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Chandrea Lack, Rasa Watson, Madison Siegel, Simon V.

June 5, 2017

The Perks of Being a Wallflower

The video that we created is a movie trailer for TPBW (The Perks of Being a Wallflower.) We decided to work as a team to create a different movie trailer than the one that was already made. Our first pick was going to recreate a scene but then we had a lot to pick from so instead we did the movie trailer. During the trailer we found a lot of cool spots around the school to film at. The tunnel scene where Charlie looks at Sam some type of way when she goes to stick her head up and let the wind blow through her hair, was a scene that we got to shoot at the back stairways and the the lighting there matched perfectly with our scene.   

We also picked these scenes because they were an important part of the book where Charlie faces tough times and how life is in high school. He also goes through drug phases and romance scenes. This trailer sums up the book in a lot of ways and shows how Charlie’s life is put together in a thrilling and heartwarming way. Our group got to sit together and think about the key points during the book and that is how we made our movie trailer.

• Our Group: Mayah Gold, Donald Moses, and Louisa Strohm
  

During this project, we went through some creative obstacles. We started out with not exactly knowing what to do, but we figured it out. However, challenge did strike when the first of working one group member was not present. So we couldn’t get much done that day. However, we were nothing but productive the next day.

While writing the script, we really wanted to get a sense of the loss that Rob experiences throughout the book, as well as how he copes with it. I believe that we really captured that through our trailer.

Safa walks into the front door of her new home with a sigh. She had seen the home before, but now that all the decorative furniture was out, she was left with an empty living room and plain white walls. If only her mind could be empty like that, too. She settles her bags onto the floor and kicks her shoes off, discarding them to the side. ‘Might as well make a little mess to make this place feel a little more like home”, she thinks to herself as she pads over into her kitchen. She takes a clean glass from her otherwise empty cabinets and fills it with cold water from the tap. She leans against the cold, marble kitchen counter and closes her eyes as the refreshing drink cools her down. It was the peak of day, and having a house on the shore meant relentless sun beaming down on her during the day, and inevitable chill by night. She didn’t mind though; it was all for the sake of the much needed sanctuary. She turned twenty-two this January and snagged a position with a marine life research facility centered around the studies of marine biomes and biological advancements. All in all, she was ready to start fresh. She missed the few friends she had, but this was for the best. Looking at her phone, she sees a missed call from Fatima and a few texts from Saf making sure she got in alright. She responded quickly with her free hand and made a note to call Fatima back later. With the only noise from the outside being the soft crash of waves against the wet sand, it was a significant change from the busy city of New York. Realizing she’s finished her glass, she places it in the sink and decided it’s time to begin unpacking. By the time she’s nearly done, the sun is beginning to set, casting a delicate shade of orange-pink through her open windows.

She decides to relax outside for a bit and enjoy the cool air before retiring for the night. She grabs her guitar that she left near the door and settles onto her front porch steps and tunes her instrument. Once satisfied, she begins strumming meaningless chords, not belonging to a particular song. She stays like that for a while, letting her hands do the work while her mind wanders.

text from: Fatima :)

i hope you won’t be lonely there all by yourself, Saf. let me know if you need a friend, i’m always free to visit!

She knew it was an exaggeration. Fatima had just been accepted into one of the most prestigious ballet programs in the country, and Safa knew she would be very busy soon. Still, it’s the thought that counts.

A glimmer in the ocean brings here out of her thoughts. It’s fairly distant from the shore and it resembles a figure. Safa sets her guitar down, a million thoughts racing through her mind. Is it a person? Are they drowning? Are they already dead and their body is just floating on the surface? She remembers there’s a pier over onto the left of her, and she rushes up the small ladder and runs to the edge, kneeling down to get a closer look. It’s definitely a figure, and she thinks she sees a head of dark, wet hair before it disappears below the surface again. Okay, there might actually be someone drowning right in front of her. She begins to panic because she can’t recall the protocol she learned at girl scout camp that one summer and, oh God, there might be an actual life on her hands and she is not fit for this kind of responsibility. She’s about to pull out her phone and call the coast guard when the head resurfaces, much closer than before. Under the dark, wet hair is a light brown forehead and a pair of big, round, and startled eyes looking directly into her’s. The two stare at each other for what seems like forever before Safa speaks.

“Are you okay?” She asks, voice shaking slightly. The girl stares back at Safa for a few more seconds before going back underwater without a response. Safa sits back and waits a few more minutes, and when the girl doesn’t resurface she runs a hand over her face and sighs.

Well, at least she wasn’t drowning.

____________________________________________________________

It’s a few nights until she sees the girl again. Safa sits on the pier with her guitar, legs dangling over the edge and toes brushing against the chill surface of the water. It’s not long before a familiar head rises above the surface. Safa’s legs still as she makes eye contact with the girl, who is looking at her with the same expression of fear and confusion as their first encounter. Safa ends up staring, and it isn’t until she hears a voice that isn’t her own that she comes back to reality.

“Hello,” the girl says hesitantly. Okay, her voice definitely lower than she expected.

“Hi,” Safa responds, hoping her voice isn’t as high as she thinks it might be right now.

“What are you doing here?” The girl asks, tilting her head to the side. ‘She looks cute like that’, Safa thinks, before remembering she had been asked a question.

“I live here,” She responds, earning a quirk of an eyebrow in response.

“No one’s lived here for a long time.” The girl says.

“Why are you always swimming around here? Do you live close?” Safa asks. The girl furrows her eyebrows in confusion and looks around her before returning her gaze to the girl on the pier.

“I live here.” She says simply. Now it was Safa’s turn to look confused as she tried to see if there were any homes in the distant she hadn’t noticed earlier. When she sees nothing but water, she looks back down to see the girl already gone, but she manages to catch a faint glimmer of-

“A tail, Fatima, I know what I saw.” Safa says, running a hand through her hair and pacing around her living room. It sounded all kinds of illogical, she knew, but she just got her new contact  prescriptions so she knew her eyes weren’t failing her.

