The Happiest Ghoul Alive: One Hundred Thousand Dollars.
"Yeah baby! We finally did it the big league!" the happy ghoul exclaims.
On the burnt wooden table in the kitchen of his house.
There are rolls and stacks of 100 dollar bills stacked upon each other in a precarious heap.
"One hundred thousand dollars Barbara! That's a one with five zero's!"
"..."
The happy ghoul looks to his wife sleeping on the couch.
"Jeez louise Barbara! How long are you still going to be asleep! Look at the time!"
The happiest ghoul takes his Robco atomic clock.
Barbara won it in the town's beauty contest, it was a consolation prize.
She didn't make the cut and worse still Becky down the street won the contest!
"Will you look at the time!"
The happiest ghoul alive brushes the dust from the glass of the clock's face.
"Barbara it's 4:30 if you keep on sleeping now you'll never go to bed..."
"..."
The happiest ghoul alive forms a wide smile.
"Ow!" the happiest ghoul's face starts bleeding at the corner of the lips.
Thinking of his fortune and tonight's action that's sure to come.
"So that's your plan Barbara!"
"..."
The happiest ghoul still has the atomic clock in his hand.
The clock's date, something seems odd.
"Monday the 7th of june, it says the year is 2277?"
The happy ghoul takes the clock with both hands.
Water droplets fall on the face of the clock.
"Damn roof leaking again!"
The happiest ghoul alive looks up to his ceiling.
The roof is not wet and there are no leaks.
"Barbara what is today's date?"
"..."
His wife is still laying on the couch.
"Damn woman! Why do I have to do everything!" the happy ghoul thinks to himself.
He goes to their bedroom.
Closing the door behind him.
He looks to the colourful hanging calendar.
October 20 2070 is marked with a red circle.
He tries to figure out how to program the clock.
The many dip switches at the back confusing him.
"So this one, is for the what now?"
He flicks the switch.
"beep-beep-beep"
"No, thank you."
He flicks the switch off.
"Barbara the time on this clock is always right guaranteed. We will have to live with broken calendar."
"..."
"Dammit why is she always like this?" the happy ghoul thinks to himself.
"Wait! I've got a hundred thousand dollars!"
He has recovered.
He looks to the heap of money on the table.
He feels full of joy.
"Barbara you don't have to sleep anymore! We're rich we can do anything now!"
"..."
"Still sleeping..."
The happy ghoul goes to sit on his chair.
"Wonder if anything is on the tube?"
He uses the microwave caster.
The television stays off.
"Goddammit!"
The happy ghoul hits the television to try to make it work.
CRASH
It breaks into shards and the wood cabinet shatters.
The happy ghoul looks to his hand glass shards are sticking out of it.
"Don't know my own strength." he thinks to himself.
He pulls out the shards.
He stopped feeling pain in his body long ago.
He looks at the shards shredded rotten flesh.
Going to the first aid kit, he wraps his hand.
"Barbara I'm going to buy a new television. I'll be back soon."
He loads his pockets with a large stack from his hundred thousand dollars.
"How did I make this again?"
He thinks to himself his mind seems hazy, he cannot remember it clearly.
He looks at his sleeping wife before leaving.
"What a lucky guy." he thinks to himself.
He leaves the house with a spring in his step.
He reaches his automobile.
He has his keys, wanting to open the door.
"WHAT THE F#CK HAPPENED TO MY CAR?"
He looks to his red Corvega Blitz.
The tires are flat, the windows are cracked and the body is rusted through.
"I'LL F#CKING KILL WHOEVER DID THIS!"
He runs into his house.
Underneath the bed he grabs his 10mm Autopistol.
Grabbing two gun magazines and a hand full of loose 10mm bullets from his gun safe.
He storms out of his room and out of the house.
He didn't even greet his wife goodbye.
"WHERE THE F#CK ARE YOU?"
The happy ghoul is furious.
Walking through his neighborhood.
He's looking for some hoodlums hanging around.
He knows the sort.
Just like when he was young.
Running the books.
All that changed when he met Barbara, left the gang, changed his ways.
It wasn't easy they said no one can leave the family and stay alive.
But he was the baddest nobody wanted to take him on.
"F#CKING TONY SENDING HIS GOONS! DOES HE THINK I'LL FORGIVE THIS?"
The happy ghoul has had enough.
The small time capo had been sending his thug's to try and intimidate the happy ghoul.
