Jared Buffet sat with his hands clasped together and his elbows in front of him, his back arched and his head craning to see the iPad in front of him.  A late night game of his home team was being streamed from Houston (or wherever the Rockets play).  Jared had pulled the shortest straw when he was called upon to work the graveyard shift on a saturday night, although it wasn’t like he had anything to do.  If anything, pulling the graveyard shift on this rainy saturday night meant nothing more than making more money, getting him one step closer to that Lamborghini he’d had up on his wall since he was 10.
Since he was 10…
10 year old Jared was a different person, with the same dreams.  You see, Jared had always wanted to be a car designer, or the head of a sports car company, and if he couldn’t be that, he’d be a local car mechanic.  Cars were like jigsaw puzzles, they have billions of small tiny pieces that all have their certain place, and each piece mattered.
Jared Buffet, however, did not matter.  Jared Buffet was the person you’d see in the background of a photo, the person behind you in line at the library, the person sitting next to you on a plane ride.  Jared Buffet was background noise.  Jared Buffet did not exist.
Jared had had dreams of being the CEO of Buffet, the most famous Sports Car brand in the world.  He now sat in his mid thirties working paycheck to paycheck at the local convenience store; his hands clasped together and his elbows in front of him, his back arched and his head craning to see the (used) iPad in front of him.
It was at this moment that he saw the rest of his life walk through the door.
A very familiar bell jingled as one of the double doors swung open.  In walked a man who was dressed in a white t-shirt and black dress pants.
Jared was put on the spot when the man, instead of looking around the store, walked directly for him.  Jared took his elbows off the counter and sat up in his seat, his back cracking as he straightened out.  Jared felt that the man would turn to go into one of the aisles, but the man kept coming closer and closer and closer until…
“Hey.”
(Hey?)
“Can I do anything for you?” Jared asked.
The man eyed him up, as if to see what he was dealing with.  A dim smile appeared on his face.  “No, thank you…”
The man continued to stare at him with the same light eyes and tapped head.  The awkward gaze went on for a few more seconds until Jared tried to smile back, but that idea was eventually shot down by the continued silence.  What was he supposed to say?
“Are you sure you wouldn’t--”
“Hey let me ask you something…”
More silence followed, but this statement, in contrast to the other, had an answer.
“Yeah, sure.”
“When are you gonna leave?”
Jared was taken back by this statement as well.
“I don’t know, I get off in the morning.”
“No-no-no, when are you gonna do something.”
(What?)
“What?”
“Look around.”
“...What?”
“Look,” the man turned and pointed outside, “look at the sign, at where you work.”
Jared looked where the man was pointing, “Yeah… so?”
“So when are you gonna leave?”
Jared listened to these words very closely, however he didn’t hear them.
“I don’t understand what you’re asking me.”
“Oh yeah?”
(What?)
“I’m sorry, I don’t.”
The man pulled a large silver gun out of his pocket and hit the butt on the counter face.
Jared fumbled back off his stool and hit his head while trying to press against the wall. His eyes were glued to the gun but his mind was set on his life.
“How about now?”
(What is this guy doing?  What will the front page look like tomorrow…  Local convenience store clerk is shot point blank by man dressed in white.)
“Did you hear me?”
Jared snapped out of it, “What?”
“Are you deaf?”
“What?”
“Can.  You.  Hear.  Me?”
Jared was still in shock of his current situation, the more the man said, the more confused he became.
“... Yes!”
“Then answer my question.”
Jared had completely forgotten what the Man’s question was.
“I don’t, I don’t know.”
It was a horrible thing to be under someone’s complete control.
“Exactly.  You’re a dead end, Jared, you fail to become anything more than nobody…”
(What?)
“... and look where you are now, living off of maybe a bit more than minimum wage, becoming more and more obscure in the world of somebodies.  Wake up up from your stupid fantasy that an opportunity for you to contribute will come along and slap you in the face when you’re ready for it.  Get out of your childhood, it’s not like you’ve helped anyone there either.”
Jared shut his eyes and held them tight as he heard a gunshot fly in his direction.  He wanted so bad for it to be over, he imagined the front page again, he remembered his family, and imagined their faces.
(Will I be missed?)
It was after a few seconds that nothing happened, and he began to wonder if he was already dead.  But then the strangest thing happened…
He opened his eyes.  He felt a strange mix of confusion and relief when he saw that the man was no longer there.  Instead what he saw was a sunrise outside, the rain had stopped.  He looked around for anything that might help him understand what was happening, but nothing gave him any clues.  Was he asleep?
Maybe…  But it seemed so real...
That morning, he went home from the rainy night and, instead of sleeping, started to draw cars.

The End