It rained endlessly. It wasn't even the kind of rain you can go dance in and sing off key to I'm Singing in the Rain like Gene Kelly. This was the kind that if you stepped out in it you'll come running back in to wrap yourself in a blanket with a mug of coco in your hands. Fun!
"Marilyn, you have a visitor!" Mom shouted from her writing room that already had a full ash tray.
"Thanks Mom, just make it sound like this is a psyche ward, why don't you?" I shouted back before running down the stairs and to the back door where a drenched Lora stood shivering, "Holly monkey terds are you okay?"
Lora laughed at my choice of words and nodded her head, "Yeah I was just bored out of my mind at that house. Alexander ate three bags of popcorn that Alena apparently claimed, and they were yelling way too loud to hear the show I was watching."
"Ah, well, that makes me happy that I'm an only child. So, uh, wanna go up to my room?" I asked a little awkward. Not very often you have someone come over in the pouring rain because of a sibling rivalry.
"That sounds awesome." Lora said smiling and followed me up the stairs.
"Hey, do you like creepy movies?" I asked as the film from the other day ran through my head.
"Yeah, sure," Lora said as we heard a small yelp come from the broom closet.
"Damn it, Bear!" I muttered as my mom shouted out, "Check on Bear Mar-Bear! I think I heard him yelp!"
I opened the closet and a black muzzle poked out causing Lora to gasp. I chuckled as my ginormous boxer dog Bear padded out of the closet and into the bathroom, not even giving me a second look.
"Yeah, you're welcome too buddy." I said and got a sharp bark in response. Then I lead Lora over to the second staircases that lead to the attic/my room.
"So, that creepy film," Lora asked as I held open the duel door.
"Oh yeah, so, I was walking down the road and I was filming when I heard this guy yelling and cussing at someone and then—you just have to watch it." I went over to my laptop and paused Passion Pit and threw open my window seat.
"So, you live in the attic?" she asked turning around in a circle looking at my slanted roof and all white walls and bed.
"Half of the attic, that door," I gestured to the left side of my bed, "leads to the other half."
"And you put your bed by it?" When I nodded Lora scrunched her nose up.
"Yes, now get ready to see something creepy." I said while transferring the film over to the small projector.
"I'm ready," Lora said a little uneasy.
Once I got it all fixed up I pulled out a spare sheet from the large cherry oak amour and hung it over the window. Pulling off two of the red and white pillows from my bed and throwing them at the floor I sunk onto the hard wooden floor.
"C'mon, I've watched this all day yesterday trying to figure it out." I said patting the pillow next to me for Lora.
"So you shot it this Wednesday?" Lora asked as I skipped past the corn part of the film.
"Yeah and I had this amazing bystander shot but some douche interrupted it." I muttered as I gently rolled the film.
"I think that douche was my brother, sorry about him. He's like extremely temperamental." Lora said picking at the wet hem of her jeans.
"Yeah no joke," I said then finally found the part I wanted, "I got, okay, so be ready to be somewhat freaked."
The black and white film shook a little since I was walking down the uneven road. Then a loud thunder came from the sky just as I had zoomed in on the shadowy hand. Both Lora and I jumped but we kept our eyes glued to the screen. Just before the lights sputtered out we saw the dark hand pull back with three translucent-like feathers in it.
"Damn it." I muttered and then quickly shut off the machine and started to withdraw the section of film.
Lora looked at me quickly and said, "I thought your camera takes sound."
"It does, but that's on a totally different tape and it's a pain in the ass to set up. I really only do it when I'm about to post a new miniature film." I said shrugging as I started to pack away everything.
"You got a guy picking up feathers and thought it was creepy?" Lora asked and like that thunder and lightning rang through the sky and Lora looked scared and anxious, "I have to get home, thanks for letting me watch your film. We can hang out again right?"
"Yes, of course we can!" I said smiling at her as she walked to the door.
When I stood up to walk her out she put up a hand, "I'll show myself out."
"Okay?" I said a little confused.
A few days later and suddenly the skies cleared up and the temperature shot up to nighty-six. So, like any normal seventeen-year-old during summer, I was in my room reading A Tale of Two Cities with my legs resting up against the wall. Like clockwork, as soon as the large-and-in-charge grandfather clock in the hallway downstairs chimed eleven my mom stomped up the stairs.
"Marilyn Joana Monroe!"
"Naira Jenna Monroe," I muttered to the hundredth page.
"Marilyn, it's almost 100 degrees outside, why are you doing in your room reading?" My mom came over and knocked my heels down from the wall.
"Because," I rolled over and onto my stomach, "its 100 degrees outside."
"The neighbors are outside and its 100 degrees out." Mom put her hands on her hips and used her foot to push my book down to the floor, "Maybe you could go swim in our private lake?"
"We have a lake?" I asked, dog earing the page and closing the book.
"Yes, it's just down the dirt road if you go right instead of left. I think I saw your friend and her sister heading down there a little while ago." My mom said before leaving my room.
"I'm still going to stay up here!" I yelled down to her.
Her laugh floated up followed by, "It's this or finally painting the dining room and kitchen like you promised me you'd do."
