My Forbidden Fruit

I guess this is love. It’s warm, soft and comforting. Her name is Teia, a beautiful name on its own. The way it just rolls off of my tongue and echoes through my mind, sends chills down my spine. But these are good chills, I think. Welcome to my life.

I suppose I ought to introduce myself. My name is Chris Jovel. I’m sixteen and in my second last year of high school. I’m sure you’ll find me as much of a freak as everyone else does. I’m an albino. Red eyes instead of green or blue, snow white hair and skin so pale it could blind someone in broad daylight. See? I’m a freak.

But that’s not really important right now is it? No, what’s important right now is the beautiful brunette standing in front of me, Teia. The sunlight is upon her, while I hide in the shadows. Her eyes watch me, speak to me. Light brown eyes, golden specks hidden and only revealed when the light would shine in, like now.

“Are you just going to stand there like a ghost?” She smiles and starts waving her arms around imitating a ghost.

“Cool it Casper, you know what you do to me.” I laugh a little. She continues and I think her smile actually grew from my comment. She really is Casper the friendly ghost, everyone likes her. I’m the regular sort of ghost, like one from Ghostbusters. She’s a joker though, and I’m the royal family it seems. She entertains me well, so there’s no need to chop off her head just yet.

“Come on! Let’s go! Take a step,” She steps forward and grabs my hand. “Into the light of the dark!” Not only was she funny, she was poetic too. If I get the chance to, I’ll show you one of her fine pieces of literature.

We spin around joyfully as she brings me into the blinding light. I really do think I’m more of a night creature, made to live in the safety of the dark. My eyes adjust and the green summer park refreshes itself. No path, no benches, nobody but us. Okay maybe it’s not a park, but it sure looks like one. Green leaves of deciduous trees growing in small isolated areas, normally alone too.

The grass is always greener on the other side, which explains why there is no ‘other side’ of this place. This place is the epitome of beauty, no wonder Teia knew where it was. She is the human equivalent of this place, almost like they’re connected somehow. She does her writing here, all her poems are born here. She was born here. Every beginning has an end.

“Come on!” She tugs at me, leading me in a new direction. “Let’s go to the stream!” I knew I forgot to mention something!

There happens to be a quaint little stream that flows through and along this ‘park’ of ours. The water is always crystal clear, pure like Teia is. You can hear it from any point inside of the ‘park’, Teia finds it soothing. I don’t blame her either, it soothes the animal inside of me as well; it brings peace to my war torn mind.

“I’m coming! I’m coming!” She always has so much energy when she’s here, it’s unbelievable! With the amount of energy she has here, she could power Las Vegas forever. Ironically, when she’s anywhere else she’s almost dead, like an old battery. Still, here she is the energizer bunny.

The grass is soft on the soles of our feet. We took off our socks and shoes when we got here, when we got to the Garden of Eden. There is one rule however, never eat the forbidden fruit. The only thing is that there are no fruit bearing trees in this garden, so what is the forbidden fruit?

We stick our feet into the water and let the current massage our problems away. It’s so cool and refreshing, like actually falling into a pool on a hot summer day like on the Nestea commercials except you actually do. Teia reaches out and dips her hand in the crustal water and lets it rest there for a bit. We don’t talk much when we’re here, we don’t really need to. Our connection is funny like that; it almost renders speech useless, almost.

“And so it seems, that in this endless stream, lies a secret long lost to the times, and told only through the bountiful rhymes!” Her poems can’t be carried over our connection, the only use for speech here.

“God I love your rhymes, your endless poems!” I’m not exactly a poet myself, but I do write poems of my own. I am the author of the two of us, the story teller. I write short stories for the most part. At first they were short and quick, no longer than two pages, but with time and practice they grew like my mind did. They started to span out over several pages and my hand writing started to shrink as well, but the pages kept coming.

“And I’m addicted to your writing.” She turns her head to me, hair gracefully following her direction. “So I guess we’re even!” She sticks out her tongue at me playfully and sprays me with the water from her dripping hand. I wipe the water of my face and try then fail at sending it back at her.

