After Forever (4 page)

“Sleep, my love,” he whispered against my
lips.

I shook my head. “I don’t want to lose
you.”

He smiled. “You won’t. When this is all
over, I’ll come wake you up.”

Then the world turned black.

“Rory! Rory!”

I shook my head, trying to clear the sleep
from my brain. I had been having the most magical dream. It was… it
was…? I opened my eyes and blinked. I couldn’t remember what it
was.

“Rory!”

I sat up in the hospital bed and stretched.
“What Artie? I was sleeping.”

But when I looked around for him, he wasn’t
there. Instead a boy was standing next to my mother’s hospital bed.
He was wearing pajama pants and a white t-shirt and I couldn’t help
thinking he looked familiar somehow.

“Who are you?” I blurted out.

He turned and smiled at me. “I’m Phillip.
I’m sorry to wake you, but I thought you should see this.”

I stood up, confused but curious, and walked
over to him. I gasped when I looked down at my mother. She was
radiant. Her breathing was even, her hair was thicker, and her
coloring had returned to normal.

“How did this happen?”

He shrugged. “I don’t know. I’ve been
sleeping.”

Just then, doctors rushed in and someone
pulled him from the room. I reached toward him, afraid that if he
left I’d never see him again, but it was too late. He was gone.

My mother was cured. The doctors said that
she was in remission, but I knew that it would never come back.
Something had happened that day… something… magical. And although I
didn’t understand it, I didn’t question it… I just accepted that my
life was different and that everything was going to be better.

It was a few weeks after we had left the
hospital and life started returning to normal that I saw him again.
I was walking through the halls of school and he was just… there…
waiting for me. He smiled when I saw him and I smiled back.

“I’ve been looking for you.” He told me.

“Yeah, things have been a little crazy since
my mom got better.”

“I got better too.”

I frowned. “Were you sick?”

He shrugged. “Not really… just
sleeping.”

“What woke you up?”

He smiled and reached out to take my hand.
“You did. I was dreaming of you. I know that sounds crazy, but
something told me that if I didn’t wake up, I’d never see you
again.”

Our fingers intertwined and my heart sped
up. It was crazy… just as crazy as my mom suddenly cured… and I
knew… it was magic. It was like something out of a fairytale.

“I dreamt of you too,” I whispered shyly,
but I knew that it was true. That it was him I had been dreaming of
when he woke me in the hospital.

He leaned forward and kissed me. Tentatively
at first, like he was afraid that I wasn’t real, but then he pulled
me into his arms and our kiss deepened. “I’ll love you anywhere
Rory… forever.”

I smiled and pulled away from him so that I
could look into his honey colored eyes. “I’ll love you too...
always.”

And we did… we lived and loved… happily ever
after.

Other works by Krystal George include: The
Witches Lottery (Enchanted Island Series Book 1), A Dragon Forsaken
(Enchanted Island Series Book 2), The Willows, and Guardian of the
Realm: A Faerie Tale

Coming Soon:

The Goblin’s Daughter (Enchanted Island
Series Book 3)

If you like this Anthology – Please check out
Pleasant Dreams and Miraculous: Tales of the Unknown

Beastly

Heather Kirchhoff

©2013 by Heather Kirchhoff

I glared out at the small town we’re
nearing. I had been ripped away from everything I’ve ever known;
I’ve lived in the city my entire life, but now I was taken away
from it. Now I’m being forced to start over.

It isn’t fair.

“We’re here!” my mom sang as we came to a
stop. I glanced up at a small cottage looking house. I groaned.

“Are you kidding me?”

“No, of course not.” Mom shook her head
quickly. “Never. This is our new home.”

“You’re serious?” I sighed, meeting her
gaze. “There’s no way you’re backing down, is there?”

“Nope. You’ll get used to this, I promise
you that.”

“Well, thanks, I guess.”

“I know you don’t mean that, sweetie,” Mom
informed me, reaching a hand over to pat my leg. “This will get
better as time goes on.”

“How can you be so sure?” I demanded.
“Anything can happen!”

“Stop that,” she chided. “Everything will be
fine. It’s not like we’ve never moved before.”

“Yeah, but never to a new town,” I
retorted.

