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keeshin · 2 years ago

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The Hunter and the Boy

“ Jacob, sweety! Don’t wander off too far now, understand? “ Malissa shouted in the kitchen worriedly while chopping some carrots for a meal she is making for herself as her son, Jacob, leaves the cabin to explore the snowy forest.

“ I won't, Mom, I promise! “ The young boy replies and as he quickly enters the snowy domain, Jacob walks into the snowy forest. Young Jacob skipped his steps in utter excitement, expecting to find tiny frogs hibernating during the harsh winter. He started checking every corner of the snow forest he was walking through, will he find one though? Oh! He might find a lizard! Is he going to see a frozen lake this time? He never saw any in his past ventures in different snowy forests, it's a shame his parents don't come with him to these types of activities.

Walking in the snowy wilderness, Jacob’s gaze wanders to his surroundings, the sound of his shoes walking on the icy snow is kind of frustrating for him to hear for some reason. Lost in his thoughts Jacob stayed in the snowy oasis, a few hours pass oblivious to the fact he is lost in the wilderness, and the young boy stumbled upon a shallow frozen lake. This frozen lake illuminates a few fish swimming in it as the sound of the rushing water from it calms him in a way it reminds him of his hometown's small lake. Oh, how he misses his home right now. To the boy’s right is an old oak tree decorated with white snow on its leaves and branches and to his left is a clear view of mountains decorated with a white color on top of them, a serene environment for a boy like him. The overcast sky felt vast as if the blizzard has engulfed it. But what is overhead feels too empty compared to the great cold, the lush variety of trees long frozen, and all it can offer that can satiate his little mind.

A faint chime is heard and from the distance, young Jacob finds himself a small bird, injured perhaps? The boy gently lifts the bird with his tiny hands.

“ Hey there, Lil’ buddy! What’s wrong?“ He asks the bird, with no luck, that birds can’t audibly talk to humans, the bird appeared to have an injured leg, yet both wings are intact and uninjured the bird's upper parts of it are soft brown and its legs are shiny black. Jacob pitied the small bird that was resting on his tiny hands as he slowly stands up. He then ventures deep inside the forest, and darkness engulfs the snowy landscape as Jacob navigates to find a bird's nest to help his little companion. He turned his gaze to any sign of any nests nearby but sadly finds none.

Moments pass and Jacob still wanders in the snowy abyss, lost and alone. He encounters the feeling as gloomy yet comforting..? As gentle as a morning breeze comforting type feeling. Jacob sees a small nest dangling on a tree; The tree is old and twisted, decorated with white snow. Jacob walked towards that tall tree and climbs it with all his might he grabbed one of the low-hanging branches and stepped on an elevated root he jumps up and hangs onto a long branch that has a hanging nest. “ There you go, Lil buddy! “ Jacob said as he carefully put the bird into the nest.

Click. The sound is heard from a distance, a wolf? No, wolves don't usually roam this close to civilization. Did the wind pick up? No, it wasn’t windy at all and if there was he would fall off the tree! A huff was heard in the distance, is someone nearby? Fear slowly rises within him, his breathing slowly picking up and his thoughts making the situation worsen his grip on the tree branch loosens as his head turns from left to right trying to find the sound. Is curiosity engulfing his thoughts or is it fear–

BANG!

The boy trips on the rough surfaces and plummets down the tree out of shock and as he falls, the sound of the wind whistling in his ear, he thinks to himself ‘A gunshot?‘ As he tries to finish his thoughts, his consciousness goes blank as his head hits the snowy floor for a moment, a small moment that could be an eternity. And as Jacob slowly regains consciousness he feels a painful sting on the back of his head, it’s probably water or maybe blood. The last time he bled he fell off his bicycle and scraped his knee badly.