“A girl with a tail that keeps swimming around your house and claims she lives in the water. Are you sure you haven’t accidentally walked into a Disney movie?” Fatima jokes.

“How can you be joking at a time like this? Fatima, there is a girl with a tail swimming around my house who says he lives in the ocean. The ocean, Fatima!” Safa exclaims. Fatima sighs on the other side of the line.

“Look, I honestly have no idea what to tell you.” Fatima says. The line goes silent for a second before she continues, “Do you think you’ll tell your facility about it?”

“I don’t know,” Safa responds exasperatedly. The girl may be strange but she seems nice. Safa knows what happens to mysterious things found in the ocean, and she doesn’t want to do that to her.

“Well, I have to get going. Text me if anything else happens and I’ll call you when I can.”

“Okay, bye.” Upon hanging up, Safa spends almost the entire remainder of her evening pacing around her house trying to wrap her head around what she had seen.

It’s late at night when Safa hears a knock on her door. She turns from her spot on her couch she eventually settled on to look at the door, pondering who would possibly be knocking on the door at this time. She approaches it hesitantly, and when she tries to look through the small cut out hole she still can’t see anything. Opening the door, she opens her mouth to speak but her mind goes blank when she sees the girl standing on her porch completely naked with legs and shivering. She’s about to ask the girl what the hell she’s doing when the girl starts wheezing and coughing, hands finding their way to her throat. Her eyes widen, and she looks to Safa for help.

“Oh god, okay. Okayokayokayokay,” Safa repeats, pulling the girl into her house and rushing her to the kitchen. She pours the girl a glass of water and thrusts it in her direction. The girl’s hands fall from her throat and take the glass as she eyes it confusedly.

“Drink it,” Safa urges. When the girl continues to look confused, still wheezing slightly, Safa uses hand gestures to mimic the act of drinking. The girl copies, and her shoulders relax a bit when the drink reaches her mouth. She finishes the glass in record time, pushing it back to Safa. Safa refills it, and the girl goes through at least five glasses of water before she can breathe somewhat regularly. The two stand there, the girl taking deep breaths and Safa desperately trying not to let her eyes travel before the girl speaks.

“Too dry.” She says, almost a whisper.

“What? What’s too dry?”

“Too dry.” The girl repeats, frustrated that Safa can’t understand her. Safa runs a hand through her hair, trying to figure out what the boy wants when she notices her running her fingers along her skin.

“Is it your skin? Your skin is too dry?” Safa asks, pointing to her arms. The girl responds with a dull nod.

“Uh, okay. Follow me,” Safa suggests, leaving the kitchen and walking down the hall. Light footsteps trail behind her as she opens the door to her bathroom, moonlight being the only light gracing the otherwise dark room. She turns on the overhead light and goes over to the bathtub attached to the side of the wall. She turns the knob and soon a steady flow of water is filling the tub. Once the tub is full enough, Safa motions towards it.

“Um, I don’t know if this will help but-” She doesn’t get to finish before she hears a loud plop and a loud sigh. The girl nestles into the tub and lowers herself until everything from under her nose is submerged in water. She hears a low hum of what she assumes is appreciation, and the girl closes her eyes.

“Better?” Safa asks. The girl opens up one eye to look at her and closes it again, which Safa decided to take as a yes.

“I’ll be right back,” She says, scurrying out the room to find her phone. She calls Shacora first this time, knowing Fatima has an early rehearsal tomorrow and is probably asleep. It rings twice before she picks up.

“What the fuck, Saf? It’s two in the morning-”

“The girl. She’s in my house. In my bathtub. I don’t know what to do.”

“...What?”

“I don’t know. I heard a knock on my door, and I open it to see her standing there, standing, Cora, as in legs, on my porch. She’s naked and shivering and I’m like what the fuck, and then she starts having an asthma attack or something so I give her a glass of water and she drinks like, ten. Then she says her skin is too dry so I run her a bath and-”

“And now you’re on the phone with me.” Cora finishes.

“Yeah,” Safa responds, sighing and resting her head on the wall.

“And now you’ve left her alone in your bathtub.” Cora continues. Safa silently curses at herself before looking in the direction of the bathroom.

“Stay on the phone,” Safa says, walking back down the hall. With the door still open, she peeks her head in to see the girl sitting up and tracing lazy patterns in the water, small ripples vibrating around the tip of her finger.

“She’s fine,” Safa whispers, as to not startle the girl.

“Do you know her name yet?” Saf asks.

“No.”

“Now would be a good time to find out. I’m going to go back to sleep, you’re going to find out what this girl’s deal is, and then you’re going to call me back at a more suitable hour. Okay?”

“Okay.” They hang up, and Safa re-enters the room, sitting on the far edge of the tub. She rubs the back of her neck and averts her eyes when she notices the girl staring at her curiously.

“Can I ask your name?” Safa asks nervously. The girl continues to look at her, and she’s about to make up an excuse to leave before it gets awkward because she thinks she won’t get a response when,

“Pearlina,” the girl responds quietly. Pearlina. That’s a nice name.

“Ok, Pearlina. My name is Safa.”

“Safa,” Pearlina repeats slowly, and Safa likes the way it sounds when she says it.

_____________________________________________________________________________

Safa wakes up to bright light streaming through the curtains of her bedroom. She stretches and enjoys the warmth for a few minutes before getting up. She shuffles into her kitchen and grabs a yogurt from her fridge before returning and squeezing herself into a corner of the sofa, feet tucked under her. She grabs the remote from the coffee table and turns the TV on.

“…a million years after entering the sea the aquatic apes would now be better adapted to their new world. They’ve lost most of their hair and can hold their breath for minutes at a time.”

Safa watches intently as the documentary continues. She’s so intune that she doesn’t notice Pearlina standing at the living room doorway, hands crossed and brows furrowed. She eventually makes her way to the couch as well, sitting herself on top the arm next to Safa. The two watch in silence that’s incredibly awkward for Safa.

“We took an x-ray of the tail. There were bones in the tail flack. Manatees don’t have that. We looked at the pelvis and there were remains of leg bones. Seals have leg bones but their thighs are short. We could tell that the ones in our specimen were long.”