“What was that for?” The look on her face says it all, she just wants to play. I dip my hand in the water and flick the water at her. The war starts and our weapons are our hands and the water. We’re laughing through every second of this and she never loses her grace.

The ground rumbles. We stop, something’s wrong. “Maybe it’s just an earthquake?” I say to her, hope in my heart but even I know it isn’t one.

“No. This is different. It almost feels unnatural….” Something unnatural is causing this? God I hope it doesn’t come here. I have a feeling that if it does, we’re both dead, one way or another. I pray that it isn’t some sort of demon though; I’m absolutely terrified of demons. The thought that they exist keeps me up at night, if one were to come here, we would die.

The rumbling comes to a stop, allowing us to relax again. “Hey Teia, what do you think that even was?” She looks terrified still, frozen in time. It’s haunting her. It’s transforming her. She’s as pale as I am, as pale as a ghost.

“I… I don’t know…” I inch over to her and throw my arms around her, telling her that it’s all going to be okay. I keep telling myself that too, trying to make myself believe it. But no matter how many times I tell myself and how hard I try to believe it, there’s still something inside of me that almost seems to be trying to warn me of something. It’s trying to warn me of something dark, impending doom.

“Teia, I know that this might seem like a bad time, but I want to tell you something before it’s too late.” I say. She looks up at me attentively and nods at me. It’s time. Her smile is gone, but I say it anyways. “I… I love you.”

That’s the first time I’ve ever dared to say something like that to anyone. Why, I’m not sure. I think it’s because I’m a freak. I feel like everything I touch, or love, ends up dying. I am Death’s hand. The pain that comes with it, well, let’s just say that wasn’t in the job description.

The smile slowly comes back and color starts to return to her face. She places one soft hand on my face. “And I love you.” She says. Now I understand why color returned to her face, hell, I think color is coming to mine for once. When someone tells you that they love you, for an instant, you forget about your fears and embrace the idea with every aspect of your being. It’s like being set free.

We lean in closer to each other slowly, swaying in the breeze. I feel my hand slide over her smooth face and wish for this moment, right here, to never end. I look deep into her eyes and feel hers deep inside of mine, for a moment we’re stuck there; lost within the endless boundaries that make up our souls. There’s no fear in her eyes anymore, why would she need to fear? What would she fear besides the red of my eyes? My eyes are a scar that even my own parents cannot gaze upon. But she’s different, she’s not afraid. I see trust, honesty and purity in her eyes. She’s accepted me for who I am, like no one else has.

With two fingers holding her chin up, I pull her in. My world goes black as I close my eyes simultaneously with hers. We lock lips finally, after an eternity of waiting. Her lips are so soft they’re literally driving me insane. This is love. I’m sure of it. They’re smooth and warm, warm like the feeling in my chest. The kiss is like nothing I’ve ever felt before; I’m in paradise.

We pull away smiling. Her eyes lock on me and commence to warm my soul again. The smile on her face grows and grows until it can’t grow any more. Giggles snake their way out of her mouth. She’s so incredibly happy. It’s somewhat hard to believe that one little kiss could make someone so happy, but I believe it because, well, I’m experiencing it too.

Suddenly, I get the urge to check the time. We have a nasty habit of losing track of time. “Shit we’re late! Teia! It’s noon already!” I exclaim, worrying over how much trouble we’ll be in later. We arrived here at six in the morning. A whole quarter of the day just flew by us.

She just gives me a dreamer’s look. “Chris,” she says. “Relax, it’s Sunday. Tomorrow’s Monday. We’re fine.” I have the nasty tendency to think it is Monday when we’re here on Sunday. I do it every time we come here. I let myself relax like she told me to do. But that can’t last long, now can it?

The ground starts to rumble again, sending chills down my spine. It’s much more violent than before, almost as if it’s coming closer. Out of fear I drag her to her feet (her smile and color left her in seconds) and start bringing her back to our shoes. “Come on,” I tell her, knowing that she isn’t really all there. “I don’t want to wait and find out what that is.”

