If I was ever a writer, this is proof.
Despite the scorching sun beating down on his back Valius kept a constant pace as he crossed the rather unpopulated desert.
‘I never thought just how vast this damn thing was back in high school…” He thought to himself as he looked at the miles that lay before him from under his brown hooded sweater. It barely carried the color it once had when he first obtained it, but it was now one of his only possessions and he was not about to let it go, even more it provided ample cover from the deadly sun on his little voyage across the barren wastes.
He had been traveling for days it seemed, sleeping some at night and walking the whole day, he could barely tell how many days he had been walking, it was a good thing he still had his cell phone handy. Flipping it out he took a look at the time.
“3 o’clock.” He smiled as he pushed a button and pulled up his navigator. He thanked god every day for the fact that someone had kept the global navigation systems up and running, without it, he’d probably be going in circles. He at least knew he was keeping a steady southerly course, sadly the thing no longer had any reception as far as communication went. “Piece of shit…” he said as he cut it off and flipped it closed.
The sweat poured down his head as began dragging his feet again. His hoodie was drenched, he had no idea how he was still able to sweat so much, much less where it was coming from, nonetheless, he was aware his body was shutting down, his lips were beginning to cool and the sweat felt like it was drying as he fell to his knees bracing himself on his hands as he fell forward. “Fuck, not again.” He muttered as he coughed, blood falling to the dirt as his body cast a shadow over a lone scorpion, making its way across the scorched earth. “How do you like that shade little buddy?” He coughed as his face grew numb. “Won’t last for long but I’ll hook you up for a second.” Not a second after he finished he fell on his side then rolled to his back, his face still cool despite its full exposure to the full blast of the sun. “Shit, it’s happening quicker this time…” He thought as he closed his eyes and put his hands over his face. “Man… when I get to Tijuana I’m finding a canteen.” He muttered with the last of his breath, all went dark and he was left to dream.
Several Months Earlier
The campfire on the beach was smoldering, making trails into the night sky as the group packed up their belongings carrying their things to their cars. Valius had a full sized cooler on one shoulder and a twelve pack of soda in his other hand as he walked toward his hand me down black SUV. “Hey buddy, let me get that for ya.” He heard as he approached the back hatch. “Thanks, Miles….” He smiled as he opened his trunk for him.
He tossed the cooler into the back of the vehicle, right on top of the tire iron, the car jack, misplaced CD’s, night blankets, cups he hadn’t brought in to be washed, football jerseys that stunk of sweat, and an old apple, an apple that for some reason unknown to him or anyone that had rode in his truck that had never molded, or produced any odd odors. The cooler fit perfectly atop them, cocked slightly to the left of the truck it wedged perfectly in the back preventing it from moving anywhere, and the twelve pack fit perfectly right beside it.
“A place for everything…” Valius started smacking his hands together he used to signify he was finished with something. “and everything in it’s place.” Miles finished as he closed the trunk resolutely mimicking Valius motion. They both took a seat on the back of his truck. Valius let out a sigh as he sat looking at the reflection of the moon in the river before them, he caught a glimpse of two of his other friends down in the water sharing what would have been to any person participating in the event a very romantic kiss, however since the two people involved weren’t Valius and his long time friend Aleksandra, but Michael and Aleksandra, the very sight seemed to ruin a rather perfect view of the moon.
Miles saw the look on his friends face at the sight and reacted accordingly.
“You know what they say man, ‘Sometimes you get the girl, and sometimes the girl gets you’” He finished patting his hand on Valius’ chest where his bleeding heart should be. Valius looked away as he stood up, walking right into Clint. “Hey, watch it there, it’s pretty dark out here…” He had started to make a joke in reference to Valius’ skin tone but stopped once he saw miles frantically waving his hands and shaking his head in silent protest. Valius shook his head in anger walking past him opening the door to his truck. “Could you tell the princess, whenever she’s done swapping spit with our opportunistic friend down there, I’d like to get home before curfew, and you might add how it’s at least an hour past her own.” He slammed the door like the hurt pup he was.