Safa couldn’t help but glance at Pearlina’s legs that were slightly swinging as they hung over the couch arm. Pearlina wrinkles her nose as the documentaries observation. There’s a commercial break and Safa steals the opportunity to run to the kitchen and retrieve another yogurt. When opening the fridge she realizes it’s starting to look quite empty and she should probably go grocery shopping soon. In the midst of washing a spoon she hears the show come back on.

“The pod travels with young. They must be protected at all costs.”

Safa slowly makes her way to the doorway separating the kitchen and the living room. She watches Pearlina as she slides off the couch arm and inches towards the television screen until her nose is almost touching it. The documentary depicts a scene of a human like figure with a tail just below the surface of the ocean. The creature is attempting to warn its ‘pod’, as the documentary states. A shark is in the premises but the pod cannot understand. In the end, the figure drags a sharp dagger across its chest as to distract and bait the lingering shark. The pod is forced to abandon him as they swim away to safety. Safa shifts her gaze from the television to Pearlina, who seems to have spaced out. Safa wants to tell her being that close to the TV is bad for her eyes, but she doesn’t think the girl would even hear her if she tried. Eventually, Pearlina is released from the short hypnosis she had found herself in. She does not look at Safa, though she knows she is looking at her. Pearlina does nothing for a while. Safa says her name a few times but receives no response.

Suddenly, Pearlina looks up and out the window with a view of the shore. Her eyes then trail over to the door, and even before Safa can asks what’s wrong, Pearlina is dashing towards it. She shakes the handle and lets out an aggravated noise. Safa rushes over and moves her hands, trying to calm her down before going to the kitchen counter and retrieving the keys. Pearlina still looks distressed when she returns, but Safa decides now is not the time for interrogation. She unlocks the door and steps aside for Pearlina to step out.

Although she seemed to be in a rush just a few seconds ago, Pearlina now takes cautious steps off the porch and along the beach. Safa remains on the porch watching as Pearlina toes closer and closer to where the tide meets her. She lets the water run over her feet first, and Safa can see her shoulders visibly relax. She steps slightly further, and even further until she is confidently striding into the water.

“Pearlina, wait!” Safa calls out. She’s not sure if the girl is aware, but Pearlina still has two legs. However she stayed underwater so long when they first met, Safa assumes that ability does not apply right now. She continues to call out for Pearlina but her attempts fall upon deaf ears. Safa begins to walk down her porch steps when a huge wave rises up, crashing down and enveloping Pearlina in the process. Safa curses and sprints towards the water. Fortunately the currents are not too violent, so Pearlina doesn’t go far by the time Safa reaches her. She grabs her by the torso and lifts her head above water. It is a few seconds until the girl begins to cough and sputter, eyes moving rapidly underneath their lids. Safa struggles as she carries Pearlina and moves towards the shore, the girl eerily quiet in her arms. Again, Safa looks down to see the girl’s eyes open with that dazed and confused look. This time, though, she is not looking back into Safa’s eyes or a television screen. Her eyes are fixed on the ocean, the bright aura of the sun showing slightly in her light brown irises. Although the sun is out, Safa herself can barely see anything past the shallow waters. Pearlina, on the other hand, looks as if she can see everything. Or perhaps something very specific.

Returning to the house Safa makes a bee-line for the bathroom and runs Pearlina another bath in hopes of calming her down. She still has yet to speak, and at this point it’s starting to freak Safa out. She doesn’t want to leave Pearlina alone and make a phone call, so she’s truly left to her own devices. She tries to help Pearlina undress out of the oversized shirt and lounge pants Safa leaned her, but the girl instead flops into the tub with her clothes still adorned. Safa wants to be surprised but she’s not; at this point Pearlina has a huge question mark floating above her head and Safa is pretty much expecting anything at any given moment. The two find themselves in silence again as Safa tries to think of what to do next. This time, it’s Pearlina who breaks it.

“Pod.”

Safa looks up to see Pearlina still staring blankly into the tub water, fingers moving absentmindedly along the surface.

“What?”

“Pod. My pod.” Pearlina repeats, her voice quivering. She sighs before lowering her body into the tub just as she did before, so only her nose and eyes were above water. Safa understands this is all she will be getting out of the girl tonight and does not inquire any further. It seems as though they spend hours in that bathroom, utter silence surrounding them but this time there is no uncomfort. There is still a lot that confuses Safa, but she knows that ultimately she needs to help Pearlina. She’s not sure how she’ll do it or even exactly what it is she’s being asked to do, but she does know that will do whatever may be in her power for Pearlina.

And then the dolphins washed up.

“You’re pregnant, Mrs. Ross.” Dr. Venezuela said.

Lisa’s heart dropped.

“It’s actually Miss, I’m not married.”

“My apologies, Ms. Ross. But as I was saying, the urine test came back and told me that you have been pregnant for six months now. Congratulations.” Dr. Venezuela said.

Lisa got up from the examination table and walked around the room in circles.

“But that’s impossible! I’ve never had sexual intercourse before. How could I have known? I don’t even have a pregnant belly.”

Dr. Venezuela pulled out the urine test results, to show her that it said she was pregnant.

“You must have me mixed up with someone else. Dr. Venezuela. I am not pregnant.” Lisa said as she tried to walk away.

“Lie down Ms. Ross. Let’s do an ultrasound.”

They quickly began and ultrasound only to discover Dr. Venezuela was right. There was a little baby inside of Lisa and she didn’t even know this whole time. It’s been six months and someone is just now telling her she is pregnant.

“Maybe your system is broken. Or maybe this is a joke. April Fools! You got me.” Lisa laughed before realizing this was actually serious.

“Listen, I don’t know what to tell you, Ms. Ross. The test says you’re pregnant. Now, I have to go to a meeting, I’ll see you next time.” Dr. Venezuela replied.

Lisa walked out of the doctors room confused.

