The Cursed Carol ( Season - 1 & 2 )

Season 1 Episode 2 : The Dog Days

Things are better if we see them in the way they appear. You try to follow truth, you are dead. 

The time came. The time from when we were about to enter that universe from which there was no return. What it feels to be alive. What it is when you are dead.

Thinking about that incident now, I just wish I could have done something. If I could change something. Somehow, if I could just remove the first day of December from that year's calendar. Some way this never happened.

I was lying on my bed having a taco as there were still twenty minutes left for the time of the meeting. I was in  a critical thinking stage, when Lucy entered the room with a novel in her hand. Then we left for Ben's house. We met at Ben's house every time. We sat in a secret annex kind of thing in the backyard. We call it the Headquarters of The Fleet. Lucy and I talked on the way about some of the romantic relationships in our school. It is always the best thing to discuss when having an irrelevant conversation won't matter. We reached Ben's house, where, for our welcome, Ben was standing with George. 

The name George seems to be of a charming guy with good looks and spiky hair but unfortunately, it was Ben's beloved dog's name, who scared me to a large extent. He was a German Shepherd with a dangerous bark. He wore a red belt on its neck with silver shiny stars which he kept licking all the time. He also used to wear a band with a text, ' The Dog Days' but that day he wasn't wearing it.   We reached the headquarters to start the meeting. The things there along with the atmosphere were like every time, except for George, who was with us only this time.

I was talking to Ben, " I heard from Lucy on the way that you like Kate. Brother, I would really suggest to go for it this time. Just imagine you and her telling your children not fairy tales but the scientific reason for Solar Eclipses. "

Ben stopped me with a gesture of irrelevance , "Just shut up, Dustin ".

I continued, "Wouldn't it be fun telling them how their mother used to top the class and their father passed only due to his good fortune? "

Ben laughed and responded, " Be quite for now, Dustin. I promise, I will tell you everything later."

I answered, " That's cool. By the way, your watch it is amazing. "

He said proudly, " Oh, yes. It is Casio. But the best thing about it is its blue-black color ."

And then everyone joined us. 

We talked for about an hour. We had the usual topics of  the other students of our school. The experiences we had with our parents or with anybody. Then, after talking, we planned to play the game of dare. It had always been fun. But it wasn't that day.  The game started and that bloody bottle tip, it pointed toward him. It was Ben's dare. At that moment, I just thought that it was now our time to help him out. For whatever he had done for us till then. But before I could speak, Lucy gave him exactly the dare I was thinking about. For Ben to go out with Kate in the park, alone. Romance always did manage to amaze us! I mean, of course, as we were teens. Seeing our friends together, talking  to each other, without any interruptions did seem amazing and so Freddy, along with me, followed them to the park to spy on the, to listen to their conversation. 

It was Kate to take the initiative. Of course, Ben was being such a jerk at that time.

 Kate started, " So how was your day ? "

Ben said, " It was okay. Nothing useful came out of it. Worst of all, I burnt myself!"

She showed her concern, saying,  " Oh! Let me look at it. " 

He showed her his left hand's palm. His fingers were really burnt. He then continued speaking,  " It's fine. Just leave it. Now you tell me how your day was. "

 She said, " It wasn't that bad. My father bought me new dress. But for me,, the worst was the fact that a mosquito kissed me today. It left a mark on my face! "

 Ben laughed out loud and stated, " I ask you not to be so cute! "

But by that time, I had become distracted and was no longer listening to their talks. All because I had just noticed Ben's shoes. They were red Adidas boots that I wanted very desperately, but my mom wouldn't buy me a pair. Suddenly, I returned to my consciousness when they both were laughing and Freddy was goofily smiling and staring at them.

 I remarked to Freddy, " Fred, I think we should give them some privacy. How about going back to the HQ? " 

"You know, it was your plan to spy on them," he said. 

"I know, but I think It's time we should return," I replied. As a result, we left the park and came back to the HQ. After some time and  a bit more of a dare  session, something no one expected happened. Kate came back, but she was alone. Ben was not with her. 

My curiosity spoke, " Hey Kate, why are you alone? Where is Ben? "

"I don't know! I thought he was here. He asked me to sit and said that he would come back in a moment," she responded.  After an intimidating pause, she continued, " Then I waited for so long but he didn't come.So I thought he might have come back here. So I  came back as well."

Freddy commented, " He must be sick! That's why he went directly to his home instead of coming here, so that he doesn't have to embarrass himself in front of Kate. "

 At that moment of time, we thought of it being a possibility. So, we went to Ben's house and rang the bell. But when nobody opened the door even after we waited for a long time, we decided to leave for our houses as it was getting late. But when I was leaving I heard George barking in the backyard. At that time I didn't understand why was he barking. I took him to his dog house and left for home with Lucy. 

That was the night we thought nothing happened. But so many things happened that we were completely unaware about. So many things we could never have imagined about took place that night. So many things that were left to be discovered. I should have paid attention to that dog and what he was trying to convey or where Ben suddenly had gone leaving Kate in a park. But I didn't. I didn't and just went home and slept. 

It came again now, the worst enemy of a school going child, the morning. I shut my alarm with a bang and reached the breakfast table. Father was eagerly waiting for the newspaper. Mom was snatching her slippers which had slipped beneath the bed. Lucy was in her own fantasy land, spinning her basketball. When the phone rang, mom picked it up. She talked for quite a while and then came back to me.

 She asked in a worry, " Do you know where Ben is ? "

I answered, " I don't know. He must be at home. He did go home last night before we left. "  After a long pause, I continued, "Or he didn't. " 

"His mother just called. Ben has not been home since last night, " she said. 

My heartbeat picked up its pace. I rushed up hurriedly and took everyone on a conference call. Nobody knew where Ben was. Ben didn't pick his phone up. Everybody had obtained a call from his mother. 

I decided not to go to school and instead to go to Ben's house to find where he had been since last night. The most worried of us all was Kate. She was the one who last saw Ben before he disappeared.

While I was getting ready, another thing came up. It was the newspaper. The newspaper with a new piece of information, a new piece of update about our city. 

Last night, the police found a body at the riverside. A dead body. Its face was burnt completely. They said the body was that of a boy.  A boy of about 14-15 years of age. A boy wearing a blue-black Casio wrist watch on his right hand . A boy wearing branded Adidas red boots. A boy with burnt left hand fingers. A boy with a band on his shoulders with a text - 'The Dog Days'. 

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