when you were my father

isla's room

Inside it's empty and silent. Nothing seems to be wrong or altered. I make my way into my sister's room, remembering what I'm here for.

Again, it is empty. I frantically look around and find myself drawn to her desk. On it lays a stack of drawings. All beautifully detailed, seemingly drawn with delicacy and care.

I pick them up and hold them to the light, it doesn't help with looking at them it's just a sort of instinct. Looking at the wax and dye covered paper, I find myself gaping at what it shows.

The top paper paints a picture of a memory that's still fresh in my memory, since it just happened. Drawn in colored pencils and crayons, 5 ballerinas covered in blood are drawn on a bright stage, positioned like they've been swinging them around.

Below that drawing is another one. Again, it rings familiar. A dark empty beach with a simple boombox sitting in the sand alone, not plugged into anything. Speech bubbles come from the music player, reading "Kill the world... you can do it. I want to kill you in my sleep..." Just like what I heard yesterday at the beach with DJ.

I look at six drawings in all, each having actually happened in reality. I've seen all of them right before my own eyes, every one being equally strange.

I set them back on the table, my hands shaking. I have this feeling, like I'm still missing something. My eyes find a drawer in the desk. It's taped shut with blue painter's tape.

I peel off the tape and open it slowly. 4 more pieces of paper sit inside. I quickly pick the up and see what my sister's presumably drawn on the top one.

It's crazy. Paying more attention to the drawing, I notice it's the same library I just came from. Where my siblings are right now. The other drawings have already happened, this one must be about to happen. Or who knows maybe it's a coincidence, but really what are the chances? Setting the drawing back in the drawer without even looking at the others, I just forget about their existence. I limp out into the hallway and leave my house. Just praying I'll make it in time to warn them.