Chainsmoke: The Best Friend, by Daniel Malik

8/14/2019 Chainsmoke: The Best Friend, by Daniel Malik

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Chainsmoke: The Best FriendBy Dan Malik

“She’ll be here any minute...,” says Carl Ferguson to himself, as he sits alone on the back

porch of his house. Holding his arms close to his chest, Carl struggles to stay warm in the

freezing cold of this late, winter afternoon. The snow is falling to the ground in massive

volumes, prompting most people to stay inside until conditions clear up. Looking from left to

right and back again, Carl anxiously awaits a sign that his friend is approaching. She promised

she’d be here soon. Staring out at the empty road ahead of him, Carl shivers with the currents of

wind, as seconds tick by as passing hours. While still no trace of his friend is found, the young

man is left to his thoughts, the memories of how this all started....

Carl Ferguson was born in Michigan City twenty-five years ago, a bit on the slow side.

Though he was in no way retarded, he has been mistakenly called so his entire life by those who

exaggerate his slow nature. And while that nature brought him much ridicule over the years, it

also made it very difficult for Carl to ever make any real friendships with those he came in

contact with. Most of the time, the very people Carl tried to befriend simply made fun of him,

whether behind his back or directly to his face. For this reason, Carl grew up spending many

hours in front of the television, as well as playing with his sister, who shared the same problems

as her older brother. These days, Carl still lives with his parents and sister, though he does enjoy

some moments of independence. Working as a bagger for a local grocery store, Carl gets to meet

many new people whom he looks on not just as co-workers, but as friends who work together.

Several of those he has met at his place of employment have actually become friends of his

outside of the workplace. Several times a week, Carl and his friends will meet up to play pool,

watch some TV, and go out to eat at their favorite restaurant. Carl is a big fan of wrestling, and



nothing can convince him that what he sees his favorite wrestlers do on TV is anything but real.

But out of all of Carl’s hobbies, the one he enjoys most is talking to girls. Whether they are

employees or customers, Carl talks to them all while he is at work, hoping that one day, the right

girl will come along and make him the luckiest guy in the world. And while ninety-percent of the

girls Carl talks to get annoyed and tell him to go away, Carl never gives up hope. He simply

smiles and decides to try again another day.

Lately, things have been different for Carl. A young, blonde cashier at work, Angela, has

become a major part of Carl’s life since the two have been hanging out almost every night.

Recently, Angela came out of an almost two-year relationship with an older man who never treated her right. Being overweight and lacking confidence in herself, Angela had stayed with her

boyfriend for way too long, feeling it was the best she would ever do. Carl has always liked

Angela, and now, with her boyfriend out of the way, Angela has been paying more attention than

ever to Carl. After all these years, Carl finally has a girl showing interest in him, and needless to

say, he is more excited than if he had the chance to meet a famous wrestler. Life is much better

for Carl now, as he finds himself hanging out with Angela quite often, along with another girl

from work, Nikki, who is an overweight cashier with long, reddish-brown hair. Carl is attracted

to both girls, and while Nikki has been known to fool around with many different guys, Carl is

never lucky enough to get so much as a kiss. The girls constantly tease Carl, even going as far as

to remove some of their clothes while in his presence. Then, as Carl thinks he is about to

experience something special and new, he is quickly slapped by the girls if he happens to touch

them or say the wrong thing. Sometimes, Carl doesn’t like the way his new friends treat him, but

it’s all just playful kidding around, right? Isn’t that what friends are supposed to do?



One late evening, atop a liquor store on Franklin Street, a grim figure looks down at the

people coming and going below. His name is Chainsmoke, and he hates this place and

everything it stands for. The contents sold beneath him promise so much to those desperate for a

good time. And yet, despite the periods of euphoria that can be attained by alcohol, it is merely

poison being sold daily to consumers who don’t care enough about themselves to treat their

bodies better. What an interesting world we live in, where a person will willingly walk into a

store and pay their hard earned cash for something that poisons their own self. The disregard.

The conformity. The greed behind it. Chainsmoke hates it all. And yet, wrapped in the darkness

of his long, tattered cape, Chainsmoke can only stare in disappointment through the eyes of hissoulless mask, as he watches the consumers below. There are many evils in Michigan City. Some

of those, Chainsmoke simply cannot defeat, and it is a fact he must accept.

A random, black car soon pulls into a parking space in the liquor store parking lot. A

young woman steps out of the driver’s side, while a young man gets out from the backseat. The

two begin walking towards the liquor store, while Chainsmoke notices a third person in the car.

