𝐁𝐎𝐘𝐈𝐒𝐇// 𝐄𝐃𝐃𝐈𝐄 𝐌𝐔𝐍𝐒𝐎𝐍𝐗𝐎𝐂

𝐯𝐢𝐢𝐢. ✭ 𝐒𝐄𝐕𝐄𝐍

MAY, 1976; EDDIE

"Don't wander off too far, okay?" Uncle Wayne warned. A fishing pole was slung over his and Thomas's shoulders. "We'll be out in the middle of the lake so if you need us just scream real loud and we'll come back."
Chance and I nodded, side by side with each other. As Thomas prepared the canoe, Uncle Wayne placed his hands on his knees, crouching over to talk in my ear.
"Make sure you take care of Little Red-head Girl, Eds." He then messed up my hair, goodbying me with a pat on the back.

After our parents had floated out onto the shining lake, Chance grabbed my hand, pulling me along as she said. "Come on, Eddie. Let's go!"

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-Cupid De Locke by The Smashing Pumpkins-
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Together we skipped along the trail edging the lake. We explored the surrounding woods that day, making snow angels on the forest floor and playing make-believe.

The day blurred by in a flash of streaming colors. I remember there was laughing and running and everything that usual kids did when one was seven and the other was eight.

Once noon had hit we laid out the blanket I had been carrying in my smallish backpack. In the woods, we feasted together on tangerines, homemade sandwiches, and a pack of graham crackers while sipping on apple juice.

Afterward, we played around with the tangerine peels as if they were dolls, giving them voices and little meaningless lives. Chance would always protest when I made something dark happen to my orange peel and I would have to take it back and sweeten the story to satisfy her.

"Then Lindsay Orange blew up into a million pieces!" Mimicking an explosion noise, I threw my peel into the air. Lindsay Orange fell pathetically on a pile of decomposed leaves, dying instantaneously.

"You can't have that happen! There has to be a happy endin'!"

"Fine. Fine." I went to retrieve the peel, switching up my plotline. "She missed being exploded and saved Princess Lily Pad from Big Bad, the end."

"That's much better." Chance grinned, overtly pleased from my change. A rustle sounded from the trees. Whatever it was sounded sinister, a creature creeping up on us kids, ready to pounce and eat us alive. It sounded again. "What's that?" My friend shuddered, turning pale.

"The Big Bad." Whispering my fearful answer, I scooted closer to Chance. "It's got us. Can't you see it? It's right over there." I pointed to a randomly selected area, my finger trembling. "Right there."

We had conjured up a monster from our shared imagination. One that looked sickly as it loomed above us with spindly legs. Its teeth were sharp and jagged, skin luminescent. Big Bad had been brought to life, a manifestation of every bit of our trauma and fear.

"Ruuuuun!" Chance screeched, grappling onto my arm and yanking me up with her. Two children bolted out of the copse, our ankles scratched by vindictive twigs. "Don't let it get you!" We scrambled out into broad daylight, reentering the world we knew. Only Chance didn't stop running.

Our hands broke apart when she stopped at the foot of a Sugar Maple. She began to scale her way up the tree, climbing up the branches with a skill I could never possess.