The sky burned bright red, darkened only by swirling scarlet clouds that grew darker towards the center until they became pitch black. The ground spit steam. Burnt stalks, formally trees, jutted from the terrain. Nadia walked at the side of a long black path of half-melted tar. A flap of metal stuck out of the asphalt; the street sign for Mackenloo avenue. Her home.
The siding melted and charred, though the house looked mostly intact. She waded through piles of trash to reach the kitchen. Charred tile crunched under her sneakers. Broken appliances were piled on the counter. Blackened metal legs stood where the kitchen table had burned away. The trash can fell out from underneath the sink. A wave of maggots slid around her feet. Blistering air rolled into the kitchen as the ceiling smoldered open.
A burning ember fell upon her cheek. The living room was there, though any trace of comfort gone. A portable metal chair with a burnt plastic seat lay on the floor amidst debris, the only furniture. Somehow, the wooden staircase remained intact, yet with rails severely charred. Red liquid smeared the stairs. Each of her steps blended the groan of the wood mixed with the squelch of the liquid against her sneakers.
The trail led to the first bedroom. Her palm pressed the blackened door frame. A figure, sickly and drawn, knelt over the mattress frame. An emaciated body tangled itself within the coils, unrecognizable, and composed of maggots. The twisted figure pulled at the squirming larva, only to have the body crumble.
“Nadia, this is lifeless.”
“No! Dad!”
It fell into her arms limply. The body disintegrated into a pile of maggots as if it never was. They entered her hands and squirmed upwards. Their bite inflicted a pain that made her scream at the top of her voice. She slowly began to lose her footing and falter. Her wrists tensed as her eyes dimmed. This vision took her. But before she gave way, she noticed a pendant hanging in the center of the room over a sinking carpet of squirmers.
She reached.
She cried and gasped for breath, but she continued to reach for it despite the gnashing pain. She moved in slow motion, as if under water, but Josh kept his promise by not moving an inch. Strength left every limb of her body as her fingers approached the pendant and scraped at it. She grasped it. The little beasts fell aside and faded away as the illusion broke.
Nadia’s blood succumbed to gravity as she fainted over her enemy. Her face pressed directly into his chest as she breathed deeply. Josh blushed as he held her until the pendant dropped from her opening palm. It clinked as it bounced, then vibrated until finally resting flat. Josh knelt, put his arms under her to pick her up and laid her on a metal bench. He ran his fingers through her hair, listened for her breath, and felt the beating of her pulse before placing a stack of jeans under her head. The pendant went securely between her waist and palm. He rubbed her enclosed hand with his palm. A clean handkerchief wiped her forehead clear of accumulating sweat.
“A deal is a deal,” Josh groaned, “If it’s that important to you, I won’t take it.”
He grimaced, then groaned while clutching his stomach. He pushed himself up and hurried toward the back of the store. Something rose beyond his control as a red glow swirled around him. Shards of glass and splintered wood flew outwards from the window he stood near. He clutched his head in a cold sweat as the terrors came snapping back into him. He jumped, rolled off a trash bin, and ran away.
Nadia shivered when she awoke a little while later. The terror aura had faded and people were returning. She could hear an argument about a broken window. Jody stood over her closely, startling her again. Her head pounded. Her pendant, the chain open, rested beneath her hand. She examined it carefully with a puzzled look, having no idea how it remained with her. A shadow loomed over her.
“What are you doing?” Jody asked.
“Got tired, took a nap,” she explained, thinking quickly.
“Well, get the stuff you brought, we have four more outlets to visit. Did you see that broken window toward the back? They're calling the police about it.”
“No, I didn’t. Wait, four more stores? Do I have to? I’m tired of shopping. I even dropped.”
The attempt at humor was a total failure.
“You can wait in the car if you want.”
“Fine, I’m coming. I’m not that tired.”
Nadia mentioned nothing of the conflict to the others, and made a successful effort not to complain about a painful lump on the back of her head. They weren’t suspicious in the least; instead, the other girls were only anxious to see what she had bought in their absence, wanting to get another idea of her taste in clothing. The shopping from then on mostly involved the other girls. Finished with her personal purchases, she only browsed.
Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.
On the trip home she remained closed to all conversation, only saying the minimal required to be polite. And of course she thanked everyone for all their help and commented on the clothes. If asked how she was she'd simply explain that she was sleepy. She gazed out the window with heavy eyes as they rode along the highway. Yes, she still had the pendant. But those visions had sucked all the fun out this trip. They swirled heavily in her head as she tried to forget them.
"A bit sleepy?" Jody asked.
"Nghhh, yeah, I'm beat,"
“I’m having a pool party this weekend. You can come if you want to,” Tish said.
Nadia nodded tiredly.
“Well, what do you think?”
