THERE WAS ALWAYS A TRIGGER

There was an astoundingly loud silence about Damian, not only was he the awkward kid in school but because he literally stood out like a sore thumb, his presence was acknowledged through non-acknowledgement. Damians peers knew he was there but didn’t like his vibe at all, this was continuously spoken about with other students and teachers alike. He had the title of “the creepy kid” and it wasn’t because he wore dark clothes, it was his energy, his energy was dark and unfamiliar to everyone around him. Damian always sat in the back of his class, even the teachers were not brave enough to ask him to move. They wanted his energy away from the rest of the class and would not dare to call or ask for a teacher/parent conference because there was no need, Damian completed all his assignments and was a spectacular student. Nobody knew why or wanted to find out what was wrong with him, not even the school counselor. Damian went to school, graduated, and nobody cared.

On a frigid winter night on November 18^th, 1993, winds were billowing as the rain tumbled along, pounding on the hospital window where 16 year old Janice had just given birth to her son, Damian. This baby was a product of rape, rape via incest. Janice had an uncle that lived with her and her father, he raped her, got her pregnant and it was a family secret. She had no idea what to do or what was happening because she lived a sheltered life, was very naïve and never had a boyfriend. Her father’s brother, her very own uncle was the one who took away her virginity. It was deplorable, she knew it was wrong and her father thought a boy from the building they lived in got her pregnant. Her father was never home, he was always at work at his graveyard shift in a Hotel as a Laundry Attendant Manager, making sure everything was clean and ready for the next day check-ins and making sure there were enough towels, bedsheets, and pillows in each room. To say the least, work was the only thing that Janice’s father was meticulous about, other than the need to check on his daughter and be vigilant about his brother raping her. Her father was not there for Damian’s birth and he did not want to know about it either, to him, Damian was a bastard child.

Janice was mentally anguished and wanted to keep Damian, she cried relentlessly as she looked out the hospital window and prayed that circumstances would be different. Seconds after the natural birth, she had a quick glimpse at the baby she knew she would never touch and never see again. The rain and wind were relentlessly howling outside and seemed to mock her every tear as she silently fermented the anger within towards her uncle and her father. She was given no choice but to give Damian up for adoption. Her father had already signed the baby away to an adoption agency after birth being that Janice was underage and he was her guardian. Damians whereabouts were unknown thereafter and the rain, thunder, and lightning tormented Janice from that day forward. Forcibly giving up her son and the constant reminder of that night, it was engraved in her memory forever. Janice would forever be overwhelmed by anger and when the rain came, it triggered the emotions of losing her son on that horrific and rainy night.

Taking the scenic route wasn’t too much of a fun idea for Damian, he always seemed to be on the road and the money he had received from his adopted parents’ inheritance was being stretched as far as it could. His adopted parents got him when he was a newborn, they were never able to have kids of their own and were older in age, so they decided in their late 40’s to adopt a child. After Damian turned 13, there was an awful pileup accident on the expressway during a major storm and his parents were killed, he was taken to live with an aunt that did not want to keep him around and treated him with disdain. At least he was monetarily safe for quite a long time to say the least due to the inheritance that he had access to when he turned 18. As he traveled along Interstate 40 he saw the dark clouds behind him rolling in and he knew that he had to stop somewhere to avoid the storm. There was an innate feeling of fear and anger that would be present when the rains came, and he was not sure why. Damian did not like to drive in the rain and knew deep inside that he had to run, to escape the rain to feel safe. It was lightly sprinkling already as he stopped at a gasoline station with bright stadium lights and felt a sense of calm as he parked his car and head into the convenience store inside. While inside the store, he used the bathroom and then went to find some goodies to purchase. All he could hear was the rain and thunder and as he turned his head towards the large windows, he saw a huge bolt of lightning that temporarily blinded him.

The blinds were slightly open when the sun started shining and woke Damian up from a deep sleep. He was in so much pain as he stood up to use the bathroom, like if he spent the night before lifting weights at the gym. As he walked towards the bathroom, he asked himself what in the world was he doing the night before. The last thing he recalled was being at a gas station and he drew a blank from that point on. Waking up in this state had happened to him before and he did not have a clue as to why. All he knew is that waking up in a different hotel occasionally was getting expensive but in comparison to sleeping in his car, it was extremely comfortable. He sat on the queen-sized bed after using the bathroom and turned on the TV. As he flipped the stations, he noticed that all television stations had headline news about the Rainy Night Killer. The most recent murder was at a gas station and when they showed an aerial view of the gas station, Damian recognized it! He calmly looked away from the television towards the bright slit of sun filled energy coming through the curtains and softly said, “I am the Rainy Night Killer.”

It was late afternoon and getting darker outside as Judd was checking each gas hose hooked onto the gas pump station. It was his job to make sure that every pump was clean and had the proper items such as windshield squeegees and paper towels. Judd was meticulous as he scrubbed and cleaned all the gas station equipment to perfection. The customers were very picky at times and although he was reaching the ripe older age of 63, he still had to work and was happy that he still had the strength. Judd looked up into the distance and above the trees he could see dark clouds rolling in, directly towards the gas station. The rumbling was getting louder and after the murder that occurred a week ago at the station, he was cautious as to look out for himself and those inside the convenience store. As the rain started to fall and the wind picked up, Judd stood still for a quick minute and heard more rumbling. As it came closer it became louder and the wind was making such a loud whooshing sound that he could not decipher where this other rumbling sound was coming from. He started to walk towards the front of the gas station where the main road was, squinting as to catch any glimpse of the noise. The rain was heavy, and the wind was angry. The headlights of a car shot right into him and like a bolt of lightning, it rammed into Judd and the impact smashed him through the windshield headfirst into the passenger seat. His head was towards the floor and cracked open, his neck snapped on impact and he was killed instantly. Damian was leaning over the driving wheel, bloodied face, eyes open. He had been driving in the rain in a catatonic state, he flew right into the gas station, hit Judd directly and rammed into a gas pump that ignited a fire which leapt into the air regardless of how much rain and wind was around. As the mangled car laid wrapped around the fiery pump, you could hear thunder clapping in the distance as if an audience applauded the disastrous event. It seemed as if the combination of rain, strong winds and fire were dancing around ferociously in unison, steadily awaiting the final explosion from the gas tanks below. As the fire engulfed the car and sparks announced a deeper and more sinister plan, Damien and Judd lay motionless while tenderly being incinerated.

Damian and Judd had never met in person, but coincidentally, rain was the trigger and while life drifted them apart, death was the connection that brought them together.