really fell for her. A couple of weeks into dating her, I went over to her house to surprise her, but no one was home. I stood there for a moment wondering what to do when I found a notebook lying out in the open on the front porch. It had poetry in it, but it also had what looked like diary entries.
"This notebook contained a lot of Julie’s personal thoughts along with descriptions of events. At first I was captivated, but as I read it, I discovered that every time I was mentioned she would refer to me as her “toy” or as “the idiot.” The more I read, the more I realized that Julie only spent time with me to amuse herself because she was in a boring town that she desperately wanted to run away from. She didn’t really care about me, so why did she put so much time into messing with me? She said that I was someone who wasn’t really worth her time.”
“Women are so bizarre. They think so illogically.”
“I know. None of it made sense to me, but by this point I didn’t care anymore. I walked home in tears that night, and the next day I woke up with a new determination and a new perspective on life. In my eyes, you were either the manipulator or you were the sucker. I suddenly saw it all around me, even in the way my family treated each other. I was a quick learner, and I learned a whole new way to live that night.
“From that day on I didn’t speak another word to Julie. She came over to my home and tried talking to me a few times, but I ignored her. She also tried calling me at home, but I only hung up. That made her angry so she came over and shouted at me and said that I was a horrible friend. But I didn’t react to her at all, and I wouldn’t tell her why. I wanted it to make as little sense to her as her actions had made to me. My mother finally made her leave. Then later, my family tried speaking to me about it, but I ignored them too.
“A month went by, and Julie finally left me alone. My eyes were opened to how cruel the world was, so I began treating people the way I’d been treated.” Myles started to smile as he remembered this part of his life. “I managed to pull off these great pranks without anyone knowing that it was me. Then I started picking fights with the neighborhood bullies, even when they left me alone. Yeah, I had my face pounded in more times than I could count, but like a chess game, I learned more each time it happened. Eventually I could outsmart them and give them a beating worse than they gave me.”
Now Myles was grinning from ear to ear. “They’d run the other way when they saw me coming. After that I was in and out of trouble all the time and became known throughout the entire town as a troublemaker. Nobody thought I’d amount to anything, so when I was eighteen and we went to the circus, I hired on and I haven’t been back since. I joined the circus to learn every job and every skill that I could, but I think that the magician’s act was my favorite one. And so,” Myles threw his arms out, his hands raised. “Here I am, Ragnar the Illusionist, at your service.”
“It seems like you have a rather intriguing story yourself.”
“No amazing accomplishments like the great Omar Metzger, but I learned a lot.”
“Oh, please.”
Myles then shrugged his shoulders and began to stretch. “Well, Doc, it’s been a long day. This place, strategically speaking, would be a great place to sleep. There’s no chance of creatures like giant spiders getting in, so let’s get some rest. We can figure out the puzzle later.”
Myles had been blessed with the ability to lay his head on a rock in the middle of a war zone and still drift off to sleep. Omar, however, was nervous, excited, and perplexed. When he got that stirred up, it usually meant that he wouldn’t sleep.
“I doubt I’ll sleep, but you go ahead.”
“Just try, partner. You might be surprised.”
Omar shrugged. “Agreed, Rags. I’ll give it a try.” Omar took out a double sleeping bag and
"This notebook contained a lot of Julie’s personal thoughts along with descriptions of events. At first I was captivated, but as I read it, I discovered that every time I was mentioned she would refer to me as her “toy” or as “the idiot.” The more I read, the more I realized that Julie only spent time with me to amuse herself because she was in a boring town that she desperately wanted to run away from. She didn’t really care about me, so why did she put so much time into messing with me? She said that I was someone who wasn’t really worth her time.”
“Women are so bizarre. They think so illogically.”
“I know. None of it made sense to me, but by this point I didn’t care anymore. I walked home in tears that night, and the next day I woke up with a new determination and a new perspective on life. In my eyes, you were either the manipulator or you were the sucker. I suddenly saw it all around me, even in the way my family treated each other. I was a quick learner, and I learned a whole new way to live that night.
“From that day on I didn’t speak another word to Julie. She came over to my home and tried talking to me a few times, but I ignored her. She also tried calling me at home, but I only hung up. That made her angry so she came over and shouted at me and said that I was a horrible friend. But I didn’t react to her at all, and I wouldn’t tell her why. I wanted it to make as little sense to her as her actions had made to me. My mother finally made her leave. Then later, my family tried speaking to me about it, but I ignored them too.
“A month went by, and Julie finally left me alone. My eyes were opened to how cruel the world was, so I began treating people the way I’d been treated.” Myles started to smile as he remembered this part of his life. “I managed to pull off these great pranks without anyone knowing that it was me. Then I started picking fights with the neighborhood bullies, even when they left me alone. Yeah, I had my face pounded in more times than I could count, but like a chess game, I learned more each time it happened. Eventually I could outsmart them and give them a beating worse than they gave me.”
Now Myles was grinning from ear to ear. “They’d run the other way when they saw me coming. After that I was in and out of trouble all the time and became known throughout the entire town as a troublemaker. Nobody thought I’d amount to anything, so when I was eighteen and we went to the circus, I hired on and I haven’t been back since. I joined the circus to learn every job and every skill that I could, but I think that the magician’s act was my favorite one. And so,” Myles threw his arms out, his hands raised. “Here I am, Ragnar the Illusionist, at your service.”
“It seems like you have a rather intriguing story yourself.”
“No amazing accomplishments like the great Omar Metzger, but I learned a lot.”
“Oh, please.”
Myles then shrugged his shoulders and began to stretch. “Well, Doc, it’s been a long day. This place, strategically speaking, would be a great place to sleep. There’s no chance of creatures like giant spiders getting in, so let’s get some rest. We can figure out the puzzle later.”
Myles had been blessed with the ability to lay his head on a rock in the middle of a war zone and still drift off to sleep. Omar, however, was nervous, excited, and perplexed. When he got that stirred up, it usually meant that he wouldn’t sleep.
“I doubt I’ll sleep, but you go ahead.”
“Just try, partner. You might be surprised.”
Omar shrugged. “Agreed, Rags. I’ll give it a try.” Omar took out a double sleeping bag and
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