In an almost hypnotized state, she nods and follows me like a zombie would if it was trying to eat my brain. “Hey, you there!” I hear someone scream, a man by the sound of it. The voice sounds rough and aggressive, coming up from behind us.

“Yes sir…” I say, trailing off by the end of the second word. He wasn’t alone when he called out to us. He’s got an army backing him up. They all must be a full head taller than me, but with much bigger builds. They’re standing in three rows. The first two are carrying guns, assault rifles by the look of them. The last row can only be seen by the fires that stretch above them. Torches.

“It’s him! The demon child!” A man from the back row yells. Demon child? Is that really what I look like? What I’ve become? That can’t be true. “He’s probably gotten one of his demon buddies to possess her!”

A snake slithers away from them. Did I bite the forbidden fruit in this Garden of Eden? Am I to pay for my sin? They say yes, but I did nothing wrong! I love her! They’re the demonic ones! They’re the possessed ones! They came here looking to murder me, an innocent, an albino, a freak.

They all start yelling simultaneously, but yelling very different things making it impossible to make out a single word. The back row disperses and begins to light fire to the Garden of Eden. They’re destroying her, not me!

“Stop it!” I yell hopelessly. They won’t listen. “This is her home! Not mine!” They continue to ignore me; do they even care about what happens to her? The yelling stops, but I still run at them without thinking. Teia is dead silent. The guns point towards me, but it seems that they aren’t pointing at me. I can smell the smoke now, the burning death.

I tackle one of the torch holders to the ground and fight with him for the torch. In my blind rage, I over power him and seize control of the torch. I shove it down his pants; he won’t have kids ever again. I brace myself for a scream, but nothing comes. Not even an expression of pain crosses his face. The world is as silent as Death, only the fires of hell can be heard.

Then, almost as if to wake me up, the guns go off. My eyes shoot closed, expecting bullets to pierce me at any moment. They never do. Confused, I open my eyes and stand up slowly. I turn around to see a sight I wish I never had. I turned around just in time to see Teia collapse to the ground. Blood seeps from her wounds and the soldiers form a straight line. They march away and the ground rumbles with their footsteps.

-Zero

485

Ever feel like you’re trapped? Like you can’t move and you’re shit out of luck? That’s how my friends and I feel right now. We came across an abandoned house out in the forest near the city. We thought it was safe enough. We were wrong. Here’s how it started.

“Hey Babe, guess what I found while I was walking my dogs.” I said into the phone. I was on the phone with my friend Barbara; no, she’s not my girlfriend. We’re just friends.

“What?” Her girly voice asked through the phone. She’s more or less a ‘girly girl’. You know all the usual stuff, being scared of spiders, rats, dust, and bad cheese. But one thing she can’t resist is an adventure into the forest. Well, nobody my age can resist that around here. We’re locked up at school all the time, life is boring inside.

“I found an old abandoned house deep in the woods, I was thinking we get some peeps and go check it out.” I replied while packing for the expedition into the unknown. I was going to go there, with or without her.

“Sure! I’ll bring bird feed for the cute little birdies that we’ll find!” She said excitedly then hung up, leaving the task of calling the others to me. It was probably best considering how she is actually. She’d probably say we were off to find the Wizard of Oz.

I thought about inviting Kerem, but he was bugging me at the time. He’s a cocky kind of guy, not really my sort of guy. Besides, if he was here, we would probably get in more trouble then we’re in. I don’t think we would have survived with him here. I couldn’t figure out who to invite, there was too many possibilities. I didn’t want too many people knowing about it, I wanted it to be a sanctuary of a sort. Suddenly, the perfect person came to mind and I immediately dialed the number.

“Fry? That you?” The voice on the other line said immediately before I even had a chance to say hello. That’s my friend Larry for you, always rushing things. They say it’s a curse that he carries, but I think it’s perfect for the house. He won’t hesitate to break in. He’s also a fairly big guy. He used to be the star quarter back of the school football team before his grades got so bad his parents forced him to quit. The team hasn’t won a game since.

“Chill dude, Babe and I are going to go check out some abandoned house I found while walking my dog. You in?” I asked, knowing the answer already. He could never turn down a little bit of fun after school, the teachers chased after him like hound dogs.