Slowly, he sits up to touch the painful sting on the back of his head. He feels something damp against his fingers, something strangely warm and wet against his cold, small hands. He stares at his hand, watching a familiar liquid stream down his palm. Blood. Of course, he knows of blood, he knows how bad it is. But compared to a fall from his bike, this wound does not sting. Does he need to go home immediately, if the damage is not that big? He doesn’t think so, that’s why–

“Ow!!” he exclaims, "When did I fall? How did I fall? Where am I? He looked at his surroundings.” How hard did I fall? “He can feel his vision waiver, where the snowflakes merge with the image of the blackened trees. Every movement of the bushes and shrubs surrounding him gives him an ill feeling. Not good...

He pushes his small body off the snowy floor.

A faint sound of tiny feet pattering hastily in the snow, he looks to his right, where the noise is heard and Jacob walks towards the faint sound he slowly hears whimpering, almost beast-like. ‘ An animal? Is it a dog? A bear cub? No- Bears sleep during winter!’ he thinks to himself. Young Jacob moves slowly, in his small steps towards the foreign noise- no, not foreign. Does it carry weight, mass, a person maybe? Where did that loud bang come from? A predator perhaps? No- it must be from a gun.

Someone is shooting something, a hunter is near! ‘Wait- what is the hunter shooting at, is it me?’ Jacob questions himself as he slowly approaches the strange sound, the atmosphere of the forest was once light as a feather to Jacob’s heart, light enough that you might think you’re on cloud 9, now dark, and yet everything seems to be the same. Strange, gravity feels like it’s dragging him down like stones are chained to his ankles, the boy's heart sinks in fear as his mind raises on what the possibility would be drowning him, the poor lad, even suffocating himself from the atmosphere alone, the weight of the snow now turning into a heavy burden, like quicksand slowly sucking the young boy into a sea of pure darkness, all that bellow on his little feet just a little more pressure and he's gone in this little world he lives in, such a sweet little boy, so innocent and small, so easy to break, Oh such a cute boy he is. It would be a shame to see it all shatter in a heartbeat. He carefully takes a look at the mystery creature-monster- no,

Human.

The darkness engulfs the landscape, and his vision starts to see black splotches from his surroundings, the trees- wait no- people? Tall people? No. It’s just trees, the annoying feeling of something wet on the back of his head is back again, he looks back, but nothing. Oblivious to what is happening to his body, young Jacob kept approaching the tall figure in the distance, is it a human? Jacob wondered, he takes a closer look at the blurry figure, ‘ It sounds so familiar’ Indeed it is. Of course, he has heard. Many, many times. In arguments, held by the monsters not from his bed– but right behind the kitchen door along with shattering glass and cries and screams and–

He can feel his quiet breath hitch sharply, daggers stab his throat deeply and he represses a cough– Click.

Then his heart hitches next, each beat deafening, each beat counting the seconds of what may be left of his short-lived life. Each beat of his heart could be a CLICK!

IT’S A GUN.

Jacob’s shoulder tenses up, and his limbs lock into jelly and mud– his chest buried by the muddled mixture of tears and mucus from tears and… His stomach has been sinking, not in hunger. Not in the cold but…FEAR, fear, the feeling of something watching you. FOLLOWING YOU, and it only sees you. Its goal, its target. You are the figure’s sickening desire, its magnum opus. A similar feeling to being blindfolded, you don't know where you are, and you don’t know who is watching you. feeling the cold snow beneath his feet, his heartbeat quickening from sheer fear, ‘help’ his tongue hanging like a thread about to snap yet nothing comes out from his mouth, his voice is silent, only the sound of the wind whistling in his ear can be heard, poor Jacob couldn't say a word even if his life depended on it. His lips tremble blue against the frost drying out his throat, his tongue sits like bitter lead. His body is frozen in place, he couldn't move, he couldn't speak, he couldn't even run for goodness sake! This isn't the first time he couldn't move due to sheer fear.

His father used to pull out his gun and Jacob’s poor, weak mother used to hide the little lad whenever His father was drunk or furious. Wails fill his ears, a harmony of seas and birds in utter discord; their hearts in utter discord that he long had never felt that peace– that peace from the white blankets of snow, the iridescence of lakes and frozen icicles, the soft, jittering cries of critters and creatures that were more than what his family is. More than what that place is and so why… Why here too?

