Thanatophobia

4- Ooops

A sudden movement in the plane caused me to jolt up. The plane was shaking violently as I struggled to keep Taylor and Gort in their seats. The plane captain, feeling the need to apologize, did.

"I'm sorry guys, we are experiencing very strong turbulence, It will stop soon. In the meantime, keep your seatbelts on and stay in your seat. Thank you!" The pilot said. Just after that, I saw a winged creature on the outside of the plane.

"Hey guys?" I say.

"What." Both men asked wearily

"There is something on the outside of th-" The front of the plane was sliced off and the rest was scratched with claw marks.

Then there was more. The crew tried to escape with parachutes, but the huge flying monster devoured them one bloody chomp per person. There was yapping in first class, then a blood-curdling scream from the captain. I have come to believe he is dead now. The time they had seen the monster was when they killed the left engine, causing us to fly off pattern. We didn't go to the left or right, we went straight down.

This sudden movement started the commotion. Crying parents, screaming children, Praying grandparents, And also a crying Taylor. I heard the robotic plane voice as the yellow oxygen masks plopped down from the ceiling. There was a door opening, and it was filled with parachutes and life vests. Many people were hovering over it, impatiently waiting for their turn.

"This sucks." I grimaced.

The plane smacked and skidded the surface of the ground, forcing the debris to fly onto trees and sink in the only lake in the forest that surrounded it. The right engine exploded, possibly killing everyone who hadn't died on impact. I felt the warmth on my unconscious body as my ears rang bloody. I felt like screaming, but I couldn't move my body. Let alone open my eyes.

I remembered some background noises when it was time to collect my dad from the Navy. We traveled via plane to get to Oregon to see him sooner. I saw the boat, and so did Mum. It was a tiny spec until it was larger than a five-story building. The door opened, and a ladder was guiding the crewmen out of the boat blindly. There was a long snake of navy people finding their families. Sobbing spouses and parents reuniting with their loved ones whom they thought they lost. I was so eager to see my dad, but he never showed up. Masiegh wailed in her four-year-old tone as I held her. Mum was a nervous wreck, scurrying past many people to get to the head. She never got to him though. We were nervously waiting for Dad to come back.

One rainy Sunday, many months after that hiccup at the navy dock, there was a knock at the door. Excited to see her husband, my mom rushed to open the door with her sunny yellow sundress and brunette hair in an updo twirling in the wind behind her. That excitement was soon met with disbelief as three men dressed in military uniforms all walked in. Mayseigh was excited to see Dad and ran into the entryway where Mum was.

"Daddy!" She cried and looked the tallest man in the eyes. Fear rode in her mind as she was oblivious to the nature of what happened. The only thing she was scared about was how strikingly blue his eyes were, and how tall he was. Easily towering over Mum's height of six feet.

"You're not my dad." She said, then ran into the kitchen to tell me all about it. I was intrigued, so I walked into the entryway. My warm energy and once-brunette hair flew behind me until I walked no more. I stood in fear, because I knew what had happened, and so did my mum.

She was handed a wooden triangle with the American flag inside, neatly folded. His picture and badges were set inside the triangle box, with a golden plaque, stating his name 'Treyson Xernom', and starring the day he was born to the day he was claimed by god. My mum's shiny energy was dulled into the raw afternoon. Rain tapped the windows and sunroom as we all sat in the living room, figuring out how to live without that great man by our side. Masiegh ran into her room and locked the door. I walked into the kitchen to get some food. Mum just sat. Her hair that she took and neatly tied up in a Gibson tuck showcased small golden streaks frizzed while her hair rubbed on the back of the couch.

For three full months, Masiegh and I were stalked by the fact our father was gone. At school waiting for him to pick us up, waiting for him to return home after working, but he never came. My mom had made two cups of coffee most days. She anxiously waited for her husband to get home to come out of the garage to have morning coffee with her. She waited for hours until she remembered. When she did remember, all she did was sit down on the sofa, turn on the television, and zone out everything else, Even her two children who asked if she could make us breakfast.

It took many months to make our mum functional again. When Mum wasn't being productive, I raised Maysiegh myself. I risked my social life and education to make my sister become a good human being. I grieved deeply when I found out my sister was ill. She was bedridden in a hospital before they pulled the plug that held her fragile life. She spoke up before her death.

"You need to be strong. Get Mom back, get back into school, and fix your relationship with your friends…. I know I am just 10, but you made me stronger than I could ever imagine without you," She spoke before breaking into a coughing fit.

"But. I can't! You can't die! You won't! You are going to be okay. There is a cure! Please!" I rushed for a glass of water while I yelled at her to stay with me.

"Trust me, if there was a cure, I would be out of this bed." She said weakly "And you sound like you would pull me away from the grim reaper while he is claiming my soul."

"I know that is true, but still. I need you." I say, tears flooding out my eyes.

Mayseigh started to talk, but she sputtered out in a cough and stopped moving. I stood there, staring at her lifeless body for hours. The nurse had to drag me out of that room to place her small body into the morgue. I sat in the waiting room, waiting for myself to wake up. Just telling myself this was a nightmare. Just screaming in my mind. I couldn't utter any tears. I couldn't. Not even one.

My numbness carried on into my school life. I kept finding myself staring at the walls until that class was over, and that process repeated until I went home. I felt terrible once I got home. My mother was demoted from functional human to zombie in one phone call. She forgot about me, leaving me to develop a bad fear of everyone forgetting me. I felt like just dying, but I soon heard a scream.

"Oliver you son of a chicken strip! Wake the hell up!" Gort yelled.

"Ollie!" Taylor cried.

"Stop crying rat." Gort scoffed.

"Well, I would… If there wasn't a dead body of someone I know in front of me!" Taylor screamed.

After that sentence, I gained access back to moving my body. I coughed and restarted my breathing.

"Who said I was dead?" I groaned. "Stop fighting."