“How could I be pregnant? This is impossible. I’m a virgin. I have never had a boyfriend before. I never even kissed a guy before. This is crazy. I can’t believe this. This must be a dream. Maybe I should take a pregnancy test. It should come back negative because, I mean, I never had sex.” Lisa thought as she got into her car and drove straight to her mother’s house.

“Mom! Where are you?” She yelled as she walked into the door.

“In the kitchen. What’s wrong?” Her mom asked.

Lisa took a deep breath.

“Mom what am I going to do? How could I have not known?”

“You need to calm down. Maybe this is all just a misunderstanding. Or maybe you did do something and don’t remember? It’s okay to admit it honey, you don’t have to be shy.” said mom as she tried to calm her daughter down.

Lisa walked away.

“ I can’t believe it. My own mother doesn’t believe me… Oh My God. She should have extra pregnancy tests lying around somewhere. I need to find them, take it and prove to Dr. Venezuela and my mother that I am not pregnant.”

Lisa walked into the bathroom, focused on looking for a pregnancy test. She looked inside the closet. After moving everything around, she found one. But, the only problem is she doesn’t know how to use it and the instructions aren’t in the box. She grabbed her phone and looked up how to use a pregnancy test.

“Ok, so all I have to do is put a drop of pee in this area and wait a few minutes for it to say negative. Got it.”

As she was waiting for the result to come back, it occurred to her that this strange thing has happened to her about four months ago. She remembers being at the Lollapalooza Festival, in line to get a chilli cheese dog. As she finished eating, a strange woman walked up to her and asked Lisa for her name. She told the lady her name and remembered giving her a handshake. There was something strange about her. She had four fingers on each hand, as well as kind of long arms. She also remembered the lady not saying anything else, but giving her a long hug. As they hugged Lisa felt a slight pain in her stomach. But she thought it was the aftermath of the chili cheese dog.

“That’s gotta be it. That lady. That strange lady from the Lollapalooza Festival must have done this. That pain that I felt, it wasn’t from the chilli cheese dog, it was from her. She must have been transforming some evil baby inside of me. But how am I going to explain to my mother as well as Dr. Venezuela that this is what really happened. They won’t believe me. I’m screwed.”

Forgetting about the pregnancy test, she walked away from the bathroom and walked to her room. She laid in her bed, staring at the ceiling and thought of ways on how to tell her mother what happened. She knows her mother wouldn’t believe an alien-like woman got her pregnant just from a hug. As she laid there thinking, she started to feel nauseous. She closed her eyes, hoping it would go away but instead she started coughing. She ran to the bathroom to throw up. Instead of throwing up the breakfast she ate this morning, she threw up bloody hair balls.

“This is strange. Really strange. What is going on? What is happening? I need some help. But no one will believe me, no one would help me. What am I going to do?”

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door.

“Lisa, are you okay in there? You’ve been in there for quite a long time now.”

“Mom come in, you are not going to believe what just happened.” Lisa said as she pointed at the toilet.

“What am I looking at Lisa?” mom asked.

“I threw up bloody hair balls mom, do you not see them in the toilet? It’s disgusting mom.”

“Lisa stop playing games with me, I don’t see anything. Now I need to shower and get ready for work. Will you be okay on your own?”

Instead of answering her mother, Lisa walked out of the bathroom completely shocked. She shook her head and went back into her room to lay down.

“I can’t believe it. How could it just disappear like that. It was there in the toilet, and then it just vanished. Disappeared like it was never there. Something is going on. Something is wrong. This is strange. Why is this happening to me? This has got to be a joke, a dream, something. I’m not pregnant and I know I’m not because it’s impossible. I’m a virgin. Never had sex, never kissed a guy, never went on a date. But that lady, oh man. I can’t. My mind is everywhere right now. I think I need a nap.”

---1 hour later---

“Owwwww! Mother! Help me!” Lisa woke up from her sleep, crying out for help only to remember her mother was at work.

Despite the pain she was in, Lisa got up from bed. She grabbed her phone and her keys and walked out of the house. She needed to go to the hospital. She got into her car a drove off. When she arrived at the hospital, she cried out that she was having a baby and was rushed into the Delivery Room.

“No no no no no no, not right now. It’s only been six months, I thought babies were supposed to be carried for nine months, I don’t understand what’s going on. First Dr. Venezuela tells me i’m pregnant, then the bloody hair balls I threw up, and now i’m in the hospital ready to deliver the baby. This all just happened today. My life is great, super great. I’m not even prepared to take care of this baby. I don’t have anything, no crib, no carrier, no bottles, milk, none of that. How am I going to be a mother?”

“Can someone please call my mother? I can’t do this alone, I don’t know how to be a mother. Someone please call her and tell her I’m here before the baby comes out. Please. Thank you.” Lisa yelled as she entered the delivery room.

“What’s your name?” asked the nurse

“My name is Lisa Ross, did you call my mother?” she asked

“Yes, she’s on her way. But as of right now I need to take of all your clothes, put this gown on and lay in the bed. Turns out you were just having major contractions. I’ll be back to check up on you when your mother arrives.” the nurse said as she left.

---Ten minutes later---

“Lisa, Lisa, Lisa, are you okay? What’s going on? I got a call saying you were giving birth?” mom asked with concern.

“Turns out, I really am pregnant and could be giving birth today. Mom, i’m scared.” Lisa replied while tearing up.

“Everything going to be okay baby, I promise. She relax.” mom said as she held onto her daughter's hand.

Just as her mother said that, she began to feel the contractions again. But way worse. It was like the baby was eating her insides, forcing itself to come out. She started to scream and yell, as her mother called for the doctors and nurses. As they came running in, something strange was happening. Lisa’s eyes turned white, and her body started to shake. But no one could see it. This was not a regular baby, This was some kind of creature that only Lisa could see. The creature started to pounce on Lisa’s stomach, trying to force itself out. It was ready to be born. The nurses and doctor didn’t know exactly what to do. But since she couldn’t have a normal birth due to the fact that she was a virgin, they decided to give her a c-section. They quickly rushed her body to the operating room. They quickly laid her on the bed, and began the c-section. Lisa was already passed out so they didn’t have to wait. They began cutting her stomach open, but at first her skin was too rough to cut through. So they grabbed a heated rag, hoping it would somehow make her sweat and soften her skin. After her skin became soft enough, they started to finally cut through. They needed this to be done as soon as possible before the creature ate Lisa inside out. But that was what Lisa thought, everyone else thought it had to be done as soon as possible so that they wouldn’t have to wait any longer and that the baby was ready to be born.

