you are going away on vacation. Close your eyes tight and focus on the center. When you see little white pixels on your eyelids, follow them.” He said.
“Wow!” She said five minutes later.
“What’s happening?” He asked.
“The dots turned into a spiral of red and blue. I kept staring in the middle of it like you said, and it grew into a landscape.” She said.
Moments later, He asked: “Now, what?”
“The landscape is changing. It’s almost like a movie, and I can control it.”
“Okay. Okay Josie, I’m going to sit down beside you and do the same thing. Don’t be startled if I speak once in a while. Pretend I’m sort of a guide.”
“Okay.”
The trees waved again, as both Josie and Vinnie swayed back and forth. Not only was Josie experiencing something completely new, Vinnie was also flooded with memories of the past. He was bombarded with the insecurity of high school, how girls had shunned him and boys had hit him. He had just as many issues as Josie, just a different flavor.
They swayed back and forth together in a mesmerizing motion. Josie’s breathing became louder.
“No.” Josie spoke out loud. It broke their concentration , but resumed after Vinnie made sure she was okay. Josie went deeper into a trance, as Vinnie felt her presence disappear. She was floating through space until landing in her backyard as a child. She loved playing in the yard. Her parents had a row of giant red roses that Josie would play around. She would pluck the biggest rose and put it behind her ear and play Princess. All the girls in the neighborhood wanted to play with her and be her.
The picture frames of her past sped up to sharp and bright images of violence, her dad being drunk hitting her mom, an older boy molesting her at the public swimming pool: Boys were pigs and men were evil was the message of the flashback.
Then, the memories softened, the light changed behind her eyelids as she was now with Daira. They played all night, playing fortress with the blankets and dress-up with their Barbies. The memories were so sweet Josie could taste the cookies her mom baked. But, the lightness of the sweet memories faded to black and stunk like abuse and degradation, and the leader of the darkness was her father.
“Go to bed now!” The flashback of dad became all too real, as Josie screamed back: “No, I won’t!”
Vinnie awoke startled from his hypnotic state by grabbing her hand.
“Are you okay?”
She didn’t answer, she had questions for her father and she knew it would be easy to jump back to where she left off.
The spiral behind her eyelids began again, as she focused on the center until her body landed back in the past.
“Go to bed!”
“Okay Daddy.” Josie had changer her answer this time and fate altered slightly towards the positive. But, her father had power and knew it and wouldn’t let Josie off with just, “Okay, Daddy.” He came into her room and sat on the bed. The whiskey on his breath burned her sensitive eyes.
“Your Uncle Sammy said you misbehaved the other day, do you remember that? Were you a bad girl?” He pulled her by the ankles down towards him, which covered her face with blankets.
“Go to hell you bastard!” Josie screamed out loud. Vinnie was shocked out of the trance again.
“Keep fighting him Josie.” Vinnie said, as Josie was panting, sweating and beginning to cry.
“Don’t let him control you.” He said, as she closed her eyes and tried to control her emotions and breathing.
She walked back to her father through a dark tunnel. His nose was bleeding and he was crying.
“I’m so sorry Josie.”
“I hate to see you cry dad.”
“I’m worthless to the family.”
“No you’re not dad.”
“Oh well, I tried.” He laughed, as the tunnel disappeared and he was watching football in the living room.
This transition of imagery sunk Josie’s heart. Her dad didn’t give a shit. “Oh well, I tried,” burned through her a thousand times stronger
“Wow!” She said five minutes later.
“What’s happening?” He asked.
“The dots turned into a spiral of red and blue. I kept staring in the middle of it like you said, and it grew into a landscape.” She said.
Moments later, He asked: “Now, what?”
“The landscape is changing. It’s almost like a movie, and I can control it.”
“Okay. Okay Josie, I’m going to sit down beside you and do the same thing. Don’t be startled if I speak once in a while. Pretend I’m sort of a guide.”
“Okay.”
The trees waved again, as both Josie and Vinnie swayed back and forth. Not only was Josie experiencing something completely new, Vinnie was also flooded with memories of the past. He was bombarded with the insecurity of high school, how girls had shunned him and boys had hit him. He had just as many issues as Josie, just a different flavor.
They swayed back and forth together in a mesmerizing motion. Josie’s breathing became louder.
“No.” Josie spoke out loud. It broke their concentration , but resumed after Vinnie made sure she was okay. Josie went deeper into a trance, as Vinnie felt her presence disappear. She was floating through space until landing in her backyard as a child. She loved playing in the yard. Her parents had a row of giant red roses that Josie would play around. She would pluck the biggest rose and put it behind her ear and play Princess. All the girls in the neighborhood wanted to play with her and be her.
The picture frames of her past sped up to sharp and bright images of violence, her dad being drunk hitting her mom, an older boy molesting her at the public swimming pool: Boys were pigs and men were evil was the message of the flashback.
Then, the memories softened, the light changed behind her eyelids as she was now with Daira. They played all night, playing fortress with the blankets and dress-up with their Barbies. The memories were so sweet Josie could taste the cookies her mom baked. But, the lightness of the sweet memories faded to black and stunk like abuse and degradation, and the leader of the darkness was her father.
“Go to bed now!” The flashback of dad became all too real, as Josie screamed back: “No, I won’t!”
Vinnie awoke startled from his hypnotic state by grabbing her hand.
“Are you okay?”
She didn’t answer, she had questions for her father and she knew it would be easy to jump back to where she left off.
The spiral behind her eyelids began again, as she focused on the center until her body landed back in the past.
“Go to bed!”
“Okay Daddy.” Josie had changer her answer this time and fate altered slightly towards the positive. But, her father had power and knew it and wouldn’t let Josie off with just, “Okay, Daddy.” He came into her room and sat on the bed. The whiskey on his breath burned her sensitive eyes.
“Your Uncle Sammy said you misbehaved the other day, do you remember that? Were you a bad girl?” He pulled her by the ankles down towards him, which covered her face with blankets.
“Go to hell you bastard!” Josie screamed out loud. Vinnie was shocked out of the trance again.
“Keep fighting him Josie.” Vinnie said, as Josie was panting, sweating and beginning to cry.
“Don’t let him control you.” He said, as she closed her eyes and tried to control her emotions and breathing.
She walked back to her father through a dark tunnel. His nose was bleeding and he was crying.
“I’m so sorry Josie.”
“I hate to see you cry dad.”
“I’m worthless to the family.”
“No you’re not dad.”
“Oh well, I tried.” He laughed, as the tunnel disappeared and he was watching football in the living room.
This transition of imagery sunk Josie’s heart. Her dad didn’t give a shit. “Oh well, I tried,” burned through her a thousand times stronger
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