Why must he hide from the only place that welcomed him? Why is the forest to betray him too..? Jacob can feel the remnants of his heart shatter and fall into the pit of his stomach, his churning gut urging him to flee… or to stay… to fight for what are the remains of the comfort he never wants to be parted from ever again.

He takes a good look at the mysterious shooter in the distance: A dark man with a leather jacket, gray cargo pants, and white as-snow army boots. Come to think of it he resembles the dead tree behind him. Like a boogeyman. Like those monsters under his bed— but this man is much better to be seen as a monster than what lies ahead of the door from his bed. Monsters aren’t always under beds or behind the thicket of bushes and leaves.

As Jacob tries to gather the courage to speak to the shooter, he notices that the hunter placed his rifle beside the withered tree, for a moment the man just stood there, like he was looking at something. Somewhere… Ahead? It can’t be him. Jacob long had known how people stare from the distance, and if he did… He cannot feel intent. Can he?

Those heavy feet sink in the vast thick white snow, his body slouches in the sheer weight of his feet dragging themselves in this snowy desert. His body is jagged and dark, the man's eyes black and blurry and unclear from the snowy storm that slowly starts to worsen over time. The hunter placed down his rifle beside a dead, withered tree, its branches decorated with snow and long icicles. The man starts to slowly descend the white horizon leaving a deep trail of an empty white path below his feet, his hands dirty and decorated in…blood?

Jacob then slowly ascends the snowy hill, his feet dragging themselves against the weight in his heart, his mind rising as his thoughts start to swirl with possibility and impossibility. Who is that man? Is Papa hunting for food to bring back to Mom? Why did he go down the hill? Is he a monster? Question after question, all can be solved in a snap of a finger. Jacob with his childlike wonder and gullibility, his pace quickening as he runs in the snowy abyss, his feet a burden to him as he runs to the top of the hill he sees the hunter below the steep snowy landscape. The snowstorm worsening, the wind gushing in Jacob’s ear, so strong it pushes Jacob to take a step back— SNAP

‘What was that?!’ he thought to himself and as Jacob looks at where the sound came from the hunter turned his head to the foreign noise, the same reaction as Jacob’s. ‘Oh it’s just a stick’ Jacob thought to himself as he sighs in relief Jacob’s breathing eases now that he knows that he was not in danger—-

“ Who’s there?” A mysterious voice came from below, Jacob snaps his head as he looks at where the voice came from. It’s the man, the Hunter who held and shot a gun to something…. or someone.

As Jacob looks at the Hunter with his doughy eyes he can't help but look at the man with wonder, he underestimated this man's height! He looked like a dwarf from far away.

“ Who are you?” a sudden question from the tall, dark hunter towering over little Jacob. Wow, he’s a giant! As the hunter towers above the boy, he knelt and analyzed Jacob thoroughly from the tippy-top strand of his hair to his cute little boots that are decorated with snow. Both are staring at each other, one with wonder and the other with curiosity. As The hunter analyzes Jacob, The boy did the same thing recognizing the hunter’s facial features, like his strong jaw decorated with his white messy beard and his glorious black hair with snow sitting on top of each strand and his eyes—

Before he could get a good look at the hunter’s eyes, he stood up, his torso wearing a black t-shirt with a brown leather jacket overlapped from it, both clothes looked ragged and worn out as the sleeves seem to be decorated with something watery and fresh yet the color seems to have faded out as if it's like the leather hasn't been washed in days, ‘he smells weird’ Jacob said and indeed he does smell…different.

As Jacob notices the scent, he hesitates to ask the man what is on his sleeves, smells so familiar, so near yet so far, he thought to himself if he has seen these stains before.

…has he?

The man extends his left arm toward Jacob,

‘What?’ Jacobs stares at the man’s hand approaching him.

‘Why?’ he is getting dizzy, is he going to hurt him? No, not likely he just knew this man, it's not like this is his papa, or is he? Oh no.

