The Enchanted Realm: At Journey's End

A Dark Remembrance

 The stiffness of the room was uncanny. It was devoid of life; lacking heart and soul. The desktop computer was shut off, the buzz of the electronic screen left in deafening silence. The ringing in one's ears had become loud enough to drown out all other noises. The thought that a flick of a switch could turn everything on again...

The door handle turned slowly. The noises waited impatiently. The door cracked open slowly. The dim hallway light flooded the room. A teenage boy entered the room, his eyes cloudy with weakness. He dropped his backpack by the door, slowly closing it behind him. The eerie silence greeted him with love, the unnatural ringing slowly driving the teen insane. He hesitated to turn on the light. His finger slipped along the switch. Everything crackled to life. The lights activated, emanating their glow around the room. The fan pushed itself into motion, with the cold air joining on the ride. The boy trudged along the hardwood floor, reaching the desktop computer and sitting down. His finger pushed a circular button downward before the screen buzzed to life. A picture frame caught his eye. It was a selfie, with all the teen's old friends and siblings. He smiled softly as he remembered them by name. Cory; Izzylyn; Jared; Cassidy. A short beep from his computer took his attention. It was an alert, one from his peers. The teen opened the message, reading it through carefully.

Dear parents,

Students of Central High School, Detroit are given the opportunity to attend the 2017 Homecoming Dance situated on the upcoming Friday. Students are expecting to read the following guidelines:

Attending students are expected to wear professional attire.

Dance partner is required.

Student/partner MUST be junior or senior year.

Sincerely, Student Board

The boy disregarded the message, turning off the laptop. He trudged into the bathroom of the apartment with a towel and a secondary set of clothes. He closed the door behind him, exchanging glances with the reflection in the mirror. His hair was jet-black, and cut very short. Where his hair hung down loosely from the side was now razored off. His eyes carried a dark purple. His face was beaten, bruised. The teen looked through the cabinets above, taking a small First-Aid kit and glancing through the contents of it. There were small bandages, etcetera. The teen turned his gaze away from the medical supplies, reaching for the shower knob. Then he heard the apartment door open. There goes all silence.

"Oreo? You home?" A female voice called. Suddenly the teenage boy didn't feel peace.

"I'm home. And it's 'Orion', not Oreo." The teen replied. He reached for the shower knob, turning it to the far left. Water began to spew out the shower head. Orion reached for the door, locking it before his roommate could enter. The teen looked back at his foggy reflection. The purple strands in his hair had been dyed over, something he'd have to reapply after his shower. Makeup continued to cover the star over his face, another thing he'd have to reapply. As the shower water began to heat up, Orion stared into his reflection. He looked down into the sink, then back up. The boy staggered back as he looked into the mirror. His eyes were black, with some sort of inky substance dripping out as if he were crying. He backed up against the wall, his breaths becoming heavier and faster. He closed his eyes, thinking it was just a dream. Orion opened his eyes, and he was normal again. There was no ink dripping out of his eyes; nothing paranormal about him now. The boy couldn't help but wonder if that truly happened or if he was hallucinating. The shower would grow cold if he waited too long. With the question in his mind, the teen took off his shirt as he prepared to enter the shower.

...

The bedroom was organized chaos. Things were sprawled across the floor, but Orion knew exactly where everything was. Orion closed the door behind him, crashing onto the bed. A long day was behind him, and it was also ahead of him. He rolled over, staring up at the blank ceiling. With sleep slowly beginning to set in, Orion closed his eyes, letting out a heavy sigh. His bedroom door opened, and Orion's roommate loomed over him. "Can't you tell I'm trying to sleep?" Orion turned away, sensing her presence.

"You do know the professor assigned us a project, right?" She asked.

"Yeah. I've already written down the design. I'll start tomorrow." Orion sighed.

"If you say so." His roommate replied, beginning to walk out of the room. "Oh, one more thing." She added. "I'm gonna be hanging out with the girls tonight." Orion gave a thumbs up back, and his roommate left the room, closing the door.

The thought of the project trickled into Orion's mind. It clouded his senses. He could see it now. The woodwork pillars keeping the contraption stable; the metal joints smoothly running across each other; every aspect of it was perfect. It would be difficult to make, yes, but it would prove everyone wrong,—except his roommate— and Orion might be given the spotlight.

The boy rolled out of his bed, walking over to his desk. He looked at the paper sketches. On the back of one of the ripped-out lined papers, Orion took a pen and began to list the items he would need. This will DEFINITELY take a while. Orion looked at another piece of paper, using the notes he took from his father to examine the drawn pieces.

Then the memories flooded back. His father attempting to cope with his wife's end, to no avail; Orion's brother and sister leaving the state entirely. Orion closed his eyes and took a deep breath, but it didn't work. Orion felt backed against the wall, unable to do anything about his father's madness.

"It's not possible! She was perfectly fine!" He protested. "She was perfectly okay! No!" A chair flew across the room. Suddenly, Orion was there. The chair phased through him like nothing happened. It was like he wasn't even there. He could only watch as his younger self fled the room in fear. Nobody could hear him. Nobody could see him. Orion watched as his father stumbled to his knees, throwing his fist against the floor. The teen stood in shock. Within the blink of an eye, Orion was back at his desk. His heavy breaths were heard by the silence that surrounded him. Orion's hands ran over his arms and upper torso. He was alive; he wasn't invisible; and he certainly wasn't half-transparent. The boy sat on the edge of his bed, his head down and his eyes wide open.

Why does it always happen to me...? Orion couldn't stop thinking. It poured into his mind, it scattered every other thought like wildfire. Then someone knocked on the door.

"Hey, is Anna here?" Someone asked. His voice was older, seemingly a graduate's voice.

"Just her roommate." Orion answered, his voice faking a steady one. "Who's asking?" The door opened.

"I'm her brother." The other replied. Orion was right. He was a graduate. Orion secretly attended the graduation ceremony last year. He looked at all the happy faces. Including his. "I'm guessing you're Orion?"

"There's no way you just guessed my name." Orion said. "But yes, I am." His voice shifted.

"Anna's been talking about you—in a friendly way, of course." The graduate assured. "She's said that you're really inventive." He complimented. "She thinks you could be an engineer or something." The graduate nudged his shoulder.

"These things can only get me so far." Orion replied.

"I guess you're right," the graduate said after a few seconds of silence. "Anyways, nice meeting you, Orion. I've got a class to get to, so I'll see ya another time." Orion nodded, and the graduate left, closing the door behind him. Orion wondered why he even entered the room in the first place. Orion turned to a portable tape player on his desk. He grabbed it from the wooden table it previously rested on. His finger threatened to press the play button.

Click. Orion pressed the button. A soft song began to roll through the tape player as Orion set it back on the wooden desk, laying down on the bed. He closed his eyes, having enough of the day.