Taking his binoculars from his belt, Chainsmoke steadies them on the passenger side of the car,

finding a girl inside that looks to be under the age of twenty-one. That would explain why she

didn’t go into the store. After a couple of minutes, the young man and woman make their way

back to the car, the woman carrying a long and narrow paper bag in her hand. Once in the car,

the bag is quickly opened, and the girl in the passenger seat grabs hold of the bottle. She eagerly

removes the cap and takes the first swig of the seductive drink. The girl passes the bottle to her

friend in the driver seat, who samples the drink as well. The young woman places the bottle

between her legs and reaches to turn the key in the ignition, when suddenly, the passenger side



door is pulled open. Everyone in the car looks outside to find a black, menacing figure staring

back at them.

“Driving while intoxicated is a bad idea...,” comes the creature’s cold, whispered growl.

“So is underage drinking.”

“H-hey, I’m t-twenty-three, ok...?” replies the girl in the driver seat.

“How old are YOU??” asks Chainsmoke, looking into the frightened eyes of the girl in

the passenger seat.

“N-nineteen...,” responds the girl. “I w-was.... I was j-just taking a little t-taste....”

“Don’t lie to me,” returns the dark voice. “You’ve drank before. It’s nice to have older friends who can aid your bad habits, isn’t it?”

The girl remains quiet, while Chainsmoke fixes his sights once again on the girl in the

driver seat.

“A TRUE friend wouldn’t SUPPORT her friend getting drunk...,” continues Chainsmoke.

“But you’re not a true friend. You’re just a weak excuse.”

“Hey, you can’t talk to her like that!!” comes a voice from the backseat of the car.

Chainsmoke peers into the back of the car, where an angry young man with short brown hair is

giving him a serious look of disapproval.

“This girl is corrupting her so-called friend...,” returns Chainsmoke. “That makes her a

bad person in my eyes. Do you have a problem with that?”

“She is NOT a bad person!” replies the young man, growing even more agitated. “You

take that back! She is NOT a bad person! You take that back right now!”

“Give me ONE good reason...,” says Chainsmoke.



“Fine!” says the young man, as he gets out of the car. “I’m gonna make you take that

back! She is NOT a bad person! You can’t say that!”

As the young man walks around the back of the car, Chainsmoke observes the man’s

facial expression and body movement. These, together with the fact that this young man seems to

repeat himself a lot, tell Chainsmoke that the man is somewhat slow.

“You better take that back!” says the young man, placing his hands on his hips. “Angela

is NOT a bad person! You can’t say that! You better take that back right now, or I’m gonna have

to put the hurt on you! I’ll body slam you right here, and then I’ll put the crush hold on you, just

like The Stone does on WWA!”Chainsmoke recognizes these terms to be associated with wrestling. “The Stone” is the

nickname of a famous wrestler, while WWA stands for World Wrestling Alliance. Now

Chainsmoke knows for sure that the young man standing before him is not completely there.

“You need to calm down...,” says Chainsmoke, looking down at the upset young man.

“What’s your name?”

“My name’s Carl, but that’s none of your damn business!” replies the young man. “You

can’t talk about Angela like that! She is NOT a bad person!”

Carl flexes as though he is about to enter a wrestling ring, and then he makes a grab for

Chainsmoke. Taking hold of Carl’s right arm, Chainsmoke brings it behind his opponent’s back

and pins it there, adding slight pressure to inflict a small sample of pain.

“This isn’t the movies, Carl...,” says Chainsmoke. “This is REAL.”

Carl closes his eyes and begs for mercy from his dark adversary, while the car next to

them comes to life and speeds away. Chainsmoke releases his hold on the scared young man,

who watches in disbelief as his friends drive off into the night.



“They left me...!” says Carl, staring at the vanishing tail lights of the car. “I can’t believe

it...! They left me...!”

“Need a ride?” asks Chainsmoke.

“Maybe Angela’s gonna come back...,” replies Carl. “She wouldn’t just leave me.... I bet

she’s gonna come back....”

Chainsmoke notices the eagerness in Carl’s eyes as he watches for a sign of his friend.

However, Chainsmoke is not so hopeful, and knowing the girl won’t return, he also knows he

can’t just leave this young man here alone.

“Come on...,” says Chainsmoke, walking towards the back of the small shopping plaza.“I’ll give you a ride.”

Though he is disappointed that he won’t be spending the night with his friends, Carl

follows Chainsmoke to his car. On the ride to his house, Carl tells Chainsmoke about Angela and

her friend, Nikki. They are his best friends. They hang out together all the time, and Carl goes

along with whatever the girls want to do. Sometimes the girls tease him a bit too much.

