind the chirp of the insects was a disconcerting silence. No wind, no nothing. It felt surreal. I squinted into the distance, over countless fields, hills and meadows. Dark , black clouds, ominous blots of vapour hung in the distant skyline. Feeling a spot of water drop on my hand, I looked down. The single raindrop rolled down my wrist and off one of my fingers, replaced by another. And another. I looked up, and the dark clouds were over me.
"Breathe, god damnit! BREATHE!"
The wind picked up, howling in my ears. The sun was washed away in the sleet. I was in a windstorm of rain, endless sheets of icy water that cut like the finest of glass slivers. My chest hitched, it felt as though my lungs were made of clay.
"TRENT! BREATHE!"
I was sinking, the blackness raising around me. Panic flooded through me as one thought entered the slowly cooling clay of my dying brain: I am going to die. The blackness around me, I stuggled to draw one last breath. And the rain died down. The howling subsided. The darkness faded into a grey of unending lustre. The torn, mangled cornfields, the partially-collapsed landscaped faded like the delicate, flaking paintwork of a long-forgotten painting, left to rot in a dusty attic.
The real world came into focus. Martin was holding my hands, staring into my eyes. His eyes were red, contrasting the paleness of his face. Tears streamed down his cheeks, dripping on my face. His agonised sobs echoed in my ears, awakening the ache in my legs and back. Somehow I managed to shake the lead from my arms. I reached for him and pulled him to me. On the floor of the record store, on a sunny Saturday morning, Martin Graeme Snow had saved my life. Ryan helped Snowy to his feet, then my two closest friends eased me into a chair.
"What's it feel like?" "You mean dying?" "Yeah." "I didn't actually die." "Snowy says your heart stopped." "My heart didn't stop. I had a dream. There were these fields. Then this storm... I worked out what was happening during the storm. Then I heard Snowy, calling out for me to breathe---", I stopped myself. This was way too intense.
We were in the park, smoking a joint. Martin had gone down to buy the drinks. The pain in my legs was subsiding, and the light had, for the first time in days, taken on a rich quality. It was like the grey was the canvas, the canvas of my life, and the new colors, the new light, was the paint. Or something. I'm not too good with metaphors. Snowy came through the clearing with the Coke's and Red Eye's.
I cracked the top of a Platnium and a took a long gulp, amazed at how thirsty I was. Snowy watched me guardedly, ready to help me, hold me, be with me. In spite of the days turn of events, I managed to smile. He briefly touched my face, but his expression altered. Glancing at Ryan, he took his hand away and sat back. Ry cocked his head at me, then turned to Martin.
"Hey Snowy, I'm cool with it. You know?" "You sure?" "Well, I didn't really need to see your dick this morning", Ryan chuckled, "but yeah, I've had time to get used to Trent here." Snowy leaned over and kissed me gently on the lips. "Are you cool with it, man?"
I thought. Who was there for me this morning. Kevin? Kevin was just a recording, someone I thought I knew. An image of someone I needed, needed to love. Snowy was eighty five kilos of loving, protective flesh and bone. He saved my life, held me in his arms. I made my choice.
"Yeah. I'm cool with it, Snowy." "Let's all hang out tonight. Do something different. Hey Trent, when was the last time you went bowling?"
I rolled my eyes. I wasn't crazy about tenpin bowling, but seemed to have a knack for it. I'm not the sportiest type. Ryan was a glutton for punishment. No matter how many times I whooped his ass, he'd come back for more.
"Your birthday. I suppose we could go out tonight - I'd just have to ask - SHIT! I didn't call mum. Oh fuck!"
Ryan and Martin exchanged a quick grin. "We called her and said we were down at the beach. Chill." "I love you guys."
I tried to climb to my feet, but gave way and fell back into the grass. I had hardly touched the ground by the time Martin was behind me, cradling my head with his arm. I felt the smooth skin and the fine hairs down his forearm tickled at my neck. Framed by thousand-year-old eucalypts was Snowy, the hero, the guy I was all about, the guy I could maybe learn to love.
"Let's try this again." I said, smiling weakly, and climbed slowly to my feet. The pain had been replaced by an intense giddiness. My head reeled, but I was standing. There was something different about the light still. Sounds were sharper, I swear the air was thinner. I couldn't put my finger on it......