“Come on baby. You got this.” her mom cried as she held her daughter's hand tightly.

The baby was born and Lisa was all stitched up.

“It’s a boy!” the doctor yelled.

Lisa woke up. Afraid, she starts to scream.

“Where am I? Why am I here? What’s going on?”

“Baby, calm down, you gave birth to a baby boy.” said her mom.

“That is not a baby mom. It tried to eat my insides, I am not crazy mom. You have to believe me. That thing is not a human being, It’s a creature.” Lisa said.

“Honey, don’t say that to your child. He is adorable and is not a creature. Her hold him.” mom said as she tried to hand Lisa her child.

“No! Don’t let that evil thing near me mother. Get me out of here.” she said as she tried to get up.

“Honey you cannot leave. The doctors have to move you to the other room. You have to stay here for a couple of days. They need to take care of you, you are not looking so well after this birth.” her mom said.

Lisa couldn’t stand being near that baby, or that creature. It’s like she was the only one who could see that this wasn’t a normal birth, it isn’t a normal baby.

“What is seriously going on? Why can’t anyone see what i’m seeing? First the bloody hair balls I threw up disappeared, then the creature pouncing on my stomach forcing itself out, nearly eating me inside out, and now they can’t see the creature I just gave birth to. Instead they see this cute adorable baby boy. Someone needs to wake me up from this dream. I don’t want this thing, I don’t want to be reminded of it, I don’t want it near me and I don’t want to take care of it.”

“Excuse me, but there is some sort of mistake here, some sort of misunderstanding. But, this is not my child.” said Lisa

“Ms. Ross. Being an eighteen year old mother must be hard to believe, but this is your child. You just gave birth to him dear.” said the doctor before walking out to give Lisa some rest.

A few moments later she heard a knock at the door. She figured it was just her mother coming back from the bathroom so she called for her to come in. There was a deep silence and Lisa knew there was something wrong. She opened her eyes, only to discover the strange lady from the Lollapalooza Festival. Lisa laid there, closing her eyes and reopening them to make sure she wasn’t seeing things.

“I’m here to take my baby” the lady said

“Where are you taking it?”

“Back to the other world.” the lady replied

“So you’re telling me that I was put through this horrendous birth, just so you wouldn’t have to? You made me give birth to a creature that could have eaten me alive. Why me?” Lisa yelled

“Because I read you. You were a virgin, never had kids before, never did anything and I felt like this was the perfect opportunity. I needed you. My master told me I needed the baby to be birth by a pure person, or else the baby would turn out to be insane. He told me that if the baby turned out insane he would leave me.” the lady said

“This is ridiculous. This unidentified lady is going to stand there and tell me that all of this was just so her master wouldn’t leave her and just so her creature baby wouldn’t turn out to be insane even though he is already insane. It’s not like I was the only virgin female at the festival. Oh my goodness, or was I?” Lisa thought

“Listen, Lisa i’m sorry. But there was no other pure female at that festival, I had to use you. But now that it is over, i’m here to take the baby and leave you alone for good. I will erase your memory, so you won’t remember any of this. When you wake up, everything would be back to normal as if this was all just a dream.” said the lady before she disappeared

The next morning Lisa woke up in her own bed. It was just as the lady said. Her memory of the baby was gone. Lisa woke up with major stomach pain. She looked down at her stomach and realized she had a long scar on it. Lisa called out for her mother confused.

“MOM! Come here, right now.”

“What?” said her mom

“What is this?” she asked while pointing at her scar

Her mom looked at her in shock. Lisa has never given birth before, so it was weird to see her daughter having a c-section scar.

“Honey, that’s a c-section scar..”

Both Lisa and her mom were confused. They figured the quickest way to figure out how Lisa got the scar was to go to the hospital. They got into the car and drove to the hospital. Waiting, Lisa couldn’t stop looking at her scar. It was as long as her foot, and she wears a size 6 ½. As she touched her scar she began to think.

“What is this? Why is it here? Why does it feel like this? It’s squishy and long. What happened last night? I honestly don’t remember anything. I remember eating dinner, laying in bed and not feeling well and all of a sudden I had this sharp pain in my stomach and I ran to the bathroom.”

“I had a dream..” said Lisa

“What dream?” asked her mom

“There was this lady who came and told me she wanted her baby.”

“I don’t think I came to the hospital last night to check on my stomach pain. I never had surgery before. Maybe this is from the ultrasound from yesterday? Hopefully this scar will go away.”

“Ross family?” asked Dr. Venezuela

“Uh yes, we’re here.” Lisa and her mom said as they walked towards the room

“So I woke up with this scar” she said while lifting up her shirt

“And I wanted to know where I got it from. Could it have been from the ultrasound yesterday?”

“No. You had a baby boy. Remember? Said the doctor

Lisa and her mom looked at each other in confusion. Little did Lisa and her mother know, Dr. Venezuela was actually the strange lady from the Lollapalooza Festival, the lady who impregnated Lisa and left her to give birth to a creature. But since she erased Lisa’s memory she didn’t realize who it was. The lady lied. She said she’d leave Lisa alone after the situation, but instead she wanted her to continue to go through this alone. After six months, Lisa was still a virgin and told she was pregnant.  She threw up blood hair balls, and had another c-section. Again and again, she had to get a new scar. The strange lady wanted to torture Lisa so she would eventually kill herself and be just like her.  

