On this Night, in this World
Thunder cracks. Rain is pouring down; it sounds like pennies dropping down on the train cart. Sean looks out the train window and sees nothing but darkness and rain droplets.
“Dammit” he mutters to himself exasperated, as he concludes that this rain is not stopping anytime soon.
The rain was incredibly loud, and he believes that putting his headphones on would feel better. Evidently, that was not the case. Annoyed, he takes off his headphones. He thinks that listening to music right now would be like watching a show on a TV with another TV playing nothing but static at the same volume. He chuckles at the thought. He can’t wait to tell his girlfriend about the funny comparison. He looks down at his phone, it’s 9:27 pm, he should be at his station at about 9:45. With nothing on his mind, and no music to distract himself with, he starts planning out what to do when he gets home.
Well, I am hungry, he thinks to himself. He wonders if his brothers and sisters had eaten yet. That thought then leads him to wonder if his mom had eaten yet. She hasn’t looked like herself in a long time and the more weight she loses the more noticeable it has been becoming. He hopes that she’d be willing to eat today or that she had finally gathered the motivation to get up off the bed. He’s tired of leaving food next to her that only gets nibbled on and left cold. It seemed unlikely though. He had heard the muffled cries in the middle of the night. He appreciated her attempt at hiding her tears from her children, but it wasn’t a very successful attempt.
He reminisces back to the days like this when his father would make sure the five of them would eat and would have a plate for Sean in the microwave for when he got home. He would make flank steaks and when Sean got home it didn’t matter how late it was, he thought it tasted like food from a five-star restaurant. He misses him, more than he could ever know. He wants to stop thinking about him now.
“A flank steak does sound good” he mumbles to himself trying to ignore the memories of his late father. He normally doesn’t talk to himself out loud, but there was no one in the cart with him, so he feels comfortable with expressing his thoughts out loud.
Some onions too, he continues in his head. Were there some mashed potatoes left over? He hopes there is. Maybe some corn, he kept going. The kids will be happy, he thinks as he considers that they miss their father just as much as he does. He remembers he had also left a can of coke in the fridge so that it would be nice and cold when it came time to drink. That last thought made his stomach grumble. He groans along with the grumble and looks down at his phone to check the time, it was 9:30. He sighs and regrets ever starting to think about food. He notices the roof shake a bit violently, he remembers the time a couple got drenched while inside the train cause of some leak in the roof of the train. He chuckles.
Thunder cracks
He scratches his chest and tries to think of anything else to get his mind off the hunger. He considers thinking about what work he must do tomorrow or what classes he has to study for. He squints and scratches his eyes.
Thunder cracks
“What a pain in the ass,” he says as he is standing up to stretch his legs. He scratches his chest once more and proceeds to scratch his butt. Too much time sitting down.
The train shakes and the lights flicker. Sean looks up and around but does not consider it strange. The government really should invest more money into their public transportation system, he thinks to himself. The train stops, it’s the next to last stop. The doors open.
“One more stop” he exhales as he sits back down. After about 30 secs he notices the doors are still open.
“ATTENTION ALL RIDERS” Sean hears through the microphone within the cart. He perks his ears up.
“IT HAS BEEN REPORTED THAT A TREE HAS FALLEN ON THE TRACK AHEAD...” Sean puts his hands to his face.
“... IT WILL TAKE 45 MINUTES TO AN HOUR TO GET IT REMOVED FROM THE TRACKS, THANK YOU FOR YOUR PATIENCE.”
It takes everything for Sean not to yell out “FUCK” from the top of his lungs. However, he puts all that energy into a punch he throws at his own thigh because he knows, he is absolutely sure it will take longer than that one hour.
“... damn that hurt,” he says tiredly.
He scratches his chest and pulls out his phone to check the time: 9:35. An idea runs through his head. He goes to open Uber and see how much a ride home would cost. Before opening the app, he stops, remembering his money, or lack thereof. He can’t afford it. Another idea runs through his head, one that he would live to regret. He goes to the GPS app he has on his phone and sees that his house is about 45 minutes away if he walks.
If they do indeed pick up the tree, he will get there by about 11:30, probably midnight. His station is not even the next one after this, so it’s not like he will get off immediately after the next stop. Just more time to sit on his ass until it gets sore. He would rather walk than sit.
He looks out the window and sees the rain again. He’s decided. He zips up his hoodie and puts the hood up. He stands and grabs the backpack that was sitting next to him. He checks all the zippers are closed and puts it on. He steps out of the train cart.
