A Collection of Short Stories

Snake Eyes

Do you believe in magic? I didn't used too, that was until I witnessed it myself. I didn't have a perfect life. At home, I was miserable, but at school I was the king. I was the most popular guy on campus. I had everyone wanting to be me. But the summer before my senior year of college, everything changed. But I'm getting ahead of myself. I need to start from the very beginning. It was my freshman year of high school when it started. College became the center of every conversation. That is when my father started changing. I needed to be absolutely perfect. I needed to sound perfect, look perfect, get perfect grades, be perfect at sports, have the perfect girlfriend, and the perfect group of friends. I had to become my father's image of being perfect, and when I failed I would get punished. I eventually made it to my father's favorite college, Duke University, but I paid a price. I had finally achieved his perfect image. This is when the pain stopped, but I didn't. Maintaining that image was harder than I ever imagined. I didn't know what he was doing to me at the time, but again I'm ahead of myself. Let me take you back to the day my life really changed. June 16, 2019.

*******

My best friend, Luke, always throws the best parties. Tonight, he was planning a surprise party for his girlfriend Amy. Everyone from the campus was invited, but we knew that only our friends would show up. I wasn't allowed to hang out with anyone with a lower class status. The party started at ten, but by midnight everyone was intoxicated. That's when the nobody's showed up. The worst nobody of all is Christie Evans. There are rumors that she practices magic in her dorm room. She is absolutely insane. She always played into her witch role. Her hair is dyed in a different color every week. She never brushes her hair. She is so pale that she looks sickly, almost like death. She came to the party wearing a white dress and a long gray sweater.

"What is crazy Witchy Christie doing here?" Luke said to me.

"No idea, and she brought her followers too." I said.

"Let's send them back to their rat hole." Luke said.

We went upstairs and began plotting against Christie and her little cult. The plan was to publicly humiliate her by pouring red wine and maple syrup on her. Once we had it figured out, we sent a text message to a couple other people to help with the plan. It didn't take long to set it up and the plan was in motion. I lead her outside under the targeted window the targeted window, and told her I was going to go get her a drink. I walked about ten steps away when I watched the window slide open and Luke pored the gooey mixture of wine and syrup out the window and right on Christie. Her scream made everyone turn around and start laughing at her. I came back with two drinks in my hand.

"You." She screamed. "You did this."

I looked around me playing my innonce. "Who me?"

"Why Bryce? What did I ever do to you?" She yelled.

"You crawled out of your rat hole, Christie. It's time to go back." I said then laughed.

"Go back to your rat hole, Bryce." said a blonde unknown voice.

She walked over to Christie with a towel as Christie was squeezing the maple syrup out of her hair.

"You will pay for this." Christie said calmly.

Everyone started to exchange looks with each other. Something was about to happen. Everyone but the girl standing next to her had a terrified look on their faces.

"Bryce Mills. I hope you one day see the monster you have become. I hope your soul rots like a poison apple. You have made your bed, and now you must lie in it." She said snapping her fingers in a T-shaped form. "Your fate has been set." She said before leaving with the blonde-haired girl.

Everyone stared at me like I had been cursed. Everyone started to whisper before I went inside and the music came back on. Luke came downstairs and met me in the kitchen.

"Dude, are you okay?" He said.

"I'm fine, but I think I'll just head out. I killed the mood outside."

"Are you sure? After that mess, I think you should stay." He pleaded.

"I'm fine. See you tomorrow." I said walking out the door.

I made it to my car out front, and climbed behind the wheel. I drove down the road and was minding my own business. After five minutes on the road, I had a terrible drowsy feeling rush over me. My head started spinning and I heard a voice in my head. It was Christie. I couldn't move my body. I was paralyzed. I didn't see the car running off the road, and straight into a tree. A head on collision sent me through the windshield on to the smashed hood of my car leaning against the tree. I heard the OnStar dialing in my car, but I couldn't say anything. Everything was in a blur, and my whole body ached. I could feel blood running through my hair. It was becoming black, and soon I saw nothing.

When I woke up, I was lying in a hospital bed hooked up to multiple machines. I looked around for my dad, but he was nowhere to be found. I was about to close my eyes when I saw someone step into the room.

"Looking awful, Bryce." a familiar voice spoke.

I turned in the direction of the voice and saw Christie siting in the chair by the bed. "You." I coughed. "You did this."

"Oh, on the contrary. You did this to yourself. I told you that you would see the monster you've become." She said handing me and hand mirror.

When I picked up the mirror, I saw my new look. I was paler, bald, and had cuts and bruises all over my face. I was hideous. My eyes had change to a reptilian yellow and had scared me. "What did you do to me?"

"This is what you look like to everyone else. A cold-hearted snake. I know your past, but that does not excuse the things you have done. This condition of yours is only temporary, if you pass the test." She said.

"What test?"

"You have six months to open your heart to someone, or you stay like this forever. You need to thaw your heart. Feel love again. So your time starts now." She said and then left the room.

*******

For the next five months, I was shipped to an secret apartment to heal, and try to live my new life without the acknowledgement from my father. He told everyone that I had graduated early and was traveling the world before I began a career. But that was far from the truth. I was hidden away from society, and my only human contact was a blind tutor and his daughter. And that daughter happened to be the blonde from the party. I couldn't even associate with my father. The only thing I received from him was a monthly check in the mail. I changed my name to hide from the blonde-haired girl. Her name is Sabrina. She had always been kind to everyone and she came to help her dad. I was hideous to look at, but she didn't care. I had told her everything about my childhood and she told me about hers. I was quite fond of her presence, but I could never open my heart to someone after my father did to me. Six months was not enough time, but I did end up with Sabrina under my new name. But I was a changed man.