“Alex?” Clint asked as he walked up to Miles the two walking towards the lands edge, the area right before it cut off and dropped down to the beach some 5 feet below. They stopped there, bare feet in the grass, toes hanging over dangling in the air as they looked down at the smoldering fire trying not to look directly at the couple making out in the water. “It’s always Alex.” Miles replied back. “Has been ever since she came into the picture hasn’t it?”
“Yeah, but he takes it harder don’t you think? I mean we all wanted her as more than a friend, and none of us got quite like him when Mike ended up getting her.” He shook his head, knowing the futility of the argument. “Yeah, but he was the one that was there for her through all of the bullshit, the one that didn’t mind dealing with her and all the little pieces.” Miles finished.
“Yeah, and that’s a lot of pieces, from freshman year till now as seniors, you think you’d cut your feet from walking around the girl. Hell, what am I talking about he still is.”
“A little help please?” Clint felt a tug on his foot and saw the pale white moonlight illuminate Aleksandra’s cold gothic face. It was mysterious and beautiful to anyone who gazed upon it, thusly most of her friends knew not to look at her too much lest they fall under the spell she seemed to put on them.
Clint reached down with his large paw of a hand and grabbed Alex by hers acting as an anchor as she scaled the wall of earth that separated them. Meanwhile Miles helped Michael do the same; once up top Alex looked around as if perplexed as to someone’s whereabouts. “Where’s Valius?” She asked smiling her pixie-like oblivious smile.
“He’s been waiting for you in his truck for the past 10 minutes.” Miles answered walking from Mike after helping him up. “You know just because it’s summer doesn’t mean you don’t have a curfew…” Her eyes grew wide as she pulled out her cell phone which was quite conveniently on silent.
“Shit, it’s midnight.” She exclaimed as she ran up giving Mike a goodnight kiss in front of the group.
“Get a room!” Miles laughed walking away only to see Valius staring away from them in the dark. “Ok buddy, that shit always scares me.” He said. Valius was notorious for doing off the wall things to weird out and scare his friends, things like waiting outside of rooms, acting dead on the floor till they walked past, and standing over sleeping people at random just to get them when they woke up. Always a jokester, Miles was glad to see his best friend feeling playful again. “Not your best, but a good effort, I give it an C, same thing you’re getting in Chem Lab isn’t it?” He joked, but Valius’ only reply was a raised hand demanding silence. One by one everyone gathered around Valius who was looking toward the road back into town totally silent, and one by one they each heard it, a very low hum then in a thunderous calamity, the sky itself turned red for a second then reverted back to black, it occurred three times then quit. They all were left standing trying to figure out a logical explanation for what had just occurred.
“That couldn’t have been a firework could it?” Valius asked as the humming stopped and the sky began to be filled once again with the pyrotechnics that were such commonplace on this night. “I guess it was…” He finished as the sky was set alight. “I need to get home.” He said turning back to his friends. He bid adieu to each one making his promises of seeing them during the week and keeping in touch over the summer despite knowing that the next week he would be starting three a days for football and would be less than able to do anything with any of them. With that the group disbanded and walked to their vehicles parked along the path, climbed in and headed to their destinations.
“I’m sorry I took so long Valius.” Alex said as the truck bounced in the mudholes tossing the two in their seats. “It’s not that big of a deal.” Valius said, his eyes focused hard on the road. “But it’s just, I know you don’t like Mike and…”
“Don’t.” Valius cut her short, and did the same each time she tried to explain herself, he didn’t want to think about it, and he sure as hell didn’t want to hear it, and thusly so the ride home was filled with only the chatter of 90’s pop on his cd player.
