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The Pattern

Mazen was only just beginning to feel his leg when they pulled into a parking lot for airplanes. He didn't know what else to call it. Normally he would have savored the experience hopping out and examining the wiring of the bigger machines. Today however he was in what his grandmother called a "tizzy." It was a bad mood in which nothing would please him or sate his frustrations.

The man and woman had let the barrier remain up for half an hour and then put it down. When he spit a giant logy in the man's ear the barrier went up again. It figured adults were always too sensitive about things. Mazen watched the cars they passed. None of them impressed him much, except the Hummer H2 he saw zip past. It had been bright yellow with super fly rims.

Mazen had amused himself with unwinding the threads on his seat. The next person that sat down would discover the damage and wish they could beat him- but he suspected he'd be out of reach by then. Obviously the adults in the front seat had no intention of keeping him or associating with him.

Mazen couldn't wait until he had a new set of people to annoy- he would be back at home in no time. Perhaps having learned a thing or two about mechanics that was basically all he cared about anyway.

A hang grasped the scruff of his neck and before he could react he had been jerked out of the car. The man was carrying him at arm's length so that he couldn't kick- his foot was still out of commission. He started shouting obscenities after all- his grandma wasn't around to hear it. He tried to pry the man's hand away from his neck. They were nearing the helicopter and he had a vision of his head getting caught in the spinning blade.

His screams grew more intense, and he finally got a finger under the man's larger finger. He pulled hard and suddenly he was falling. His leg slid under him, and he heard a loud snap. He screamed in pain and looked at his contorted leg.

"Oops," the man said unapologetically. "I forgot about your ankle being out."

Mazen hit the ground furiously. He didn't like this guy at all. He started to kick out with his other leg and then realized that some of the feet around him weren't much bigger than his own in fact some were smaller. There were children watching his tantrum. He felt a blush sweep up his face. He tried another tactic, grabbing his leg where it had cracked against the ground.

"You broke it!" he wept.

"Did not little pansy." The man said and tossed him a pair of headphones. "Have a nice life."

Mazen struggled to his foot and tested the leg, it ached but it really wasn't broken. He put the headset on, still furious to have been humiliated so utterly. He looked at the faces around him, and was glad to see the back of the man and woman that had taken him against his will from his grandparents. The only adult now was out numbered by children- probably all of them idiots. He rolled his eyes and crossed his arms defiantly.

"So, you are here, hop in." The adult said speaking into one of the other children's microphones. He didn't have one of his own.