All the Colors of the Dark

by Chris Whitaker

They’ll think they can imagine it. And they’ll tilt their heads to one side in sympathy. They’ll make us see shrinks who’ve sat in fancy libraries in fancy universities and read stories like ours. They’ll reference Charcot and Freud, and William James and Pierre Janet. They’ll read the same books I do. And they’ll draw the same conclusions. Eventually.”

“That people like us exist in a state of crisis. That it will be a miracle if we die of natural causes. We’ll turn to drink or drugs, and we won’t form close relationships because we’ll keep too much from others.” “We don’t need anyone else,” he said. “We do. You just don’t realize it yet. Unhealthy pursuits. We’ll exist at the extremes because the middle is where the healthy pass their time.” “Will we be okay?” he asked, and could not stop the words from leaving his lips. “Not one part of us.”