Hysteria

Chapter 3

I stand practically motionless, my hands by my sides while tears still prick at my brown eyes, my expression unwavering. George catches the dusty brown towel, it crunches when he catches it. George glances at Ollie's bloodied body then over to me then the crowd that has not moved an inch. It's sickening to think that they all were standing and staring as if it was some movie.
"What the hell is the matter with you?! Go! This isn't a show god damn it!"
George waves them away and they all jump a little bit but nod and turn, all go back to their houses. He walks over to Ollie or what's left of him he kneels on one knee and then turns back to me, towel in hand. Grunting a little when he kneels, his knees weak from old age.
"Go home Dan,"
I don't react at all, not moving an inch or batting an eye. The only thing moving is my brown, frizzy hair in the wind.
"I,"
No response still. George's voice sounded almost muffled.
"Dan . . . Dan . . . I? . . Daniel."
George's voice is firm yet gentle at the same time, his voice finally seems to be saying something. I give my head a shake and blinks hard, snapping back to reality.
Oh . . . so that's how it feels for Zeke. But I can't leave Ollie.
"But-"
"I . . . please go home."
"I can't l-"
"I."
"But George-"
George cuts me off before I can protest again.
"I go home . . . please go home."
Nodding, I take one last glance at Ollie's body and mutter under my breath.
"Sorry bud."
Reluctantly I turn and make one foot move forward . . . then the other, it was more like dragging my feet like a zombie a bit than walking. But slowly my feet dragging turns to walking turns to walking, then a jog and it quickly becomes a sprint home. Now that everyone's gone, in a way, the tears start to fall. I'm fighting them as much as I can but no matter how much I tell them not to, they disobey me and fall anyway.
Because of him my dog is dead . . .
My heart was pounding as if it might explode out of my chest. Faster and faster, my feet crunch over brown leaves on the sidewalk.
Ollie wherever you are I miss you. Ollie shouldn't have to pay for that stupid man. Bad things happen to people you love and that's supposed to be ok with everyone? My dog should still be here.
Faster.
This isn't fair.
Crunch.
Come back.
Tha thump.
OLLIE!!
I can't take it anymore, tears roll down my face now and fall on my hoodie, legs pumping harder and harder, faster and faster. Tha Thump tha thump. I scream from the bottom of my gut, falling to my knees and feeling the concrete sidewalk specks getting stuck to my skin and the leaves crunching under me. My voice cracks as it rips through the air, I hold my stomach the image of Ollie's bloodied body fresh in my mind, never leaving me alone. It makes me feel sick, already haunting me. It felt like the whole world freezes hearing my scream. The scream resonating through the air causing the tree's leaves to rustle and shake. I move my forehead to the sidewalk and continue to scream until the air to scream isn't there.
Nothing else matters anymore, Ollie was my brother. I don't care that he's a dog, he's my brother. Come back Ollie, please come back, please please please.
Sitting up on my knees, I take a deep shuddering breath. Both of my hands fly to my hair and grab tight to my frizzy hair. Suddenly I feel a sharp pain in my hands and head and wince. It was as if someone had taken the ability for me to scream. Like something is burning on me or I'm the one burning. My whole body feels sore like someone had pulled and pulled til my arms fell off, my eyes scrunch tight in pain. I feel a wave of heat absorb my body then a wave of cold take right back over. The whole world around me seems to start relentlessly spinning making me fall over and just lie curled up on the sidewalk. The world around me now is just a blur of colors and smells. My lunch and snack from earlier threaten to greet the world again and not in a pretty way. My throat feels like there's acid all over the inside of it or like I had chugged a gallon of it. My breathing is ragged and staggered as I curl into a ball.
Oh please oh please dear god let it be over . . . What do I do, what do I do, what do I do . . .
And just as suddenly as it started, it went away. The pain, the heat and chill all over, all of it . . . gone. I, terrified that the spinning of colors and nausea will still be there, begin to slowly uncurl. Reluctantly I slowly open my eyes and there's the real world again. The trees stand there with their dead leaves, the sky still blue and cloudy. The grass still faded and becoming dormant in preparation for winter with a blanket of brown and red leaves. I push off the ground with one arm, sitting up right up as I look around confused and exhausted.
What the hell?
Putting one foot firmly on the sidewalk I push up and stand up, leaves crunching under my shoes. I see a pink mailbox, one of his neighbor's mailboxes.
Halfway point.
I start to walk forward towards the path to home, still looking all around me. For me it feels like I am in a virtual reality game, like everything around him could be walked through or glitch at some random point or was fake. When I reach home I fumble the smallest bit for my house keys, my hands shaky from whatever that was that happened on the sidewalk. The front door opens and I walk in. Closing the door behind me, I quickly lock the door behind me and drag myself to my room. The whole house feels empty like a major part of its history was deleted from history. Or if the house had amnesia about Ollie.
It's just a dog right? No big deal . . . but he's my dog, MY brother. My best friend. And I couldn't help him. I'm supposed to look after him, to take care of him, keep him out of trouble. I'm supposed to protect him. WAKE UP! Stop being childish I, calm down, calm down.
