The Incubus

Chapter 2, Scene 3

The slamming door made Simon look up. A teenage girl walked from one of the cut-and-paste houses down the road to the steps leading down to the street and sat down. She covered her face in her hands and shook as she sobbed loudly.

Simon wondered if he should approach her. Something in him urged him to.

'I hate him,' she sobbed as Simon walked closer. 'I hate that man.'

Simon hunched down in front of the girl. She looked up and forced herself to stop crying—as if embarrassed to be crying at her age—and wiped at her face with her sleeve.

Simon just smiled at the girl. She didn't say anything; didn't know what to say to a stranger that just walked up to her and smiled without saying a word.

'He doesn't mean the things he says,' Simon said. 'He's been hurt and wounded in his past and it affects the way he treats people today. He can't help it.'

'What?' The girl asked. 'What are you talking about?'

'Your stepfather.'

The girl frowned. She searched her memory for where she might have met this man before, but drew a blank. 'I'm sorry,' she said. 'But I don't know what you're talking about.'

'You hate it when he orders you around as if though he's your father, right?'

The girl didn't say anything. Her eyes remained locked onto his.

'You're sick of being treated like a nobody, and the only way out at this moment for you appears to be suicide.'

She couldn't hide the shocked expression on her face. 'Who...who are you?' The girl asked. 'How do you know these things?'

Simon shrugged. 'I don't know,' he said. 'I just do.' He then smiled. 'My name is Simon.'

The girl sniffed and wiped at the sticky tears drying on her cheek. 'Why do you care?' she asked. 'Why should anyone care?'

'I care because God cares,' Simon said. 'He loves you more than you could ever comprehend,'

'God doesn't love me,' she said. 'If He did, He would never have put that man in my life.'

'God loves all people,' Simon said with a calm and soothing voice. 'Including him. He didn't put your stepfather in your life. He put you in your stepfather's life.'

The girl didn't say anything. She didn't have to. Simon could see from the look in her eyes that she understood.

'You are the one who will ultimately make a change in that man's life, for better or for worse. It's up to you to decide which.'

The girl broke eye contact and looked down at her thin hands. 'But who will be there for me?'

'God looks over you,' Simon said and held up the flower. He gave it a little whirl with his fingers. 'He created this flower just for you, Samantha.'

The girl held her hand to her mouth. 'How did you know my name...?'

'I don't know,' Simon shrugged and smiled. He handed her the flower. 'I just do.'

She just sat there for a moment, lost in deep thought. 'What do I do?' she finally asked. 'Where do I start?'

'Start with yourself,' Simon answered. 'Forgiveness is the key. You have to forgive yourself and then forgive him. Also forgive your mother and your biological father.'

'And then?'

'Then the healing can begin. Teach your stepfather how to forgive those who wronged him in the past.'

Samantha weighed his words. Finally her face lit up. This stranger knew her name. He knew about her stepfather. He also knew that she wanted to commit suicide. She figured that the least she could do was listen to his advice. 'I'll do it,' she said and stood up. 'I'll do what you suggested.'

Simon smiled and also stood up. He was much taller than the teenage girl that stood on the steps in front of him.

'Thank you, Simon,' she said and her lips pulled into a smile. She finally had a purpose in life; a goal. Samantha then turned and ran back to the house. She glanced from the door and smiled once more at Simon before closing it.

Simon took another deep whiff of air before continuing his stroll to the coffee shop.