Ed Edd n' Eddy: Suffocate
How long had it been... years?
Maybe I was dreaming again. It had been years, since that last scam... Eddy had assured me... he told me that everything would be alright, but someone would get seriously hurt, and worse... die... I watched it all... I can still hear Sarah screaming, Rolf and Kevin trying their hardest to pull him from the fire and mangled wreckage... I watched as Eddy... ran away... not lifting a finger to help. He was running from blame... He never dropped the quarters he stole from us! I watch as Kevin and Rolf yell to Nazz... they're telling her to phone an ambulance. I drop My Best Bud, Plank and run to help Kevin and Rolf... Nazz ran towards her house to phone 911... I ran to help Kevin and Rolf... Sarah ran up to Double-D, shaking him... begging Double-D to make it stop, she keeps pulling his red shirt, pulling Double-D down to her, begging for the life... of her Brother Ed... but soon after the ambulance arrived... Ed was pronounced dead... the driver of the car had gotten out when it first hit Ed and the lamp pole. I had seen it all... and It has never escaped my life... I still have the Nightmares...My name is Johnny... and I was only 9...
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It's been 3 years, I was 12... and I still see it... the flame, the wreckage... Plank and I were never really the same after that day. We grew distant.. more or less... I... grew distant. He wanted excitement, but for me... the fun of trouble seemed to die with Ed. I don't remember when I did it... but I no longer hung out with Plank. He had gone on his own, leaving me behind. Which was fine, it gave me time to focus on my studies. And make real friends. Like Peter, a new kid who moved in just last week. We really hit it off. It was finally nice to hang with kids like me. I was meeting him after school, we were going to go to Nazz's sweet sixteen party. But for now, it was schooltime. We didn't have any of the same classes, but we did spend lunch period together.
"So, you gonna tell Nazz about your crush, bud?" Peter asked, looking at me through his shades. I blushed slightly. "I... I don't think so..." Peter scoffed. "C'mon bud, you need to pull that 2x4 outta your ass." I stopped for a second... thinking of Plank... "Yeah, I guess." Peter smiled. "Look I'll be right there, so the worst that could happen would be Johnny say anything... but with me , I doubt it." I felt a little better, so maybe... then, I saw her... across the field arguing with Kevin. She had filled out, my vision of beauty, I could always imagine our first date, carriage, dinner, moonlight.
'snap' 'snap' "Loverboy, she's coming this way with your invitation." I snapped out of my daze. "Hey Johnny! Look, I know we don't talk all that much, but... It would mean alot if you could--" "I'll be there..." I cut in quick... I blushed heavy. "Great." She walked away as I looked at Peter. He showed me his invitation. "We're in Buddy." Tonight was gonna be great.
Last Night... I don't remember... My head swam in pain, like a neverending headache. My body felt the heaviest it ever did. Oh, god, what happened. My phone then rang, and sent a shockwave of pain through my head. I ignored it as nausea overcame my body and I lurched forward to my bathroom. Wave after wave of vomit filled my toilet that morning. Then, another ring from my phone, this time the answering machine returned the voice of Peter. "HEY! This is Peter, pick up your phone... C'mon man I know your there!" I leaned a little, wanting to pick up, but then deciding not too. "It's okay man, probably hung way over... But no worries as today is annual, get out of school for free day, all courtesy of Nazz, who has officially tried to kill herself! No joke, she did it while we were there. She left like an entry in her diary, and swallowed anough pills to kill a horse. No worries though, Kevin showed up and stopped her. You try and get better 15 year old, lucky dog!", it was nice of him to check on me like.... whoa... wait? 15? Uh, when did that happen? I took my body and me to the mirror... and I had indeed... aged... holy crap... "Whoa." my voice said in a cracked toned. I looked at my room. Something was different, everything was neat. It took me awhile to find the strength to leave my room. This feeling wasn't leaving, but I wanted to see Nazz. I had to make sure she was okay. It was only when I got downstairs that I realized the severity of my situation...
