[ WP ] `` I 'm telling you , there 's something not quite right about that goat . ''

`` I'm telling you, there's something not quite right about that goat'', Michael explained. Michael's been like this ever since I've known him; he is every kind of paranoid you can imagine. He's an obsessive-compulsive, agoraphobic hypochondriac with just over a dozen different disorders. He's had a hard time making friends because of it. The last time I brought him to a night-out with four of my colleagues, he swore up and down that a man was going around spiking people's drinks; including his own. Against my better judgement, I confronted that person, who turned out to be the owner of the bar. You can probably guess what happened to us immediately afterwards. 
 
 Michael is a family friend. I do n't think I would've ever had been friends with him had it been otherwise. His father passed away a year after he was born; his mother worked three jobs to support Michael through school and college. He was a normal kid for a while, or so my mother tells me, until a robber broke into his house while his mother was working. The robber tied him in the bathroom and left him in there until his mother got back from the graveyard shift. Since that point, he stayed at my place when his mother was away, but he was n't the same. Or so my mother tells me. 
 
 Michael and I have both graduated from University a year ago. He's had trouble landing a job for more than two weeks. He said it's because the jobs were n't for him; I think it was the other way around. I decided to convince him to take a trip with me up to the Highlands, to help clear his head. In many ways, I'd hoped that something will help him calm down, if only for a little bit. Maybe it's a futile attempt to fix him. I had prayed something might change in him. But when he brought up the goat, I gave up. 
 
 `` Something is just off'', Michael continued. He had started to be gripped by one particular goat, 150 yards down the field. I lost hope in the main effort in this trip. I thought to myself that hopefully, since I'd brought my DSLR and a new telephoto lens, I could've salvaged this trip into a decent photography expedition. 
 
 `` It's a goat, Michael. What could possibly be off about a goat?'' 
 
 `` Look, it's away from all the other goats!'' he exclaimed. 
 
 `` Michael, it's probably just grazing or something.'' I do n't even think that goats graze. Hell, I do n't even know what grazing is. I just needed to say something to calm him down. It was fruitless. 
 
 `` Doug, you have to believe me. It's freaking me out!'' 
 
 `` Just leave the goat alone.'' 
 
 `` Doug, ple-'' 
 
 `` Michael, I've had enough of this. I had hoped that after everything, EVERYTHING, this trip would somehow get you to make some steps towards getting over your anxiety but it's clear that even if I take you away from everything that could possibly make you anxious, you fixate on a docile animal! What's next when the goat is gone, huh? The hills have eyes?!'' I had ranted so intently that I did n't even realise that Michael had ignored me this entire time, remaining possessed by the image of some random, loner goat. A match made in heaven, if you ask me. 
 
 `` Michael, are you even listen-...'' He rushed over to my camera bag and pulled out my DSLR, attached the lens, zoomed into the 200mm maximum and took a picture of the goat, all in a single moment. I was baffled by this bout of immediacy and seeming lack of anxiety by him. Michael before would've never even dared to move my phone two inches to the right on the kitchen counter-top. 
 
 I snapped to my senses. `` Michael, we're going home now. I'm sick of this.'' I noticed that Michael was intently staring at the viewfinder on the camera. `` I hope you're proud of yourself.'' 
 
 `` Doug...'' Michael without moving his head, quiveringly whispered in my direction. His body was stunned; the only things that moved were his arms, to point the camera's viewfinder towards me. 
 
 The goat was staring straight into the camera. 
 
 
 
 -- Hey, anybody reading this; this is my first story on Writing Prompts and I've been meaning to get back into writing for a while. I'm probably a bit ( okay, very ) rusty, but any tips or writing advice would be appreciated. Also, thanks OP for the amazing writing prompt! --