“Do you even have to ask? I’ll meet you two at the usual meeting place asap.” He said right before hanging up on me like Babe did. Babe and Larry both live right around me so it wasn’t a far walk to the meeting place. Back when we were kids we decided to make a place we could meet at that would never change. We decided on the rocky area inside of the woods, not too deep, but deep enough in to avoid most other people. It hasn’t changed since.

I finished packing and I put my shoes on. I didn’t want to bring anyone else. They do say that three’s a crowd. Besides that, we were going so far deep into the woods that we wouldn’t have time to wait for people who live farther away from us and we’re experienced explorers of the woods. It’s actually surprising that we didn’t find it before today. The only issue I saw back then was that we would be returning through the woods in the dark. I only hoped that we would leave the house before dark. With my shoes on I took off out the door.

“About time you got here!” Babe screamed at me. “I was getting so worried that you were stuck eating bad cheese!” Fun fact: She shivered when she said ‘bad cheese’. Larry started laughing a little, mostly at her. They went out about a year ago and things still haven’t really settled between them, but I figured it wouldn’t be a problem. We were just going into an abandoned house that nobody knows about and if something were to happen to us, they would never find us. Yes, I am failing common sense class.

“Let’s bounce bro. I don’t want to sit around much longer.” Larry said as he motioned to the path leaving our meeting area. “Also, I’ve got to be home by eleven, let’s hurry.” I gave a slight chuckle and motioned for them to follow me. I had hoped we would be home by ten, but we’d be lucky if we left at all at this point.

They followed me through the forest like a pack of coyotes. Occasionally Babe would complain, but we were used to it so it didn’t bug us. It took us about an hour to get here, crossing dangerous territory when the sun was setting. By the time we got here it was nearly black outside. Thank god I packed flashlights.

We got to the clearing the house is in tired and a little beaten. It was a very old path we were following. The house stood there motionless with yellow paint peeling off the fifty to a hundred year old siding. It looked like all the entrances had been boarded up and someone, or something, broke all of the boards off. It was two stories high, with what seemed to be wooden shingles. I didn’t even know they ever had wooden shingles. The windows on the second floor had been boarded up too but only one board remained. The board had red writing or something on it. We got closer to read it, but stepped back when we did.

“Does that say ‘Run now, while you still can’? Oh my god! What if it’s written in blood? I bet it is!” Babe started freaking out. It made me question whether or not we should go in, but I didn’t want to have walked all the way here for nothing. I looked at Larry and he did not seem amused by the message, nor did he look scared of it.

“Let’s see if the front door works.” He said, walking over to what we believed to be the front door. On the plus side, we were finally right about something. I turned my head to look at Babe who had started praying on her knees. Suddenly, I heard a loud bang that sounded like someone running into a wall of wood followed by Babe screaming again. I turned around to find the front door wide open. Okay, more like on the floor inside. Larry knocked it right out. There’s a reason he was a football star.

“Hey guys, check this out!” He yelled from inside the house. I took another look at the house and realized how massive it is. It looked like a small little two story house at first, but I could see the rest of it stretching out into the woods. This house was worth a lot when it was in good condition. I could feel the sun setting on us as we wandered through the door. The sun was down but there was light from a fire coming from another room. Babe looked at me and I took her hand and led her to the room thinking that it was Larry.

He was in the room, but he didn’t start the fire. Someone, something, was using the fireplace. He was just staring at it like he’d seen a ghost. “Quit playing around, Larry!” I yelled at him, hoping to knock him out of his trance. No luck, he stayed frozen in place. I got the urge to look around the room and noticed that it didn’t seem abandoned at all, actually, it looked more taken care of then my parents house. My parents are neat freaks. Something was wrong, I could feel it.

“Come on guys; let’s get out of here before we get in trouble!” Babe commanded us, but we hardly heard her. What we did hear was the slamming of a door. Both Larry and I jumped out of our trances and looked at the door that he knocked to the floor. It was back up, like it never happened. Then, like an earthquake, more slamming followed the first, like hammers hitting nails simultaneously. We were being boarded in.