As always he had her home with just enough time to make it home for his own curfew he thought as he looked down at the clock as she got out. “I’ll see you.” She said, as she always did when he dropped her off, he didn’t expect any more, she had never given him a reason to. “Yeah, later, thanks for coming.” He said as she pushed the door shut and he waited as she walked up to her door making sure she got in alright. Once she was in and he saw the light in her room in the corner of the house come on, on he made his own way home, the smell of hickory firewood on his brown hoodie, and sand in his shoes between his toes. All in all it had been a good night, and he was ready to get home and take a well deserved rest.
And just like always when he arrived, no one was up to greet him, all the lights were off and for the reason of being so tired he didn’t even bother taking in the campfire supplies he had packed earlier. “Fuck it.” He thought as he walked in, and headed back to his room. The house was filled with the sound of snoring, all three members, his mother, father, and sister in a deep slumber as he headed back to his room. It was really better this way anyway, he’d rather not have to deal with telling them about his night and what all had happened anyway, it wasn’t like they really cared, and it wasn’t like he was really interested in telling them about the whole lot of nothing that occurred.
Thusly Valius stripped down to his boxers and fell across his twin bed, his body tired and his lungs caked with sweet hickory smoke. He smiled as he thought of the uneventful night, and delighted at his uneventful day, and felt like crying as he thought of his uneventful life. “Fucking fourth of July, and a senior and still my life is nothing but a big pile of nothing. No girl, and no real social life, god it sucks to be me.” He thought, but then he pondered on his friend that he thought of whenever he got down about his own life. “But at least it’s not that bad.” He thought as he frowned a little.
It was a dirty way to keep himself feeling ok with having a mediocre life, but his friend Brandon, had an even worse life than him. He rarely seemed to be allowed to leave his house, and as far as they all knew he had not even once in his whole life even touched a girl, in such comparison it was only believable that Valius had it pretty good, no matter how bad it was. He thought of the poor fellow as he closed his eyes and how he wasn’t even allowed to go to the bonfire they had at the beach that night. “Man I hope he’s doing ok.” He thought as drifted off to sleep.
Valius was awakened by the familiar vibration of his phone still in the pocket of his hoodie beside him. Groggily he pulled from his slumber wiping the drool from the side of his mouth as he always did in the morning, just a casualty of sleeping on his stomach, he thought as he sat up, the phone still vibrating beside him, lethargically he reached into it pulling the thing out, flipping it open he saw he had missed 24 calls.
“What the hell…” He muttered as he looked at them all, and to his temporary happiness they were all from Alex, but as reality set in he began to wonder what exactly had happened that she had needed to call him 24 times. Had that ass Michael cheated on her or something, or was it possible they had broken up? A million things ran through his head as the phone began to ring as he called her, then after the first ring someone picked up, and in a tone as dreary as a rainy day and as deep as the deepest well came an answer.
“Valius, I presume, why don’t you just lay back down and try and sleep through this, there isn’t anything for you to do here.” Valius nearly dropped the phone at the sound of the voice, he had never heard anything sound so naturally dark, and then in the background he heard her scream his name. His hand trembled as he called back to her.
“Aleksandra!” He still trembled as he called to her. “Who the hell is this?!” He yelled into the phone.
“Be careful boy, you keep yelling like that you might wake something you don’t want wakin’” It replied, his caution seeming more of a forewarning than a demand, Valius was already pulling on his hoodie and slipping on a pair of jeans when he looked at the clock. “Yeah, twelve noon, kinda strange no one’s woke you up isn’t it?” He said as he walked through is sisters room stopping, realizing that this person had some idea of what he was doing.
“Where are you?” He said pausing as he looked around the partially dark room.
“I’m at her house…” He said adding emphasis on the I’m, perhaps insinuating something Valius was beginning to fear. “Who’s here?!” He shouted through the house, nothing returning but his own voice. He hated how these walls could echo his voice when there was no life within them. Now however this effect began to scare him, so much so that Aleksandra was growing further from his mind.
