The Crucivire

Chapter One: Little Boy Lost

It was on this night that Arthur Hayes disappeared.

"I can't decide between a Letter from Missouri or The Beast of Boulder Street," said Alice.

Alice Hayes stood at the entrance of a hallway as her mother sat on the couch with her TV show paused. Alice was a typical high school girl with raven black hair adorned with pink highlights, brown eyes, freckles on her cheeks, and a healthy tan from spending a lot of time outside. She wore the bright, colorful blouse and pants that were fashionable at her school right now and had just a hint of makeup on her face.

She was nearly the spitting image of her mother. Mom was a bit plumper with quite a few more wrinkles, much plainer clothing and a distinct lack of trendy makeup or highlights. Mrs. Hayes also wore the weary look of a woman who led a busy life, though she did brighten up whenever her daughter asked for advice.

"Oh, I hear A Letter from Missouri is very good," said Mom.

"Nuh-uh," said a young voice behind Alice. "A romantic comedy over a horror movie? Horror is better, and that's a fact."

Alice, slightly annoyed, looked back to see her younger brother Arthur, a skinny kid with blonde hair and a mild scowl on his face. As he walked past his sister, she saw him bundled up in winter clothing with a backpack.

"Shows what you know," said Alice. "It's not a romantic comedy, just a romance."

"Even worse," said Arthur, grimacing as he set his backpack down to confront his sister. "At least a romantic comedy can pretend to be funny."

"As if you know anything about comedy," said Alice spitefully.

Alice and Arthur's voices began rising as they got angrier and angrier.

"I know plenty about comedy," said Arthur, offended.

"Oh, like you know about movies? Mr. 'I can't tell the difference between a romance and a romantic comedy.'"

"Both are stupid."

"You're stupid."

"That's enough!" said their mother sternly.

Alice and Arthur stopped arguing immediately, bowing their heads to avoid looking their mother in the eye.

"Can you please try to settle your disputes without bickering?" Mom demanded. "Honestly, you can treat each other so horribly sometimes. If your father were here, he'd..."

Their mother choked up for a moment, unable to finish the sentence. The room became awkwardly silent as Alice and Arthur shifted uncomfortably. Alice took a deep breath, trying to ignore the pictures in the hall behind her, where their father looked at them smiling. Some of those photos showed Dad in his military uniform, his burly physique imposing in camouflage. They didn't talk much about their father these days. It almost felt like a cheap shot to bring him up right now, but Alice knew Mom didn't mean it that way. Also, she was probably right about what Dad would have said if he were still with them.

"I'm sorry," said Mom, wiping a tear from her eye. "But my point still stands. It's okay to disagree. Lord above knows you'll probably have many disagreements for the rest of your lives, but you should be able to settle your disputes without insulting each other."

Alice and Arthur kept looking away as Mom looked back and forth between them, her eyes stern and piercing.

"It's just," said Alice. "I like romance. When you call it stupid, it sounds like you're calling me stupid."

"I never said that!" said Arthur angrily.

"Arthur," said their mother sternly. "Try again but say it gently."