Now you’re pretty much up to speed. The house became our prison. Larry tried breaking down some boards, but they seemed indestructible almost like they weren’t really real. Babe broke down and is now huddled up in the corner, hardly recognizable with all her makeup running. Larry is sitting in a lounge chair staring at the fire as if he’ll somehow understand this place by watching the fire. I, Fried Fry, haven’t moved an inch since the door slammed back into place. I can’t move.

Ever feel like you’re trapped? Like you can’t move and you’re shit out of luck? That’s how my friends and I feel right now. We don’t know how things can get any worse, or if they even can. A face forms in the fire. It’s a man with horns. Satan? I just had to open my big mouth.

“Welcome my children to my humble estate. I know what you’re thinking, and no I’m not Satan. I go by many names, but you may call me Dad.” The fires say more or less just confusing us more. Why does he call us his children? Is it some sick fantasy of his to have children? Also, why is fire talking to us? I’m only a little worried.

“Uh…Okay. Hi Dad.” I say to him, hoping that it’ll please him and he won’t kill us. That would be nice. School is looking really good right now. At least there they don’t trap you inside the building with no possible way out. Larry looks at me like I’m insane and Babe just gives me a cold stare. For the record, they don’t think of these things very much. I tend to play situations in my head all the time; I’ve seen something like this a thousand times before. Just do what it says and everything will be fine, I think.

“That’s a good boy.” It says to me and smiles, showing rows and rows of sharp teeth. “I’ll leave you and your siblings to your games now.” It says then the fire dies, leaving us in total darkness and in total silence. See? Everything worked out just fine, he didn’t kill us. I hope the other two keep their mouths shut and don’t get us all killed just because they decided to be stupid.

“It’s okay guys, he’s gone.” I tell them in the darkness. I can’t see their eyes, nor can they even see me but I can feel their cold stares on me. “What? I did what I had to so we don’t run into more trouble.” They stay silent, which is starting to creep the hell out of me.

Knock. Knock. Knock. The three of us freeze in the darkness. The knocking came from the front door. What now another Satan like guy talking to us? That sounds like a blast. Yay, it’s exactly what I wanted. You there, reader, if you could shoot me I’d get you to do it right now. I am terrified of being trapped and powerless. This place gives me the feeling that what ever is knocking will make my nightmares come to life.

“What the fuck Fry? What kind of sick joke are you playing on us?” Larry yells angrily. This isn’t good. He could beat me to a living pulp in seconds. I’m not a big guy, and I can’t fight. Thank god it’s dark in here. He can’t see me so I’m safe as long as he can’t see.

This just happens to be when the flaming face comes back, lighting up the room. “It wasn’t me! I swear!” I yell, trying to protect my innocence from his fists. The face just looks at me and starts laughing. It has such an eerie laugh it sends chills down my back. I’m positive it’s Satan. I look at Larry and realize he’s back in his trance. Something about the fire just traps him inside, poor guy.

“Oh, I’m sorry about that my children. I forgot to tell you that I was having guests over.” It says, spitting fire all over the floor. I notice that Babe is oddly quiet, but right before I go to look at her the knocking starts again. “Well aren’t you going to let our guests in, my child?”

I nod at the fire, terrified as I can be. Seeing him, I really do not want to see his friends. They’re probably demons with hats for fucks sake. I slowly walk over to the front door and turn the knob that wouldn’t budge before and it turns without any resistance. I pull the door open and see who was knocking. Correction: what was knocking.

The lights in the house all turn on at once and for a moment I’m blinded, but I know what stands in front of me. They’re monsters, like something out of the nightmares of the world’s most evil people. They are fear itself. They have to be at least eight feet tall with arched backs. You know what they are. Werewolves.

“Well invite them in, silly child! They’ll catch a cold out there in the moonlight!” The flame face yells across the room at me. I catch a glimpse of the full moon outside. I have the most wonderful timing ever don’t I? Kill me, please. I motion them inside and they take off the top hats they were wearing. Apparently I’m going blind if I manage not to notice their top hats. Then again, I was more focusing on their large teeth and claws that could rip a human apart in mere seconds.