“Valius, I’m still here.” Came the voice to his ear. “But let me assure you, you’re not alone.” Confirmation came in the form of two eyes peering at him from the shadows of the hall leading to the kitchen, a corridor that was absent of light due the dark day outside, further aided by the lack of light in the house. The two eyes shined red as they peered at Valius, and try as he might he could come up with no logic to explain the phenomena happening around him. “They’re not friendly.” The voice chuckled as it hung up on its end.
Valius closed his phone and tucked it away as he backed away toward the front of the house, toward the nearest exit. His mind was on his missing family, his mind was on his friends, and most of all his mind was on the front door, not thirty feet away and the pair of car keys that lay beside it “Francesca.” He called out with no response, the eyes moving toward him still, the shadow seemingly moving with them. “Mother!” He called out stepping into the living room, his sisters room now encompassed with darkness seemingly aiding these eyes shifting toward him in the darkness. “Dad!” He yelled out as if trying to call through the darkness, his hands grabbing the keys as he pushed the door open and got out of the house, closing the door behind him. He wind sprinted to his truck out front of the house and ripped the door open, getting into his truck, closing the door and locking it in one swift motion that took less than a second. His heart beat heavy as he scoured the truck looking for anything that might be hiding inside, to his relief he found no one.
Panting he settled in his seat looking up and down the street, everything seemed normal to him, the streets weren’t barren like some mass exodus had occurred, and fire wasn’t raining from the heavens, it was just fairly cloudy, a storm obviously was on the horizon, everything seemed normal, except the total inactivity everywhere. It was a Saturday morning in the dead of July and no one was cutting grass, no children were outside playing, and not a car was on the streets.
He had to gather these thoughts in his head, he thought as he beat his head on his steering wheel. He tried calling everyone he knew, Miles, Clint, Alex, Brandon, his barber, relatives, even Mike, but no one answered, the phone just rang and rang. His family was missing, the roads were empty, and no one was in sight. He trembled, unsure of what to do next, then amongst the insecurity of things he looked up and around once more, and things seemingly were unchanged, save the fact that each house on the street now, had their windows cracked. Red eyes now peered at him from every home, and the silence was broken by the blowing wind, and despite being inside his truck the whistling it made in the trees, and on the crevices of his truck, chilled him to his bones.
“They’re everywhere…” He muttered, his feeling of isolation growing as he shrunk in his seat, nowhere he could move did the eyes not follow, for they all focused on him, unmoving and unblinking they looked on as he reached down and turned on the radio, and it was there he heard the music. That haunting piano that had once been so comforting to him, that once he played as a melody to put him asleep, now inspired fear. “The Moonlight Sonata..” He muttered as he changed the station, once again, it was all that played, and again and again and again. “Every goddamn station?!” He screamed at the top of his lungs beating the wheel of his truck in frustration. “What the hell is this?” He panted as he beat the wheel, tears forming in his eyes. “Where is everyone? What do I do. I don’t know what to do…” He wept as he leaned forward on the wheel.
He cried for a while it seemed as he waited hoping someone would try and reach him, but nothing came, and the sonata had played at least 10 fold now, always repeating. It was making him sick, thusly he turned the radio off and slid in a cd he had made at home. Thumping base filled the space of the car as he sat back up, his body feeling a little bit more invigorated as the first lines came yelling out from the speakers, he sung along like he always did, like all his friends did when they rode together.
“Dead I am the sky, watching angels cry…” He pounded his fists in therapeutic anger as he matched the beat of the song, and little by little his fear seeped away. A snarl grew on his face as he thought of Aleksandra, and the fear she must still be feeling. This town seemed to be different now, and there wasn’t much he could do about that, but there was at least one person out there that still seemed familiar to him, and he had to get to her, if anything to at least let himself know he tried, and with the resolution that can only be brought about by blind mindless friendship, and a fearlessness that could only be inspired by Rob Zombie, he started up that truck and made his way toward her, all eyes on him.
