The Tom Parable: Chapter one

It was a hot morning, the day Tom walked out onto the field. As he sat and stared into the distance, people joined him on the bench. These people were mainly friends of him, except for one. A girl. A short haired, quiet, shy girl. However, Tom thought nothing of it as he talked and debated with his friends. The girl stared at him, watching his every move and started to look into the distance.

The next day, after debating with his friends over a much discussed topic, Tom noticed the short haired girl sitting on the bench, almost… waiting for him. However, she was not alone. The girl was with her friends, talking about anything that fluttered over their minds. However, Tom was not blind so he noticed little twitches of the girl's eye – towards him. Towards Tom. As he sat down, he greeted the girl and her friends and slowly pulled out his lunch. As he opened his crisps, the girl started to talk to him.

Tom was shaky as he found it difficult talking to a girl he had never met. He had no idea what to say to her – so Tom let her do most of the talking in case he messed up. The girl seemed friendly, yet she had a dark past. But Tom didn't care about her past. As long as she wouldn't harm him, he was happy.

So, Tom got closer and closer to the girl – and eventually, the girl admitted that she loved him. Tom was shocked by this and didn't know how to respond. After all, he didn't have much experience with girls – he was a fan of computer games and didn't get out often. So, Tom didn't know what to do. However, after time, he also told the girl that he loved her – she was perfect for him. Despite the event, the girl decided she did not want to date Tom. Tom understood this. However, their relationship took a downturn. Tom was somewhat immature about the situation, which confused his friends and messed up the relationship between him and the girl.

As time passed, Tom grew no wiser. The girl started to find Tom somewhat… offensive. He took nothing about her seriously and despite several arguments, did not change his ways. It wasn't long before the girl left Tom – she told him that he should grow up and learn how to treat a girl. As the girl left him, she left Tom several presents in the form of slaps. Tom was oblivious to why she left him and decided to give up on girls and concentrate on school and his friends.

Much time had passed and the girl and Tom had been getting on well, despite their past. Tom had matured, allowing them to have full conversations and be polite to each other. However, the worst was yet to come for Tom. On a long bus trip home, Tom asked the girl why she had fallen in love with him, and not another person. Tom's heart died a little when the girl replied that she had only fallen in love with him from desperation. When Tom heard this, he simply turned around and stared out of the window allowing him to think things through.

A week later, Tom discovered that the girl had been getting close to another boy. Tom's heart died a little once more, when he saw the girl with the boy holding hands. Tom took an instant dislike to the boy, who used to be one of his best friends. Despite having nothing in common and the boy being a complete imbecile, they fell in love, much to Tom's dismay.

As time progressed, the boy and the girl got closer and closer until they finally dated. It was not a long lasting relationship, mainly due to the boy having nothing in common and being a complete imbecile. Also, the boy did not take the girl seriously, constantly invading her space and performing semi-illegal acts against her. However, despite their relationship being over and done with, the boy constantly continued to invade her space and annoy the girl. While this was going on, Tom was sat in the corner constantly watching the couple and the story unfold.

Chapter two

It was a rainy summer's day when Tom walked to school. His friends and foes were indoors, occupying the large hall that took up much of the school ground. As he stumbled though groups of people, he arrived at the round table which his friends sat around. As he sat down, the rain hit against the glass windows harder and harder creating a rhythm. A ghastly rhythm. The bell rang almost drowned out by the rhythm of the rain.

Tom found his way to maths, sat down and prepared for a long, hard day. He never really liked maths, but still tried his best at it. As his teacher droned on and on, Tom found himself staring outwards to the large playing field and beyond the trees and hills surrounding it. He glanced at his watch. It read 9:32. Tom wondered how time had gone so fast considering that he had constantly been staring out into the darkness of the clouds. He didn't dare question why. The dark cloud was rolling closer, so Tom decided to stop staring out the window and concentrate on his work. Seconds after Tom made this decision, the bell rang telling everyone that the first lesson was over. Tom packed up, left the dark classroom and headed off to English.

In order to avoid the mass eruption of people in the corridors, Tom took a shortcut outside taking in the full extent of the storm that was above him. It pelted him with sharp, brutal stabs of water and attempted to force him back indoors with strong easterly winds. But Tom pushed on forwards and reached the French room – a small box in the corner of the school grounds; Dark, timeworn and foul. Tom opened the doors and was greeted by several of his friends – already waiting on a dark, timeworn and foul table. Tom presumed that it had been here several years. He sat down and waited for the teacher to arrive. Many minutes later, his teacher arrived. A tall, dark and ancient woman. As Tom reached to get his books, he felt someone – or something – staring in to him, creating a black hole in him. He looked around. He saw only a girl, which he previously loved, looking at him. Tom dismissed his paranoia and got down to work. As time passed, Tom noted that the girl was still staring at him. He didn't dare question why.

The bell rang for the second time. Tom stepped out of the room and noticed that the rain had stopped – replaced by a serene warm sunshine and rainbow. Tom walked over to the bench where he and his friends usually met. As Tom got his lunch out, he felt a prod in this arm. The girl who had been staring at him earlier had poked him to get his attention. She dragged him away, into a small alleyway between the science rooms. As they talked casually, Tom noticed the girl holding something in her pocket. He asked her what it was. She pulled it out. It was a gun. A small, diamond encrusted revolver. A very feminine gun. Tom stared at the weapon as she pointed it at his forehead and backed him against a wall. He stared at the barrel of the gun, his body shaking out of fear.