The XX Times read: “There was a massive eruption of high-energy radiation from the sun’s surface that caused an electromagnetic disturbance on the earth. This catastrophe has wiped out almost all of civilization. The extreme sun rays have burned skin off of bodies, and burned through eyes into brains killing everyone but 6% of the population. Only the healthiest that could sustain such injuries survived.” The 6% of the population still alive do not look like the common human because they do not have flesh. Their skin is of charcoal color with a flaky texture. Their eyes, because of being exposed to high-levels of radiation, have turned into black, sleek pits. These people were alive, yet completely blind. Since these people were not blind prior to this occurrence they needed to rely on their other senses which, after some time, have become stronger because of their vision being gone. All of their senses have bettered, and gotten stronger. They have grown to have a keen sense of hearing specifically. This sense became so strong that they could hear sound 3 miles out from their current location. Having this attribute in particular, has helped the people survive easier when looking for different.  

Most of the people that remained,lived on one hemisphere of the world. For the past few months they came together to work on surviving. It became extremely hard to grow crops with the harsh situation the earth found itself in because of its arid, cracked nature. The weather was now erratic and the survivors had to endure sand storms that would nearly blow their homes away on a weekly basis . Breathing had become harder and each day more and more died because of the sand in their lungs. The doctors that were still available were trying to come up with a breathing device that will help the survivors. In the meantime rags covered their nose and mouths. Water around the world became scarce. The oceans had all but dried up and the water that was available had to go through a process in order to become drinkable. Deep wells had to be dug in order to have some drinkable water, and distributed amongst the people. Water became the number one priority of the gatherers, it has become so scarce that the survival of the inhabitants of this earth is a huge concern.

About a week ago the gatherers found an area of the earth that had drinkable water 3.1 miles out from their homes but the section of the ruins is plagued with storms such as hurricanes, tornadoes, and monsoons. A few of the gatherers got too close and were sucked in never to be seen again. Because of this, the gatherers are afraid to risk their lives to go back but they realize something has to be done. A group of four gatherers have gotten together to create a plan of how they should go about getting water from the dangerous source. They were aware now that they could not walk too close to the collection of disasters so they had to find a way to access the water from a distance.

“So what do you guys think we can use to collect this water?” Gatherer #1 said.

“Hm..well it needs to be something we can use from a distance..uh how about-” Gatherer #2 said.

“How about a vacuum!! Like a big one!” Gatherer #3 said.

“I was thinking more of a tube that goes underground that connects to the bottom of the disaster area, that way we can directly collect water. And lots of it.” Gatherer #2 said.

“I kinda like the vacuum idea more, sounds a bit less dangerous.” Gatherer #4 said.

“Are you kidding me? Mine is so much bett-” Gatherer #2 said.

“Nothing gets done when we fight. Think about the big picture here guys. Look, #3 and #4, you guys work on building a vacuum. And have it done by tomorrow morning!” Gatherer #1 said.

“I will help you think out a plan for this tube idea.” Gatherer #1 said to Gatherer #2.

Gatherer #2 smiles in reply.

The four gatherers go about creating their plans to getting this water for the people. Everything is completed by morning and so the four set off to the calamity site.

“The trip should only take about 40 minutes if we keep a constant speed.” Gatherer #1 said.

Gatherers #2, 3, and 4 *groan collectively* in response.

The road to the calamity site was not easy, there were many obstacles along the way, cars that were abandoned, debri from burned homes that no one was able to rescue people from. Their senses were very keen to the smells of rotten animals that never made it through the initial catastrophe and others who died afterward from their injuries or starvation. Everything was so dry. The journey seemed longer than 40 minutes but, after a hot trek, they finally got to the site. Upon arriving, the vacuum that was created was set up by all four gatherers. They attached the vacuum contraption to a massive tank to be filled with water that they brought on wheels along with them on their journey. In order for this to work they have to get dangerously close and slowly push the long nozzle towards the storm. They discovered that if the nozzle was pulled up high the four of them could hold it tight enough for it not to fly away so that is what they did. For the first 5 minutes it was working. The gatherers were so excited that they hugged each other. But then the storm became stronger. They held on with all their might and even used a rope to tie around a tree to help them. The tree was no use. The storm pulled the vacuum from their grasps, uprooted the tree and pulled it into the storm.

“Gatherer #4 watch out!!!” Gatherer #1 said.

Gatherer #4 turns to look behind him after hearing what Gatherer #1 had said.

Gatherer #1 gasps.

One of the gatherers was in the tree’s path and before he knew it, the tree knocked him in the head and dragged his body into the storm. The others ran for cover away from the storm site. This death was so disheartening to the group. Not many people are left, and to lose another person was devastating.

“Hey watch out with that hole!” Gatherer #2 said.

“Oh shi- thanks!” Damn…*sigh* Gatherer #1 said.

Gatherer #1 was in love with another gatherer whose mind was striking. She was so intelligent and beautifully determined no matter what. She always fought to get her way, and never backed down from a challenge. She was optimistic. She was sly when it came to him. Carefully choosing her words, so that what she said pulled him in. All qualities that Gatherer #1 adored. He saw some of these same qualities in himself. He was one to think highly of himself and so he naturally wanted the same qualities to be thriving in the person he chose to call his own.

But one day, she  asked something of him that he feared she would ask of him someday. A child. He kept telling himself that she would not and could not be that stupid. But she was to him. He thought Why would someone ever think it is a good idea to bring a child into this awful world? Because of the state we are in, we have to fight for our lives! And he told her this, but she did not care. She wanted what she wanted and that was that. But he did not care either. He cared about what he thought was best. He tried to talk this through with her but nothing seemed to change her mind. They bickered for weeks on end. She threw things at him, and even said “I’d kill you!” on multiple occasions. This hurt Gatherer #1 a lot. So much that he actually considered going against his previous decision upon seeing how hurt the love of his life was. But after deep consideration, he remained in the same mental state, and continued to refuse her request. After some time she began to get quiet. She kept to herself mostly due to her sorrow. This made Gatherer #1 weary, but he did not change the situation, and he felt it was the worst mistake he could have ever made in his entire life. She walked right out of his life forever. Three days after she left, he found her dead in a hole.

