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classic film, It's a Wonderful Life, in front of them.
While Ken was never, as it were, he felt oddly
attracted to watch a few minutes of the film from a
distance in the Christmas cheer.
He soon started to reconsider that decision, as the
film had reached the point where George Baily had
been given a warrant for his arrest, lashing out in
frustration at his relatives.
Ken started to feel sick with rage as he saw him get
drunk and hit in a bar fight. The universe conspired
against George Baily despite his attempt to change
the world around him... much as it appeared to plan
against Ken. Unable to witness another moment, he
turned into the nearby park and walked right into
it.
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Ken sat again on a bench in the center of the park,
along with his thoughts, by the fountain. He was
considering many things, as he always did in
solitude. He thought of his pathetic family
members, trying to turn him into what he thought
they wanted from him. If only they could appreciate
him the way he is.
He was thinking of Jason Brown, a perpetual prick
who was able to get all the lovely ladies of his heart.
If only the cosmos were to serve its meals instead of
plotting against Ken. Sighing in frustration, he
stuffed his frozen hands into his jeans.
Feeling a scrap of paper still in his pocket, Ken
unexpectedly felt a glimmer of hope on an
otherwise grueling day. He needed something to
raise his spirits, and hearing her voice could just do
it. He didn't care if she was interested in him
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romantically anymore; he just wanted someone to
listen and understand him. He took out his phone
and called. After a single ring, a recorded message
began to play, as if a game show host were reading
a script.
"Congratulations." The world-famous Loser Line is
Live on 95.5 FM! Live 95.5; with the best fun in
Seattle! You've attempted to hit a girl far from your
league if you've reached this message! That poor
young lady doesn't want anything to do with you,
but you just couldn't resist creeping on her! We
come in here! This is where we come in! Now you
know what a loser you're! So, loser, leave the girl
alone! You do a favor to everyone! If you'd like to
leave a message for the Loser Line, talk to the tone!
BEEEEP! "
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In silent shock, Ken hung up the phone. How could
he be so mistaken about Jacqueline? At school, they
worked so well together, and he even thought of her
as a friend! She always spoke to him so politely;
how could this be? Was she as stupid as her
dumbass brother? Was she so good of an actress?
Ken's frustration eventually burst out of him as he
pondered all this.
"The slut with two ears! Who the heck does she
think that she is?! I trusted her! Hell, without my
aid, she would never have earned a complete
scholarship! The only thing I ever did was LIKE her!
And she doesn't even have the decency to turn me
down to my face after all that?! What the FUCK?! "
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Sloping back down to the park bench, any thought
that entered Ken's mind took him down. Jason was
a dick, so he didn't know how to behave differently.
Uncle Lee was really dumb, but he didn't have evil
intentions. But Jacqueline was the final straw that
broke the camel's back. He trusted her, opened
himself up to her, and she repaid him in the vilest
and ghastly way imaginable. His world was
collapsing, and Jason's words came to his mind
again as he resumed sulking.
I'm just supposed to do everyone a favor and drop-
dead... Is that what you want, Jacqueline? It seems
you're in agreement with your brother, or you
wouldn't have given me that number."
Ken reached into his pocket, pulling out a folding
knife. It was a graduation present to him from his
grandfather before he passed away. Compared to a
standard Swiss Army knife, it was much more
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impressive with its shiny, four-inch blade. Ken's
initials were registered in the wood. He hadn't used
it yet. He had never had to. Ken kept playing Jason's
words in his head as he looked at his reflection in
the blade.
"This may not be such a bad idea..."
Just as Ken grasped the handle tightly and prepared
to hold his knife to his throat, an unseen voice came
from outside to his side.
"Hey," she said.
***** **** *
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CHAPTER 3
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Gabrielle Libertine was comfortably seated in a
lawn chair, soaking in the crisp, cold air of
Christmas Eve. This was her favorite time of the
year, and it was made even better by being able to
catch an outdoor screening of her favorite
Christmas film, It's a Wonderful Life. Her
philosophy was to live for her own pleasure. Not
just her own, but just as much as she could for the
people around her.