‘I never thought just how vast this damn thing was back in high school…” He thought to himself as he looked at the miles that lay before him from under his brown hooded sweater. It barely carried the color it once had when he first obtained it, but it was now one of his only possessions and he was not about to let it go, even more it provided ample cover from the deadly sun on his little voyage across the barren wastes.
He had been traveling for days it seemed, sleeping some at night and walking the whole day, he could barely tell how many days he had been walking, it was a good thing he still had his cell phone handy. Flipping it out he took a look at the time.
“3 o’clock.” He smiled as he pushed a button and pulled up his navigator. He thanked god every day for the fact that someone had kept the global navigation systems up and running, without it, he’d probably be going in circles. He at least knew he was keeping a steady southerly course, sadly the thing no longer had any reception as far as communication went. “Piece of shit…” he said as he cut it off and flipped it closed.
The sweat poured down his head as began dragging his feet again. His hoodie was drenched, he had no idea how he was still able to sweat so much, much less where it was coming from, nonetheless, he was aware his body was shutting down, his lips were beginning to cool and the sweat felt like it was drying as he fell to his knees bracing himself on his hands as he fell forward. “Fuck, not again.” He muttered as he coughed, blood falling to the dirt as his body cast a shadow over a lone scorpion, making its way across the scorched earth. “How do you like that shade little buddy?” He coughed as his face grew numb. “Won’t last for long but I’ll hook you up for a second.” Not a second after he finished he fell on his side then rolled to his back, his face still cool despite its full exposure to the full blast of the sun. “Shit, it’s happening quicker this time…” He thought as he closed his eyes and put his hands over his face. “Man… when I get to Tijuana I’m finding a canteen.” He muttered with the last of his breath, all went dark and he was left to dream.
Several Months Earlier
The campfire on the beach was smoldering, making trails into the night sky as the group packed up their belongings carrying their things to their cars. Valius had a full sized cooler on one shoulder and a twelve pack of soda in his other hand as he walked toward his hand me down black SUV. “Hey buddy, let me get that for ya.” He heard as he approached the back hatch. “Thanks, Miles….” He smiled as he opened his trunk for him.
He tossed the cooler into the back of the vehicle, right on top of the tire iron, the car jack, misplaced CD’s, night blankets, cups he hadn’t brought in to be washed, football jerseys that stunk of sweat, and an old apple, an apple that for some reason unknown to him or anyone that had rode in his truck that had never molded, or produced any odd odors. The cooler fit perfectly atop them, cocked slightly to the left of the truck it wedged perfectly in the back preventing it from moving anywhere, and the twelve pack fit perfectly right beside it.
“A place for everything…” Valius started smacking his hands together he used to signify he was finished with something. “and everything in it’s place.” Miles finished as he closed the trunk resolutely mimicking Valius motion. They both took a seat on the back of his truck. Valius let out a sigh as he sat looking at the reflection of the moon in the river before them, he caught a glimpse of two of his other friends down in the water sharing what would have been to any person participating in the event a very romantic kiss, however since the two people involved weren’t Valius and his long time friend Aleksandra, but Michael and Aleksandra, the very sight seemed to ruin a rather perfect view of the moon.
Miles saw the look on his friends face at the sight and reacted accordingly.
“You know what they say man, ‘Sometimes you get the girl, and sometimes the girl gets you’” He finished patting his hand on Valius’ chest where his bleeding heart should be. Valius looked away as he stood up, walking right into Clint. “Hey, watch it there, it’s pretty dark out here…” He had started to make a joke in reference to Valius’ skin tone but stopped once he saw miles frantically waving his hands and shaking his head in silent protest. Valius shook his head in anger walking past him opening the door to his truck. “Could you tell the princess, whenever she’s done swapping spit with our opportunistic friend down there, I’d like to get home before curfew, and you might add how it’s at least an hour past her own.” He slammed the door like the hurt pup he was.
