Short Stories (without happy end)

Callum (part. 2)

I woke up and went to make some toast and scrambled eggs for Anna and June. Jake joined me a few minutes later and poured some cereal into a bowl and gave me a brief glance. He had only been with us for two years and was just starting to get along with me. For him, it was harder than others to accept but I knew he would come out of it stronger. I poured him a glass of orange juice to show him that I knew how to be patient. He knew I understood him. I got there before he did. ''Thank you,'' he said simply. ''My pleasure''.
Anna came, followed closely by April and June. The general atmosphere was immediately more cheerful.

It was noon, I had just eaten and finished school. I did some shopping before getting on the bus, alone. I stared at the landscapes I already knew by heart while listening to one of my playlists. I found myself through the voice of Dan Reynolds. Pain, you made me you made me a believer, believer. I had suffered, yes, but pain taught me to toughen up, pain taught me to hope. To hope for something to happen, something that would awaken my soul and revive my heart. I was broken from a young age.

I got off the bus and went to put my groceries away in the kitchen. I crossed paths with Phoebe and John in the living room, they were playing a board game and laughing. I greeted my 'surrogate parents' and went out into the garden.
It had rained all night and part of the morning, so drops were sprinkled on the ground and the air was damp. I was walking towards the swings when my eyes were caught by a flash of orange. The same fox was standing at the edge of the forest watching me. He didn't back away, but he didn't come any closer. I took a few steps forward and he stayed still. He finally turned around when I was only two meters away. He started to trot at a decent pace and I followed him. He led me into the heart of the forest, to the pond where I had met him a day before. He faced me and I stopped. It was then that I saw what would change my life.
The metamorphosis took place right in front of my eyes without me being able to explain what was happening. Slowly, the silhouette of the animal grew longer and taller. The legs became longer, the ears and tail gradually disappeared and finally, the long red hair disappeared. In front of me, it was now a young girl with diaphanous skin and flaming hair who planted her gray eyes in my stare. She spoke only one word, my name. Callum. I gently raised my arm and lightly placed my fingertips on the skin of her cheek. ''Who? How? Why? You...'' I started to get confused in my words so many questions came to my mind. She began to laugh, a light laugh, like a breeze on a summer evening. ''I think that it is better to begin by the beginning, don't you think? My name is Eden. I think that you should follow me, that will be more effective than a long discussion based on the first questions which will come to your mind.'' she says in her sweetened voice.

She approached me, as if to ask for my consent, and took my hand when she saw that I did not object. She led me to the pond and began to walk along the water's edge. She turned around one last time and whispered "trust me" and then she started to enter the water with me on her heels. I didn't say anything but I started to worry when the water reached my chest. I soon realized that it was too late to turn back and held my breath when it was necessary. Eden guided me and we reached the other end of the pond. I waited until we were completely out of the water to wipe my face, but it felt like I was completely dry. Then I opened my eyes and saw the same clearing but covered with flowers of all the colors possible in the region, and lit by a radiant sun. Eden invited me to follow her and I did. She gracefully dodged the vegetation, leaving her long hair to guide me like a torch in the night. In front of us, the light became more and more powerful until it became blinding.

I slowly opened my eyes again. I was lying on the forest floor, on a pile of wet leaves, far from the pond where I had been. It was raining and drops were dripping down my body. I stood up slowly, lost, and noticed that I was holding something in my clenched fist. I opened my fingers and saw a long black feather. I slipped it into my pocket and walked back to the orphanage. Heavy black clouds covered the sky and it was completely dark.
When I arrived, I found only Anna, June and Jake, the others were away for the weekend. ''Where have you been?'' June simply asked me. ''Outside," I answered even more simply.