the sleeping kevin

the bell made its usual sound as kevin walked into class
he was a deprived-looking child - his arms were sticks, his face was awkward, and he walked with an odd shuffle
he played in the school jazz band and had a job
he worked every night
he was tired in school every day
he didnt care
school didnt pay him
his mother did not do very much but his father was usually out of town
he didnt like his family
thats who he was thinking about as he sat down
he scowled and looked outside at the tree
as the door closed, mr lynn started talking
that droning voice
kevin grew even more annoyed
he hated being trapped in the class, forced to listen to garbage
the voice still went on and on
the desk shifted slightly as he put his arms on the desk
they were crossed and soon found his head nestled in them
his eyes closed shut
the voice still droned

a sudden jolt woke kevin up
the engine was still whirring in the background
it had been droning before he fell asleep
actually, it was the reason he fell asleep
he looked down at the food tray perplexed
he turned to the window and looked through the ellipse
the clouds beneath him were golden from the rising sun
a mountain range off in the distance penetrated the sea of white
kevin shook his head and leaned against the window
he was on his way home after visiting his sister
her graduation ceremony had been the week before
she had finished her masters degree in marketing finance
kevin stared at the clouds
he didnt know what to do with his life
he had been plagued by doubts for months
all the thinking was taking its toll
he got up and went to the lavatory
the cool water filled his cupped hands and he splashed it on his face
he let out a deep breath and did it again
he cupped his hands once more

the water was very cool against his face
kevin loved the feeling
he felt alive
kevin kicked his feet and rose to the surface
he rolled onto his back while kicking his feet
when he had floated to the shore, he crawled forward and laid on the beach
the sun felt good on his bare chest
with his eyes closed, kevin smiled a little bit
he wanted to stay lying there forever
so he laid there

suddenly the heat was replaced by a dark cold
kevin could feel tens of thousands of little hands poking him
every second hundreds more were added to the crowd
he opened his eyes and looked up at christine and dajana
his two friends were laughing
they pushed more and more stones onto kevin, burying him even more
the slide above was blocking the sun
the park they were at was empty except for them
that was strange since it was the afternoon of july 1
several pebbles slid off of his chest onto his throat
kevin laughed along with the others
they pushed more stones on top of him
everyone laughed
the weight of the stones made it harder for kevin to breathe
he didnt mind it but for the weight on his arms
they felt heavy enough to fall off

kevin flexed his arm hoping to keep it attached for a while longer
he climbed up the stairs, breathing heavily
the door in front of him slammed open as his saxophone hit it
his arm was exhausted
the instrument was so heavy and he had no energy
outside it was still dark as the sun does not rise for band practice
kevin wanted to be rid of the weight on his arms and the weight on his eyelids
he wished he were lying under the sun on the beach
he just wanted to sleep there

-jakevin