Chad Gadya

I Can See Gehenna From my Backyard

It was a very big backyard. I mean, with no fences and no other houses in sight, Rowan could claim this was all his backyard. "So where is Gehenna?" I asked.

Rowan pointed to a tumble of rocks about thirty feet to northeast. "There."

"Really?" I asked. "How do you go in?"

"Carefully," He said.

"There isn't some magic password or guards or stuff?" I asked.

Rowan looked at me like I'd suggested we eat milk with meat. "Nobody really comes here and besides, who would want to go to Gehenna? They'd have to be crazy."

I guess that made us sorta crazy, but I let the comment slide. "Well, off we go to Gehenna," I said.

Kuni rolled his eyes. "This isn't your grandma's house."

"I wish it was," I said. "My grandma makes the best Passover chocolate cake."

We trudged through the snow until we got to the tumble of rocks. Up close, they were even larger and I noticed they were arranged in a ring, almost as if it was a door. "Well, who first?" I asked.

Marzipan shuddered and took a step back. "Not me."

"I'll do it," Alexandros said.

The next moment, they ducked and squeezed into the hole. They disappeared from sight and when my mother called their name, we heard no response. "Maybe they cannot hear us because they're in Gehenna," I told my mother.

She nodded and took a shaky breath. "I'll go in."

She disappeared and when we called her name, she made no response. I was seriously spooked now and when Kuni stepped forward, I grabbed onto his hand. "It has to be a trap!" I said.

"Why would it be?" He asked.

I told him of my dream and he sighed. "Either way, we have to go. We cannot just leave your mother and Alexandros here."

"I hate you and your insufferable heroic nature," I said, folding my arms over my chest.

He smiled and to my surprise, he leaned over and kissed me on my cheek. "See you soon," he said.

Then, he was gone. I blinked at the tumble of rocks for several moments, reliving that brief moment. Had he actually kissed me? I gave a little squeal of delight and then remembered I wasn't a twelve year old anymore. Good thing my quest wasn't on television or something.

I called out Kuni's name, but just like before, I heard nothing. Marzipan and I exchanged glances. "We go in together," she said.

I had never felt more grateful for her. I picked her up and put her on my back, then crouched down to go through the passageway. It was dark and I couldn't see ahead. When I reached one hand out to feel, my fingers brushed only cold air. My heart beat in my chest. "Come on, Breina," Marzipan said. "We're here together."

I don't think either of us could've entered willingly alone, but under the influence of her voice, I slithered into the hole. The ground beneath my feet suddenly ended and I found myself falling. I could see nothing and my ears were filled with Marzipan's frantic bleating and my strangled screams.

    I finally landed face-first in a clump of snow. The light was harsh and bright here and I blinked for several long moments before I grew accustomed to it. Marzipan slid off my back into the snow and I realized it was not white, but grey. A lump built up in my throat as I stood up and surveyed the place.