Races 001: It's the end my friend...the only end

Savagely racing down the alley as if there were any point to my destination at this stage. I knew everything that would happen. I knew that just as well as everything that had already been. Edward was dead to me, possibly even dead dead, but he still had me curious as to how this thing would end.
A bottle rocket glanced my thigh as I turned the corner into the middle of small neighborhood testing out their fireworks for the Fourth of July on North Raleigh. The name only works in a soft Southern accent, I admit, but I still found it catchy as I hurdled the 9 year old's huddled in front of beer bottle with a lighter. Not a single one of them seemed to notice that I was even there much less apologized for the friendly fire taken recently. All this for a cat.
Slipping down the narrow gap between 945 and 947, I glance back and catch my last glimpse of Edward before a flaming dart knocks him backwards out of sight. Years of taunting for having no coordination and forgetting to buy a cup once and a group of young boys finally helps me out. Karma does exist, just ask Kent.
At the first fire escape, I was cautious, but by the second one, I had begun to focus more on my burning lungs and the burned section of my jeans when a sharp pain at the top of my head and the smell of the broken Miller bottle on the ground reached my nostrils. Almost as fascinating as the sharp blinding shouts from my scalp was how I managed to track how close I was to the ground at each passing moment by the strength of the beer smell. Three clouds chased each other shaped like cars for about 20 seconds before my vision faded for what I would find was only a 1 minute and 25 seconds.
"It's exactly how long it takes to sing the first verse of 'She Bangs' before the chorus which is just when you woke up. I watched you fall and came over inspired. Do you love Ricky Martin too? I also enjoy a mix of cotton candy and vicadin."
It was Tammy's odd sense of humor. I'm glad we all decided to do this together even if it turned out less like a marathon and more like the rush on Normandy beach. I guess that's what happens when you stray 10 miles off course the official course in hopes of winning the big prize. Even a scam to beat the system by deviating just enough to get to the checkpoints without running the full course couldn't keep us together. Everyone wants to be Black Cat. Everybody wants the glory without the pain.
It's only fair that Tammy and I sat there and watched the race end just twenty yards down an alley from the homestretch. To be fair, Champ never looked so happy to come in second in all his life. I just hope I don't have an infection from the steel ladder of the fire escape. I guess we could all be winners after all...except for Edward. His t-shirt is still smoldering to this day.