The Price

It was one cold day when two boys, Shawn and Aaron, were running in the halls of the nursing home, Sherwood Oaks Nursing Home, their mom, Mary, worked at. They were told not to enter room 102 due to the old man, Gerald, in that room was very eccentric and senile. Today, they decided to enter the room.

They saw an old man wrapped up in a knitted blanket in front of the fireplace in the living room in his living area in the nursing home. The boys noticed he did have a very spacious apartment within the nursing home and wondered why that is.

The old man asked the boys what they were doing and how they got into his apartment. The boys replied with sorry sir. He then proceeded to tell them they can stay for a bit since he is lonely after his wife and kids left him. He told them his name was Gerald and asked them what their names were so he could get to know them a bit better. He even asked the boys how old they were and what they were doing in the nursing home today. Both boys answered Gerald's questions.

The boys saw a black book next to the old man's chair on his side table. They ask him about it. The man tells them to never touch it. The black book had old leather biding and looked really old. The old man grabs the black book and starts holding it fearing the boys would grab it and start holding it.

The old man told the boys that the black book is cursed and he got the book from a man in black ten years ago along with twenty thousand dollars. The man was desperate for money and was homeless walking through the woods one day in a large mountain park close by. A man in black appeared one day after several days out in the cold alone with no hope. He offered Gerald a chance to turn everything around. All Gerald had to do was to take the money and the black book the man in black was willing to give him. The black book had instructions on how to get rich and make lots of money. But what the man in black didn’t say was there was a price to this.

The boys asked Gerald what was the price. The old man said his age and health. He told the boys he is really 42, but contracted a rare aging disease that affects his whole body and he told the boys he doesn’t have much longer to live as a result of the deal he made. He told the boys that his wife and kids left him due to the disease he contracted. They could not stand to look at him getting older each day while he was still so young.

Gerald told the boys that he owned the nursing home. Before he moved in he brought the nursing home to ensure he got the best care possible. He then hired the best nurses and employees to help run the nursing home.

The boys did say on one the of many visits they had to Sherwood Oaks a man in black spoke to them once or twice. Later told Gerlad he is a regular visitor of the nursing home. Gerald leaned forward in his chair towards the boys and said, "Run! Leave this room and nursing home now! You aren't safe!"

The boys got frightened stood up with urgency and ran out of the room screaming to their mom telling her everything that happened. A few days later the old man died. And the black book was found burned in the fireplace. A note was found on the table, “Everything has a price. Enjoy life while you can!”