Lullabies for Little Criminals

Maintaining a superiority complex, especially when you were a loser, took a lot of mental effort and denial.

We would kiss in shock, as if we had two buckets of water dumped on our heads.We would kiss sadly, as if the dog was lost in the night. We would kiss like cockroaches headed for the cracks.

I smiled. I thought he had put all his cards on the table for me. I thought that he trusted me with his life. I was twelve.