Slowtown

10

"It's great here. The simple life. Just home, like a picture that's faded at the edges."

I scrunch my eyebrows. "What do you mean?"

"There's a forest all around the city. An endless forest."

That's literally the most random fact. Why do I care? So instead, "The city. Here. Slowtown."

"Yes." He rearranges himself on the floor. "You ready to go back now?"

"No! We just got here."

He seems done with me now. Looks like he's not an all merciful being; he's normal after all. "Tyler, it doesn't help anyone if you don't listen. The more you understand, the quicker things will start feeling better."

A thought. "Alright. Bring your doctor here, I'm not going back."

"Okay!" He runs off, and for a full minute, I sit still. I thought he was smarter than to leave me alone. I'm so confused by him. But anyways.

So then, where the hell did I leave my phone? Looking in the obvious places and not finding it, my hands quake as I start pushing and throwing things down, making my room a mess– more of a mess than it always is. Mom would be disappointed of my impatience and panic. Sweating again, I decide that the home phone is my best bet now. I run downstairs for it, hitting my shoulder on the wall but snatching the phone, and with it I crumple to the floor. My fingers keep messing up the numbers. Oh, finally.

She picks up on the first ring.

"Mom?" It comes out of me as less than a whimper.

No response. But she picked up, what?

"Mom! Mom, please! Mom..." And I just lean over and topple on the floor.

This is because she doesn't care about me anymore, isn't it? Because I always wanted her to go away and leave me alone, and she did it. She did it.

Breathing. My own though.

...

Or.

She's not here.

Or, even better, I'm not there. I'm with the other psychotics in Slowtown. Slowtown. Slowtown. This is the only place I remember. Slowtown. I'm in Slowtown. There's not a breath of my hometown here. It's clear now, I'm in Slowtown. And I am okay.