Double-D, Marie, May, and Lee Kanker, Jimmy, and Rolf sat in my living room. They all looked concerned, but I wanted no part of this, Nazz was my priority. I waved sloshing past towards the door. "I think you should know that Nazz is okay Johnny, but it's more about you right now..." I scoffed, it hurt. "Can it wait? I want to visit Nazz." my voice cracked, and hurt. "No... she made it clear that you should stay away from her while she recovered... please sit..." I... couldn't believe my ears... "What is this?" Double-D sighed, turning to Lee who pulled a bag from around her seat... it was filled, with beer, liqour, and... drugs, and a tape. "Johnny... do you know what this is?" Double-D inquired. I shook my head, and quite literally, I had no idea what that bag was. "Do you know what's on this tape?" I shook my head. Double-D turned to Lee. "Tell him." Lee turned her eyes on me, fixating them like a Hawk. "The lil' rat knows what this is!" she screamed. "LEE! Tell HIM!" Double-D yelled... my god... Double-D yelled. What had happened... what had happened to me? Everything had changed. "Can we hurry this up, I have Squashes to tend and Nana's backhair does not groom itself!" Rolf exclaimed. "One moment Rolf." Duble-D turned to Lee, who hesitated. "Well, let's get to the point then. We're here with the hopes, of understanding and helping you. Ever since that night you haven't been the same." I stood there... what night? "Well, in laymans terms... this is an Intervention." I didn't have time for this. I moved for the door, when Jimmy stood in my way. "No way Jose... This is for the best." I scoffed, and shoved through Jimmy, running as hard as I could, without throwing up. "JOHNNY! Who'se---"
I stopped, that couldn't be right... could it? I didn't think twice and took off running. I would see Nazz.
I had made it to the only Hospital I knew, I huffed for a minute, letting my knee's act as a balast for my nausea... no luck... I threw up one more time before entering the hospital. I walked in... to no nurses, no doctors... just empty silence. Wierd. I walked through led by a feeling of relief and dizziness, my headache waned as I furthered myself into the hospital... Then... I reached the room... but didn't see who I was expecting... it was Sarah. Only, she was beaten, battered, bruised... she was breathing fine, but a tube fed her blood. I stared, expecting to understand what this was... what was going on? "She was admitted last night." I turned quickly and saw Peter, he was older now, but his glasses remained the same. "What happened?" I asked as he approached. "It was a beautiful moment.... but she wouldn't call me Peter! She just kept saying Johnny!" He looked at me. "You did this!" I ran off, the nausea returning! I scrambled down the hall, when I saw him... in the familiar coat... but as quickly as he was there, he was gone. "He belongs to ME!" Peter yelled from down the hall. I ran.
I left the hospital running from Peter... I needed to go home... when I ran into Double-D and Marie... "Oh god... oh god..." Double-D held me up. "What Johnny?" I stuttered. "I.... what's on that tape?" Double-D turned to Marie... "It's you and Sarah... but... who'se Peter?"
The world melted away, and I was in my room again. Only, it was my childhood room. I looked around. I saw our beds, mine and Planks. And in Planks spot, was Peter staring through those black glasses. I stumbled backwards, lips trembling, body, or more so skin shaking. Peter stepped forward slowly, with each step his joints sounding more and more stiff. His hands becoming crusted, reaching for his glasses. He made it halfway to me and stopped. "You think it was easy?! You think I enjoyed this?!" He was venting, all the frustration. All the rage. "You took me and threw it all away!" He finally ripped his glasses away! And... what I saw... were... "That's right! It's me! Plank!!!" It finally made sense! All the time, nobody ever spoke to him directly... He said he had met everyone already... he was always there for me... And the missed lapses of time... and... Sarah... Oh god... "You... you've been living my life!" I gritted through my teeth. "I think you mean my life!" Plank yelled back, approaching another step. "NO, you're not real! You never were!" I screamed. "I was real... my body, was that piece of wood! Always leaning on you to do things! But imagine my glee, when you became desperate enough again for another friend... But this time, I would take on an image you could emulate, be enamored by. I became Peter Blanche, cheesy I know... but... to accomplish my mission." Plank was now circling me, now looking like a demented Pinnochio. "But... I wanted more. I needed to feel more. So, I experimented. Drugs from Double-D, Alcohol from Kevin, and... sex from Sarah." I tripped on a piece of wood and fell. "You sick freak, you raped Sarah!" Plank snickered. "No, she was willing, more then willing." Plank stopped. "But she could never see me, to her, you were fucking her. Not me." It had gotten to him. "I was not Johnny, and now, because of you, we're in trouble again." I shivered, a cold chill hitting me. Plank had finally closed the distance, and now he was upon me. As things faded, I couldn't feel my arms.... I was dying now... Plank would live as Johnny... and maybe... maybe it was for the best... "Don't worry, I'll take good care of Sarah..." I heard before finally fading.
