Tale of a Creative

Dear Readers,

In today’s world, people can become divided for any reason. One thing that I find particularly interesting is the hate on people’s romantic customs; opposite-gender marriages only, same-race marriages only, etc. Tale of a Creative, a short story of 1250 words, takes this idea to the extreme.

The story takes place in a world divided between “creatives” and “non-creatives.” To be classified as a creative, one must exhibit imaginative traits, and to be considered a non-creative, one must not exhibit imaginative traits. The narrator, and protagonist, is an unnamed creative that falls in love with a non-creative. The only problem is that… in this world, it is illegal for creatives to marry non-creatives. This romance is literally forbidden. Will love conquer, or will society conquer? Only time will tell…

I am Kaeden Nelson, an American, teenage male of color. I wrote this short story because I am questioning the world that I am soon to be part of, the society that I will become part of, and, sometimes, I worry that I could go to jail for just living my life… or something like that.

I hope you enjoy Tale of a Creative like I did!

-Kaeden Nelson

Tale of a Creative

By: Kaeden Nelson

I am a creative; I have an imagination that I use frequently. I, a creative, could not marry a non-creative; it was illegal. The reasoning for this law was never made clear, but the rule was always strict, with a jail sentence. When I fell in love with a non-creative, I—as the law suggested—got thrown in jail, to, as the guard put it, “soak in the regret from previous failures.” I did not actually propose to the woman I fell in love with, though. It was a bit more complicated than that…

***Begins Flashback***

Nearly one year ago, I was challenged to an art duel, an “Artista.” This would be a worldwide display of creativity, passion, intelligence, and, above all, imagination!

I vividly remember my opponent—whom I found appalling. He had disgusting, cheap-looking, purple hair, very distasteful. He usually wore a black jacket, which—though it went nice with his hair—was even nastier. The most abysmally gross and horrid thing about him, though, was his confident smile. He had the smile of a creative, confident but stupid; fragile and easily broken. The man always thought of himself as somehow better than non-creatives, that stupid man. I HATE him; I will never forgive that man.

The man laughed at me and claimed I looked “unlike any creative,” which—though true—offended me, so I challenged him to a duel. We would be seeing each other again at our Artista. There, I would learn the man’s name and teach him to remember mine!

Besides abiding by the Four Rules of Duels, the two of us were free to attack each other in whatever ways imaginable, and without any limitations. One of us would win endless fortunes, and the other would lose everything. At least… that was supposed to happen.

The duel would start at 1 o’clock PM, and because eating a full lunch was a necessity, I headed to my favorite eatery, the All-You-Can-Eat buffet that my town was known for, Big E’s. Eating here was a luxury experience, and it all came at a simple 30 dollar fee.

My favorite part about eating at Big E’s eatery was speaking to Big E herself. Big E, or Ellaine, was the love of my life. We met as freshman in high school, and we would always talk between classes and on the bus rides to school. We never talked in class because we always worried that someone would notice how close we were to each other. I could never confess my love to Ellaine, because I was a creative, and she was not. I was hoping that would all change after my duel, despite how unrealistic it was.

“Hey Ellaine,” I began, attempting to get Ellaine’s attention, “the red streak in your hair is looking extra colorful today!” Having ‘colorful’ hair was a trait of creatives, a tease.

“Yes, and your black beard is looking extra bland today,” Ellaine said, with a laugh.

“So, Big E, how’s life been for you? I hear business has been great.”

“Really, it’s never been better!… Don’t call me that.”

“Ellaine, I have a serious question to ask you…”

“What is it?”

“Would you love me forever, no matter what happens?”

Ellaine looked around to be sure no one was looking.

“Always, I will always love you,” she started with tears in her eyes, “and you know that I would spend my entire life with you and then complain when one of us passes away,” she noted, with an unforgettable smile.

“So, why Ellaine, why don’t we get married? I love you, and you love me. It doesn’t matter what others think.”

“You know I don’t care what people think; I care about what people do. Imagine the things that could happen if we got married,” she sighed.

“Okay, I… should get going,” Ellaine said, as she hugged me and went on her way.

“I love your hair!” I screamed, which made Ellaine smile a bit.

After my talk with the manager, I feasted for about half an hour, and I left the buffet. I then arrived at the giant dueling stadium and met my opponent in the middle.

In time, my challenger, Alexander, retrieved his art tablet, and I grabbed mine. We would be using these to duel each other. Whatever would be drawn on these would become real, and anything that would be animated would come to life! We would be able to see exactly how creative the two of us actually were.

When the Artista began, I drew a large brick wall to separate myself from my opponent. I needed some time to animate. Alexander drew a few cannons, but he realized that he needed to draw cannon-balls. Then he realized that he needed gunpowder, then a match, then a string to light, then wheels. Once he got the cannon working, though, he needed to learn how to aim it. Eventually, he started hitting the wall, but by that point, I had already won.

After sitting behind the wall for two hours, I finished animating my Elemental Hydra dragon. This dragon had three heads, one for fire breath, one for ice breath, and one for lightning breath. Like most hydras, one removed head would get replaced with two new heads. On my Elemental Hydra, though, one head would be of a new element, like wind. To summarize, this dragon was quite intimidating.

The mighty beast blasted the brick wall with enough power to split it in half. As the dragon aimed its lightning blast at the cannon, Alexander realized that he would be next. He surrendered, which was definitely a wise move. As it appeared, I was more creative than he was, though I looked, as he said “unlike any creative.” This man had one more plan though.

“You like Big E’s buffet?” Alexander asked me.

“Yes… who doesn’t? It’s the talk of our town.”

“I saw you there today, talking to the manager. Do you… have a thing with her?” he questioned. He was trying to bring me down with him.

“No, we’re high school friends. Why do you ask?”

He then played a recording of Ellaine and me talking, notably the point when I asked Ellaine about marriage. As Ellaine was in the audience, she was welcomed to the arena and asked by Alexander, “Did you, or did you not tell this man that you loved him? Be honest.”

“I did tell him that, and I meant it, but…” Ellaine started.

“There you are! They have broken the law of the land,” Alexander finished, to the crowd in the stadium.

After that, I was thrown in jail. Alexander lost the battle, but I lost the war, so to speak.

***Ends Flashback***

That was a year ago, though. Now, I just sit here, emptily writing a journal, reflecting...

Wait… are those… footsteps? The only thing I know for sure is that they are not from a guard. Guards do not visit me much. I will… look around the corner.

“Sir, I do not want any of your silly business,” I say to Alexander, my visitor.

“I’m sorry for everything, and so is the world, I guess. Basically, you just rewrote the law today.” Alexander begins, “Oh, and your girl wants a ring when you get out…”

As it appears, I am free; as it appears, love wins, despite how unrealistic it sounds sometimes.

Goodbye journal, the Tale of a Creative ends here.