Sea-at-tel Proper
There are so many people in this town that look like those that are in the Party. Multi-coloured hair, stylish but crazy clothing, metal piercings and tatoos on all visible spots of flesh... I fit in pretty well. Somewhere along the way, though, I had lost my nosering. Better it gone anyways, with all the memories it held.
At the encampment, we’d play games like Charades. It’s a game where you gesture a predetermined word or phrase, and there’s no speaking involved. The other team, the guessers, had to yell out what they thought you were trying to gesture. I became very good at gesturing, at trying to relay what I was saying with my body language, but on the guessing end, I was horrible. I knew the answers, but I couldn’t just pipe up.
The days were interesting. The future is filled with things I never thought possible. Everyone walks around with these little boxes up to their ears and talk to no one visible. There’s electricity everywhere, and even more litter on the ground. The days are rainy, and I spend a lot of time in my cardboard paradise. The younger boys in the Derelicts bring me presents all the time, little baubles and flowers. I only put them on display to appease them, even though they are nice, presents just don’t mean the same to me anymore.
My favorite spot is by the boardwalk, where I tease the seagulls with my gestures to throw up food... even though I have none. Well, ok, sometimes I feed them, but I have to get my kicks somehow. One day, a boy about my age, Jorge, wanted to bring me to a seafood restaurant. He seemed nice and all and said he would pay. So we get to the restaurant, and everyone stops and stares at me as if I was from a different world. But some things never change, and I still don’t care what others think. We sit down at a lovely table, and he orders a bottle of wine. The waiter asks for our... “Idee” cards.
I gestured to Jorge that I didn’t understand what this Idee card is, with a well practiced look of confusion. Jorge glanced over embarrassed, “It’s a card that says who you are.”
I shrugged, frustrated that I couldn’t just say, “I know who I am, can’t you just look at me and see who I am? I mean, c’mon, who would confuse me with someone else?” So, we didn’t get our wine, but it was then that I realized I was starting to have a hard time understanding this future place.
At the encampment, we’d play games like Charades. It’s a game where you gesture a predetermined word or phrase, and there’s no speaking involved. The other team, the guessers, had to yell out what they thought you were trying to gesture. I became very good at gesturing, at trying to relay what I was saying with my body language, but on the guessing end, I was horrible. I knew the answers, but I couldn’t just pipe up.
The days were interesting. The future is filled with things I never thought possible. Everyone walks around with these little boxes up to their ears and talk to no one visible. There’s electricity everywhere, and even more litter on the ground. The days are rainy, and I spend a lot of time in my cardboard paradise. The younger boys in the Derelicts bring me presents all the time, little baubles and flowers. I only put them on display to appease them, even though they are nice, presents just don’t mean the same to me anymore.
My favorite spot is by the boardwalk, where I tease the seagulls with my gestures to throw up food... even though I have none. Well, ok, sometimes I feed them, but I have to get my kicks somehow. One day, a boy about my age, Jorge, wanted to bring me to a seafood restaurant. He seemed nice and all and said he would pay. So we get to the restaurant, and everyone stops and stares at me as if I was from a different world. But some things never change, and I still don’t care what others think. We sit down at a lovely table, and he orders a bottle of wine. The waiter asks for our... “Idee” cards.
I gestured to Jorge that I didn’t understand what this Idee card is, with a well practiced look of confusion. Jorge glanced over embarrassed, “It’s a card that says who you are.”
I shrugged, frustrated that I couldn’t just say, “I know who I am, can’t you just look at me and see who I am? I mean, c’mon, who would confuse me with someone else?” So, we didn’t get our wine, but it was then that I realized I was starting to have a hard time understanding this future place.
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