At first, I wanted to tell this story in the most realistic setting possible. A working man who had barely enough sleep the last couple of days; getting out of a caf\u00e9, spotting whatever he had to run away from. A tired employee at home, staring at the perturbing news that promised misery while attempting to figure out where he\u2019d seen those eyes before. Unfortunately, none of those beginnings fit the story. It didn\u2019t need to be told realistically, because no one would believe me either way. There was no humane way of describing him. Not when he\u2019d come for me, and I still felt him walking the darkest passages of my mind; his pace steady as his steps began to fade away to a point where I could no longer hear him. How realistic and truthful could the human mind be?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I remember the day it happened. It was just that I couldn\u2019t be assured of whether my memories hadn\u2019t been altered from the many times I went over them, to figure out where it all went wrong. What I can be certain about is how we came to be.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAre you sure you don\u2019t want to enter?\u201d I heard the voice of the man I\u2019d come with to that place.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The door he held open led to the darkness of the building we\u2019d been cited in. Like a mouth that awaited prey to feed the monster of the house. I sniffed, rubbing at my nose before coughing through a very dried throat. My nails began to mark thin skin, pinching at the fading bruises on my forearm.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know, man. It\u2019s too sketchy. When have we come this far for some dope<\/em>?\u201d I muttered, checking the ruined spaces that were supposed to be windows scattered along the facade.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The older guy hesitated and mimicked my uneasiness. He scoffed, a smile full of broken brown teeth appearing. \u201cWhat? It\u2019s not like they are going to kill a bunch of junkies?\u201d He still didn\u2019t convince me, and I was unsure he would be able to do so, like other times. His orbs gazed at my sore skin. \u201cHow long it\u2019s been?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n I shrugged. \u201cToo long.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n He nodded, pursing his lips and aggressively scratching the back of his head. \u201cLook, I\u2019m going in. And if you don\u2019t come, I won\u2019t be getting you any. I\u2019m not your errand boy-\u201c<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cDo you have the money?\u201d I interrupted his antsy raising tone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He opened his mouth and closed it, before stepping inside the darkness and disappearing in the shadows. Sniffing, my nails reached to pinch at my itchy neck, while I fumbled through my pocket to find what I was looking for. Lifting the joint to my lips, I brought the lighter to the end of it and inhaled. This would have to do. Until I found another opportunity to get something heavier. My teeth chattered with the cold breeze that froze my limbs and yet brought some comfort to my heating mind. I should have gone inside, it\u2019s been too long\u2026 But I don\u2019t like it here, perhaps it is my slight sobriety talking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For minutes I remained there, not knowing the time, but it hadn\u2019t felt like long. Getting out of my lungs the last calming drag, I threw the rest to the concrete and stepped on it with the sole of my shoe. My brain thumped, my heartbeat calmed; the high was at peace. Clutching the ends of my sweater, I rubbed at the holes in my trousers. I glanced at the darkness before me and heard nothing. Leaning back, I let my eyes wonder through the abandoned building, from left to right- I stopped my head from turning and looked to my left again; not at the building but rather at the man that stood next to me, watching me. Anxiety settled inside my stomach.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He was tall and hovered over my sitting form. Dressed in a dark sort of suit, his pale complexion stood out. And his eyes\u2026 so bright they seemed to glow in the dark. A white in contrast to the two dark abysses where his pupils hid.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhat are you doing?\u201d His voice was raspy, settling irritably in my eardrums.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I frowned. \u201cMind your business.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n He didn\u2019t flinch. His body and features didn\u2019t move a single inch. \u201cI am. Aren\u2019t you going to enter?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n I swallowed with difficulty. \u201cI\u2019m waiting for my friends.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cFriends?\u201d His face began to retreat as he stood up straight, his back letting out four sordid cracks that disturbed the quiet night. \u201cLies.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n My heart skipped a bit. \u201cL-Look, if you are interested in getting some dope<\/em>, go inside the building. The dealer is there somewhere.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n He remained impassive, until his lips curved upward and revealed blood soaked teeth. \u201cShall we?\u201d With a quick movement, his frail hand settled on my jaw and squeezed my cheeks. A fracture echoed, and I felt pieces of teeth falling on my tongue and down my throat. With a scream, everything went black.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But not quite.<\/p>\n\n\n\n My eyes felt wide open, though I couldn\u2019t see a thing. Nothing but two blanc circles staring at me in the dark. I was unable to comprehend the situation, and yet like a wall, I was held back from doing so. My limbs were soggy; as in a dense pool that pushed at my ears. The echoes of thumping and chattering resonated. And through it all; through darkness, terror, confusion and sickness, it all ended with him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYou don\u2019t have to run. It\u2019s okay. Your mind doesn\u2019t feel like yours, but you are accustomed to it, already. It\u2019s all like a pinch; a few seconds give you a lifetime of escapism.\u201d A sickening chuckle. \u201cWhat is it that you miss the most in this moment? Your family, your friend <\/em>or a high. Answer truthfully, there is only one correct answer and I have no patience for liars.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n A high. <\/em>I answered, my lips not moving.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I heard brief clapping. \u201cVery good. That is the only matter a drug addict wants and needs. Otherwise, you wouldn\u2019t be here.\u201d A sigh. \u201cWhat a lovely day\u2026 <\/em>Do you remember your mother\u2019s words? Right before you stole a couple hundred bills from where she hid them from you. You\u2019d woken up well, believed that that was your last day, that everything would get better, and then\u2026 It is fascinating how quickly people\u2019s will change, isn\u2019t it? You<\/p>\n\n\n\n went from loving your mother that morning, to stealing from her and disappearing from her life. Do you think that was better or worse for her? Again, only one correct answer.