Thunder cracks
He checks his phone once more and memorizes the turns he must make before making it to the street that’ll lead him home. The rain is still coming down incredibly hard. He gets to the exit gate and swipes his train card. No going back now. He gets to the edge of the roof before the rain starts hitting him. This is okay, right? He thinks to himself. He scratches his chest walks out and begins feeling the rain hit him. No steak tonight, I’m just going to microwave something for us, he concludes disappointedly. He was hoping he would make them smile.
Thunder cracks
Lots of tall buildings with alleyways in between. Sean had never been to this part of the city before. Definitely not the cleanest part of the city, he thinks while taking a right and noticing all the trash on the floor. He scratches his chest again. He begins considering what there is to reheat in the fridge at home. He begins nearing the end of the street. It should be left, he recalls. He turns and begins walking down another long street. He scratches his chest. Why was it itching so much? He keeps walking. His speed is going at a steady fast pace so that he can gain some time. He’s already itching to take off the clothes has on.
He notices something, someone standing at the corner of the street he is walking on. He scratches his chest again. He looks at the figure and notices he is wearing a large coat and hat. He is only able to see him because of the streetlight at the corner. Sean is now about halfway into the street, and he passes an alleyway. I’ll just ignore him whenever I have to pass him. He keeps walking looking straight. He is staring at the person in the corner, hoping they move by the time he gets there. He is about ¾ into the street now. The figure has not moved. Sean stares more at the figure. The rain was making it very difficult to see, but he manages to see their skin. Pale white. Weird, he thinks to himself. He keeps staring and notices something, the figure was facing him. He scratches his chest again.
Looking right back at him. Sean stops. He can see the figure’s face. Pale white and black eyes. The itch on his chest will not go away, but he doesn’t try to scratch it. The figure doesn’t move and neither does Sean. He can only hear the rain and see the figure. It feels as if time has stopped. The streetlight goes out. Sean feels the urge to run but is still frozen in fear.
Thunder cracks
With the thundercrack comes a lightning strike. In that brief flash, Sean sees the face of the figure. It was smiling and sprinting at him.
“That’s him!” the figure exclaims.
Sean turns around and begins sprinting back. He is screaming, but he can’t even hear his own screams in the rain. He feels 50 pounds heavier with how drenched he is.
Sean feels a sharp, sting pain on his shoulder. He then feels himself being flung through the air. He hits a dumpster. His head hurts and his vision becomes blurry. He is in the alleyway he passed not long ago. He feels the itch in his chest become warm, then opens his eyes and sees two figures staring down at him.
“Get rid of the mark, quick” one figure sneers at the other.
Sean sees a figure lift and swipes his hand at his chest. Sean screams in pain. He feels all of it. His flesh tears and blood begin gushing out. Incredible pain. He tries to grasp at the gashes. NAILS? He thinks to himself.
“Good... he is done for.” One of the creatures says.
Sean is looking down at the wound. He is having trouble breathing. He can’t believe what is happening to him. He’s dazed.
“Master will be pleased” One of the things giggles.
“How much of him do we have to bring back?” the other thing giggles back.
Sean hears this and screams.
“SOMEONE HEL- “he is stopped. His mouth was covered.
“Don’t make so much noise, it’s annoying” the pale thing says to Sean.
“Grab his right arm,” the pale thing says to the other pale creature.
“Come on, let’s play” the creature covering Sean’s mouth grabs Sean’s left arm.
“You know the rules,” it says to the other.
“3...2...1... GO!” the other yells and they both begin pulling.
Sean begins screaming again. He feels the pain. He feels a rip. His flesh begins to tear. Tears stream down his face. All he can hear is laughter. His left arm gives way. The creature pulling his right arm laughs and celebrates over Sean’s continued screams. Sean begins wishing he had stayed on the train, unaware that either way, he would never see the morning sun again.
“I WIN AGAIN!” it screeches.
“Fine, have at it” the other grumbles and begins biting down on Sean’s left arm.
The happy creature turns to look at Sean. Sean can’t scream any longer, he’s tired. Let it end, he thinks to himself. Sean is looking into the eyes of the creature. A dark abyss, horribly pale skin, pointy ears, and sharp teeth.
Those same sharp teeth lunge forward and grab at Sean’s jugular. Sean’s head is yanked back in that action, he’s looking up at the sky. Tears streamed down his face.
Why is the sky red? Sean thinks to himself. Is that just my own blood in my eyes? He continues. Mom, please get up soon. I don’t think your children have eaten, they’ll need you, was the last thought that ran through his head.
Thunder cracks
To be continued...