I sat there.... absolute darkness, and abyss from which there was no escape. I could feel, and hear, occasionally I saw. It wasn't long, but soon there was something... "Hi Johnny! What are you doing here?" I turned to my head... and saw Ed... "Ed... Ed?... is that you?" he smiled that wide grin... "Of course... if I'm not Ed... who am I?" Yeah, it was Ed... "What are you doing here?" Ed scratched his head. He held his hand to his chin, then ten seconds later... "Oh... right..." He strapped a makeshift jetpack to my back made out of cardboard and tin cans. "Buckle your shoes, hold the mayo, and throw away any unusable articles on your way out!" he grabbed me by the back of my shirt and pant, and heaved me up... On the way up, I saw Plank, the old Plank... I grabbed him. Returning to my room. Plank, as Peter was there. "Hey Plank!" I yelled before taking out Plank with his former self. "This is my body... and now your no longer welcome!" I screamed creaming him with punches. He started laughing... "You... don't...get it...I'll always be here....", and he was right... he would always be there. But this was my mind, he would obey me. "NO...I....WON'T!!!" He punched his way up, taking me to the ground, punching at me. He held himself over me, his arm raised above his head, ready to kill me. "You took away my LIFE.... NOW I'm gonna Take Your!!! How's that sound? Buddy...", before the final blow... a hand came and held it. "That's not nice Plank, you should play fair!" Ed had came. He grabbed Plank, I watched as the darkness overtook them both... "Goodbye Johnny, say Hi to Double-D for me..." with that... they dissapeared. The world melted once more, and this time... I found myself in a bed... next to Nazz... she was looking away... She was no longer hurt. She turned to see me. "Johnny?" I nodded, my head heavy, probably a drip of some kind. Nazz had grown, her hair was long, she wore a jean jacket sweater with a Metallica shirt, and khaki pants. And me in a gown and birthday suit. "Listen, I wan't you to understand, and hopefully be happy for me. I found love." I sighed, but understood. "Nazz, have I done terrible things?" I asked, bypassing her announcement. She took a moment. "Yeah, but... they say that it wasn't even really you. I don't understand how no one noticed. You weren't you... you were this Peter..." I looked at her... "You mean 'Plank'." she gasped. "Yeah, that's right." I took a moment. "And I know how no one noticed." My head swam, but my brain was acting clear. "Because when Ed died, the attention paid to everyone died. That day changed everything, and everyone. And I was another victim... and so was Plank... He was just... another victim... suffocated by me and my guilt..." The door opened. And in walked May, Marie, and Double-D. "Honey, we got tired of waiting." May said, walking up and kissing Nazz. "So... she... and you..." I stuttered. "Yeah.." Nazz said, May holding her hip. "Is there a problem?" I shook my head slowly, using it to mask my need to cry. Double-D must've spotted it. "Okay, I think Johnny needs rest...", he ushered the girls out. "Double-D... I have something for you." I said. He turned to me and walked up. "Ed... Ed... says Hi..."
2 Weeks Later...
"So, Johnny, have we heard from 'Plank', today?" The therapist said. I had been transferred from the Hospitals Main Center to it's minimal security asylum. Sarah wrote to me, and I wrote to her. She held no spite, God Bless Her. She actually really wanted to persue a real relationship after I got out of the Asylum. "No doc... I don't think I'll see him again."
One Month Later...
I overlooked Ed's grave... through therapy I learned that what I had seen as Ed was my courage. He acted as the component that saved my life, while I was personified as the weak link, that Plank was trying to snip away... but... it felt more real then that. I think that on that day... Ed was lookin' out for me. It was My time... So to You Plank, and you Ed, Rest in Peace...