Cursed

It’s Friday morning when I wake up from a nightmare. After shooting up out of bed and screaming, my mother appears at my bedside asking question after question. Gasping, I fall back into the mattress to stare up at my ceiling, hoping that the images from the dream will leave. Now.

I close my eyes and listen to my mother as she tries to comfort me but as soon as my eyelids fall I see it again. Their beady little eyes following my every step and then as I’m walking down the stairs, they attack and steal my socks!

“Mother fuckers!” I holler and jump out of bed, shocking my mother. When she see’s me digging through my drawers she sighs. “My socks…they’re fine…mommy, they tried to steal my socks, I know they did!”

“Kieran…honestly.” She shakes her head and leaves, not at all caring that I just had a frightening, life changing experience! What kind of mother is she? Honestly, she should be trying to help me get over such a traumatic thing! Those damn gnomes have invaded even my dreams! I will destroy them all! Along with the pixies, they keep laying eggs in my ears and I don’t particularly like having baby pixies in my ears.

I get up and get ready for the day and I’m out the door when I see Finn pull up in front of it. As usual, Shailey is sitting in the front but today she seems incredibly tired and has her eyes shut. She yawns a ‘good morning’ and falls back into her seat to sleep while Finn nods in my direction.

“I had a nightmare last night,” I inform the boy in the drivers seat. He raises a curious brow to show he’s listening. “The gnomes stole my socks, Finn. They’re evil.”

Finn grunts. “And here I thought you were going to tell me something worth listening to.”

“Hey, my traumatic experience is worth listening to! Why doesn’t anyone understand that I have seen something horrid? I’m going to need to see a therapist!”

“I don’t know what I find worst, the fact that you honestly think I’d care or that you believe you’ll need a therapist for something so trivial as a nightmare about sock stealing gnomes.”

I pout and lean back into the back seat with my arms crossed. I glare into the rearview mirror at Finn’s reflection and realize…that he is with them. That is the only logical explanation. Finn is on their side! “You are siding with the gnomes, I just know it.”

“Yeah, sure Kieran. Whatever you say.”

“Gnome lover!”

The ride falls silent afterwards until we reach school where Finn and I say good-bye to Shailey and head our separate ways. As Finn and I are walking to first period I notice something…off. Finn’s fingers are playing with the zipper on his jacket, pulling it up and down, up and down until I think the thing is going to break right off. I grin and ask, “What’s up, Finnegan? Something bothering you?”

“Uh…no,” he replies, quickly and turns into first period. I follow. “I was just…I was wondering if you would like to stay over tonight.”

My jaw drops. Did…Did Finn just ask what I think he did? Did he just willingly invite me to his house? No…no this can’t be true. Finn would never do such a thing! Any time I’ve come over it was because I just waltzed on over without permission first and forced my entrance but Finn is asking me if I’ll come over. Holy shit…something is up.

“Did the gnomes bribe you with something? Was it sex? Was it drugs? You know drugs are bad for you, Finnegan! They cause lots of problems. You shouldn’t do them!” I shout because that is the only explanation to such a crazy thing!

Finn huffs. “If you don’t want to come just say no.”

“No! I really do wanna come over. I will, thanks for asking!” I jump across the aisle to hug him. Finn stiffens but wraps his arms around me anyways and I feel him take a deep breath before sighing in relief. I pull away and continue talking to him for the rest of first until it ends and we must part ways but I meet up with Shailey afterwards so it’s ok. However when I tell her about Finn inviting me over she didn’t seem as thrilled about it as me but I dropped it…

Until later on that day when something weird happens…

Shailey, Finn and I made our way to his car when Shailey suddenly realizes she forgot something at her locker. Me, being the great friend that I am, offer to go get it for her and run off without realizing the atmosphere around the two until I return.

I’m walking out the back of the school when I hear their hushed whispers in the mostly abandoned parking lot. There are cars still there but no other kids than Shailey and Finn. I’m about to announce to them that I have returned when Shailey says, “It isn’t safe, Finn. You know what can happen if-”

“I know, Shailey!” Finn growls and it’s such a menacing sound that I can’t believe a human could even make that kind of noise. “You don’t need to keep reminding me.”

“But I do, it’s my job. It’s been my families job for centuries.”

“I don’t need you to baby sit me all the time,” Finn huffs and I silently jump behind a car, barely peaking over it to get a glimpse of Finn leaning against his car with his hands stuffed in his pockets. Shailey is standing in front of him like a mother with her hand on her hips. “I know that I’m not the safest thing to be around but I can control myself.”

“Can you?” Shailey takes a step closer and something in Finn’s eyes flickers. “I’ve seen the way you act around Kieran. He drives your senses up the wall. Finn, you’ve always been good at hiding yourself but Kieran…it’s obvious what he does to you. At the fire the other night…”

Before Shailey can finish Finn has growled once more and stomped to the drivers side of his car. He ripped open the door and got in, cutting off the conversation there. I decide now is the good time to show myself so I jump up and hop over to them like I hadn’t just heard part of their…strange conversation.

“I’m back!” I shout and Shailey quickly turns. Her eyes show that she really hopes I didn’t hear anything but she manages to speak like it isn’t bothering her.

“Oh, thanks a lot, Kieran. You’re a life saver.”

I shrug it off and slide into the back of the car. I try my best to talk and act like nothing happened but my mind keeps falling back to what they were talking about. What were they talking about? I was mentioned…something about the way Finn acts around me, his senses, hiding himself? What the hell is that supposed to mean? And Shailey’s job? Her families job…for centuries…

I don’t get it. I don’t get any of it. They couldn’t possibly have been talking about anything. I mean, it doesn’t make sense however you look at it. Finn is obviously a very secretive and mysterious person, it could be anything I guess. I hardly know anything about him so it really could be anything. And Shailey…well she sure does keep an eye on him.

I want to ask but I have a feeling they won’t tell me. I really…don’t get it.