Parable of the Sower

It is the year 2026. Keith has returned home a few times; now it’s June, and he’s back again. He tells Lauren that he has a room in a building with some other people. Lauren knows he’s not living an honest life. While she makes food for him and their brothers, they discuss the past. They recall the time their father beat Lauren when he caught her in the bushes with someone when they were 12. She asks Keith about the outside and how he survived when he first left. Keith explains that he slept in a box, stole things, used his gun to get money and food, and then hooked up with a group he could help with his skills, including literacy. He tells her about the “paints,” people who shave off their hair, paint their skin different colors, take the drug pyro, and burn things. Keith has brought presents for the others, but not for Lauren. She expresses that she doesn’t want anything from him. Then, three weeks later, Keith comes back again and gives her birthday money.

A month after Keith’s last visit, Lauren’s parents go downtown to identify his body. Lauren’s father later tells her that Keith’s eyes and skin were burned—in this society, drug dealers brand people who steal from them or compete with them.