“Chill and enjoy,” she said as she got out.
I watched as Mom went up to the house and unlocked it. She looked
back at me once before going in. I waited another minute before
getting out of the car, sparing one glance around the small yard
and street. I sighed again as I headed towards the house, my heart
skipping.
This is just a new start,
I tell myself over and
over.
Nothing more, nothing less.
But yet, I still feel
lost. It just isn’t fair. Why do I have to suffer?

“Oh stop,” Mom said when I went into the
house. “It’s not the end of the world. You’ll live.”

“Yeah yeah,” I muttered, looking around the
small living room-or, at least, that’s what I assume it is. Mom
left me then to go roam the house. After a few minutes, I went back
outside and sat down on the ground, turning my attention to my
phone.

“Belle,” Mom said as she came back out ten
minutes later. “Let’s get this stuff into the house so we can go
into town.” She gave me a pointed look when I glanced up at her.
“The sooner we get settled, the sooner you can get used to it.”

“And if I don’t want to?”

“You can’t control what you get used to. Now
let’s go.”

“Fine,” I grumbled, standing. It took us
several hours to get the stuff in and put away. Relief washed over
me once we were done. That was a lot for us. I shook my head,
rolling my eyes at myself. “Don’t be silly,” I told myself
sternly.

“Come on, Belle!” my mom called suddenly. I
nodded, going to the living room. I found Mom going through a few
last things; she looked up at me, her eyes shining. “Are you
ready?” she asked, studying me.

“Yup.”

“Good, let’s go!”

I laughed at her excitement, but I guess I
understand where she’s coming from. This is a new start for both of
us.

After a few hours of wandering, Mom went
into a store while I lingered outside. A couple girls were talking
while sipping on their drinks.

“Did you hear?” one of them asked, taking a
long drink.

“About what?”

“About the monster…werewolf-whatever the
hell it is.” The other one shook her head. At that, my gaze
immediately shot up to them. The one that just shook her head met
my gaze, nodding slightly. I quickly turned my head away, my cheeks
flushing. I knew I should just walk away, but I couldn’t.

“Oh yeah, my boyfriend told me,” she said.
“It’s crazy, isn’t it?”

“Defiantly.”

“I can’t believe something like that could
even happen.”

“Same here.”

I rolled my eyes. That can’t happen. No
way.

“Did your boyfriend tell you anything
else?”

“Nah, not really except that it’s something
no one knows about. People claims they see it, but nothing ever
comes of it.” She shrugged. “Who knows?”

I looked up when I noticed their voices were
fading away.
A monster? Yeah, right.
Nothing like that is
possible. It isn’t real.

Is it?

I shook my head fiercely. There’s no way it
is. That’s just a myth people are spreading-a tale.
Exactly,
it’s just a tale.
But what if it’s not? What if this is true?
Think reasonably,
I scolded myself, mentally rolling my
eyes.
This isn’t true!
Yet, I couldn’t shake the feel it is.
Maybe there’s only one way to find out.

Am I really going to do that?

Will I really go to wherever this myth is
taking place and find out? I began walking, noticing a library not
that far from me, I went to it. Once I was inside, I nodded at the
librarian and marched over to the computers, claiming one. I waited
as it loaded, rebooting itself and all that. Once it was finally
done, I typed in the first thing that came into my mind and watched
as several things came up. I clicked on the first one, skimming
over it before moving onto the next. There was a lot of information
and some blurry pictures taken at night, it was weird. They looked
as if the object of the picture was moving-running. I closed my
eyes after thirty minutes passed, knowing I got all the information
I needed. I have to go see what all this commotion is about. My
curiosity is getting the best of me.

For the rest of the day, I hung around the
library, checking out a few books and flipping through them.
Finally, around four, I decided to go find my mom; I had a feeling
she’d be worried sick about me. I enjoyed the cool breeze against
my flesh, walking quickly with the books in hand.

“Hey, Mom!” I called the moment I spotted
her.

She instantly looked in my direction. “Oh
good God. What has gotten into you?”

“Nothing,” I said, showing her what I held
in my hands. “I just went to the library.”

“Of course you did,” she sighed.

“Is something wrong with that?” I asked
cautiously.

