Flaming Ashes

Les portes de l'enfer se sont ouvertes

It all began with our nocturnal reading rendezvous.

Outside our local library, we had agreed to assemble. Predictably, my twin brother Eitan, along with Daniel, was fashionably late. Meanwhile, my BFF Tamara and I utilized the waiting time inside the library, discussing the latest literary adventure the gang embarked on. Tamara's eyes were as deep as her dark brown hair, mirroring the night's hue. After what felt like an eternity, the boys finally arrived. I couldn't resist giving Eitan a piece of my mind, knowing full well they were tardy because of him.

Upon entering the library, we stumbled upon a new addition to our reading repertoire. As I perused the fantasy aisle in search of the quintessential book, one particular tome caught my eye. Gathering the gang to our clandestine spot, we delved into its pages. The narrative proved riveting; it followed Leonard, a boy who stumbled upon a portal to the cosmos. Our emotions ran wild as we journeyed through the story, laughter mingling with astonishment. "And Leonard proclaimed loudly, 'Les portes de l'enfer se sont ouvertes,' which translates to: the gates of hell have opened," I echoed the magic phrase, as did the others. Abruptly, the library shuttered its doors, trapping us inside. Tamara and I began screaming for help.

"Elia, Tamara, keep your composure. We're going to get out of here; just let Eitan and me handle it," Daniel attempted to keep our group together. While the boys searched for an open window, Tamara and I struggled to hold back our tears amid our anxiety. I thought that if I kept reading the book to Tamara, it would calm her down, as she loves books. I started reading the same book we had previously read. "Leonard was scared at first to enter the portal, but he overcame his fears and went in. He kept repeating the secret code of the portal three times whenever he was scared." Tamara and I said the secret code to each other to bolster our courage.

Suddenly, a portal opened, and we screamed for help. All our lives, we were told that there was no such thing as portals or magic. Eitan and Daniel rushed to us as quickly as they could. "Is everything okay?" asked Eitan, clearly concerned. When the boys arrived and saw the portal, there were no words to describe their confusion. "What should we do?" asked Tamara, her voice trembling with fear. Daniel erupted, "We need to get out of this library; there's no way we should be in there. It's dangerous, and this doesn't seem real to me at all. We're just exhausted!" The silence lingered for a few seconds. I didn't know why, but I felt compelled to enter the portal. As if drawn by an unseen force, I stepped into it. Tamara screamed at me, "Elia, what are you doing?" but I didn't listen. The last thing I remembered was Tamara's piercing scream.