Zel-kun’s Words

I took Zai home on Saturday night at around midnight.  Its a long drive, depositing me back home just before two in the morning.  The drive is normally uneventful, despite the fact that Zai’s neighborhood has the reputation of being somewhat less than savory.

I yawned as I pulled into the driveway, peering at the digital display that told me it was 1:47 in the morning.  I turned off the car, locked it, walked into the house, locked the door behind me, and promptly went to sleep.

At about 2:00 in the morning, someone broke into my brother’s car, toss all his clothes out onto the lawn (it had been raining, so the clothes got a nice soaking in the mud), took everything of value, pried open his trunk, and stole his spare tire and jack.  These people (I know from hearing accounts that there were three) then went on to break into my parent’s van.  In the morning, I saw grubby fingerprints all over my door.  I guess they didn’t see anything worthwhile in there (fortunately I’ve been keeping it clean, and even brought in all my extra CD’s) and moved on.  I’m glad because I did have the walking stick Zai gave me in that back seat, and because I only have liability insurance.

These people then went on to break into a couple houses before the police and their K-9 units began hunting them.  I’m not sure if anyone was caught.  And despite my best efforts, I can’t seem to locate a news story on it.  What I do know is that I slept through this whole thing, since my car wasn’t broken into, they decided not to wake me.

Anyhow, it makes me think what would have happened had I pulled into my driveway ten minutes later.  What would have happened if my headlights shown upon three people breaking into my brother’s car.  Would I have leapt out and confronted them?  I’d like to think I would have, but I couldn’t say what would happen when the actual threat of danger is present.

The scenario plays out in my head.  I pull up and see the vagrants, I reach into the back seat, pulling out the dymondwood walking stick that sat back there, with a nice 5-pound copper handle on the top (certain to make someone’s day very unpleasant if hit with it.  I’d leap out and brandish it and one of four things would happen, each time it plays out:

1. I leap out of the car, and am promptly shot in the head.  The saga of Zel is over.

2. I leap out and manage to get one good hit in before the other two beat the crap out of me.

3.  I leap out and beat the crap out of all three.  While I’m not sure how likely this would be, I suppose its possible.  Especially if a good blow to the head knocks them out.

4. I leap out and they run away in fear.  Perhaps likely, perhaps not.  They did break into a home or two, which leads me to believe they weren’t the kind of criminal to run.

Well, I did come home ten minutes earlier, and I did not encounter anything.  Ten minutes, and conflict is avoided.  Its strange when I think about it, how ten minutes could have changed (or ended), my life.  I think about other times, like when a light turned green at the intersection, but I had spaced out for a second.  I pulled forward, and a truck going about 40 miles an hour blows the red light slams into me, just in front of the driver’s door, snapping the axle, steering column, and flattening three tires as I spin about fifty feet down the road, spinning with such force that the rear of my car hit the rear of his to cause a very large dent just behind me.

If I had pulled into the intersection one second earlier, he would have hit me right in the driver’s door.  It wouldn’t have been very likely I would have walked away from that one.  Very likely I wouldn’t be here at all.  I walked away with a sprained shoulder because I spaced a moment before pulling forward.  One second.

Make you think.  Well… it makes ME think, anyway.

Zel-kun out.