|. Short dark stories .|

"Its not your fault"

  Twelve year old Mark Aden walked along the sidewalk of a small community park while picking up sticks for his dad. His dad was a landscaper and was working on collecting all the down logs and sticks from the recent thunder storm.

  Mark was a tall boy with dull brown hair that was buzzed on one side. Mark wore black shorts and a plain white t-shirt while he helped his dad by collecting the smaller sticks.

  "Thanks Markie!" His dad yelled over the loud growl of the wood cutting machine. Mark just nodded in recognition as he dropped the sticks into a pile.

  Mark had been helping his dad for over an hour, and he felt he deserved a break. He loved to walk a small trail near his house when he wanted a break or some time for himself. That's when Mark realized that he should take a walk with his little brother, Freddie. Freddie had been struggling lately with bad dreams so a walk will hopefully help with that. It was a perfect idea, Mark decided, turning towards his dad.

"Hey dad!" Mark called out over the loud rumble of the wood cutter. "Can I go take Freddie on a walk for a bit?"

"Sure! Just be safe!" His dad shouted back as he tossed more branches into the machine.

Mark turned and walked along the sidewalk back to his house. The sun shone down brightly on the warm summer day. Multiple trees stood tall and proud along the small street. Mark smiled to himself as he watched his neighbors two little girls play in a sprinkler that was probably freezing as summer was just starting.

  Mark lived in the small Colorado town of Calwood. The town was surrounded by forests and mountains and stormed hard in the early summer. The town was beautiful in the summer, and the whole community knew each other.

Mark turned towards his house which was a large two story house built out of bricks. Large window adorned the front, letting light shine in brightly. Mark's nine year old brother Freddie, was playing with plastic trucks and cars on the living room floor when he stepped inside.

Freddie was a short frail kid, with big, bright hazel eyes and short, dark brown hair that was styled up with spikes along the front. Freddie was wearing a grey shorts and a light blue t-shirt with a picture of a dinosaur on the front.

"Hey Freddie!" Mark called towards his brother, "wanna walk around the woods with me?"

"Sure!" Freddie exclaimed with a grin dropping his toy truck where he had been playing. The young boy ran up and grabbed his older brother's hand as they started towards a small trail that led into the woods from the street.

the trail was small and well worn, steep slopes dropped off on some sides throughout making it easy to slip and fall. Mark had walked along this trail many times throughout his life and Freddie had just started walking with him.

"How far are we going, Mark?" Freddie asked looking up at him with large eyes.

"Not super far," Mark replied smiling at his young brother.

  The two boys passed by a steep hill that sloped into the creek below. Hey Freddie, look a deer!" Mark exclaimed pointing down at the creek. A small fawn with its mother splashed along in the clear water.

  "Ooh really," Freddie bounced close to the edge.

"Wait don't-" Mark yelped, reaching for him but he was too late. Freddie slipped on the leafy ground, tumbling down the steep slope with a scream. Mark froze in shock, before slowly looking over the drop. Freddie lay at the bottom of the valley all covered in blood. The little boy had hit multiple rocks and trees on his fall down and now lay face down halfway in a creek unmoving. A small puddle of dark red blood slowly formed below Freddie's head.

  "MOM!" Mark screamed taking off back down the trail. Tears blurred his vision and he struggled to not fall as he continued screaming for help. In the end nothing he did helped, his brother was recovered dead by the search team an  hour later. Mark's parents held him and sobbed while Mark curled up in their arms shaking in shock.

  Mark saw his brothers death every night in his dreams, yet he always awoke being tenderly hugged by his mom and dad while they softly shushed his tears. Every time they told him over and over again that it wasn't his fault and nothing could have changed what happened.

  "Life goes on," his dad told him one night with mark in his arms, "even though he isn't physically here with us, he here in spirit and in our hearts where he will live on forever."

  Slowly life got better over time. Nothing heals in a day, but eventually we all heal over time. Mark may had lost his little brother yet he was eventually able to heal and retell silly stories about Freddie to his wife and kids.

   "He may not be standing here with me anymore, yet he will always live on in our stories and in all of our hearts." -Mark Aden. Proud brother of Freddie Aden