The Juvenile of Tile Mile

For his whole life, Jason was a rebellious "lone wolf" who always kept to himself and minded his own business. He had been dubbed the "Juvenile of Tile Mile", due to his childlike nature. Conformity was definitely not the name of his game, partly because he didn't have a game to begin with. 

Now in his forties, Jason would go back to his roots, in search of clues that could mend his cracked heart. For literal decades, nearly his entire life, he had been the joke of life itself and everyone around him. His midlife crisis was compounded by the lack of meaningful connection in his life, and not one soul seemed to care or notice his mental and spiritual decay. He was simply too... different. 

Tile Mile was a strange realm where all the buildings and structures were primarily made of ceramic tiles of varying styles, shapes, and sizes. All the homes along Tile Mile had in-ground pools illuminated with neon lighting, creating a surreal community. 

Jason just wanted to join a community where he could feel at home. However, upon returning and exploring the place, the world felt cruel and confining. 

Some areas of Tile Mile were confined within giant white walls that bordered with neighboring homes. It felt like safety and privacy, at first glance, but it also began feeling like confinement. Living in a community of limiting beliefs didn't bode well for Jason. 

Considering this, Jason continued down the road made of tile, winding through a segmented labyrinth of strange tile homes. It now all felt unfamiliar, although he had grown up here.

Eventually, the homes became few and far between, the boxed in properties becoming more scattered. After a while, the walls were completely absent. However, the homes no longer resembled traditional bungalow style houses within white tile boxes. Now, the homes were minimal white boxes made of white tiles with blue arched windows and red ceramic roofs. 

It was getting dark, so Jason found an empty home. Here, homes on Tile Mile could be claimed as a homestead simply by moving into one if it was unoccupied. Satisfied with a new open home, Jason fell asleep in a waterbed in a second floor master bedroom that overlooked a neon-lit pool outside. 

~~~~~~~

Weeks went by, and Jason felt like had finally found a home. Although he was alone, he began to feel an increasing unease that he was being watched. 

He had to go to L-Mart, a local market for groceries, every Saturday. He felt eyes watching his every move, and for no apparent reason at all, strangers began stalking him, following him home. 

The stalkers began throwing rocks at Jason's house, and the structure began to crack, damage becoming increasingly visible. This caused anxiety and stress for Jason, and he never understood the motive behind it. 

His whole goddam life had been a constant, endless effort to be his own support system. However, the Juvenile of Tile Mile, who only ever wanted meaningful connection and love with the right ones, never truly felt at home. His existence was a fragile existence, and his home cracked and broke and collapsed. 

Now homeless, Jason decided his existence wasn't worth the effort any longer. Many days later, Jason was found dead and rotting away in his pool, apparently having drowned in his own pool of misery and despair.