Sometimes it really hurts Carl’s feelings. But it’s all just playful kidding around. That’s what

friends do, right?

“I think you can make better friends, Carl...,” says Chainsmoke, driving north down Ohio

Street. “I don’t think Angela and Nikki are the kind of people you should be hanging around.”

“Why not??” asks Carl. “They’re my friends. Maybe even a little MORE. They let me

touch them sometimes. But we’re just friends for now.”

“Carl, I think they’re just messing with you...,” replies Chainsmoke. “They’re young and

stupid, and they just take you along for the ride. What do you get out of it?”



“I have fun!” responds Carl. “Angela picks me up all the time. She takes me to her house.

We go to Waterford Bar and Grill every Saturday. She lets me touch her sometimes. She said she

likes me being there cause she gets lonely. Ever since her boyfriend left, we’ve been hanging out

a lot.”

“When you go out with her, who pays for everything?” asks Chainsmoke.

“Usually me...,” replies Carl. “But that’s ok. She said since she’s using her car and her

gas all the time, I should pay.”

Chainsmoke struggles to find a way to explain the situation to Carl, but he is unsure of

how to get the message through while avoiding hurt feelings.“Carl, girls can be very...,” begins Chainsmoke. “Charming.... Girls know how to get

their way by acting a certain way sometimes.... You say Angela’s your friend.... Just make sure

she’s not taking advantage of you....”

Chainsmoke soon arrives at Carl’s house, where Carl thanks this strange new friend for

the ride. As Chainsmoke drives away, he hopes that his words will be put to good use somehow.

Perhaps Carl will think things over and make better choices from now on. At least, that is what

Chainsmoke would like to believe. Unfortunately, good advice often goes unheeded, and

unbeknownst to Chainsmoke, he and Carl would cross paths again soon.

Two weeks later finds Chainsmoke on top of Three Sheets Bar on the city’s northwest

side. This place is well known for having the police called to it several times a week. The cheap

drinks and hazy atmosphere seem to attract the city’s angriest and most belligerent of alcoholics,

where on a nightly basis, ridiculous fights erupt, and spouses carry out secret affairs. From the

two-story roof of the bar, Chainsmoke watches over the drunken wasteland below, where the

sounds and smells from inside the bar pour out onto the streets. Under the solemn mask of



Chainsmoke, Dave Joyner is thankful to have a wife who was never interested in wasting her

time with the popular bar scene environment. Years ago, Dave Joyner’s father used to come to

bars like this nightly. All of these years later, how ironic it is that Dave should find himself here

as well. And yet, draped in the color of night, behind an angry mask of dark justice, he is not the

same as his father. While his father looked on this place as a simple escape, Dave looks on this

place as a gaping wound on the body of Michigan City. The very city in which he has sworn to

make his mark. With burning eyes of disapproval, Chainsmoke stares down at the broken homes,

sleazy flings, and reckless indulgence that are represented below. Just then, a young woman is

pulling her husband out of the bar and to the small parking lot behind the building. Tears flowdown the young woman’s cheek as a simple “How could you?” is muttered through shaky lips.

As the woman’s heart is broken, so is the pride of her husband, whose night out with another was

just ruined for all to see. As the man pushes his caring wife hard into a dumpster, the man is

descended on by a black monster from above. The smell of alcohol on the man’s breath and

sweet perfume on the man’s clothes fuel the anger which drives the dark creature as he pummels

the man repeatedly across the face. The man is beaten and left in pain. A mere ten feet away, a

heart is still broken, as the dark figure knows he can only do so much. After helping the young

woman back onto her feet, Chainsmoke is gone just as soon as he had appeared. Returning to his

car, parked in an empty lot a few blocks away, Chainsmoke is about to leave the area, when he

notices a man being chased down Wabash Street by another man. Chainsmoke waits in the

darkness by his car for the two men to come nearer, and once within visible distance,

Chainsmoke recognizes one of the men. The young man being chased is none other than Carl

Ferguson. Running to meet the men, Chainsmoke intervenes and learns that the man chasing Carl

is Angela’s mother’s boyfriend. The man explains how he and Angela’s mother had come home



from the bar, only to find Carl staring through the windows of the house. This hadn’t been the

first time, either. The man had told Carl that he needed to stop acting like a stalker, and tonight,

he decided he should teach Carl a lesson.

“I’ll take it from here,” says Chainsmoke. The man turns around and begins walking

home, while Chainsmoke tells Carl to get into his car. Here, Carl explains his side of the story.

