if only

by bofa xesjum

morning. a room. in a house. rain on the window. a human named extra strength harris sits beside the window. extra strength harris is thinking about something. outside in the distance, a hyena howls. why, do you think, is the hyena howling? do you think it is because extra strength harris is thinking about something? or because extra strength harris is sad and lonely? there is a knock on the door of the room. at this point, everything begins to move quickly. zero hour has arrived, and the tipping point has been reached. all bets are off. extra strength harris, whose real name is zanzibar finnerty, jumps up and runs out of the room and out the front door. but just then a car pulls up in front of the house with a squeal of brakes. special agents uncle bob pathfinder, alice exile, willie lackaday, and gus gray surround extra strength harris aka zanzibar finnerty, whose name in his most immediate previous life had been marcus chan, with guns drawn. it is over, at least for now, but it could have gone so much differently. if only they had listened.