“Thank you.” One of them mutters. His voice sounds rough, but still mostly human. All four of them seem to be males, and I start to wonder what a female werewolf looks like. I’m surprised they can talk, yet alone say thank you to a human without tearing them to pieces first.

The largest of the four enters the room with the fireplace first and I think I can see him looking at Larry and Babe. Those two probably haven’t moved an inch. “I’ve noticed you’ve taken in three more under your wing Father.” He says. Is he seriously one of his children? The other three walk in and look at the others too. Two of them start to laugh lightly at the condition of them both.

“Indeed I have, why don’t you formally meet them? Child! Come back here! Come meet your siblings.” The face yells to me. They are his children. Does that mean we’ll become that as well? I’d much rather die than become an abomination of nature. I’d much rather die than become a monster.

I do as I am told, but start planning my escape. There’s got to be a way out of here. I’m sure I can find a way out, but not with the other two. They seem glued in place, trapped here for eternity. Their fates are sealed; I have to ensure my own survival. I have to protect my innocence. The werewolves stare at me as if sizing me up. I wonder if they’re thinking if I’ll make a good werewolf. I hope they never find out.

The largest comes up to me and offers his hand, or paw, for a handshake. “My name is Dargen Swiftclaw. It’s a pleasure to meet you, brother.” I reach out and shake his hand expecting pain, but none comes. His handshake is safe, maybe he means no harm. He smiles at me and shows a little bit of his teeth, making me doubt the whole him meaning no harm thing.

I hesitantly smile back and say, “My name is Fry Dargen. What a coincidence! My last name is the same as your first name! What are the chances?” I laugh lightly, pretending that I actually don’t mind the coincidence, that I think it’s cool. It actually just scares the crap out of me. Dargen is a name that comes from a tiny tribe of natives in the Rockies; my family is the only line left.

“Another Dargen?” The face starts laughing. “Curiosity must run in the family.” The face thinks we’re related. If it was just some guy, I’d think he’s crazy, but it’s a face that comes out of a fire. I don’t know about you, but that’s some pretty freaky shit around here. The closest thing to magic we have around here is electricity.

“Anyways,” The face says, “it’s about time they join your ranks General Swiftclaw. Him first.” The first thing that comes to mind is running. It sounds like some sort of army he’s building. I am not a fighter. I need to go. Now.

“Very well Father. Come my brother, it’s about time you learn what this family is all about.” He puts his massive hand on my shoulder and starts to guide me to the stairs in the room next to ours. I think I understand why my dog was barking at this place earlier. I know you can’t do anything but please, save me.

“Actually,” I start saying, “I’ve got to get home. Maybe tomorrow?” I duck, getting his hand off my shoulder and bolt for the door. I hear him and the others start laughing, Babe and Larry included. I turn the doorknob and open the door. I’m about to get out when something grabs me on the shoulder and I feel claws dig into me. I scream in pain.

“Show me what you can do, brother.” The werewolf says. I know what he wants. I know what they all want. I feel the rage build up inside of me and my blood rushing through my body. My vision blurs and my muscles tense up.

“Let go of me.” I order the werewolf to do. He doesn’t listen. He just laughs, but not for long because in seconds my arm collides with his stomach with enough force to kill a small village. He collapses to the ground, not dead, but almost dead. I feel the fur sprout from me and spread like wildfire. I roar, shaking the house. Suddenly, I’m hungry.

“That’s a good child.” The face says. “I bet you’re hungry, don’t worry. We have snacks for you.” A trail of flame forms towards Babe and Larry. I feel myself try to pull away, but I’ve lost control.

I stand over the lounge chair and bring one of my claws to Larry’s hypnotized body, specifically the neck. I haven’t killed in so long; I thought I’d start off simple. I slit his throat and drink the blood that comes seeping out. Babe starts screaming and it immediately annoys me to the point that Larry’s blood just isn’t enough. I take a bite out of his neck and swallow it. He’s just the appetizer, she’s the main course.

-Zero