The dream starts out with my father and it's his house. We are next door having a party and he walks away to get something to bring back. There's an argument of sorts about the item not being needed for the party. He storms off to his garage and peels out in his car.
As soon as everyone sees Jerry leave they start to question where he went. Although something strange happened and he was forced to return. Upon seeing his car pull back in I run over to get him to stop, only to find that he's not mad at all, he's bored and wants to go out to have some fun. Once I sense that, I get the same feeling and want to go too. We walk into the garage and it's like an entire operation going on. Cars on cars on cars inside. Exotics. Jeeps. Sports cars. We walk through one section and it's a standard garage, go through another giant door and it's a body shop type with 10 people working on a car. I walk past a giant wall of colourful doors and body panels. Something you'd see in a chop shop.
My dad grabs a hose and starts to spray someone he knows. It's a girl and she's laughing about it. He drops the hose as if he's done this a hundred times out of fun and she enjoys it too. We walk through another door and we're already downtown. He's looking for something but I can't figure out what. He hasn't spoken a word. I follow him into what looks like a mixture of a Japanese pachinko parlor, an Italian mob vibe is afoot. The street looks like that of a fair where the stores are open-air and yet are lined with rowhouses. I see someone at the door and am trying to ask how to get inside because I'm looking for my father. I am denied.
A skirmish happens in the distance (not soon after I have my own near me, I grab a pool stick and make work of the heavy end) and I run to see what's the matter. As I turn the corner a Lincoln town car, black, pulls up and politely shouts "move!" As they open fire on what looks like the porch of a row house. Everyone scatters. I see my father. He was speaking to some kid. My jealousy sets in and I begin to run over. Someone grabs me to prevent me from running straight into danger, like that guy chasing his dog into the boiling geyser. I finally shrug him off and climb up the side of a rowhouse. I see the kid but no father. I yell to get his attention and he runs off. I scale down and run after him to find myself back at the pachinko store asking if the door/stoop kid saw the other kid.
He points to long ways down the street to more row houses and I see the kid turn a corner. I make chase. I'm not sure which house the kid went to so I knock on a door and hide below by the stairs; out of sight of the door. An old woman runs out to see after she does her initial investigation. Looks down and says "uh huh trying to find someone eh?" Almost like she doesn't believe me. "come in anyway" she scoffs. As I stand up to embrace her compassion, I hear chatter across the way. I see lights coming from a similar break in the stoops much like the one I was hiding in. I thank her and quickly make my way over.
There are lights and sounds but nothing to be seen. I get closer and it gets louder and brighter. I breach the threshold and see an unsavory cat watching the door again, but he's more fucked up than paying attention. I took his inebriated state to my advantage and begin to peer about. I see my father about 20 feet into the party. I yell at him and he acknowledges me, almost as if he was waving me in.
I blatantly push through the crowded porch-like party to see him sitting with his knees to his chest but smiling. I try and grab him to go and I hear the same "move!" And gunfire starts again. Everyone scatters and runs into the pachinko parlor. I pursue him only to be stopped by the door guy again. I'm trying to explain that I need inside to find my dad. I'm playing against the guy's compassion of just letting me go so I can look. He denied me. A fool walks out and tries to start shit with me. Idk how but I grab him, flip him, and toss him into the street as if I've done it a hundred times with no effort.
The door guy sees me do that and is impressed. Frankly, I'm stunned that just happened and while watching the guy slide to a stop, another town car shows up, followed by a "move!" I'm quick to the beat this time and hide behind the open-air jewelry store counter; where it seems the display cases are backed with bulletproof plates. The jeweler is standing watching it all go down as if it were just another Tuesday, just standing there watching his merch. People screaming and running in exodus. This one goes on for much longer than the other two.
I have time to look around and see a sort of U-shape in the display cases. In that void of protection, I see a girl with a black coat and a black hat with some white lettering on it. She lifts her face in fear and it's Daega. I immediately gather my footing enough to stand and slide over to grab her while using my momentum to push us both to safety behind the display cases on the other side of the U-shape. She's calm, but scared and safe. From this angle, I can see inside the open-air pachinko and see people in uniform black suits, akin to something you'd see a syndacite wear, going inside in droves like they were shaking down the place. They are clearly looking for someone.
At this point, the door guy is either dead or gone and I give Daega one more look to ensure her safety and she gives me a look of *go*; I gather my footing and run over to investigate. I can see in the back, through a windowed door, where it's not so open to view people being gathered up. Not in a police raid style, but more gritty. I'm watching the sea of faces hoping to see my father but to no avail. I see a man with a cover on his face. Tall with medium hair escorting someone out. I think *I know that guy. He's part of the Mafia that's been shooting up the night* at this point I'm starting to think they're looking for my dad. So I go in to look around and questions as many people as I can before being noticed by the ones raiding. Eventually, I am spotted.
Another familiar face stops next to me, he looks away as if he's a bouncer at a bar looking for approval to grab me. I've seen him before but when I did it had no context. He's part of it all too. He seemingly gets approval from afar and another gentleman comes up. They both grab me by the shoulders. Flips my arms behind me. At some point, throughout the night, I grabbed a pool stick to defend myself. Well, half of one. The heavy end. That pool stick is in the pocket of my pants. I'm waiting for a moment to pull it out and fight my way out. Before I can get my hand down to it they put my arms behind my back and aggressively push me through the threshold of the windowed door I was peering through from the stoop.
As we pass through that threshold, the back of house looks something akin to what you'd see in n movies portraying a fish market. There's the remanence of panic as people are being gathered up by the Mafia. My arms hurt from them pushing them against me so hard. "I'm just looking for my father. That's it." I say trying to alleviate the situation. Without speaking or acknowledging my plea, they drop me to my knees with force. A gun is placed on the back of my head. Not as if I was being executed, but more of an interrogation as to why I'm looking for my dad so hard. I plea again "I'm just looking for my father" as I begin to contemplate how I'm going to get this pool stick out so I can beat both of them quickly enough to escape. I'm ready to pounce. The fear is subsiding and the survival calculation is setting in. I'm ready. I got this. I'm gonna find him tonight. Here I go.
Wake up
I wake up in a pool of sweat. Immediately I can't tell what was real and what wasn't. I'm shocked that I saw 3 drivebys and that I so easily beat someone into the street. I'm confused as to why they were willing to kill me when I was just looking for my dad. Was I about to try and fight my way out? Did I really think I would have made it?
Abso-fucking-lutely, I think I'm my heart. Without a single doubt, I was ready to roll. But why did they want my father? Why was he being so elusive? Why was I trying to find him so hard?
I'm relieved it wasn't real. I'm sad I couldn't find my father. I'm sad that he was being elusive. But most of all. I was sad that I got caught. Finally, I am upset it wasn't real.