"So, Tom. This is what it is. A pistol. And I'm going to use it." She whispered.

Tom looked around for a possible escape. There was none. The girl laughed sadly and lowered the gun, pointed it at the ground, her pupils dilated as she stared at him.

"No, no. Tom, I'm not going to shoot you. As much as I would like to… I am going to take my own life. Why? Not because of love… however romantic what would be. No. I am going to take my own life because the boy I loved…" The girl choked on her words burst into tears, and lifted the gun back at him, making him flinch, but she lowered it again, her hands shaking as she stared at the ground, tears falling to the floor.
As this was happening, Tom simply stood there, pondering at this surreal scene unravelling in front of him. "Yes, I know you used to love me, but I don't want to live any longer. I want to be alone... Where no-one can hurt me. Touch me... Talk to me..." The girl gave a weak smile and put the gun to her head. "Goodbye." Before he could do anything, she pulled the trigger. Tom stood there, as silent as the world around him. People started to scream, but Tom just stood there. He could hear sirens come forever closer, people ran towards him, but Tom just stood still.

A single tear formed in his eye.

Chapter three

After many weeks of questioning by police, sadness and regret, Tom walked to the site where the girl had shot herself. He looked around the dark area and started to cry. He walked out and around the back of the alleyway, where a small area of trees had taken over. He stumbled around until he found the object he was looking for. A small, diamond encrusted revolver. He flipped it over several times, taking in the full impact of the weapon. The weapon that had killed the girl he had once loved. He picked the gun and walked away.

Tom wanted revenge. Tom wanted to take the life of the person who had forced the girl to kill herself. Tom knew where to start. The boy who had ruined his dreams. He walked across the school grounds until he arrived at the school field. A long, wide field containing the majority of the school's students. Tom walked across the field, looking into the groups of teenagers shouting at the tops of their voices, screaming at other groups of people.

At last, he found his victim. The boy was walking out of the field from the far left side. Just out of Tom's vision before Tom had turned to take in the full size of the field. He started off. Tom wanted to keep sight of the boy at all times – if Tom lost the boy, it would be game over for him. Tom watched where the boy went, who he talked to and what he did. He got around a lot. However, during his travels, Tom found a time, when on several occasions, the boy would go into an area that was usually deserted and would be the best time to shoot him.

Over the days, Tom planned his murder. The boy repeated used the shortcut at the same time – 11:50 – which allowed Tom to easily execute his plan since the area was empty. At the same time, his lust for revenge got stronger. With his plan completed and his lust for revenge reaching a critical point, Tom made his move.

It was 11:53 when the boy walked through the shortcut. The small area was deserted, just as Tom hoped it to be. Tom was hiding around the corner as the aimed his shot. The gun wouldn't make much noise, but would produce a lot of smoke. Tom had to shoot carefully. As Tom was about to pull the trigger and satisfy his lust… the boy dropped. Tom was confused. Why had he fallen? Tom hadn't pulled the trigger or at least, he didn't think he had. He moved forward just as a small figure escaped through the side of his vision. All Tom could see of the thing was its long hair and its petite body. Tom thought that the person (Tom wondered if it was indeed a person) looked much like one of Tom's long time school friends… but it couldn't be her, could it? Tom moved forward towards the body. A small knife was placed in the back of the boy. Tom noticed that the knife had a small pearl in it. This confirmed that Tom had indeed seen a girl running away.

Tom decided to run after the girl and find who she was. He ran out of the sheltered area and turned right, as the girl had. As he turned, he was blocked by several groups of people walking towards their next lesson. Tom pushed and shoved through the crowds until he got into the open. The girl was gone. Tom continued to search around but just couldn't find the girl. He decided to give up and head to the next lesson. It was a normal English lesson, but Tom just couldn't stop thinking about the girl that had killed the boy. But, to Tom's relief, his lust for revenge had been satisfied. He was now content about the balance of his life and more importantly, the universe.

Tom hunted all over the school for this girl. Checking each and every corner, corridor and room in hope of catching the girl. Despite constant searching, Tom could not find this girl. It saddened him because he wanted to thank her for curing him of his lust and depression. Tom, defeated and tired, walked to the bench containing his friends and sat down. He sighed. His friends asked him where he had been; yet he replied with silence. His friends left him alone. Tom noticed someone walk up to him out of the corner of his eye. It was a girl. A petite girl with long hair. It was the girl. He looked at her. For a few moments they stared at each other, eyes entwined in each other's. They both leaned forward and kissed. It was a long and satisfying kiss for Tom, who had never actually kissed a girl in his life. Tom continued the kiss for several minutes, taking in the full sensation of it. Finally, they broke away and stared at each other once again. They needed not say anything, as their eyes did all the talking. Tom stood up, brushed his arm and grabbed the girl's hand. She smiled. With their friends standing in complete silence at the spectacle happening in front of them, Tom and the girl left, holding hands and smiling towards the afternoon sun.