‘Who?’ he never knew this man yet he starts to touch Jacob without introducing himself to the frightened boy.

He’s scared, it’s back again, the fear he felt when his father mercilessly beats his poor mother, the endless screams of fear and pain, the endless begging to her husband: ‘PLEASE STOP!’ yet he never stops, it is like the man who swore to protect his wife now became the source of her pain, her FEAR. Is he her husband? No, a husband is supposed to love, protect, and cherish the love of his life, the woman he merged lives with, willing to intertwine her life and body with his, yet he dared to call her useless, worthless, and a waste of space. What a pathetic display of a so-called “husband.”

Run. His mind wails, RUN, he can’t as his father said. He is worthless.

As Jacob’s eyes swirl in fear; his body shaking from the memories pouring in all at once, a weight of a thousand rocks on his shoulders sinking him into a bottomless pit of pain and sadness, he can't swim out of this one, no— as his hands seem to be chained down, those tiny hands which were supposed to create such creative and beautiful child fantasies now getting dragged down with him. Then like something is holding tight on him, a hand, so light, so gentle…Jacob looks up.

It's the Hunter now in a vision of black he sees a light, this man is different, there's something about him, so gentle and yet intimidating.

Like a father. As Jacob finally looks up at the Man he notices that this hunter has a soft and gentle demeanor.

“G-good afternoon mister… I’ve been watching you for a while..!” He lied through his teeth, and almost as always it feels natural to do so. After all, no one is here to hurt him.

Those brightened eyes of the mysterious hunter hid allure underneath his softening lids. He felt less big this time, less more than what he looked, and more than what the image of his little family is. Jacob’s eyes turn to the rifle leaning beside a dead tree, decorated with wisps of snow, ready for the taking.

“Can I hold that, mister?”

As the hunter takes a moment to respond, he hears the gun getting hammered back and ready to fire, but before he could respond—-

BANG! The hunter jumps at the sudden gunshot as he looks in the direction where the loud noise. He spots little Jacob holding the rifle HE left leaning on a dead withered tree. The man walks towards Jacob in anger, "HEY!" The man yells at Jacob with little apprehension; he notices that the little lad is cocking the rifle in his hands. He shrieks at Jacob again: "HEY! WHAT'RE YOU DOING?!" Yet no response to Jacob.

As Jacob is about to fire his second shot, the big man stops him, "WHAT IN GREAT SCOTT ARE YOU DOING, LAD?!" Angry at Jacob's actions, the hunter swipes away the rifle in Jacob's hands and screams at him: " WHY DID YA DO THAT?!" The hunter's eyes full of rage, Jacob replies to him with a cold demeanor

" It just felt right."

Nothing but just, the hunter's eyes that were once filled with rage now turn into shock and worry. Too delicate, that Jacob’s wonder twisted as he stared back. 'Are children supposed to be like this?' The man asks himself, his heart now carrying an unknown weight he cannot understand, so heavy that he has never felt until... The boy stood still as he stared into the man's eyes. " What's wrong?" Jacob asks the man with oh-so-innocent eyes which the hunter did not fall for, he replies: "Yeah…yeah, everything is… alright."

Isn't it?

Some time pass and the two are walking in the woods together. One brilliant and tall figure and the other a small and dainty child.

Jacob speaks as he seamlessly speedwalks on the path to somewhere, “So…why did you wander in a place like this, kid?” The hunter asks Jacob, walking behind the young boy. It took a mere moment for the boy to answer him: “I just wanted to explore new places.” Jacob finds a long stick as he continues, “Whenever my family goes on vacations, I always go exploring in the woods.” before the hunter gets the time to respond, Jacob continued again, “ And when it's on beaches I just wander in other peoples backyards and invade them.” The hunter looks at the young lad with a shocked face. He spoke with no hesitation and barely any thought of remorse. He swatted that stick with considerable strength that one would wonder why and how he is doing so, with such a frail, young body. What a weird kid.

As the two walked together for a short while they finally arrived at the cabin Jacob’s family is staying in.