“Alex?” Clint asked as he walked up to Miles the two walking towards the lands edge, the area right before it cut off and dropped down to the beach some 5 feet below. They stopped there, bare feet in the grass, toes hanging over dangling in the air as they looked down at the smoldering fire trying not to look directly at the couple making out in the water. “It’s always Alex.” Miles replied back. “Has been ever since she came into the picture hasn’t it?”
“Yeah, but he takes it harder don’t you think? I mean we all wanted her as more than a friend, and none of us got quite like him when Mike ended up getting her.” He shook his head, knowing the futility of the argument. “Yeah, but he was the one that was there for her through all of the bullshit, the one that didn’t mind dealing with her and all the little pieces.” Miles finished.
“Yeah, and that’s a lot of pieces, from freshman year till now as seniors, you think you’d cut your feet from walking around the girl. Hell, what am I talking about he still is.”
“A little help please?” Clint felt a tug on his foot and saw the pale white moonlight illuminate Aleksandra’s cold gothic face. It was mysterious and beautiful to anyone who gazed upon it, thusly most of her friends knew not to look at her too much lest they fall under the spell she seemed to put on them.
Clint reached down with his large paw of a hand and grabbed Alex by hers acting as an anchor as she scaled the wall of earth that separated them. Meanwhile Miles helped Michael do the same; once up top Alex looked around as if perplexed as to someone’s whereabouts. “Where’s Valius?” She asked smiling her pixie-like oblivious smile.
“He’s been waiting for you in his truck for the past 10 minutes.” Miles answered walking from Mike after helping him up. “You know just because it’s summer doesn’t mean you don’t have a curfew…” Her eyes grew wide as she pulled out her cell phone which was quite conveniently on silent.
“Shit, it’s midnight.” She exclaimed as she ran up giving Mike a goodnight kiss in front of the group.
“Get a room!” Miles laughed walking away only to see Valius staring away from them in the dark. “Ok buddy, that shit always scares me.” He said. Valius was notorious for doing off the wall things to weird out and scare his friends, things like waiting outside of rooms, acting dead on the floor till they walked past, and standing over sleeping people at random just to get them when they woke up. Always a jokester, Miles was glad to see his best friend feeling playful again. “Not your best, but a good effort, I give it an C, same thing you’re getting in Chem Lab isn’t it?” He joked, but Valius’ only reply was a raised hand demanding silence. One by one everyone gathered around Valius who was looking toward the road back into town totally silent, and one by one they each heard it, a very low hum then in a thunderous calamity, the sky itself turned red for a second then reverted back to black, it occurred three times then quit. They all were left standing trying to figure out a logical explanation for what had just occurred.
“That couldn’t have been a firework could it?” Valius asked as the humming stopped and the sky began to be filled once again with the pyrotechnics that were such commonplace on this night. “I guess it was…” He finished as the sky was set alight. “I need to get home.” He said turning back to his friends. He bid adieu to each one making his promises of seeing them during the week and keeping in touch over the summer despite knowing that the next week he would be starting three a days for football and would be less than able to do anything with any of them. With that the group disbanded and walked to their vehicles parked along the path, climbed in and headed to their destinations.
“I’m sorry I took so long Valius.” Alex said as the truck bounced in the mudholes tossing the two in their seats. “It’s not that big of a deal.” Valius said, his eyes focused hard on the road. “But it’s just, I know you don’t like Mike and…”
“Don’t.” Valius cut her short, and did the same each time she tried to explain herself, he didn’t want to think about it, and he sure as hell didn’t want to hear it, and thusly so the ride home was filled with only the chatter of 90’s pop on his cd player.