“Angela promised she’d pick me up tonight,” says Carl as he scratches his nose. “She

said it would be around eight for sure. I waited outside for her. I always sit on the back porch,

and she parks in the street to pick me up. She never came tonight, so I walked to her house. Her

car was parked right out in front. Yeah, she was home. I don’t know what she was doing in there.I kept knocking on all the doors, but she never came out. I was looking in the windows, cause

she was home. I don’t know what she was doing in there. She promised she’d pick me up around

eight. I didn’t see her anywhere in the house. Angela’s mom and her boyfriend came home, and

that guy told me to leave, but I wanted to see Angela. I told him she promised to pick me up

around eight, and I knew she was home, cause her car was outside. Her mom’s boyfriend chased

me all the way here. I don’t know what Angela was doing in the house. She was definitely late

picking me up.”

“Carl, you can’t be looking in people’s windows...,” says Chainsmoke. “That’s gonna get

you in trouble.”

“I knew Angela was home though,” replies Carl. “I wanted to see what she was doing,

cause she was supposed to pick me up around eight. Yeah, my friend called me and asked if I

was hanging out with everyone tonight, but I told him Angela was gonna pick me up around

eight, so I couldn’t go.”





Chainsmoke identifies the people to be Carl and Angela. Chainsmoke watches as Carl is busy

doing all sorts of chores around the house. After washing the dishes and putting them away, Carl

empties the cat litter and takes the trash bag outside. Carl goes back inside and begins collecting

clothes from all over the place and putting them in a hamper. All the while, Angela simply

relaxes as she instructs Carl on what to do next. Once he has seen enough, Chainsmoke simply

shakes his head and puts his car back in drive, leaving the seemingly hopeless sight behind him.

That Saturday night, Waterford Bar and Grill is found to be performing its usual weekend

business. The dining area is full, the dance floor is packed, and the line at the bar reaches all the

way back to the pool tables. A live band is performing some older rock songs on stage, making ita bit difficult for those inside to hear their conversations. Many of the people who come here are

regulars, but there’s always a new face or two to be found. One such face can be found tonight

standing against the wall of the cozy, main room. With short black hair and sporting a small pair

of sunglasses, the man is sipping a cup of water as he stares out over the crowd. Dave Joyner

hates bars, and the fact that he has come here tonight wreaks with an irony that is not lost on him.

He has not come here for the alcohol, the women, or the music. He has come here to keep his eye

on Carl and Angela, who are currently dancing in the crowd. Remaining inconspicuous to the

people in the bar, Dave watches as Carl playfully smacks Angela on her backside a few times as

she dances quite close to Carl. When the band takes a break from playing, Carl goes to the bar

and buys two drinks. As he carries the drinks back to his and Angela’s table, he finds that

another young man has made Angela’s acquaintance. The man is sitting awfully close to Angela,

as the words he whispers in her ear elicit a smile and giggles from the girl. As the man places his

arm around Angela’s back, Carl becomes upset, asking who the man is. Angela stands up from

her seat and points towards the door, instructing Carl to go wait outside. Humiliated and





or could one day be more than just friends. With Carl’s gullible mind, this would easily explain

why he has placed the girl on such a pedestal. Carl is being taken advantage of by someone who

is in actuality a fraud, and the consensus by everyone here is that Carl should stay away from

Angela, as well as their mutual friend, Nikki.

When Carl arrives home a while later, he is met with an intervention led by Chainsmoke

and Mrs. Ferguson. Along with Carl’s sister, they all tell Carl that it would be in his best interest

if he would cut off his ties to Angela and Nikki. After the upsetting night Carl just had with

Angela, he quickly agrees, and he makes the decision to no longer be friends with Angela. Much

to everyone’s relief, Carl calls Angela right there and then, informing her that he never wants tospeak to her again. Having reached a conclusion to this problem, Chainsmoke says goodnight to

the family and leaves their presence. On his drive through the city, Chainsmoke sincerely hopes

that Carl will remember this night and the decision he has boldly made. For some reason, the

weak are always picked on by the stronger and more cunning. While having good intentions,

Carl ultimately made a fool of himself by becoming so close to a person who simply knew how

to manipulate the gullibility of her friend’s mind. Bullies come in many forms. Chainsmoke is

hopeful that tonight, Carl has faced his bully and won.

Days later, Dave Joyner is on patrol as a security guard at Marquette Mall, where he once

again finds that his advice to Carl went ignored. Noticing a familiar face in the mall’s music

store, Dave finds Carl, Angela, and Nikki looking at movies and music. When they are finished,

it is Carl who is left paying for the items purchased. Afterwards, Dave follows the group as they

visit several clothing stores, where Carl buys the girls whatever they desire. Having grown

frustrated with Carl’s undivided attachment to his unworthy friend, Dave feels that it would be

best if he just give up on the situation and let Carl live his own life.



