Maps of Atwater

My name is Shelby Atwater. I find that I’m still alive after too many years of life. The last few have been spent here in this sweltering hospital bed. It’s come to my mind that I should tell the story of what happened back then. When I had some friends I mean. It’s been a long time, but suddenly I remember everything about those years with surprising clarity. I think that old woman did something to me back then that causes me to remember now. I’ve decided to write it down while I’m lying here waiting for God. Surely it won’t be too much longer. The story starts two years before my twelfth-year birthday party. I’ll do my best to keep things clear, hopefully as clear as I remember now. It all started one day when I was ten years old, riding bikes with my friends.