"Would you like the moon? Simply say the word,
and I'm going to put a lasso around it and pull it
down.
"Oh, Jimmy Stewart, you're so charming..." Gabby
sighed.
Her emotions soon blossomed as George Bailey, the
helpless romantic, started to succumb to life's
stresses and injustices.
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He believed his uncle was responsible for the
financial downturn they faced, blamed his wife and
children, and sought out his hated rival for a loan.
The worst scenes she could see were the bar brawl
and the car crash. She somehow stuck it out,
though. The best was yet to come.
At the exact moment that George stood atop the
bridge, Gabby noticed something off to her left. A
young man who was about nineteen or twenty years
old was sitting a few feet away from the road,
against a tree, watching the movie. His face turned
in anguish when he saw the pain in the video, and
soon he walked around the park in the
neighborhood. Gabby couldn't understand why, but
something pushed her to follow him and make sure
he was all right.
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Collecting her lawn chair, she walked around the
edge of the green space, arriving at the entrance to
the park. She started to hear angry yells in front of
her as she walked; it sounded like the young man
was in pain. After a few minutes, she found the
fountain in the middle of the park. The man from
earlier was sitting on a bench, clearly thinking. By
the light of the lamppost, she could now see him
clearly.
He seemed to have an average height, maybe 5'7 ",
and had black shaggy hair that seemed a little
unkempt. He shone in the light of the park-like he
had been polished, and he had a white skin that
made him stand out. A pair of black corn-rimmed
glasses framed his face, which combined with his
red MIT hoodie to project a particular image into
Gabby's mind. He had to be a knowledgeable
person.
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After staring at the young man, she had a feeling
that he was going to pull out an object from his
pants pocket. From the corner of her eyes, she saw
that he was holding a small rotating folding knife.
As Gabby sat there, she began to tense up and
wonder if she should run, but soon decided against
it; He did not seem even to notice her presence. And
he looked at the knife itself like it was the source of
an invasion. It seemed as if it was the only thing in
the world that he suddenly cared so deeply about.
She could see the angry look in his eyes. She knew
what would happen if she didn't do anything in a
moment.
With a deep breath, Gabby went ahead and took
action.
"Hey," she said.
*****
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CHAPTER 4
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Ken was startled by an unfamiliar voice. Looking
up, he saw a woman standing across the road in her
early twenties. She looked at him intentionally, but
he didn't know for what reason. Looking back at
her, Ken's typical embarrassment began to kick in,
as he could see that she was pretty beautiful.
This lady was dressed warmly in a black winter coat
and blue jeans. She wore a grey knit cap over her
long blonde hair. She appeared to be of some sort of
Scandinavian descent at first glance, or maybe
German, although Ken couldn't be sure. His mouth
dried up as he struggled to find the words to speak.
"Is everything okay?" " she inquired.
Uh… yes, fine. W-Why are you, um... why are you
asking? "
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Smiling, she replied, 'On the green, I saw you
watching the movie. By the look on your face, you
had a hard time with it. When I saw you leave, I
thought I should check to see if anything was
wrong.
"N-no, nothing is wrong..."
That's fine. So I'm not supposed to worry about the
way you look at that knife of yours, right? "
Ken shook his head, saying, "I'm not going to do
anything to harm you. Promise.'
"That's not the issue that I'm worried about."
"Who... what do you mean by that? Ken asked, his
eyes growing wide in shock.
"I've seen that look before," she said, taking a few
steps closer. "I honestly am all too familiar with the
tragedy. You wanted to hurt yourself, didn't you? "
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"You don't know anything about me, lady," Ken
said.
"I don't have to know anything about you to worry
about you," she said.
"Worried," snorted Ken. "How could you worry
about me? You don't even know who I am. "
"Easily corrected. Libertine Gabrielle. My friends
call me Gabby," she said, holding out her hand with
a warm smile. "She smirked when he did not
respond and continued, "This is the part where you
tell me your name.
