Succubus

Chapter 18: I Dream of Barb

Up and down the chair went. Charles laughed as he was hoisted up into the air. Klezmer music filled the event hall as people held hands and danced in big circles. There was a clock nailed to the back wall behind the DJ. Charles managed to hold his head still enough to realize that he was out past curfew.

Charles found Trevor in line at the bar. Trevor was on his fifth Shirley Temple and was telling a real estate broker four times his age about the online economy in video games. It was time to go home.

Out in the parking lot their ears finally stopped ringing. The cool air felt refreshing on their flushed cheeks as they headed back toward Bridgeton.

"I didn't know you were Jewish," Trevor said.

"I'm not. I met those guys at the deli and they said I should come to the party."

"Thanks for making me your plus one."

Charles and Trevor lapsed into a comfortable silence. They were too worn out to talk, but it had been a fun night. The only problem was that Charles was beginning to feel peckish. It didn't make sense because he'd spent a good chunk of the night at the grilled cheese bar. Somewhere inside him he could feel Erlik stirring around like an angry fish, but Charles couldn't understand what the demon wanted.

Trevor and Charles parted on their block. Charles went inside, took his shoes off on the stairs, and collapsed in his bed. Mom would likely be mad at him tomorrow, but that was tomorrow's problem.

Charles dreamed he was on a roller coaster. The cart reached the edge of an incline and paused while it waited for the hook to begin pulling it up. Charles felt his heart rate increase with each click as he ascended. It was the kind of roller coaster he was too short for in real life.

The amusement park was built on the side of a mountain. Charles thought of how funny it would be if someone fell off the side. On cue someone slipped on spilled soda and fell off the railing. Their voice faded into a soft "puff" as they hit the snow.

"Hope he's okay," someone said in the seat next to Charles.

Charles looked over and saw Barb sitting next to him on the roller coaster. "What are you doing here?" he asked.

Before she could answer they crested the hill. The coaster dove down so fast that Charles felt the skin being pressed against his bones. The loops and turns pushed them to the edge of their restraints; all the while they looked down on the mountain side below them. A fall would have been fatal.

The roller coaster finally stopped after half an hour. The car pulled into the loading and unloading hut. Charles and Barb exited to the left to go see how their picture had turned out.

"You look nice even while you're screaming," Barb said. She scrutinized Charles's face. "It's strange, I never thought of you as handsome until now."

Ordinarily Charles would have been flustered by that. His mom had called him handsome a few times, but no other woman ever had. Barb was three years older, a shaker and a mover, likely to escape Bridgeton on a field hockey scholarship. She was so thoroughly out of his league that Charles hadn't even bothered to be conscious of her until now.

A thought crossed Charles's mind, and that was enough to make them appear. Tara Wentworth and Princess Claudia both stood over by a pretzel stand. It was Tara before her transformation; the Tara he'd fallen for.

"Forget about us, Charlie?" they said in unison.

Charles watched as they pressed their cheeks together and melted into one person: the new Tara.

"You okay?" Barb asked. She looked over toward where Charles was staring, but Tara had disappeared.

Charles shook his head. "Yeah, I'm fine. Let's have fun."

They found a target shooting range with real shotguns. Charles and Barb loaded shells in the chamber and blew grapefruit sized holes in a toy clown's head. The attendant gave each of them a solid gold block.

None of the rollercoasters had lines. People walked right in and sat down in the car. To accommodate the numbers the car was a mile long, but somehow everyone was sitting up front.

Charles and Barb found an ice cream bar with ever known topping, even ones from other countries. All different kinds of food were at the park. In Bridgeton someone had to drive a few hours before they could get anything resembling what was being served.

As the sun began to set and the fireworks began to go off Barb and Charles collapsed on a bench. A warm summer breeze drifted across the hot stones of the park walkways.

"That was fun," Barb sighed. "I wish I lucid dreamed more often."

"Yeah, I had a great time," Charles said. His thoughts again went back to Tara. "I just wish..." he mumbled.

Barb looked over at him. "Girl trouble?" she asked.

"How does everyone know that?"

"It's just how things are, but don't worry. You've got a lot of time to figure it all out. Plus, you showed me a good time today so you're ahead of the curve."

"It just feels bad when someone you like doesn't even know you exist."

"Everyone feels that way sometimes. Besides, you should feel happy with how popular you are now. Feel good about yourself and other people will feel good about you too."

Charles couldn't explain that his popularity was only because of the demon living in his chest. He suddenly felt phony. Self pity overwhelmed nerves and he took Barb's hand. They watched as the sky went from pink to black while the fireworks burst.

The next morning Charles wasn't hungry anymore. He felt a little sad, but he still got up and got ready for school. His mind shifted between the Tara who didn't exist anymore, and Barb who'd found a way to cheer him up.

A bolt of fear suddenly went through Charles's head. It was as if a plane had just crashed in the middle of Bridgeton. He dropped the cereal box he was holding and wheat squares spilled across the kitchen floor. Charles began hastily sweeping up the crumbs. Inside his chest he felt Erlik thrashing like a shark. Something terrible was happening, but Charles had no way to know what it was. All he knew was that he desperately had to find Erlik's sister.

Author's note - This was a pretty fun chapter to write.