As always he had her home with just enough time to make it home for his own curfew he thought as he looked down at the clock as she got out. “I’ll see you.” She said, as she always did when he dropped her off, he didn’t expect any more, she had never given him a reason to. “Yeah, later, thanks for coming.” He said as she pushed the door shut and he waited as she walked up to her door making sure she got in alright. Once she was in and he saw the light in her room in the corner of the house come on, on he made his own way home, the smell of hickory firewood on his brown hoodie, and sand in his shoes between his toes. All in all it had been a good night, and he was ready to get home and take a well deserved rest.
And just like always when he arrived, no one was up to greet him, all the lights were off and for the reason of being so tired he didn’t even bother taking in the campfire supplies he had packed earlier. “Fuck it.” He thought as he walked in, and headed back to his room. The house was filled with the sound of snoring, all three members, his mother, father, and sister in a deep slumber as he headed back to his room. It was really better this way anyway, he’d rather not have to deal with telling them about his night and what all had happened anyway, it wasn’t like they really cared, and it wasn’t like he was really interested in telling them about the whole lot of nothing that occurred.
Thusly Valius stripped down to his boxers and fell across his twin bed, his body tired and his lungs caked with sweet hickory smoke. He smiled as he thought of the uneventful night, and delighted at his uneventful day, and felt like crying as he thought of his uneventful life. “Fucking fourth of July, and a senior and still my life is nothing but a big pile of nothing. No girl, and no real social life, god it sucks to be me.” He thought, but then he pondered on his friend that he thought of whenever he got down about his own life. “But at least it’s not that bad.” He thought as he frowned a little.
It was a dirty way to keep himself feeling ok with having a mediocre life, but his friend Brandon, had an even worse life than him. He rarely seemed to be allowed to leave his house, and as far as they all knew he had not even once in his whole life even touched a girl, in such comparison it was only believable that Valius had it pretty good, no matter how bad it was. He thought of the poor fellow as he closed his eyes and how he wasn’t even allowed to go to the bonfire they had at the beach that night. “Man I hope he’s doing ok.” He thought as drifted off to sleep.
Valius was awakened by the familiar vibration of his phone still in the pocket of his hoodie beside him. Groggily he pulled from his slumber wiping the drool from the side of his mouth as he always did in the morning, just a casualty of sleeping on his stomach, he thought as he sat up, the phone still vibrating beside him, lethargically he reached into it pulling the thing out, flipping it open he saw he had missed 24 calls.
“What the hell…” He muttered as he looked at them all, and to his temporary happiness they were all from Alex, but as reality set in he began to wonder what exactly had happened that she had needed to call him 24 times. Had that ass Michael cheated on her or something, or was it possible they had broken up? A million things ran through his head as the phone began to ring as he called her, then after the first ring someone picked up, and in a tone as dreary as a rainy day and as deep as the deepest well came an answer.
“Valius, I presume, why don’t you just lay back down and try and sleep through this, there isn’t anything for you to do here.” Valius nearly dropped the phone at the sound of the voice, he had never heard anything sound so naturally dark, and then in the background he heard her scream his name. His hand trembled as he called back to her.
“Aleksandra!” He still trembled as he called to her. “Who the hell is this?!” He yelled into the phone.
“Be careful boy, you keep yelling like that you might wake something you don’t want wakin’” It replied, his caution seeming more of a forewarning than a demand, Valius was already pulling on his hoodie and slipping on a pair of jeans when he looked at the clock. “Yeah, twelve noon, kinda strange no one’s woke you up isn’t it?” He said as he walked through is sisters room stopping, realizing that this person had some idea of what he was doing.
“Where are you?” He said pausing as he looked around the partially dark room.
“I’m at her house…” He said adding emphasis on the I’m, perhaps insinuating something Valius was beginning to fear. “Who’s here?!” He shouted through the house, nothing returning but his own voice. He hated how these walls could echo his voice when there was no life within them. Now however this effect began to scare him, so much so that Aleksandra was growing further from his mind.
