Boy Of The Forest [Malum]

Chapter 1

        "Michael, I'll be back in a week. Don't go out into the forest, you don't know who or what's out there." Michael's father warns him. 

        "Yes father. I'll see you next week." Michael says from his window seat. He didn't move from it much when he was in deep thought or when his father left for work. He was always warned about the forest, never to go out there, never to go close to the edge of the yard. He'd heard it all so many times, he had it basically written on the back of his hand.

        "I mean it Michael. Mrs. Oak, will check on you every night, alright? If anything happens go over there straight away, alright?" Michael started to notice at the age of 10 that his father used with word 'alright' at the end of many of his sentences. It annoyed the boy very much, he felt that the word was so over used now, that he didn't use it himself unless he couldn't think of any other word to use.

        "I know. It's the same every time you leave. I promise not to leave the house unless needed. Only take Ollie down the block and back, only go to Ashton or Luke's houses, stay in town, check in with just about everyone on the block every five minutes. I know." Michael gives a sighing growl in frustration. It was always the same. Nothing fun ever happened unless he went to his friends houses. Still their parents were watching his every move for his father.

        "Good boy. I'll call you if something happens." His father gives an annoyed nod at Michael's behavior before leaving the house with his bags. Michael moves to the window that faced the driveway watching his father leave. He watched as his dog chases his father's car half way down the block before coming back and scratching at the back door. 

        "Finally." Michael smiles to himself before running down the stairs and into his kitchen. He unlocks the door letting in Ollie, before going over and raiding the fridge for the left over pizza. He gives his friends Luke and Ashton a call telling them to come over. He was free from his father for a while, he could never do anything with him looking over his shoulder all of the time.

        Michael jumps on his couch putting in his copy of COD: Ghost. Michael hadn't played in almost a week, his father hated the game, he mostly just hated video games. Michael lived for video games and music. His father didn't mind the music part, other then the fact that it wasn't the type of music he wanted Michael to play. 

        Michael played music like Pop, Puck, Rock, stuff like that, it was the music he and his friends liked. While on the other hand, his father, wanted him to play classical music, which Michael called murdering your ears music. He couldn't stand it, his father was always listening to it, driving Michael insane.

        "Michael! Dude open the door!" Ashton's voice rings through Michael's house. He jumps from the couch making his way to the front door with a smile. Opening the door he finds his best mates with pizza, Luke's guitar, and Ashton's Cajun. That was normal. Every time Michael's friends came over or he went there, they always had some jam time. It was like a ritual.

        "Who's ready for a week of me being free?" Michael exclaims pulling his friends into the house.

        "We are!" Ashton chants as he and Luke make their way into the kitchen throwing the pizza boxes on the counter. Michael opens one of the boxes pulling out the first piece he could get his hands on. The boy also lives for pizza. 

        "Michael, why is your dog scratching at the door like that?" Luke says nodding over to where Ollie was whining and scratching at the door. Michael had never seen Ollie do that before. Well he did once, when he was 15, that was the time Ollie ran off into the woods and Michael had to go look for him. 

        "Not too sure, he was just outside before I called you guys." Michael walks over to the dog, grabbing his collar and pulling him away. "You were just out boy, you're fine." He pulls the dog away and puts him in the living room. Michael knew the dog wouldn't stay in there, but it was always worth a shot.

        As Michael walks out of the living room, the dog speeds past him and his right back at the kitchen door. "Just throw him out. He'll run around the yard twice then want back in. Like normal." Ashton says groaning at the annoying sound the dog was making. 

        "You're right. Fine Ollie, outside." He pulls the door open and watches as Ollie runs out and stands at the edge of the yard and forest line. Michael takes a step onto the porch, trying to see whatever his dog could have been looking at.

        "Ollie, away from there." Michael calls, waiting for the dog to move. It sits there watching the forest, its ears twitch at the sound of a distant whistle. Michael's ears luckily caught it, he calls the dog back one more time, and this time it listened.

        "Something going on outside Michael? Your whole block is standing out on the street." Michael closes the kitchen door walking over to the window that Luke and Ashton were looking out of. Michael's whole block was standing on the road, looking at something that was in the way of the forest.

        "I have no idea. Let's go see." Michael grabs Ollie's leash knowing the dog would not want to stay inside while he was out there. He pulls on his shoes before walking outside with Luke and Ashton behind him.

        "Ms. Masefield, what's going on?" Michael asks walking up to his neighbor from across the street.

        "They are trying to tare down Mrs. Oak's house! It's terrible!" Michael looks over to where the chief of the construction crew was holding back Mrs. Oak. He looks over at some of the men going to rip apart some of the house.

        "Hey! Hey, what do you think you're doing?!" Michael shouts running over to them.

        "Ripping down this house! What does it look like?" One of the men yells at Michael, holding a hammer up at him.

        "You can't do that. This is privet land, my family owns it." Michael snaps. Mrs. Oak had almost lost her home after her husband passed away five years ago, Michael's father bought the land and house -completely paid off- so Mrs. Oak didn't have to leave her home.

        "We need proof of that son." The chef of the crew says.

        "Call my father. Howard Clifford." Michael slightly smirks to himself, his father was a very big name, and most people were scared of him -an up and down for Michael, but he got over it.

        "Boy's, back off. We'll come back after I get hold of Mr. Clifford." The chief says glaring at Michael. They all just lost a pay check, but Michael didn't care, a home for an older lady was more important then them getting paid for something they shouldn't have done in the first place.

        "Oh thank you Michael! Thank goodness you were here." Mrs. Oak says giving Michael a hug.

        "It's quite alright mama. They have no right to do that, we own the land and house, until my father okay's anything, they shouldn't have been able to even look at the house." Michael says giving her a light pat on the shoulder.

        "Thank you again son. I'll see you soon." Mrs. Oak smiles before walking inside of her house. Michael gives a nod to himself before walking over to Luke and Ashton.

        "What would you have done if they did rip apart her house?" Ashton asks Michael as they all walk back inside.

        "I would have let her stay here until my father got back. That old lady had looked after since I was a toddler. She's like a grandmother to me." Michael shrugs throwing himself down on the couch. His body felt like it had, had enough excitement for the day. 

        "I say we nap, then we eat and play video games." Luke says throwing himself on Michael's other couch.

        "I second that." Ashton yawns falling into the arm chair. Michael just nods as Ollie curls up next to his feet on the couch. Michael's mind starts to wonder as soon as his eyes close. His famous dream starting up just like normal. The boy of the forest, was Michael's favorite person, and that's because he was the only one that knew about him.