Bizarre Story

Like Cat and Dog

A beautiful tree standing in the entrance of the waiting place that i have been ordered to attend at 3:00pm. The air is fresh and cool, the last greeting from winter before it decided to linger in some other place far away from here. My eyes are tired from the restless nights that i have spend at my desk with hope of it to dissolve maybe, or just being split into wood for a warm fire that i have wished to use for my freezing hands over the papers that have to be done. Oh, what am i complaining, i'm here and finished my work on time, next to this tree without leaves but endless little sticks pointing at ever thing in this world before they can be covered again by the green of Spring and Summer and multicolor of Autumn. This manager person that told me to be here is late. I don't wonder, really. Those people have a thing with time, everything they work for has value but if it's just about appreciating another thing than that and you can wait a long time. Sometime forever. A door shut and i looked up from my thoughts.

  “Oh hello! I'm sorry for being late, this office was just holding me up for so long. Sometimes you wish you wouldn't be a boss of something so you don't have a million people asking you absurd questions about how to sharpen their pencils. It's tiring, really. But now i'm here and we can talk about this little think you wanted to show me. What is it about?”

I am in wonder. I didn't want to but he doesn't really give me choice. He is the tiniest person i have ever seen. And so round as well, which adds a lot to the reason why he might have been really late.

  “Hello sir. Nice to meet you, and yes indeed i have something to show you. It's a project me and my friend worked on over the winter. It's something to prevent the future from technology and to--”

  “Wait young man, repeat that? Prevent the future from technology? But that's really absurd! No one on earth with some kind of intelligence would even think of preventing such a thing. It's the ultimate thing to survive for us, and maybe it will even teach these idiot in my office how to use a sharpener, eventually.”

   “no, i think you misunderstood me. We want to prevent technology from spreading so that we can save ourselves. Have you never realized how we as humans have developed after this? We became mindless and lazy, dependent and stupid.”

  “You're talking nonsense! Oh why have i come here?! I got told someone wants to meet with us because they had a new idea of how to change things to the better, but that! No, no it's not acceptable. I can't let this go through with developing. I'm sorry sir, but you understood me wrong. I have to leave now, we are not interesting in your new.. something. Have a nice day!”

So he turned on his heels and walked to his car that has been waiting in the parking lot about 4 meters away from the place that I'm standing. A scream of the engine and a furious man returning to his rightful place.

 This is not really how i intended to have my work appreciated. But being honest with myself, i could have expected that and spared myself with preparing a shitload of paper for him to read. Still standing next to this tree, i searched my pockets for a cigarette. The zipper was stuck with a piece of cloth and it prevented me from putting my whole hand into it to get to the ground of my pocket so that i could actually reach the last cigarette before i was about to quit. I have tried often, too often when i think about it but i have read somewhere that with constant trying you could actually succeed. Might have been obesity though. Should have told him that before he left.

Eventually i pressed the cigarette between my two fingers that i was able to put into and pulled it out with care. Having done that i grabbed my lightener from my other pocket where the zipper was working and lit it up. The fire left after some flickering and left me with the smoke of the possible last one i'll have.

I sat down on this stone wall that is protecting this lifeless tree. Could we have been wrong about it? Was this ball of manager right? No, i don't actually think that but that's what you're suppose to think after a failure. I moved my hand to the nice and smooth dirt of the tree and drew pictures in it. A bird, a dog, and a cat. I've never really like dogs actually, but they just seem like such a thing that you draw into dirt with birds and cats. Getting angry at the picture i put my cigarette in it. I regretted that though as i have forgotten that this was the last one that i've had on me.

Ticked off, i got up, said a prayer for this tree and went off to the store to buy another pack. The store was just across the street, which made this easier and i just ran and was there in no time. Getting in i have a weird feeling. Not really bad, more like something is haunting me. I can be very intense if i want to, but that one feels more real. Going to the cashier with a pack of smokes, i keep looking behind me to check for something unusual.

“something bothering you sir?”

“no”

“14.50$ please”

Giving him the money and with a glare from the man exchanging it with the smokes i turn and walk out of the store.

Almost running, i fell over something. With a curse in my mouth i got up and turned to see what i have been falling over. A dog, staring with its brown eyes into mine, standing there as if it has been waiting for me to run around the corner.

A coincidence i tell myself, i spit in front of the dogs feet and turn around again to keep walking home from this horrific last 40 minutes.