Sighing, he said, "Ken. Ken Dix."
"It was great meeting you, Ken," she said with a
smile.
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"So, Gabrielle, huh? You're supposed to be my
Clarence or something? "
She replied with a playful gasp, 'Oh my God! Does
that mean that you're Jimmy Stewart? I have had a
crush on you for YEARS. "
Ken laughed nervously. Okay, all right, I just walked
into that one. In all seriousness, however...
No, I am neither the Guardian Angel, nor the Word
of God, nor any such thing. Like you, just an average
person." Moving to the bench, she asked, "May I? "
'S-sure, I suppose,' replied Ken, scooting to the
edge.
Thanks." She went on to take a seat, "So tell me
this, Ken: why would you want to hurt yourself,
maybe kill yourself? "
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He twisted his face in agony. "You don't want to
know that..."
I do. Believe me, I mean it.
Sighing reluctantly, Ken relented and began telling
Gabby about the day's events. He started with
Jacqueline and Jason, then his uncle's confrontation,
and finally, the fake phone number showing the
true colors of Jacqueline.
Through all this, Gabby sat in silence, maintaining
eye contact and nodding whenever necessary. He
finished the story at last, and Gabby could sense
that her heart ruptured in her mouth.
"Ken... I'm so very sorry. In your voice, I can feel
the pain. Nobody deserves what you walked through
today. It is of little help, I know, but I do understand
what you are going through.
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"You understand? "Ken said, unbelieving. How can
a girl like you comprehend any of this? I mean, look
at your appearance. You're pretty and probably
popular—the same as Jacqueline. Like Jason; It's
just like Uncle Lee. None of you would ever be able
to imagine the world I live in."
She replied with a stern look on her face, "I will let
it slide, considering what you have said to me. Still,
you need to know that what you just said was pretty
hurtful. Almost as hurtful as the things you've been
told today."
Ken receded. He knew that she was correct. I'm...
I'm sorry. You're right; I'm never supposed to say
that. Tonight you have been nothing but nice to
me...
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'Apology accepted,' said Gabby with a smile. "These
days, humility is a rare trait in men. Just hang on to
that.
Ken thought she might be mocking him, but he
nevertheless bit his tongue. He had insulted her
once already, and he wasn't going to have a chance a
second time.
She asked, "MIT, huh? Seeking to turn the
conversation to happier topics," You're a terribly
long way from home, isn't it? "
Huh? Huh? Oh, that hoodie. Yeah, yeah, I'm a
freshman there this year, and right now, I'm just
home on break.
Nice. Uh, Major? "
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"Science in health. After MIT, I want to go to
medical school, although I'm still trying to find a
specialty.
"A great deal of time to decide that. I'm sure you're
going to find the ri
ght career path,' she said,
grinning.
As nice as it was to talk about a familiar subject,
Ken's mind was still bugged to no end by some
things. I can't figure it out yet... Why would
Jacqueline do that? "
Frowning, Gabby replied, 'There are cruel people.
Often with a kind, warm public attitude, the ones
who are the cruelest disguise it. It sounds like
Jacqueline fits that mold to a T.
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And she hid it while we were in school all that time?
"
"At the time, you were useful, in her mind. She
wasn't going to lose that chance. She had no more
reason to conceal her true feelings once she got
what she needed.
Yeah, but still. But still. Why did she choose to be
friendly to me even in the store? "
"She probably felt she was doing you a favor in her
twisted mind. To a cruel person like her... that's her
idea of being kind to you,' replied Gabby, sadly. "We
just have to hope that in this world, there is enough
genuine kindness to counteract such cruelty."
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Now, seeing a silver cross hanging from her neck,
Ken pointed at it and asked, "I suppose this is the
part where you begin to teach me about suicide?"
That I am selfish and that I am trying to go against
the plan of God? "
'No,' she answered with simplicity.