\u201d Steady steps approached, seeming to come from everywhere at once.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Better.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n There was silence. Hot blood dripped from my mouth vanishing into nothingness. \u201cWhat a disappointing answer.\u201d P-Please. <\/em>\u201cYour mother also begged you to stay. Am I wrong?\u201d I left because I didn\u2019t want to hurt her anymore, <\/em>more blood escaped my lips. \u201cIt is so much easier to destroy a butchered mind\u2026 Do you feel the holes in your brain?\u201d An agonising pain settled on my temples. \u201cThe dead tissue smells rotten. Just like your mother\u2019s heart. You chewed at it, then spit it on to the floor, and that stench follows you everywhere. You will rot by the drug your choices are. You will eventually die, and leave behind more hurt, more stench, more pain. A mother that loved and tried to help her son despite the circumstances.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n I sobbed, the pain making me squeeze my eyes shut. Please\u2026 <\/em>\u201cYou humans are amusing. Like a never ending cycle. Your friend is currently overdosing in one of the empty rooms in the building, and after all that, you\u2019d still recur to the same substance that kills you. So, why are you so afraid? I\u2019m just another high. But I guess that things turn difficult when the same substance that hurts speaks, and has a conscience. I don\u2019t, do you? You think you have the strength to turn around from all of this?\u201d I don\u2019t know. <\/em>Black circles settled before me, staring down at me. \u201cThat is not good enough for me. But it\u2019s okay. I\u2019m happy for you, because your selfishness goes beyond my expectations. That means you have a strong mind, one I can feed on until you drop dead.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n My body froze. What are you saying?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n The darkness faded out until a distance away shadows began to form familiar objects and faces. My limbs felt soggier than before, and yet I advanced towards the faint light, tiring sore muscles that begged me to stop.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A woman sat on a sofa; her stare lost, fist tightly clutching a green familiar jumper while her cheeks wetted with more tears. A guy trembling on concrete dusty floor, a rubber band circling his arm while a syringe stayed embedded in his skin. And then, substances. I<\/p>\n\n\n\n impulsively reached towards the clear liquid before I stopped myself and let my hand wonder above the glass.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A presence lingered close to my back. \u201cYou have three choices. A decision to make. Only one right answer. No turning back. This is your last chance to scratch those itches. Which one aches more?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n I stood there, my heart speeding up. Eyes lingering on the crying woman I\u2019d already said goodbye to. Her tears wouldn\u2019t affect me as much as they did, but it still upset me to see her this sad. Mum. <\/em>The reflection of the trembling man caught my attention. Ben<\/em>, I think his name was. But I couldn\u2019t be so sure. We met each other through highs and withdrawals, and I\u2019d never asked him again. I barely knew him. Lastly, the glinting of the fine syringe called out to me. Something I still hadn\u2019t said goodbye to, something I still craved and knew all too well. My skin itched. I\u2019m sorry. <\/em>I\u2019m not. It\u2019s all just a dream. It will all be okay. It\u2019s okay. It\u2019s okay. None of them managed to help, none but one. One that couldn\u2019t make me feel bad. One that as long as I consumed it, wouldn\u2019t treat me poorly. One I couldn\u2019t upset. One I couldn\u2019t live without.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Reaching for the clear jar, the illusion dissolved and everything turned to dust floating around me; slightly illuminated by the dimming light that withdrew until I was once again left in darkness and deafening silence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Then, came a response. \u201cYou\u2019ve made your decision.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n My eyes snapped opened and I stared agitatedly at the building we\u2019d arrived to long time ago. I felt a lump in my throat as I saw medics rushing to the abandoned structure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAre you the person that called?\u201d I turned to the medic that stood next to a police officer. \u201cAre you the anonymous caller?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n It hadn\u2019t been a dream. My jaw cracked two times as my lips gave way to a crazed smile that made both women flinch. Hot liquid dripped down my chin. Standing up, I turned around and began to walk away, not before I saw them covering their noses at my smell. Putrid stench. And as I took careful slow steps to a place I didn\u2019t know, I felt someone mimicking the pace inside my mind. An itch and a bite.<\/p>\n\n\n\n _ At first, I wanted to tell this story in the most realistic setting possible. A working man who had barely enough sleep the last couple of days; getting out of a caf\u00e9, spotting whatever he had to run away from. A tired employee at home, staring at the perturbing news that promised misery while attempting […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":131,"featured_media":4834,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[4,835],"tags":[842],"class_list":{"0":"post-4858","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-relato-corto","8":"category-zona-creativa","9":"tag-deustorelato23","10":"entry"},"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/laespiral.deusto.es\/eu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4858","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/laespiral.deusto.es\/eu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/laespiral.deusto.es\/eu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/laespiral.deusto.es\/eu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/131"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/laespiral.deusto.es\/eu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4858"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/laespiral.deusto.es\/eu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4858\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4866,"href":"https:\/\/laespiral.deusto.es\/eu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4858\/revisions\/4866"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/laespiral.deusto.es\/eu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4834"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/laespiral.deusto.es\/eu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4858"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/laespiral.deusto.es\/eu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4858"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/laespiral.deusto.es\/eu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4858"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
Texto de Izaskun Fandi\u00f1o, primer premio del XXVI certamen de relato corto en modalidad ingl\u00e9s.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"