Always following him around.
Calling late at night and then putting the phone down.
He tried to live the straight and narrow, he did his time.
Wanted to start a new family life.
But this was too much.
He saved so long to buy his first new car with "honest" money, now Tony went too far.
"HE'S GONNA PAY!"
The happy ghoul is not thinking straight, he doesn't go to the bus stop.
Decides he'll walk to the warehouse instead.
"Jeez the city has gone to shit..."
Barbara said she doesn't like it when he swears.
The happy ghoul thinks of his wife and his new life.
Does he really want to do this?
To be a killer again.
CLICK
He unloads the guns magazine.
Looking at the bullets shining inside of it.
"I'll just put the gun to his head and pull the trigger a few times. He'll be so scared probably piss himself. Then I'll shoot the place up teach those little fu.. punks not to mess with me."
The happy ghoul puts the magazine in his pocket.
Checking to see if the guns clear.
CLICK
CLICK
CLICK
The gun is empty.
Finally he is in front of the warehouse.
It's rusted, the windows are broken and it looks like it could fall apart at any time.
The happy ghoul shakes his head side to side.
"How far the family has fallen Frank."
He thinks back to his younger days when the "boss" was still alive.
He opens the door.
"Becky where is Tony?"
He speaks to the receptionist.
"Tony?"
He hears a man's voice.
There are five men inside of the room.
"Are you the clowns who trashed my car?"
"What are you talking about freak?"
"What did you call me?"
One of the goons approaches the happy ghoul.
He puts his finger in his face.
"We don't want any of your kind around here freak."
SNAP
"AAAAAAAGGGGHHHHHH!"
The goon falls on his knees grabbing at his broken finger.
"Where's Tony?"
"KILL HIM!"
The wounded goon shouts to his friends.
The men reach to their weapons.
CLICK
CLICK
CLICK
CLICK
CLICK
The happy ghoul already bopped them all in the head.
"SHIT! THE GUN ISN'T LOADED!"
"TAKE THIS MOTHERF#CKER!"
RATATATATATATATA!
Bullets fly everywhere.
The happy ghoul jumped behind a counter in the room.
CLICK
The gun is loaded.
The happy ghoul thinks of his wife.
"Sorry baby just this one time then I'm done."
Still Tony is gonna pay!
"TELL ME WHERE TONY IS. THEN YOU GUYS DON'T NEED TO DIE!"
"WHAT THE F#CK? KILL THE BASTARD!"
RATATATATATATATA!
Bullets fly again.
"Can't be helped then."
The happy ghoul puts his hand with his gun over the back of the counter.
Looking into the dirty mirror on the wall.
BAM
BAM
BAM
BAM
BAM
The fighting stops.
The happy ghoul stands up.
All the goons lay dead.
Loud steps are heard.
"Ricky what's going on?"
The room fills again.
"WHO ARE YOU?"
"Take me to Tony."
"F#CK YOU!"
BAM
BAM
BAM
The shots go off.
Everyone is dead.
"JESUS! Kids these days!"
The happy ghoul shakes his head side to side.
"They gotta calm down otherwise..."
He did it again.
He looks to the dead goons.
"Didn't have to end this way."
He remembers why he's here.
"Gotta find Tony."
The happy ghoul walks through the warehouse looking for Tony.
"Where is he hiding?"
The happy ghoul sees a light shining in the corner office.
He has hand on the door.
Gun at his side.
BAM
He kicked the door from its hinges.
"TONY I'M GONNA MURDER YOU!"
The happy ghoul has the cleared gun, ready to pull the trigger to Tony's head.
"STOP! DON'T PLEASE!"
"TONY DON'T THINK I'LL..."
The happy ghoul looks to the small room.
Two woman and two children bound with wire to the wall.
"What the f#ck is this?"
"PLEASE HELP US!"
"What's going on here?" asks the happy ghoul.
"We're slaves they captured us. Please take us with you. We'll do anything cooking, cleaning even more. We just don't want to be here anymore."
"WHAT? Where's Tony?"
The happy ghoul doesn't seem to understand.
He explains of the bastard he was looking for.
"We don't know Tony. We haven't been here for long. It was just us and the raiders."
"Raiders?"
The happy ghoul cannot understand.
"You cannot stay here come with me."
The happy ghoul leads the group of slaves with him homewards.
"Why don't you go home?" he asks one of the women.
