The Downward Spiral

Jack sat alone in the diner sipping some black coffee. He liked it black no matter what the waitress kept offering him. He was up at the counter sitting on a little red plether covered stool. The rest of the diner was mostly cigarette yellowed offwhite booths .. mostly empty this late at night.

Only some college kids in green shirts were ordering some late night dinner.  Obviously still drunk from the day’s St Patrick’s Day parade, they were loud and giving the waitress hell. They ordered way more food then they really were going to eat. Everyone involved knew they weren’t leaving a tip. And the messes they were making..

Usually Jack would be annoyed by such people. But he didn’t mind. Not tonight. He was busy. He was thinking about murder. Strong coffee late at night was best for him when he got in to that mood, even if he did have to put up with the locals.

By no mistake, his thoughts were directed over his shoulder behind him toward Justin.

Justin had no idea who Jack was but Jack knew exactly who Justin was. They’d seen each other a few times before, but it only took the first time for Jackto put Justin on his death list. Justin treated Jack like he treated everyone… disposable.. useless… only there to take what he needed and then to forget he ever knew them.

And all of that was fine with Jack. Jack treated people the same way, but for different reasons. Jack’s excuse was he knew that he might die at any time from the tumor growing in his chest and getting to know people was more often than not was a waste of his time. Justin, however, was just a prick. But a prick that met the wrong guy.

It wasn’t that Jack had a daughter that Justin killed, or that Justin stepped on Jack toes. It was that some people just have to die. And Justin was slated for that. If there was a reason, which there wasn’t, it was because that Justin was too much like Jack… only not a killer. Not a real killer anyway.. just someone who pretended to not care. Pretended not to care when Jack thought he should. Justin was a sociopath… Jack took it all the way.

Justin was half drunk from the parade too. Jack smiled to himself. “Easier when they are drunk.” But he was with a girl. Too bad for her. Jack wasn’t too keen on random women anyway.

Justin and his date were getting ready to leave. Jack plopped down a $10 and left to the parking lot.

Out in the cold night air, Jack knew which car was Justin’s. He’d been following him all night anyway. Justin even parked next to the dumpster on the side of the building. The light in the parking lot was even burned out.  “Easy. So easy,” Jack thought. Jack slouched next to the dumpster in the dark. The blackness eveloped him, hugged him like an old lover for truely they were old friends.  Jack heard the noise to strike and jumped out… knife expertly aimed at where Justin’s neck should be.. the kill was imminent.. Jack could almost see the blood.. but there was no Justin… no girlfriend. Quickly Jack darted back in to the darkness.

“Hello Jack,” a voice said, “I win again.”

Jack smiled. He knew that voice. Jack looked up in to the black of the sky just in time to see his friend dart away in to the night sky. “I guess I’m too slow,” Jack muttered to himself. “We’ll play again soon.”

Jack walked over to his car on the other side of the parking lot. He got in and started to drive away. But he stopped and wanted to see it… he so admired the work of his rival… kept him on his toes.. kept him thinking about what to do next.

But, as Jack drove by the entrance to the diner, he was disappointed. He couldn’t see in the large windows where he’d watched Justin sit down earlier.  The windows were covered in red.