The Tiny Light That Burned In The Dark

What is it about Death that makes the hairs on our skin stand at attention, causing small tiny goosebumps to form, revving our breaths, and making our hearts race with fear? Is it the unknown destination of our doomed souls, or is it leaving the loved ones behind?

Jacque, a teenage boy with auburn hair, thick, rich brown eyebrows, and soft lips, laid down in his bed asleep, far gone deep into the rabbit hole of the dream world.

Tick-tock, tick-tock, the clock on his desk read 1645, Sunday, August 23rd. On the wall was a picture of two young boys smiling on a boat. One of them was Jacque. The other, his friend, Sam. Underneath the picture, the words, "Always, will you be remembered," were written.

Outside his window sat a black cat who pressed its paws on the glass and began scratching, leaving marks. Straight tiny discontinued lines. Its eyes are sharp green marbles with an edge of fear stained in the middle. It looks at Jacque and licks its nose.

"Honey, the phone is ringing! I think it's Sam!" Jacque's mother yells at the top of her lungs downstairs in the kitchen, waiting for her son to come down.

"Honey?" She yells one last time.

Slowly, Jacque's eyes open in response to his mother's voice. He sits upon his bed with sleep still hanging onto his eyelids. This drowsiness that wore him made everything seem like an illusion. His fingers spread, and he feels the covers underneath his palm, and he exhales. He stands up and heads downstairs to the kitchen where his mother had called him.

Entering the kitchen, he kisses his mother on the cheek and embraces her.

"Good afternoon, Honey." She says.

He picks up the phone and answers Sam, his best friend.

"Sure, I'll meet you there." Jacque hangs up the phone and turns around to leave. Before stepping past the threshold of the back door, he looks back and notices his mother snipping the stem of white roses in the sink while humming a song. She seemed occupied and distant, sad almost.

Jacque stepped outside into the dry brisk atmosphere where he could see his breath form into a cloud as he exhaled. He begins walking down the lonely road of his neighborhood. All that surrounded the houses were trees. Sliding his hands in his coat, he shivers and lets his head hang down. The very same black cat that watched him sleep followed closely behind. Every step it took was with determination; it kept its eyes on Jacque and licked its nose as if ready to devour the boy.

Jacque turns around and looks at the cat's eyes that appear to be glowing. The cat positions himself for a leap and shows its sharp teeth. A dark cloud begins to form in the sky, and dark fog slowly envelops the trees. The black cat meows violently and leaps forward towards the boy. Jacque's eyes grow more prominent in fear, he places his hands over his face to protect himself, and suddenly, like it was all an illusion, he opens his eyes and finds himself sitting in a diner on a table with Sam.

"I'm telling you the truth man, she texted me and told me to come to see her," Sam says happily while eating french fries and drinking his strawberry milkshake. He notices that Jacque isn't listening, so he frowns and removes the salt on the tips of his fingers by rubbing his hands together.

A terrifying look forms on Jacque's face as he looks around and begins to notice he is sitting in a diner across from Sam.

"Are you even listening, man?" Sam insists, but it seems his words are not reaching Jacque's mind. Jacque was preoccupied trying to figure out the change that had just happened.

"What did you say when she asked to meet you?" Jacque replied to Sam and tried to not be rude to Sam.

"I agreed. I said...yes. I wanted to see her," Sam said while drinking his milkshake.

Jacque smiled and patted his best friend's shoulder.

"Come with me to the Pond." Sam's facial expression becomes severe and without emotion. He looks into Jacque's eyes and awaits a response.

"You know I don't like hanging out there. I can't swim, Sam." Jacque replied.

"Oh, come on, it won't hurt to go and try. I'm an excellent swimmer. You can trust me." Sam says.

Jacque glances outside as he is about to answer Sam, but something captures his attention instead. A particular figure of a man dressed in black stands out in the shadows. His face, unknown. He did well in hiding his identity. Jacque shivers. Something about that man that made the skin on his back crawl. Something wasn't right about that man. He didn't belong.

"Who is that man?" Jacque asks.

"What man?" Sam asks.

Jacque points outside, and Sam turns his head to look out the window.

"I don't see him."

"He is right there, Sam. In the parking lot." Jacque insists, but Sam shakes his head and shrugs.

Jacque abruptly stands up and walks outside to see the mysterious man, but he is too late; he has already left. The boy was too late. He wasn't fast enough.

"So, are you coming?" Jacque hears his best friend's voice speaking to him from behind.