“Well here we are, kid,” The hunter said as he turns to walk toward the wilderness once again. “Thanks for bringing me here Mister!” Jacob said in a cheery tone and as the boy waves goodbye to the hunter, he slowly sees the man disappearing into the forest each step at a time.

A few morose weeks have passed and The hunter is walking in the same routes to find his prey, rifle in his hands he hears a foreign noise in the distance and he approaches the noise, that rattle, and that sob– is someone whimpering? He recognizes the part of the forest he’s walking through. Isn't this the path to the kid’s vacation cabin? As the hunter slowly sees the cabin’s structure steadily, the crying grew louder and louder until…there it is. Sobs for a certain figure a child calls for safety and sanctuary: his mother, a mother who never came for him, poor little James. The hunter sympathized with the little lad's situation and so he pats the kid’s shoulder gently.

“ Hey… There, little lad,” The man said to Jacob in a calm and soothing voice, Jacob slowly tilts his head up between sniffles and sobs he sees the old man giving him a comforting smile before the man could even finish his sentence, Jacob tackles the man, crying loudly and uncontrollably spilling out pitiful babblings, The hunter pats the kid’s head,“ Wanna get something to eat, little man?” He asks Jacob and the boy nods his head. It sounds pleasing! And besides…

Jacob sighs to himself. It has been so long since someone ever asked him if he wanted to eat.

The man walks past the child and opens the wooden door which creaked in motion. He takes a whiff of the house he opened and all he can smell are burnt cigarettes, the sight of crumpled-up beer cans littered in the living room, and dark stains of cigarette ash left on the once rich emerald green couch. The man is flabbergasted by the sight he witnessed in Jacob's cabin, it's a mess! His eyes dart to the timid boy who sits on the floor of the porch for a quick rest, his head leaning on the wall as he listlessly stares ahead of the vast tundra.

As the hunter analyzes the cabin once more little Jacob enters the cabin with a stuffy nose and tear stains on his cheeks. It didn't take long until his body starts to shake– not from the cold, but from the unbelievable warmth enveloping his body the same way the scars ached brightly within those weeks he never saw the hunter.

Jacob sits on the ashen green couch and looks out the ruined window, wooden boards lazily cover the window and a few holes are left for Jacob being able to see through, he hears the hunter's heavy set of feet stomping over to the kitchen. “Wanna have a snow cone, kid?” the hunter asks. “Y-yes please!” Jacob replies, smiling at the fact he's gonna eat ice cream! Yay! The man took a few items from the kitchen and nodded at Jacob to follow the large man outside. As the duo walks to the plain white snow Jacob notices the man scooped a handful of snow in his hands, what is he doing? Wait… is he going to eat snow? GROSS!

The man then continued to put condensed milk onto the handful of snow and as Jacob watches with a disgusted look, the old man chuckled “First time havin' a snow cone?” The man said looking at Jacob with a smirk “No, mister, but why are you making ice cream here?” Jacob said still disgusted with what the hunter is doing, as the hunter puts food color on the ice ball the hunter replies: “I just told ya, I'm making a snow cone for you, kid!”Said the hunter gleefully as he hands the snow cone to little Jacob, the little boy hesitated on licking the tempting and glorious treat, and the two peacefully sit on the porch stairs together as the hunter looks at the distance and Jacob eating his newly made and first snow cone.

This is going to be a good beginning for him.

A few years have passed and Jacob has grown from a child to a young adolescent boy. It was just winter then. Suddenly the seasons came as the cycle of time remains untarnished by the small occurrences and events that had happened within both of the Hunter and Jacob’s lives. The cabin looked much cleaner, much more alive as the run-down walls no longer felt suffocating– the light is warmer itself. Unfortunately, no one is home, no hunter, no Jacob. The light of the cabin's lanterns illuminated the fixed windows through the peaceful dark forest, the night is as peaceful as one's mind.

The lush green forest surrounded a small camp: Fire crackling with light that made the forest feel alive, the trees dancing along the wind, and between the serenity, a figure sitting before the campfire peacefully.

