‘Squeak! Squeak!’

These big ass sewer rats were nibbling on more parts of me than they could swallow. My rage hopped over the bar and took such a hold of my lips that I let loose my anger for all in the tunnel to hear.

“Get the hell away from me?” After I shouted like a mad man, I bit down on the rat that was nibbling on my beard and spat out his blooded intestine for his furry friends to see.

“How do you like being eaten huh, you damn rodent bastards?”

‘Squeak!’

The other rats who were crowding my body scampered off in the dark corners as soon as they saw me tore through their friend with my sharp enamels. I must admit, even I was surprised by my own viciousness. It was as if I was slowly transforming into a monster beyond my understanding.

“Huh, who is that guy sleeping on Ray’s bed?”

“I don’t know. He just came in from down there and start making noise.”

My earlier outburst had caught the attention of the sewage dwellers, they were all staring at me as if I was some sort of freak. I had to lash out at them as well, “What the hell are you all looking at?”

Fearing that my outburst might have also garnered the attention of the cops who were searching for me in the tunnel, I got up from where I was resting and started teetering to the exit. I had asked one of the sewage dwellers where I could find the exit so I didn’t spend much time roaming about down there.

As soon as I came out of the sewer I collapse on all fours like some street dog. I didn’t even get the glorious chance to enjoy inhaling the freshness of the air. And as if this wasn’t irritating enough, I began seeing countless flashes of red alert.

My health was really starting to resemble a chicken’s luck. I was stuck on the ground not having enough strength to rise to my feet. I had to start crawling like a dog as well. It was a good thing that most people were in their beds at that late hour, otherwise, they would have seen a sight they wouldn’t have been able to forget. A half-dead man slithering in the trench of piss and shit to go topside.

“I swear to God I’m going to kill that shit stain, Sharp Stepper. I’m going to gut him like a fish and dance around in his organs like a ballerina. If I have to move earth and sky so it shall be done.”

As I thought about the many ways I was going to pay back Sharp Stepper for the atrocities he had put me through, my rage made it possible for me to stand on my 2 feet again, however shaky I was.

I teetered up a slight slope leading up to the street while using the side of the wall for support. When I ran out of wall, I began supporting my standing by holding onto the street poles.

While I was struggling to cross the street, I came upon a woman and her dog who covered their nose as soon as I got close to them.

“Come over here puppy.” The frightened woman called over her dog to the other side of the road. I could tell from how quickly she crossed over that she was disgusted with my appearance.

Her actions made me feel sad to the bones, however, seeing that dog reminded me of my former loyal pet poodle, Baxter. He was the closest thing I had to a family before Sharp Stepper broke his neck like a twig. Damn, I hate that guy.

“Huh! When did that get there?” I was walking by Tuuflong Avenue and was shocked to discover a big apartment complex in the same spot where Madam Chow’s restaurant used to be. I used to eat her fish dishes every Saturday afternoon and sometimes have a beer with her son.

“What the hell happened to this place? How could those contractors build such a lavish building overnight? Something doesn’t add up, just how long have I been buried in Sunflower Cemetery far?”

I became curious about the duration of time that elapsed since my unfaithful burial, but I couldn’t find a newspaper anywhere nor were they many people around to ask anything.

“Fuck, how did I allow my life to be derailed this far beyond my understanding? I wonder if there is some evil spirit trying to poke me in the ass.”

“Yeah, yeah, whatever.” As soon as the alerts came popping up again, I began feeling like an old man’s worn-out pecker. I was limping in exaggerated motions as I tried my best to find somewhere safe. Soon I discovered a taxi parked on the soft shoulder of the road as I came around the bend.

“It appears that my luck hadn’t run all out after all. Hey, taxi!”

I mustered the remaining strength that I had in my legs to go over to where the vehicle was parked. I opened the back door and hopped inside.

“Where to, man…? Hold it! What the fuck is that smell? Did you shit yourself?” The driver bent his neck all the way around and began staring at me like I was begging him for a ride. Sure, my scent was abysmal but that didn’t excuse his bad behaviour for sniffing me out like that as soon as I planted my ass in the car seat.

“Sorry mister, I’m going to need you to get the hell out of my taxi. I don’t transport street trash.” This cab driver pressed a button on his armrest and opened the door that I had just closed, plus he called me street trash.

This fat punk really had no idea who he was messing with. I took out all the money that I stole from the last person that I killed and tossed it at his chubby face. “Here is your money. It’s more than enough to cover your fee. Now drive.”

“I don’t care if you have a million dollars. Where the hell the crawl out of, the sewer? There is no way in hell that I am going to transport a raged passenger like you.”

I got smart on this asshole, “Well, it is a good thing that we are not in hell. This is planet earth baby and you are right, I did crawl out of the sewer. Now turn your fat head around and drive. If I have to repeat myself I’m going to rip your head off that swollen neck of yours and shove it up your ass. Then I can drive this taxi myself. It is up to you, Mr Piggy. Do you want to live to oink another day or will you be dying tonight? So far I’ve killed 3 people, do you want to be the 4th victim?”

“Ahm…” This cab driver abruptly swallowed a chunk of his burger and was forced to let out a couple of coughs along with a few farts; I only heard his seat vibrate because my scent was too horrid for his farts to enter my nose. Judging by how scared he looked and by how he was trembling, I knew that he got the message.

“Sorry I… I go now… mister” The cab driver started the engine and slowly pulled away from the curve onto the main road. He kept looking back and forth at me through the mirror until he mustered the courage to ask, “Where do you want to go?”

“Now that you’ve asked, I hadn’t really thought about where I wanted to go.”