Price of Life | Teen Ink

Price of Life

May 22, 2008
By Anonymous

Weather we are buying drugs, a shirt, or donating to those people who “save” starving people in Africa we are hurting somebody. Here's the secret, the most innocent thing on that short list is drugs for the simple reason that you are destroying nobody other than yourself, because when you are buying that shirt you are supporting workhouses that make small children work in horrible conditions, and by donating to missionaries you are fueling the theory they have about everybody wants to get saved, and those starving people don't need food they need bibles. At least with drugs the only person you are hurting is yourself. this is closer to real life then most people have the guts to write about.

The bank isn’t too busy, but that's just because it was in Columbia Falls Montana, a small town with nothing to be proud of but Glacier Park. A woman behind a counter places a fifty dollerbill down and takes a check. The man who takes it off the counter, Robert was a tall man, and well built he wasn't old but not exactly young either, all though he acted like it. He was the type of man you would dismiss with out a second thought, in fact as he walks out of the bank a few people almost run into him because they don't see him. Once out of the store he pulled up his carhards and jumped on his bike.

Robs mind swims with the ideas of what to spend his money on, the choices are endless. He could buy some nice cloths for job interviews, pay off some of his debt, but he already knows what he's going to do. He has habits to support. So off Rob goes buying cocaine from a kid and smoking his problems away until they are completely gone in his mind.

The kid Rob paid to take away his pain is Frank. Frank doesn't look half as sketchy as he should, but then again Frank is the smart type, he’s the type that thrives from the worlds disfunction, he's always had to because he grew up with it.

Frank knows what he has to do, he’s the good type of monster, he only feeds off of people so he has just enough to fuel his own and his daughters bare needs. That's the way it always is, the people your mother tells you to stay away from re just trying to make it through, just like the rest of us. Today is Tuesday so he has to go to the grocery store. He drives to Super One and buys what they need, Ramen noodles, eggs, milk, chips, toilet paper, paper towels, cookie dough, lunch meat, cheese and beer. After paying for the groceries with the fifty dollar bill Frank goes home to his Doughtier, Molly. She’s only two and a half years old and has already seen much more than most people do in two lifetimes, but her father loves her so nothing bad has directly happened to her yet. Once Molly sees her father with the groceries she jumps off the baby sitters lap and runs to greet him. It never ceases to amaze frank how innocent she still is, after everything she has seen and been through. All he wants is to protect her from the horrible world that he has helped create.

The cashier at Super One pockets the fifty and finishes up his hours. The cashiers name is Sue and she’s just trying to pay her way through school, so the steeling should be ok rite? But of course not, because in our warped society doing anything for ourselves is considered wrong. Even though if we don't do something for ourselves who will. Who feeds the full?

Sue gets in her car and drives to FVCC where she pays for another book she needs to study from. At least now she can pass another class. Why does getting ahead have to cost so much? The man who takes the fifty is thinking the exact same thing and he too pockets the bill. He knows exactly what he wants to do with it.

After work the man Geoff drives to a local pawn shoppe that is going out of business, and is having a liquidation sale. He slaps the bill on the counter and points to a gun on the back wall. Its a pistol, well built and overall good. It only cost fifty bucks now. When the man behind the counter gives it to him Geoff picks it up with shaky hands. The drive home seams like forever even though its only about ten minutes and once he gets home Geoff the average non noticeable man does what we all have been doing all his life, because ignoring him like we have been doing is killing him, and now he has finished our job with that small black gun.

Now Rob it is twelve years in the future and Rob that horrible man with no determination has made it. he has a good paying job and a great new family, almost like he's a different man. But we all know he is the same on the inside, secretly. Frank is struggling with Molly, because he has failed her and let her live in that world he had created, and started on everything that makes him live. You ask what about Sue? Her life had to turn out well right? Well your wrong Its all Murphy's law, Sue got caught, steeling from Super One and had to quit going to school to pay other fines. And Geoff well his grave is like himself, forgotten.


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