Until a sudden rustle is heard behind the young man.

‘What was that?’ the teen asked himself as he picks up his rifle. The rustling continues in the darkness getting louder and closer as if this endless sea of black will see its end once it steps in the fading light the boy then points the shaft in” its” direction. Snap— from the distance, Jacob cocks the rifle. Ready to fire at whatever is approaching him he focuses his eye on the reticle, his breath shallow as if a foot is stepping on his chest suffocating him and his hands shaking due to the fact it could be anything beyond the endless waves of grassy bushes.

A hand reveals itself in the light, who’s that? The young teen grips the trigger “Calm down, It’s just me.” it's HIM.

Good, Jacob isn't going to get attacked by a bear as he puts his rifle down he clicks the safety on first, just to be safe from getting accidentally shot that is. He lets out a sigh, more of an annoyance than relief.

As the boy finally relaxes over the crackling light he looks over to the hunter. “Jeez, when was the last time you shaved?” Jacob said disgustedly on the hunter’s beard, he takes a sniff “ WHEN DID YOU LAST BATHE YOURSELF, YOU OLD MAN!?” Jacob exclaimed as he covers his nose out of pure disgust. Who could blame him? The old man smelled like a walking corpse; Maybe because he harvested a fox’s organs. As Jacob wonders why the hunter smells horrible, the old man reached his hand down a brown sack he has been carrying around, the cloth made of sheep wool, smooth yet strong enough to carry dead prey although…the bottom of the sack had the same smell as the old man or is it because the old man’s stench is infecting his nose like a sickening virus. “Here- ” The hunter said as he holds up something small and bloody, it takes a spherical shape “I got this from the fox” The man continued as he wipes off the blood on the small item and presents it to the curious teen.

An EYE.

Jacob stares at the item presented to him with his reaction being obscure.

The old man always saw Jacob as a special case, not fearing something so easy it's actually…Very terrifying. The fact a child did not fear a fox corpse or even a gunshot. As the hunter thinks to himself, Jacob holds the eye with no emotion in his pair and walks to his tent, the sound of the rustling of cloths and metals colliding rings sonorous; what is that kid looking for? As the man wonders his gaze, Jacob finally got out of his tent holding a pot in his right hand and the fox eye to his left as Jacob fills the pot with water, the boy is eerily quiet, “What’re you cookin’? The hunter asks.

No response.

The boy places the pot on the crackling fire, adding a pinch of salt and pepper to the water “ Are you plannin’ to cook my prize?” The hunter asks the teen again.

No response.

The conversation is only one-way, the wind filling the silence and with the crackling fire accompanying it, the hunter cannot help but feel uncomfortable. Minutes have gone by and not a single word out from both sides of the non-existent conversation, the pot boiling. Reaching its limit, Jacob finally puts an ingredient in besides salt and pepper: something spherical and white– wait, isn't that the eye the man gave earlier? The teenager drops the eye in the boiling water, and slowly the eye went from its natural eye color to now white and faded, the sight to see as white as snow, as white as a death in terminal lucidity. The hunter's eyes are fixated– unbelievably perplexed at what Jacob is doing, the man continues to watch him, now the boiled eye in Jacob’s grasp: he eats it whole.

Now the boiled eye in his mouth the boy started chewing it while looking in the distance as if what he did was normal.

That poor, innocent boy.

This boy.

"I'm...gonna go and hunt us some game." says the hunter, his eyes remaining on the boy's eyes as he mounts his rifle to his right arm and slowly walks towards the blackening abyss once again.

It's been several hours since he saw the boy, now the sun is rising from the mountains and the tall trees glisten in beauty as the wind whistles to the chirping of morning birds. How peaceful this morning is to him, the old man continues his search for prey until he came upon a familiar terrain.

Lush orange leaves fell from above, a clear blue stream, tall white birch trees towering over the little oasis he have stumbled upon suddenly. Although...It does look quite familiar wasn’t this the place where Jacob found an innocent injured bird? It is. The man stands there thinking back on how kind Jacob was when he was just a small child. He misses his boy already.