“Valius, I’m still here.” Came the voice to his ear. “But let me assure you, you’re not alone.” Confirmation came in the form of two eyes peering at him from the shadows of the hall leading to the kitchen, a corridor that was absent of light due the dark day outside, further aided by the lack of light in the house. The two eyes shined red as they peered at Valius, and try as he might he could come up with no logic to explain the phenomena happening around him. “They’re not friendly.” The voice chuckled as it hung up on its end.
Valius closed his phone and tucked it away as he backed away toward the front of the house, toward the nearest exit. His mind was on his missing family, his mind was on his friends, and most of all his mind was on the front door, not thirty feet away and the pair of car keys that lay beside it “Francesca.” He called out with no response, the eyes moving toward him still, the shadow seemingly moving with them. “Mother!” He called out stepping into the living room, his sisters room now encompassed with darkness seemingly aiding these eyes shifting toward him in the darkness. “Dad!” He yelled out as if trying to call through the darkness, his hands grabbing the keys as he pushed the door open and got out of the house, closing the door behind him. He wind sprinted to his truck out front of the house and ripped the door open, getting into his truck, closing the door and locking it in one swift motion that took less than a second. His heart beat heavy as he scoured the truck looking for anything that might be hiding inside, to his relief he found no one.
Panting he settled in his seat looking up and down the street, everything seemed normal to him, the streets weren’t barren like some mass exodus had occurred, and fire wasn’t raining from the heavens, it was just fairly cloudy, a storm obviously was on the horizon, everything seemed normal, except the total inactivity everywhere. It was a Saturday morning in the dead of July and no one was cutting grass, no children were outside playing, and not a car was on the streets.
He had to gather these thoughts in his head, he thought as he beat his head on his steering wheel. He tried calling everyone he knew, Miles, Clint, Alex, Brandon, his barber, relatives, even Mike, but no one answered, the phone just rang and rang. His family was missing, the roads were empty, and no one was in sight. He trembled, unsure of what to do next, then amongst the insecurity of things he looked up and around once more, and things seemingly were unchanged, save the fact that each house on the street now, had their windows cracked. Red eyes now peered at him from every home, and the silence was broken by the blowing wind, and despite being inside his truck the whistling it made in the trees, and on the crevices of his truck, chilled him to his bones.
“They’re everywhere…” He muttered, his feeling of isolation growing as he shrunk in his seat, nowhere he could move did the eyes not follow, for they all focused on him, unmoving and unblinking they looked on as he reached down and turned on the radio, and it was there he heard the music. That haunting piano that had once been so comforting to him, that once he played as a melody to put him asleep, now inspired fear. “The Moonlight Sonata..” He muttered as he changed the station, once again, it was all that played, and again and again and again. “Every goddamn station?!” He screamed at the top of his lungs beating the wheel of his truck in frustration. “What the hell is this?” He panted as he beat the wheel, tears forming in his eyes. “Where is everyone? What do I do. I don’t know what to do…” He wept as he leaned forward on the wheel.
He cried for a while it seemed as he waited hoping someone would try and reach him, but nothing came, and the sonata had played at least 10 fold now, always repeating. It was making him sick, thusly he turned the radio off and slid in a cd he had made at home. Thumping base filled the space of the car as he sat back up, his body feeling a little bit more invigorated as the first lines came yelling out from the speakers, he sung along like he always did, like all his friends did when they rode together.
“Dead I am the sky, watching angels cry…” He pounded his fists in therapeutic anger as he matched the beat of the song, and little by little his fear seeped away. A snarl grew on his face as he thought of Aleksandra, and the fear she must still be feeling. This town seemed to be different now, and there wasn’t much he could do about that, but there was at least one person out there that still seemed familiar to him, and he had to get to her, if anything to at least let himself know he tried, and with the resolution that can only be brought about by blind mindless friendship, and a fearlessness that could only be inspired by Rob Zombie, he started up that truck and made his way toward her, all eyes on him.