Love Sick V: Echoes of Eternity

DISCLAIMER: The events and characters depicted in the following short story are fictional, and are not to be romanticized or taken seriously in any way whatsoever. Any similarities to actual people, living or dead, are purely coincidental.

WARNING: Graphic Content Ahead.

Purcellville, Virginia - 2004

A modest, weather-worn house stood at the end of a quiet cul-de-sac. The lawn was overgrown, and the paint was peeling. An 11-year-old Dylan Wade, a small, thin boy with dark circles under his eyes, sat on the front steps, clutching a battered backpack.

The living room was dimly lit and cluttered. Empty bottles and fast-food containers were strewn about. Dylan's mother, a disheveled woman in her early 30s, paces back and forth, a lit cigarette in hand.

Dylan's mother was angry at Dylan.

Dylan's Mother: "Why can't you do anything right, Dylan? I told you to clean this place up!"

Dylan flinched at his mother's harsh words, his eyes downcast.

Dylan Wade: "I'm sorry, Mom. I tried..."

Dylan's mother slapped Dylan across the face, sending him sprawling to the floor.

Dylan's mother got louder.

Dylan's Mother; "Don't lie to me! You're just like your father, worthless!"

Dylan clutched his cheek, tears welling up in his eyes. He slowly got up and retreated to his bedroom.

Dylan's bedroom was his only sanctuary. The walls were covered with drawings and posters of superheroes. He sits at his small desk, sketching furiously, escaping into a world where he's powerful and unbreakable.

Dylan thought to himself.

Dylan Wade: "Ever since I can remember, my mother hated me. I used to think it was my fault, that I wasn't good enough. But now, I know better."

Dylan began to recall an old memory.

Dylan, a few years younger, watched from a corner as his mother threw a plate at the wall, screaming obscenities. His father, a tall man with a weary expression, walked out the door, never to return.

Dylan kept thinking to himself.

Dylan Wade "She blamed me for everything. When Dad left, she lost it. I became her punching bag, her outlet for all her anger and pain."

Dylan's flashback faded.

Dylan looked at a drawing of himself as a superhero, tears streaming down his face.

Dylan was still thinking to himself.

Dylan Wade: "I'm tired of being weak. One day, I'll show them all. I'll make them pay for what they did to me."

Dylan crumpled the drawing in his hand, his eyes filled with a newfound determination.

Purcellville, Virginia - Present Day

In 2031, Travis Paige and Lyla Presgraves's children—Alex, Eclipse, and Chester Paige—were all in their sophomore year of high school, hanging out with their friends after school when, suddenly, they received a text from their parents, telling them to come home immediately.

Alex, Eclipse, and Chester went straight home.

Alex spoke up first.

Alex Paige: "Is everything okay?"

Travis Paige: "I'm afraid not, son..."

Eclipse Paige: "You don't mean—"

Lyla Presgraves: "I'm afraid so. Dylan Wade is back."