THE LAST DRIVE-IN

          A rumbling horde of cars and trucks turned into the Starlight


Drive-In on this solemn night. They’d grown up watching horror movies on


the gigantic screen, soaking in every gruesome sight until it was an


unspoken part of who they were. Roaring monsters and stumbling teens


glimmered beneath the twinkling stars, and the glorious smell of popcorn


and beer swirled through the cars like a summer breeze. But times had


changed and tonight would be the last night, the death of a ritual they


loved. Wal-Mart was moving in and that was a different kind of monster.


There were the usual scares, glowing like shocking nightmares in the dark.


When the movie was over, they drifted away like ghosts. But they’d


decided to come back to the place where blood and guts had flowed every


night, and show the new owners what they’d learned about fear.