Flashback
Chapter 01
Todd Jenkins, a quiet, solemn, dismal, and morbid guy, was out late one night roaming a nearby cemetery. This was not odd behavior for him; on the contrary, he practically lived there. Since he lead a life of isolation and was most definitely a loner, he spent most, if not all, of his free time there, aimlessly wandering the usually foggy and moonlit graveyard.
As far as family goes, Todd grew up with a mom, a dad, two brothers and a sister. Age-wise, Todd was in the middle. His parents and siblings lead hectic lifestyles consisting of sports, work, school, church, and community events. But Todd chose to spend all of his time researching death-related topics. He was fascinated by graveyards and cemeteries at an age when other children were horrified at the thought of them. His parents didn’t even take the time to notice his odd behavior. They were always too busy with something else.
As Todd continued to isolate himself from the rest of the world, his eerie obsession with death-related things just grew and grew. He didn’t deal with people unless he was forced to. The people he did speak to just pronounced him morbid and moved on with their lives. Nobody really cared enough to give Todd any attention, not that he wanted it.
As Todd was aimlessly wandering the graveyard, he came across two very familiar tombstones: those of his mother and father. One read ‘Marsha Jenkins: May 1, 1963 - September 30, 2000’ while the other displayed: ‘Steve Jenkins: January 3, 1960 - December 3, 2005.’ Todd thought about what his parents were like as he was growing up: hurried, always rushing around, never taking the time to enjoy their surroundings and life itself. As a child, he promised himself that he would not grow up to be like them. And he most certainly fulfilled this promise.
He slowly walked away from these graves with a feeling of somberness throughout his body.
As he began to walk down the next aisle separating the different rows of graves and headstones, he heard a siren slowly approaching. The loud, glass-shattering shrill and the blinding red light grew closer and closer until the ambulance actually went right by Todd. He sighed and gravely hung his head.
He trudged out of the cemetery and followed the ambulance on the desolate road until he reached a yellow police tape reading: ‘Police Line: Do Not Cross.’ He overlooked this as two paramedics jumped out of the back of the ambulance. Todd could see the feet of someone sticking out from behind the ambulance, but he couldn’t see the person’s face.
Suddenly, a policeman emerged from the back of a police car that was also there at the scene.
“Don’t bother rushing to get a gurney. He’s dead,” the policeman announced. The paramedics stopped in their tracks and sighed.
“Poor guy,” one of them said.
“Such a shame…” the other added. Todd took a step to his right to get a look at the dead body. Upon doing so, he could see the lifeless body as plain as day.
He looked down at the motionless body of a man once known as Todd. Todd Jenkins.
He sighed and looked down as a tear rolled down his cheek and hit the ground. He slowly began fading until he completely disappeared into the moonlit sky.
As far as family goes, Todd grew up with a mom, a dad, two brothers and a sister. Age-wise, Todd was in the middle. His parents and siblings lead hectic lifestyles consisting of sports, work, school, church, and community events. But Todd chose to spend all of his time researching death-related topics. He was fascinated by graveyards and cemeteries at an age when other children were horrified at the thought of them. His parents didn’t even take the time to notice his odd behavior. They were always too busy with something else.
As Todd continued to isolate himself from the rest of the world, his eerie obsession with death-related things just grew and grew. He didn’t deal with people unless he was forced to. The people he did speak to just pronounced him morbid and moved on with their lives. Nobody really cared enough to give Todd any attention, not that he wanted it.
As Todd was aimlessly wandering the graveyard, he came across two very familiar tombstones: those of his mother and father. One read ‘Marsha Jenkins: May 1, 1963 - September 30, 2000’ while the other displayed: ‘Steve Jenkins: January 3, 1960 - December 3, 2005.’ Todd thought about what his parents were like as he was growing up: hurried, always rushing around, never taking the time to enjoy their surroundings and life itself. As a child, he promised himself that he would not grow up to be like them. And he most certainly fulfilled this promise.
He slowly walked away from these graves with a feeling of somberness throughout his body.
As he began to walk down the next aisle separating the different rows of graves and headstones, he heard a siren slowly approaching. The loud, glass-shattering shrill and the blinding red light grew closer and closer until the ambulance actually went right by Todd. He sighed and gravely hung his head.
He trudged out of the cemetery and followed the ambulance on the desolate road until he reached a yellow police tape reading: ‘Police Line: Do Not Cross.’ He overlooked this as two paramedics jumped out of the back of the ambulance. Todd could see the feet of someone sticking out from behind the ambulance, but he couldn’t see the person’s face.
Suddenly, a policeman emerged from the back of a police car that was also there at the scene.
“Don’t bother rushing to get a gurney. He’s dead,” the policeman announced. The paramedics stopped in their tracks and sighed.
“Poor guy,” one of them said.
“Such a shame…” the other added. Todd took a step to his right to get a look at the dead body. Upon doing so, he could see the lifeless body as plain as day.
He looked down at the motionless body of a man once known as Todd. Todd Jenkins.
He sighed and looked down as a tear rolled down his cheek and hit the ground. He slowly began fading until he completely disappeared into the moonlit sky.