Through a broken smile, she laughs the saddest one has ever seen.
"What is a home?"
"JESUS! Oops! I mean jeez kids are f#cked up...I mean messed up these days."
One of the little children giggles for only the shortest of a moment.
"Barbara we have guests. Please can you look after them. I gotta call the police."
The happy ghoul goes to the phone.
"Excuse me Mister who were you talking to?" asks one of the kids.
"My wife Barbara she's laying on the couch. Always dozing off."
"Mister there's no one there."
"WHAT?!"
He runs towards the couch his wife's back is toward him.
"BARBARA WHAT'S WRONG! PLEASE WAKE UP!"
He shakes at her.
His mind sharpens, memories flood into his mind.
Years and years of anguish, misery and loneliness.
His burnt hand finally turns Barbara around.
Only the dead remains of the woman he once loved remain.
"I had heard it happened to some people..."
One of the women whispers to the other one.
"WHAT THE F#CK DID YOU SAY?"
"PLEASE I'M SORRY DON'T HURT ME!"
He could never stand woman crying.
"I'm sorry."
He sits down all those years memories flood into his mind.
The one day it all ended but only he was left alive.
Burnt all over, always bleeding and hurting but he never could die.
"Everyone is gone..." he thinks to himself.
"Where do you come from?" asks the happy ghoul.
The women explain.
One of the children wanders off.
He comes back with something shiny.
"Hey Mister what's this?"
"TIMMY YOU IDIOT! I TOLD YOU NOT TO TOUCH OTHER PEOPLE'S THINGS!"
His mother grabs him tightly by the wrist.
Timmy wants to cry.
"Don't speak to the brat like that. He'll grow up to be a loser if you treat him that way. But if what you told me is true. Then that was the only way you could survive."
"Yes, I'm sorry."
The mother looks towards her son.
He is holding back the tears.
"What do you want to do?" he asks them.
"We don't want to go back to the raiders."
"I killed those punks. You are free to leave."
The women show their necks.
There are marks burnt into them.
"WHAT THE F#CK IS THIS SHIT?"
The happy ghoul grabs one of the woman by the shoulders.
He looks to the mark.
Timmy is next and the little girl as well.
They all have marks.
"If they catch us again..."
Everyone grips their hands tightly.
The happy ghoul knows.
"You will have to start living here."
"Everyone is dead so there are lots of houses."
"REALLY MISTER?"
"Yes."
Everyone starts crying.
Tears held back by fear and many years start to come out.
"Please I'll be back. There's some food in the kitchen."
He shudders and thinks of all the canned food he hoarded throughout the years.
"They all taste the same..."
"Excuse me?"
"No, never mind. Eat as much as you like."
The happy ghoul goes to the couch he takes the remains of his wife.
Carrying her like the first day they entered the house together.
He walks outside to the back of the yard.
The grave he dug all those years back is still unfilled.
"Sorry baby it took so long."
The happy ghoul buries his wife.
There are no tears anymore he cried them all out many years ago.
He walks back into the house.
"Hey Mister what's this paper do?"
The kid has his pocket full with his stacks from his hundred of thousand dollars.
"F#CKING BRAT GIVE THAT HERE!"
The child starts crying.
Timmy runs outside of the house, the dollars in his pockets flying away in the wind.
"MY MONEY!"
The worried ghoul still has his gun.
"These aren't bottle caps?" one of the woman studies the pile closer.
"WHAT? BOTTLE CAPS?"
His memories return.
"GODDAMMIT!"
He kicks his burnt picket fence.
He walks inside and looks at his worthless heap of old money.
The happy ghoul goes to sit to his chair.
He sighs deeply.
"I finally made it to the big league."
He thinks of how he had exchanged the bottle caps he found everywhere for the thick stacks of dollar bills.
"Suckers!"
He would smirk to himself while counting his 100's.
"That is why they were always laughing at me."
"Excuse me Mister?"
"It was nothing Timmy."
"Timmy..."
"What are your names?"
Timmy's mom is Debra.
Janet's mom is Laura.
"They look to be in their mid 20's. The kids Timmy looks 7 and Janet is maybe 10." the happy ghoul thinks to himself.
"Do I really want to know?" he asks himself.
"Alright you guys will stay here."
"NO, PLEASE DON'T LEAVE US!" Debra pleads.
"I have to go."
"WHY?"
"I need to find a job."
"WHAT?!"
Finish.