Tears prick at my eyes again.
Jesus christ stop it.
I head out of my room and to the bathroom across the hall, the white door propped slightly open. I walk in the white and blue tiled bathroom, the smell of lavender from the wall plug in fragrance filling my nose. Calming me and giving a bit of a sense of comfort, hardly any. I turn facing the sink and turn on the faucet, leaning down and cupping my hands full of cold water I splash my face. I let the water continue to run, keeping my eyes closed, taking off my hat and letting it fall behind me. I cup the water in my hands again, this time letting them fill with as much water as they can before splashing myself again. I open my eyes, the world a little blurry from the water on my face and I reach for the purple towel hanging on the metal bar on the wall. I dry off my face, the feeling of the soft towel against my skin is nice for a change. Setting the towel on the bathroom countertop, I hold on the edge of it tight. I look up to see my reflection when something in the reflection makes me jump.
"What the?!"
In my reflection staring back at me is a boy, he's me but he has a streak of neon orange in his hair, that can only mean one thing for me. I got powers.
That had to have been what happened on the sidewalk.
A flash of fire reflects in my eyes as I stare at my reflection. My words fast and rambled.
"What the hell is goin on?! Wait. Wait. Calm down I, you're just overwhelmed, y-you're just seeing things."
I close my eyes tight, praying that it's not true. My breaths are now shaky.
That streak's not there, it's not there, it's not real. Not real. Not real. NOT REAL!
Opening my eyes and it's still there.
Of course it is. What did I do? What do I do? I don't wanna be taken or whatever happens to people with powers.
"Come on I think, think I think."
My mind scours for anything that could hide this big fat neon orange streak in my hair. As if my frizzy, messy hair didn't stand out enough.
"Maybe if I . . ."
I try to layer other normal hair over top of it but that doesn't work, it is neon orange after all.
"Nope ok ummmm,"
I turn and pick up my hat off the cool tile. Looking back in the mirror, staring at my reflection and the new addition to my hair. Reaching up, I push my hair and that orange streak back. I put the blue hat over my frizzy pushed back hair. The bill of the hat facing forward.
"Ok so I'm screwed."
I pull up my black hood.
Jesus I am so screwed.
There's a loud thud of the door to the garage closing, I slam the bathroom door closed and turn on the sink.
"I? I'm home, is something wrong?"
"Uh n-nothing mom, just goin to the bathroom!"
"Ok bud! Where's Ollie?"
There's a ring at the door from the doorbell saving me from answering that.
"I got it Dan,"
"Thanks mom!"
I turn off the metal faucet and open the bathroom door, taking one last glance in the mirror.
Mom can never know.
I open the bathroom door as quietly as I can, guiding its swing nice and slow and turn off the light with a click. The door is barely open enough for me to step out as I shimmy down the hall to the front where I can hear what the conversation is. The hardwood combined with my shoes that sadly have no traction make it so that I slide over the floor, like an ice skater on an ice rink. It feels like when I was a little kid and would slide over the floor without a care in the world or about the world. The murmurs get louder and louder the closer I slide down the hall. I can hear my mom's voice now, it's shaky but also suspicious.
"George, what is in that towel? Whatever it is, it looks dead."
"It's uh, it's Ollie,"
"Awww poor baby, that must've been why I was in the bathroom so long."
"How is he? I I mean."
"I'm not that sure, I just got home and he was in the bathroom then the doorbell rang."
George hums in response.
"I was uh . . . I was wondering if you would want Ollie buried in your backyard."
"Uh . . . "
Please say yes. Please say yes. Please say yes mom.
"Why don't you come on in George and then we'll ask I, Ollie was practically his brother y'know."
"Of course"
Oh god. Uhhhhh uhh BEDROOM!
I begin to quickly slide back, if anything I'm running as lightly as I can to my room and practically jump onto my bed. The black bed creaking and squeaking at the sudden weight. I close my eyes hoping and praying that neither my hood or hat came off when I jumped.
PRETEND TO BE ASLEEP! Oh god mom please buy i-
"I I know you're not asleep, you've pulled that move too many times now."
Damn.
"I uh, I have to tell you somethi-"
"I already know mom, I was there,"
I say sitting up, my eyes slowly drift up to Mom's hazel eyes, pouring her sympathy to me.
"Look I, uh, I . . . I know how much Ollie uh meant to you, George has Ollie in a towel. Don't worry we'll put him in a box, but we-I was wondering if you would want Ollie buried in the backyard."
I nod and Mom nods as she starts to walk to me sitting on the bed.
"Ok baby, I know how hard this is right now and it seems like nothing can get better."
Wouldn't you know.
She reaches the edge of the bed where I sit, my face has a numb look when she hugs him. Rubbing her hand up and down on my Dodgers hat.
"But it will and I know that this sounds fake of me or rehearsed and it's what everyone says when they lose someone but it's true I."
For a moment we just sit here, my mom hugging me while my arms lay at my sides. Not only a minute later do I wrap my arms around my mom, hugging her as tight as I can.
"George will start after dinner ok?"
I nod, both of us letting our arms fall to our sides.
.