1. It was a scrape that he hardly noticed.

Sure, there was a

bit of blood but it was minor compared to most of the other
cuts and bruises he acquired on his adventures. There
was no way he could know that the rock that produced the
cut had alien genetic material on it that was now racing
through his bloodstream. He felt perfectly normal and
continued his adventure with no knowledge of what was
about to happen to him.

2. He walked down the steps from the train station in a bit of

a hurry knowing the secrets in the briefcase must be
secured as quickly as possible. Bounding down the steps,
he heard something behind him and quickly turned in a
panic. There was nobody there but a pair of old worn-out
shoes were placed neatly on the steps he had just come
down. Had he past them without seeing them? It didn't
seem possible. He was about to turn and be on his way
when a deep chill filled his body.

3. Hopes and dreams were dashed that day. It should have

been expected, but it still came as a shock. The warning
signs had been ignored in favor of the possibility, however
remote, that it could actually happen. That possibility had
grown from hope to an undeniable belief it must be
destiny. That was until it wasn't and the hopes and dreams
came crashing down.

4.I recently discovered I could make fudge with just

chocolate chips, sweetened condensed milk, vanilla
extract, and a thick pot on slow heat. I tried it with dark
chocolate chunks and I tried it with semi-sweet chocolate
chips. It's better with both kinds. It comes out pretty bad
with just the dark chocolate. The best add-ins are crushed
almonds and marshmallows -- what you get from that is
 Rocky Road. It takes about twenty minutes from start to
fridge, and then it takes about six months to work off the
twenty pounds you gain from eating it. All things in
moderation, friends. All things in moderation.

5. There were little things that she simply could not stand.
The sound of someone tapping their nails on the table. A
person chewing with their mouth open. Another human
imposing themselves into her space. She couldn't stand
any of these things, but none of them compared to the
number one thing she couldn't stand which topped all of
them combined.

6. They argue. While the argument seems to be different the

truth is it's always the same. Yes, the topic may be
different or the circumstances, but when all said and done,
it all came back to the same thing. They both knew it, but
neither has the courage or strength to address the
underlying issue. So they continue to argue.

7. It was going to rain. The weather forecast didn't say that,

but the steel plate in his hip did. He had learned over the
years to trust his hip over the weatherman. It was going to
rain, so he better get outside and prepare.

8. His parents continued to question him. He didn't know

what to say to them since they refused to believe the truth.
He explained again and again, and they dismissed his
explanation as a figment of his imagination. There was no
way that grandpa, who had been dead for five years,
could have told him where the treasure had been hidden.
Of course, it didn't help that grandpa was roaring with
laughter in the chair next to him as he tried to explain once
again how he'd found it.

9.Colors bounced around in her head. They mixed and

threaded themselves together. Even colors that had no
business being together. They were all one, yet distinctly
separate at the same time. How was she going to explain
this to the others?