“No, no. I wish I knew about that,
though.”

“You were in there.” I gestured towards the
building she had disappeared into. “I didn’t really want to go find
you.”

“I get it. Let’s get home so I can fix
supper.”

Well after dusk, I sneaked out of my room,
tiptoeing through the house. I unlocked and opened the front door
as quietly as I could, slipping out; I latched the door silently
behind me. I then walked swiftly to the woods lining the houses. I
glanced around, finding a tree not far from me with a few branches
entwining, making a perfect spot to sit; I climbed the tree
effortlessly, grabbing a hold of two branches above my hideout. I
sat down, leaning back and resting my feet on the bark.

I don’t know how long I sat there before
hearing a noise. I snapped my head up, my eyes darting around the
dark woods. At first, I didn’t see anything, but as the moments
passed I began to hear noises-scratching, grunting. It was weird. I
sat straight up, trying my best not to be caught; I peered through
the darkness, my eyes narrowing. I opened my mouth to speak, but
instantly closed it. I’m not that stupid, am I? Why did I even come
out here? The noises seemed to be getting closer and closer to me.
I froze, silently crouching down on the tree branch; I placed my
hand on a branch beside me for balance, closing my eyes briefly,
waiting. I rest my head against the bark, my heart racing as I
listened to the noises. God, I’m so stupid. Another noise drifted
to me from the darkness and I flinched, gripping onto the branch
tightly. I willed myself to stay quiet.

Not long after that a figure darted between
the trees, and, for some unknown reason, I jumped down after it. I
raced forward, listening intently for the crashing noises ahead of
me. My breathing became ragged as I ran, my chest heaving as my
heart pounded within. After what seemed like forever, I tripped and
fell, a scream ripping its way from me. I tried to put my hands
out, catching myself, but it didn’t work. Instead, a searing pain
filled my body as my wrist bended the wrong way; I cried out,
softly cursing under my breath. I cradled my wrist, tears stinging
my eyes.
Why did I come out here?
I wondered helplessly. Now
I can be found easily. I shook my head fiercely, trying to clear my
thoughts. I closed my eyes for a few seconds, letting the pain wash
over me as I laid there, shivering. I sighed, shifting to the fetal
position; I let myself drift off to sleep, uncaring anymore.

I awoke to a sharp snap. My eyes snapped
opened and I bolted upright, my thoughts scattered as I peered into
the darkness. A scream wedged itself into my throat as I opened my
mouth, my heart skipping a beat. Scared eyes stared down at me; I
couldn’t make anything of it out. It was covered in the
darkness.

“Hello,” I said gently, extending my hand.
The creature stared at me long and hard until finally stepping
forward. I gasped as I watched it step into the silver glow of the
moonlight; it had burns all over, leaving scars and welts crawling
along its flesh. Dirt was grinded over the poor creature; it had
black hair and torn jeans. “Who are you?” I murmured, gazing into
the eyes of a terrified human, I quickly realized. It wasn’t a
creature, but a
he
. The boy opened his mouth to speak before
quickly closing it, opting to stare at me instead. “It’s okay,” I
informed him, my tone light. “I won’t hurt you. Who are you? What’s
your name?”

“I-I…don’t…know,” he said gruffly, almost as
if he hadn’t used his voice in forever. My heart twisted for the
young boy.

“Why don’t you know?” I slowly went on my
knees, never letting my eyes stray from his. “You must know
something.”

He shook his head, grunting. I sighed,
tearing my gaze away from his. I kept my eyes glued to my hands as
pain still ebbed from my wrist.

“Please speak to me. I want to know what’s
going on.”

He didn’t say anything for a long moment.
“I-I…don’t remember my name.” I didn’t reply, but I let my eyes
stray to him again, encouraging. “I was abandoned…” He trailed off
and I saw tears form in his eyes.

“I’m sorry,” I whispered. “You want a new
life?”

His head shot up at that, staring at me,
astonished. I smiled at him, standing; it took me a moment to
balance, but once I did, I walked over slowly.

“What do you think? I can take care of you.
No, I
will
take care of you. I swear.”

“I can’t ask for that,” he said. It sounded
like it came easier for him.