“We can not let Gatherer #4’s death get to us too much because we can not give up. If we give up, that means death for everyone and we can not have that. We need to reconvene and come up with another idea fast. This is a risky job, and we need to prepare ourselves for these types of situations. We need to be strong. And move on quickly.” Gatherer #1 says to the group. But is it truly that easy?

The remaining gatherers get back to their homes safely. They collect the encampment people and announce the new death. Everyone is numb upon hearing the news and do not react much. They are used to death. Everyone except one. A new comer, that the gatherers found one day while making their way on their journey to discovering a water source. She was young and beautiful, and Gatherer #4 and her had taken a liking to each other. They quickly became fond of each other and created a big family without thought. Gatherer #4 had 5 children with her, and she is devastated. Gatherer #1 saw this. He watched her for some time sob uncontrollably and felt completely indifferent. He understood that losing someone you love is painful, but he felt that she was dumb because of the mistakes she has made in bringing children into this world. One of her children ran up to him.

“Why is my papa not here sir?” the child asked.

“He is dead.” said Gatherer #1.

The gatherers take a moment to themselves to collect their thoughts and then they regroup to talk about the next plan. They decide to add more people to their crew because they all can agree that it is important to be stronger this time around. They believe that having more people, more minds, will help them be able to be efficient with planning and getting the job done as fast as possible.

“So what’s the plan guys? Does anyone have any ideas?” Gatherer #1 said.

“How about we try my previous idea regarding the tube?” Gatherer #2 said.

“But how are we going to make a tube stable enough?” Gatherer #3 said.

“Gatherer #2 and I thought about having the tube go underground and arch towards the disaster source. This way the tube will be able to access the water from underneath.” Gatherer #1 said.

“Also, this way no one will get hurt because we will not have to be anywhere near the area where we can get harmed.” Gatherer #2 said as he motioned towards the group.

“Yeah I think that is a good idea, but what if the tube lifts up? We need to have something to hold it down.” Gatherer #5 said.

“Yeah!” Gatherer #1 & 2 said in unison.

“How about metal pegs? We can drill them in and push them into the ground through the entirety of the tube.” Gatherer #3 said.

“That’s a great idea!” Gatherer #2 said.

“Alright, let’s get to work.” Gatherer #1 said.

The gatherers collectively build the massive tube that is to go into the ground at the site. They add 180 metal pegs to the bottom portion of the tube; needing one of the gatherer’s to crawl through it placing the pegs down while another goes behind him to drill them in. Another gatherer follows suitly checking to make sure all the metal pegs are drilled securely. Gatherer #1 monitors this whole process, making sure everything is done properly. The gatherers collectively lift the large tube and insert it into the gargantuan tank on wheels where the water will be held. They stand back and applaud at their creation. They then gather the necessary digging materials and the little bit of water they do have for this next trip. They cover their faces with thicker masks and head out to the disaster site one last time. The weather is surprisingly calm this evening for the majority of their trip, with slight amounts of grains of sand filling the atmosphere. A slight wind builds up the closer the group of gatherers get to the hazardous site. Small drops of water collect on each of the gatherers mask as they move forward. Each of the gatherers are holding the tube over their heads with their arms extended at full length. They are walking one by one, behind one another between where the pegs are placed. A gatherer is placed at the back pushing the tank on the wheels that is holding the base of the tube slowly, keeping in consideration the pace of the other gatherers in front of him. Gatherer #1 walks in front of all the gatherers bringing the load, holding the digging materials in a huge sack on his back. He is left with his thoughts. His mind keeps wandering to his the woman he loved unwillingly. He thought of the way his heart skipped beats when he had sight of her. He always immediately grew happy seeing her smile. Her eyes radiated with warmth that melt his heart each and every time he was in her presence. He craved to feel her in his arms again. He loved her with all his heart. His morals simply got in the way of their relationship because they both felt differently about certain things. But he wishes that he would have just put them aside for the sake of her feelings and desires. He wishes he could have just given her exactly what she wanted, exactly when she wanted it. He wishes he could have just gifted her the damn child. He would have just had to work a little harder to be able to provide for him and that is all. So why couldn’t he see this before when it mattered most to the both of them? He grew angry with himself every time he thought about how selfish he was towards her. Every bit of him ached just to have her be on this earth again. A tear stained his cheek.

“We are here guys! Gear up!” Gatherer #1 said.

The gatherers collectively dig a wide hole in the ground deep down. The gatherers tie bungee cords to themselves and to the leveled ground. They drop into the ground to dig more so that the passageway is able to reach the bottom of the calamity site. They dig furiously, desperate to get to their desired goal. But they still move carefully enough so that they do not drink their full supply of water before they are completed with the job. As they approach the water source from underneath, the soil gets a lot softer and easier to penetrate through. The gatherers that are below the surface ask the gatherers at ground level to pass the tube down to them. As the tube is being slowly pushed down the hole the gatherers dig the remaining distance to get to the water. The tube began to brush the back of their feet just as they punctured a hole through the soil in front of them where water began to trickle out. They shouted with joy at the site of water as they started punching the soil desperate for it. It drove them mad having access to so much water they danced around grabbing each other with wonderful success in their eyes. Too much water began to come at once and swept them off of their feet and into the air. They gasped with fear not realizing what was going on until it was too late. The tried with all their force to get their feet on the ground so they could run up to surface. They flutter about the water crazily nearly drowning. Some of the gatherers grabbed onto the metal pegs to brace themselves against the ferocity of the water. That was a big mistake. They were electrocuted viciously and when the water hit them, it made it all so much worse for them. Each of their bodies convulsed too and fro unable to let go of the metal peg. They died. The gatherers running shrieked for help but no one above could hear them over the sound of the water and the convulsing storms beyond them. They waited patiently for a sense of assurance from the gatherers that were down below. After some time, Gatherer #1 heard the screams.

“Holy sh- do you guys hear that?” Gatherer #1 said.

“Hear what?” Gatherer #7 said.

Gatherers from below scream.

“Damn it.” Gatherer #1 said.