The constant crunching of fallen leaves echoed in the lush orange forest, Jacob with a rifle in his hands he continues his search for prey as he continues to search for his prey he smells something familiar, something that is horrid to one's nose. As he covers his nose to find peace with his nostrils he recognizes the terrain he is standing in. He's right back where he started, strange. He remembers this place like it was yesterday, the day where he left his momma to go exploring in the woods. It used to be fun but now, it's nothing to him.

He used to simply be a little boy. But memory is a bore, entertaining it is a chore he is not willing to do...

This hunter,

What if he falls prey to him?

Just like the white forest he used to want to traverse,

He'd love to know.

Jacob feels nothingness fill him. He used to be so scared of what lies ahead. But now he is behind a gun he points to the hunter's head.

He'd definitely love to know. What a curious little boy he was

Click.

As Jacob holds the trigger.

The snow crunches underneath his leather boots, and his breathing left trails of wisps and whispered memories of the past. There ahead lies the still, frozen lake. It used to be so fascinating. More than just a lake. And the oak tree by the further right… Is just the same as other trees.

But the sky…

And this hunter…

He aims his rifle to his head.

"Adieu."

He pulls the trigger and—

WOOSH!

Jacob adjusts his eyes from the sudden movement he just witnessed. And before he could open his eyes– " AHHHHH!!!!"

He opens his eyes, to only see the old man's right thigh bleeding slowly yet endlessly, the dirt beneath him painting itself with red liquid. The old man's endless groans and screams of agony continues, echoing throughout the lush orange oasis.

He walks towards him…

Gun in his hand and boots stained with crimson red blood…

" It's a beautiful day isn't it? " Jacob said in a calm demeanor.

"WHAT THE HECK DID YOU DO TO ME??" The old man exclaimed out of pain and confusion.

"Even though everything around us is dying as we speak" the boy looked above,

orange leaves raining down up above them,

The blue sky is painted with white clouds.

"WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?! WHAT IS THE MATTER WITH YOU?!" The old dying man screamed as he drags his ragged weak body across the ground. Desperately trying to escape jacob,

like a mouse desperately trying to run from a cat.

Trying to escape from the inevitable…

From Death.

Jacob raises the tip of the rifle towards the hunter's head "I don't know…"

" It just felt right."

Light flashes before the old man's eyes.

The hands of Jacob are stained with blood.

Ringing filled Jacobs ears once again…as the stream of clear water, now tinted with blood.

He opens his eyes to see the lifeless corpse of the old man. Blood dripping from his eye socket and head half way dipped in the lake.

Jacob stares at what he has done…yet he does not feel fear, nor pity to the old man's fate. After all…

He died by his hand.

As Jacob kneels at the corpse before him, he places down his rifle on the blood stained ground and looked at the hunter once agai—

What?

Where did he go?'

He looks down at his hands. Only to see nothing but clean and untouched from any blood.

Nothing but emptiness left on his hands he looks up at the lifeless body that streamed crimson red on the messy soil that was once a sanctuary to young Jacob.

This forest is now a domain of questions in which leads Jacobs mind into a whirlwind of what is real and what is not. Jacob scrambles his feet across the ground, his eyes searching for the corpse.

'Where' He wonders.

' Where is it?'

' Where is he? '

' The world is spinning!!' he thought.

Hands gripping oh his hair, he pulls them with such force that his head begins to spin in sync with his dirty body.

Spinning

'Spinning! The world is spinning and I can't see!'

It is as if the world morphs itself into something different with every turn. His feet trembled stiff. spinning over and over until his insides contract and his limbs turn limp onto the snow. dead like that man. demented as he... Had always been.

Jacobs body now twisted and distorted from within he twists even more, and then—CRACK

If it were hell he falls into.

He has no regrets.

As it felt just right.

Just for him.

END

- short story by, Keeshin.

#story #short story #thriller #original character #fiction #psychological horror

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