STAY AFRAID (A Horror Anthology)

#8 - The Thing That Happened to the Altar Boy

The first time it happened I was sure I saw a fly crawling out from his mouth. It disgusted me immensely and almost puked at the sight.

The rest of the people in the church pinned him down, but he was as strong as a bull. It seemed like he had doubled his strength that even men bigger than him couldn't keep him still. I was just there behind the crowd, taking a glimpse of what was happening. The last thing I could remember was the priest preaching about brotherhood. Matthew 25:40 kept ringing in my ears. "The King will reply, 'Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.' But, his sermon was cut short when one of the altar boys behind him suddenly fell down. They were quick to attend to him, maybe because it was the first time that it happened while a mass was going on. The congregation gasped in unison, showing concern to the young fellow who was already shaking violently on the floor, facing the altar. My mother told me to stay in our pew. I saw how she walked through the crowd which was now slowly gathering around the boy. Seconds passed, and we all heard his voice reverberating inside the church. At first they were just grunts, or some gibberish nonsense coming from him. I even thought he was just messing with us. But, suddenly, we all heard how he screamed loudly in a very unnatural and unsettling voice. It was deep. As if it was coming from the underground, and then it was closer to demonic. That actually scared me, so I decided to take a peek of what was happening. Maybe to validate if it's something that I should really be scared of? Amidst the waving people going here and there, whispering about how the boy could have been possessed, I was able to see him. He was shaking and struggling as men tried to hold him down. He was uttering some words that we didn't really understand. I saw his expressions twisted in anger, like a wild dog ready to bite and tear some flesh. His eyes were starting to get red, pupils slowly getting unnaturally bigger, and I was sure I saw some insects coming out from the sides of his lips.

He looked very familiar I realized.

Minutes passed, and I recalled that he was Tonyo, my classmate from last year. How could I forget Tonyo? He beat me up from getting the valedictory place that actually stirred up some gossips among the parents and teachers in our school. They were sure Tonyo's parents paid for that honor. I was bitter as well, but it wasn't really a big deal because we were kids. I won't exert my effort on adult things like that.

"Miguel! Miguel!" I heard my mother calling out from the crowd. I turned to my right and saw her approaching. There was something in her expression that really bothered me.

"Let's go home, Miguel! Quick!" she sounded so scared, but I thought I saw a smile on her face when she dragged me out from the church.

"What's happening, mother?" I asked as she tightly held my hand out of the church.

But, she did not answer me, and quickly halted a nearby taxi. She even pushed me to the passenger's seat while she sat in front. Our house was only 15 minutes away from the church, but we arrived earlier than expected. The moment we got off from the cab, she hurriedly ran towards our door. Her pace was unusually quick. I followed her until we reached her bedroom.

"Miguel?" she called me out.

I saw her sitting in front of her mirror, still catching her breath.

"Yes, mother?" I stood behind her while looking at her in the mirror. She turned and held both of my hands.

"Are you happy?" she asked me.

"I guess so?" I answered her, not avoiding her stares.

"That's good." She slowly stood up, walked to the door and closed it. Next, she pushed her bed up to the wall. Finally, she pushed the rest of the furniture to the side. The floor revealed a big circle drawn in chalk. Inside the circle were symbols.

"Light the candles, my dear. We'll proceed to the next step."

"Okay. What will happen to him now, mother?" I asked after lighting ten candles around the circle.

"Who knows? Let's go back to the church after this," she kissed me on the forehead and proceeded to reading her booklet of prayers.

"Okay, mother," I answered.

Then, she smiled at me. Eyes slowly turning into fire red, filled with unreasonable revenge. Her hatred consumed her to an extent that pushed her to avenge on something that was deprived of me.

She rubbed my head and kissed me on the forehead.

"Good boy," she said and continued her prayers.

And I was pleased.