A few weeks later finds Michigan City covered in a thick blanket of snow. The heavy

snowfall that occurred over the last two days has left the city buried under nearly three feet of

bright snow. As Dave Joyner reads the front page of the morning newspaper, he finds that there

are many articles dealing with the extremely cold and inconvenient weather. Coming to page two

of the paper, Dave locates something of more interest than stories of the city’s snow problems. A

missing person report listed among the police briefs states that Carl Ferguson has been missing

for almost three days now. How awkward, thinks Dave to himself, that he should come upon that

name once again. Why would somebody like Carl Ferguson go missing? This is a question that

runs through Dave’s thoughts for the remainder of the day. That night, with the question still onhis mind, Dave dresses in the garbs of Chainsmoke and returns to Michigan City, and to the

home of Mrs. Ferguson. Through tears of frustration of not knowing what has happened to her

son, Mrs. Ferguson explains that the last time she talked to Carl, he had told her that Angela was

going to be picking him up soon. Mrs. Ferguson told her son that it might not be a good idea,

considering the snow that had already begun falling in heavy amounts, but Carl would not listen.

He was insistent on seeing Angela that day, and he has not been seen since. Mrs. Ferguson had

called Angela, who informed her that she had never picked Carl up that day. Which leaves the

unanswered question: What happened to Carl?

As Chainsmoke takes everything in and filters through the details, he remembers when

Carl told him how he would wait for Angela on the back porch. If Carl was last known to be

waiting for Angela to pick him up, and she never did....

Chainsmoke walks out of the house and makes his way through the snow to the backyard.

There, by the steps leading up to the porch, Chainsmoke comes to a strange lump in the snow.

Chainsmoke stoops down and brushes the snow aside, finding just what he had expected to. Carl



Ferguson is right here, in his own backyard. Having had too much faith in his friend, Angela,

Carl waited and waited on the steps of the back porch. Angela never came, and Carl collapsed

from the severe cold of the winter storm. After all of the advice he was given, Carl had to finally

learn his lesson the hard way. He wasted his life on a friend who was never really a friend at all.

Less than a week later, the funeral for Carl Ferguson is being held on Washington Street.

As mourners gather inside to say their final farewells to the unique young man, Chainsmoke sits

atop the old, cathedral bell tower across the street. Chainsmoke watches each and every visitor

who arrives. Not surprisingly, neither Angela nor Nikki ever show their faces. It simply isn’t fair

that Angela should be able to walk away from all of this without so much as a second thought.Minutes later, at Angela’s house on Barker Avenue, Chainsmoke leaves a laminated piece of

paper under the windshield wiper of Angela’s car. When Angela comes outside later to go pick

up Nikki, she finds the paper clipping and holds it for a closer look. It is Carl Ferguson’s

obituary, taken from the city newspaper. Looking around in confusion as to who would have put

this on her car, Angela’s eyes catch the sight of something moving in a large tree across the

street. Angela’s eyes trace the edges of a black cape which lead to a shadowy figure perched in

the tree, its red, solemn eyes staring back at her. After a few seconds, Angela reaches clumsily

for the handle of her car door, before she quickly gets into her car and shuts the door. The young

woman starts her car and drives off into the night, all the while being watched by the steady eyes

of the dark being in the tree.

Returning to his territory on the rooftops of Michigan City, Chainsmoke stares out over

the streets of his hometown. And as Chainsmoke surveys the landscape of his city, he can’t help

but wonder. Why is life so intent on beating down the weak and the vulnerable? For all of the

advances that humankind has made, there is still an ugly side of human nature that has always,



and will always, be there. There are always those who prey on the naive and the innocent. Bullies

come in many different kinds. As Chainsmoke, Dave Joyner has made an oath to rid his

miserable town of bullies, no matter what form they may take. But sometimes, as was the case

with Carl Ferguson, the bully wins, leaving Dave Joyner feeling a bit vulnerable himself behind

the mask of Chainsmoke. But no matter the outcome, the war goes on. Chainsmoke did his best

to help Carl Ferguson see the light. But in the end, you can’t save the unwilling. And while you

can’t save everyone, and there will always be losses, Chainsmoke knows that the fight for justice

must always continue. Michigan City is full of those too frightened to take action against its

bullies. But for change to occur, someone simply MUST fight back and make a stand. With theweight of the city on his shoulders, Chainsmoke vows that he will do all he can to rid this city of

its demons, for the sake of the good people who abide here, as well as for the memory of those

who once did.

The End

Documents

Chainsmoke: The Best Friend, by Daniel Malik