Sam walks past Jacque, and it seems to Jacque, his friend, was acting unusually. There was something inadequate behind those big round dark brown eyes. His skin, pale and glowing. His long dark hair fell loosely around his shoulders. Sam takes a cigarette out of his left pocket and puts it in his mouth. He lights the cigarette, and he blows a puff. The smell of smoke fills the air, and Sam sighs in relaxation while calmly walking down the Shades of Death. One step at a time, they got closer to their destination. It got colder, and the wind blew into the trees, causing the leaves to clap in suspense. Sam didn't speak. He seemed distant, empty, and odd. His friend would always crack a joke or do something funny, but this time it was different. He was cold. Walking down the narrow road, Sam sped up the pace.

"We're almost there." He says while keeping his eyes on the road. He smokes his last puff and throws the cigarette down on the ground, and a thunderclap sounds off, causing a disturbance in Jacque's soul. All Jacque could think of was, he couldn't swim. All kinds of questions formed in his mind as to why Sam was so eager to bring him to the pond in this weather. Should he question his best friend's motives? Was it pure and kind? Safe and logical? If only he could read minds, Jacque thought.

Sam comes to a stop, and so does Jacque. He looks up, and in front of him lies the pond. The frozen pond.

"Why are we here?" Jacque asks while looking around and walking closer to the frozen pond. Noticing that his friend doesn't answer, he turns around to look at him.

"Sam?" Jacque's voice cracks. "Sam!" He yells.

Jacque turned his head at every corner, and Sam wasn't there. Sam was gone. He had vanished into thin air. Gone without a single trace. The cold wind blows hard, making the leaves clap louder. His heart violently beats against his ribcage. Terror and fright wore him like a piece of cloth, and a hundred questions ran in his mind.

"Why would Sam take me here and disappear?"

"Am I dreaming?"

The very same familiar black furry figure stands on the ice and stares at Jacque. Its sharp gaze disables the barriers of consciousness and invades the boy's tormented soul. It seemed to Jacque nothing was real anymore, and the cat meows loud enough for the boy to hear. Jacque picks up a rock and throws it at the cat, and it moves away. The black cat turns around and begins to walk away. Though curiosity and fear were still present in the boy's mind, it didn't stop him. With every step he took, his body gave into it.

He passes the frozen brooke of the pond and steps on the cat's territory. Its glowing green eyes gave Jacque chills which amplified the sound of his heart. The cat bowed its head as Jacque got closer, and it seemed as though an evil grin had formed on the cat's lips. Jacque took a step closer, and the ice made a sound, a cracking sound. It turns out Jacque was right where the cat had wanted him to be. Jacque stops all movements and looks at his feet. His breath quickens, and his hand quivers. Looking at the clear ice, he could see the dark ocean green underneath. Suddenly, something below ice moves. A lump formed in Jacque's throat, and he couldn't swallow. The boy slowly gets on his knees and touches the thin surface of the ice. The cat was mischievous and unpredictable. Cunning and terrifying.

Jacque turns his head, looking around for Sam. He looks into the trees and sees a figure standing around.

"Sam!" Jacque shouts.

"Sam!" He shouts again!

The black furry animal meows, this time capturing Jacque's attention. Jacque tries to stand back up, but the thin ice cracks, and down he goes submerging into the cold water. Jack opens his eyes into the deep blue and moves his arms around, and kicks his legs trying to float. He looked around, trying to find a way out, and from afar, he could feel a presence. He knew that panic would make things worse, so he kept his arms in motion to not sink lower than he already was.

He became calm and listened to the waters. It sounded like his mother's voice humming a song, and he was running out of time. He couldn't hold his breath any longer.

The water spoke to the boy. It called out to him and tempted him. It said his name, and he answered, but the boy didn't want to give up without a fight. He tried to move his arms, but his lungs were getting tighter. His body needed air and warmth. The biting cold water numbed his legs, and his soul cried mercy. The boy fought the deep blue with all his might. He lifted up his head to where the light shined from where the ice broke and saw paradise. Finally, the tiny light that burned in the dark waters, his soul, snatched from his body, and all that was left was the body. His window closed. A bubble of air came out of his mouth and went up, and slowly, he drowned and sank below.

On the bed lies the body of Jacque, a teenage boy with auburn hair, thick, rich brown eyebrows, and soft lips, far gone deep into the rabbit hole of the dream world. Downstairs, His mother occupied the kitchen, and the phone rang.

"Honey!" she calls out to him, not knowing her boy was no longer here.

In most parts of the world, it is believed that dreams have power, and somehow the gatekeepers fell asleep, and the dreams escaped and are now able to manifest into reality and invade our world. As powerful as these dreams are, they are able to foretell the daunting future. The unknown. Death, a dear friend, sometimes works alongside her.