Gatherer #1 looks down the hole. In the first moments he does not see anything. He lays along the ground and grips onto the rim of the hole that was dug by the gatherers. He waits and waits. He begins to hear the screams louder but they are still inaudible. He cranes his neck downwards into the hole to try to get a clearer listen to the cries down below. All the other gatherers around him do the same; stretched out along the rim. They grip and listen.

“Throw the rope down!” Gatherer from below said.

Gatherer #1 grips the edge of the circle until his knuckles turn white, craning his neck further into the hole.

“Did you hear what they said?” Gatherer #7 said.

“Uh..no” Gatherer #1 said.

“Throw the rope!!!” Gatherer from below said.

“Oh wait, I heard the word ‘throw’” Gatherer #1 said.

“Yeah me too. But throw what?” Gatherer #7 said.

“Hmm..” Gatherer #1 said.

The gatherer from below approaches the opening and is now audible to the gatherers up above.

“Throw the rope down to me now!” Gatherer from below said.

Gatherers collectively launch themselves towards the bungee that is attached to the ground. They fling it with all their might downwards into the hole through the opening in the pipe. They can hear the water coming hard and fast. They see the cord catching and tumbling about so they assume that the gatherer from below has the cord attached to him. Or maybe he does not.

“Gatherer #1, we need to connect the tube to the tank to fill.” Gatherer #7 said.

“Not yet.” Gatherer #1 said.

Gatherer #1 is calm and waiting with anticipation to see when is the right time to connect the tube to the tank. The water is rushing louder and louder yet they still do not see if any gatherers are going to make it to surface in time. They wait. The gatherers breathe heavily.

“Damn where the hell is he?” Gatherer #7 said.

The gatherers from above say nothing. It feels like centuries are going by while they wait.

“Yell if you can hear me!” Gatherer #7 said.

There is no response from the hole aside from the pounding of the water. Gatherer #7 moves to the end of the tube, grasps it, and moves towards the tank.

“I am going to plug it up. They are dead down there, and we need this water.” Gatherer #7 said.

Gatherer #1 is frozen in place. He does not want to lose another member and is holding on to the fact that they could still be down there. He sent down so many men to dig. He feels in his heart that it is his duty to have no casualties, but he knows in the back of his mind that Gatherer #7 is right. He sighs aloud frustrated because he can see the water now and not a body.

“Connect the tube.” Gatherer #1 said.

The gatherers returning with the full tank of water danced and praised the whole way home while Gatherer #1 lingered slowly at the back of the group in deep sadness. Yes they have water that they can survive with for months and months, but he kept thinking about all the people’s lives that were loss trying to get access to this source. He took it to heart; and felt it was entirely his fault.

As the townspeople collected around the water and chanted, he walked towards the deep hole where his lover was found. He sat on the rim and let his legs dangle inward. He sobbed uncontrollably and no one heard a sound. He called out for her, choking on his tears. He did not want to be this sad anymore. He wanted it to end.

Gatherer #1 jumped down the hole, and there were several snaps that the town never heard.

Lyrics:

Kai Verse:::

Lil Richard he had a plan

Mama sick lived with his gram

When you think bout his life it’s like damn

You know you won’t see good things from this man

He was 6 and went into a bar

Old heads was drinking they peeped from a far

Lil Richard he sipped from the cup

This was the second time my man messed up

He went to the store and got jumped

Mama said no no don’t run bet not front

So Lil Richard went grabbed a stick

Told em don’t run up or he’s swinging it

Fast forward when Richard got older

Went to the church gave the kids the cold shoulder

Told Jesus he’ll be here no longer but Granny said if you do you’ll be a goner

So my man he went and got baptized cause you know that it’s harder for black lives on the South side when it’s crunch time

Especially when it was this time

Factory workers didn’t see this side

They was lucky cause he got a G side

Kicked him out so he gave em a peace sign gave em a peace sign

 Rahmir Verse:

Rasa Watson

Soy una mestiza chica

Encrucijada

Mi familia es blanco y negro

Y yo soy una mezcla

Cada día veo gente diferente

Huelo incienso

Oigo música en el salón

Saboreo té

Tocó los suelos de mi casa

Bilo con descripciones

Hablo con mi diferencias

Bailo con las dos fronteras

Todo esto me hace a mi

Somos personas irregulares

Somos blanco

Somos negro

Pero yo soy…

Rasa Watson

Una vez, una mujer en la gente de la aldea de Yorobia, que se llamada Oshun. Ella dio luz a dos gemelos, el Ibeji. Todo el pueblo la miró como una bruja, porque solamente los animales tienen más de un niño. Temprano por  la mañana, Oshun llevó agua desde el estanque, cuando ella cayó al suelo. Los ancianos llegaron y la llevaron debajo de un árbol de cerezas. El único árbol que hay. Se utilizó una hoja de plátano para cubrirla. Uno de los ancianos estaban ayudando. Oshun estaba una viuda, no se sabía cómo murió su marido. Mucha de la gente del pueblo la miró como el diablo, quien lleva la vida de su marido. De repente un grito, los ancianos gritaban es un niño. "Allí hay otro", "Qué clase de brujería" "Es el diablo" " qué qué", eran los únicos que se oían de la gente alrededor. Salió el segundo bebé. Oshún puesto manteniendo a sus dos bebés, mientras la gente había rechazar, le tiró basura. Todo el pueblo miró a ella como una bruja, porque solamente los animales tienen más de un niño.

Debido a esto, Oshun dejó a los gemelos porque ella era una "mala persona". Oshun se quedó allí sin nada que comer pero la suciedad. Allí, nadie ella dejó a los bebés a morir con los animales. Entonces un día, Oyá la Orisha Guerrera vino en la cubierta como una persona común y desconocida. Oyá vio que Oshún tenía dónde ir aprovechó Oshún, la gente de la ciudad lanzó basura otra vez. Esto se convirtió en diario, Oyá vio pero no pudo hacer nada sino esperar a cambio. Un día pasó, y el ibeji casi fue golpeado en un accidente.