“Sounds great, sure,” Nadia mumbled, without considering what she was agreeing to, or caring for that matter. She fell asleep sitting up. When someone spoke to her, she tried to act awake and agreeable despite the aggravating bruises and sore spots from two fights in one day. Jody shook Nadia’s shoulder, but she remained in a state of pseudo sleep.
“Nadia, I have a gold bikini that would go great with your coloring, you can wear it to the party if you like. It’s really skimpy.”
“Ya, sounds great.”
The other girls giggled.
-----
It was almost ten o’clock by the time the station wagon pulled back into Nadia’s drive. Mrs. Fischer gave Nadia her bags from the trunk, but Nadia refused her offer to help take them inside. Norman waited at the door as she expressed her gratitude and waved goodbye before watching them drive off. Partly roused from the sleep of the trip home, she could see he was agitated from his scolding stare. She carried her bags to the sofa and sat down to rest.
“Where are the others?”
“Outside, except for Natalie. She’s in bed.”
“What do you think of my new look?” she asked sarcastically. “They forced me to go through a makeover because of you.”
His middle and index finger pressed against his temple, “Forced you?”
“This is all your fault. And to tell the truth, right now, I don’t feel like a man in any way at all. I don’t identify with anything that could be considered masculine, men’s underwear isn’t even comfortable anymore, and I don’t feel comfortable around men. Maybe we should be glad I’m still a person at all, you know, like you said before. And really, you were in on all of this as far as I'm concerened!”
Norman played with his fingers, “You’re really more comfortable in woman’s clothing then?”
She got up and patted her father on the back, “I’ve decided to wear clothes that fit. Don’t worry dad, this is the only skirt, and I didn’t even buy it. Most of what I bought were jeans and summer shirts. I also got some new shoes that fit, and most of my socks are white, not pink.”
Norman rummaged through a bag.
“I see you’ve chosen a nice assortment of undergarments.”
“Don’t look at that!” she pulled the bag from him, “What kind of pervert are you!?”
Her father gave her a knowing look with a poorly suppressed smirk. Nadia’s head went down, her cheeks flushed, she bit her lip and hugged the bag tighter than ever.
“Don’t look at me like that. It doesn't mean anything. None of this means anything.”
“Well, you might decide to remain a woman the rest of your life, so I can’t really blame you.”
“Stop playing your stupid games! What was I supposed to do? You practically forced me to go and Jody decided to make me the center of attention. She couldn’t leave me alone for half the trip! None of them could!”
"Is there something more you want to tell me?"
Nadia dropped the bag on the floor and buried her face in her hands.
“I was reluctant, I mean, I wanted to get basic stuff, unisex clothes, and boys wear that I could get away with. I didn’t want to go off the deep end. One thing led to another and it just got easier to let them decide for me. I didn’t want to be rude or hurt anyone’s feelings and every time I got a complement from Jody, I just felt so warm inside. I-I-I... looked so different, I even felt different. After the first hour I stopped fighting it, I actually enjoyed it.”
Her father rubbed the top of her head, “Sorry. You have the right to enjoy yourself, okay. I’m sure you have a lot to work out, and you have a lot of decisions to make too. I want you to know that I’m here to support you, no matter what.”
Nadia looked up into her father's eyes, “Thanks dad, once I get changed back, I’m going to burn all this girl stuff. I’ve already decided to get my manhood back and I’m not going to let anything stop me. I'm more determined than ever now!”
“I have a question.”
Nadia looked up rather patiently, as it felt like a bad joke brewing.
“Which kind of underwear did you say is more comfortable now?”
Nadia’s eyes widened as she stood and brushed off her skirt with her free hand.
“Good night; you’re a terrible father. I’m going to bed.”
She went to the stairs coldly, then glanced back as he started to go to his office. She quietly placed down the bags and ran up to him quietly, then hugged him from behind, which caused him to freeze in a bit of shock.
“But I still love you.”
-----
After changing into white flannel pajamas, Nadia checked herself in the mirror. She played with the hair over the sensitive lump on her scalp. Then she fingered the scratch on the center of her forehead. She was astonished she survived with bruises and skinned palms. Her father was used to seeing her get cuts and bruises all the time, so he hadn't asked any questions. That was a good thing. He probably hadn't seen Josh attack her because he was busy with Dew and couldn't be everywhere.
A heaviness lingered in her head as the visions returned. The hardened, peeling skin that stuck to the center of her palm rubbed her forehead. Visions of death mingled with visions of birth. Repeatedly the emaciated figure of her father uttered the word: lifeless.
With those thoughts, she crept into bed and slowly faded into sleep. The tossing and turning disheveled her bed sheets as her arms and legs flailed about. Once during the night, Norman would hear her talking and check on her uneasy sleep. A dull moan escaped and she began mumbling tearfully about lady Garasa as she tossed her head back and forth on the pillow.
With a worried frown, he slowly walked back to his room.