I grunted and stood up, slamming my book on my white book shelf, and yelled down, "Fine, but I'm not going to swim!"
I quickly got changed out of my purple bunny pajamas and into a pair of denim shorts and a cute little floral tank top. Grabbing my 1936 Welta Vintage Rangefinder folding camera and hung it around my neck I jogged down the steps and out the front door. After checking on the film, I popped open the camera and adjusted the lens. A squirrel stopped in front of me on the dirt path and I quickly squat down and brought the small squirrel into focus.
"Isn't that a pretty sight," A deep and dry voice said behind me, causing me to jump at the last minute of taking the photo.
"Asshole," I muttered before turning around to face Alexander the Duchebag, "thank you so much for ruining my picture; however can I make it up to you?"
"I'm sure you can think of something," He breathed out, his dark lashes fanning his cheeks. Why do the douche bags always have to be the hottest?
"Yep, I can," I tapped my chin like I was thinking deeply of the right repayment, "I'm thinking…a punch in the face. How does that sound?"
Alexander placed his hand over his heart as if in shock, "Miss Monroe, I do not think you have it in you."
"I have a lot of things in me that will surprise you." Holly monkey nuts, are you flirting with him? Get a grip Marilyn!
Alexander laughed then looked me up and down, "Where are you headed off to?"
"I was told there was a lake around here, why do you care?" I asked gripping my camera tighter.
"It's really just a homemade pond that the farmer made." He said then looked me over again, "If I were you I wouldn't go."
"Whatever asshole," I muttered before walking again, then stopping to get a quick picture of a bluebird perched on a low tree branch.
"What's with you and old stuff?" Alexander muttered as he walked beside me.
"It's not old stuff, they're vintage and belonged to my whole-lot-of-greats-grandfather, well this camera and my 1936 Keystone double 8mm. Oh, and my 1954 Bell & Howell 8mm movie projector. It was one of the first ones able to play movies with sound." I said while taking a shot of a spider web that had a dragonfly dangerously close to it.
"Do you want to be a director or something?" Alexander's question threw me off some.
"Well, my billion-greats-grandfather was Frank Capra. My mom's a screen writer, my aunt's an actress, and basically my whole entire family has something to do with movies. I found the camera in the attic when I was five and ever since then loved filming, so guess so. Why do you care?"
"I don't know," Alexander said running a hand through his tasseled brown hair.
"SO why aren't you being all high-and-mighty dickhead right now?" I asked turning around and snapping a quick out-of-focus picture of Alexander and his beefy arm flexed behind his head, starring up at the sky.
"I felt like not being a high-and-might dickhead?" I nodded and he continued, "Why'd you take a picture of me?"
"I could probably sell this for forty bucks online even if it was out-of-focus. Which it was," I said, "and you are good looking, but you ruin it whenever you open your mouth. Luckily for me, this is a picture."
"Cute," Alexander muttered.
"Shut up." I said blushing then hurried my pace but Alexander grabbed my arm and stopped me, "What?"
"You turn down this path." Alexander said and stepped down a thin path that had roots of the trees making uneven steps. It'd make a good picture.
"Wait! Take two more steps, and then stop. I'm going to take a picture!" I yelled down.
Alexander laughing turned his head and said, "You're turning into a little stalker, Mary."
"Don't call me that, and I sell these online! This is a good picture, now look forward!" I called back.
"Whatever, Mary," He said before turning his head to face forward.
I messed with the focus so that it looked as if a halo of rainbow tinted light surrounded Alexander's half-focused body, leaving the path in a clear view. I quickly took a picture, then took a step forward focusing on Alexander more and took another picture. I took another stepped and the light seemed to fan out like dove wings around his back and I gasped. Quickly taking a picture, I looked up. The light was still there and I took in a sharp breath. For some reason I wanted to touch it, but when I reached my hand out it disappeared.
"What are you looking at?" Alexander demanded, retorting back to his dickhead ways.
I quickly put my hand down and stomped past him, mumbling, "Nothing,"
I stomped my whole way to the pond taking a few quick jostled snapshots of anything that caught my eye. Finally I made it to the "lake" to find that Alexander was right. It was more like a large coy pond minus the coy. The bottom was a mirror, seriously, with pebbles scattered on it. I quickly took a picture of that. It had clear sparkling blue-tinted water in it with green lily pads scattered around it. To say it was a beautiful site was an understatement. There was a cluster of fake rocks on one side where Lora and Alena sat wringing out their dark brown hair. They looked like mermaids basking in the sun, and I quickly took another picture before Alexander caught up.
"Ohmigod, Marilyn! You found the pond?" Lora jumped up, and walked on the rocks with her arms out for balance to get to me.
"Not really, I ran into your brother and he showed me the way. I would've never found it if he hadn't." I said lamely before taking another lazy picture of the lake, getting Alena looking up at the sky in the far left by accident. Hope my customers don't my mind some portraits for a change…
"She forced me to stand still and take a picture," Alexander grumbled then looked over at me, "and you would've found it, but it would have token you ten extra minutes, but you would've still found it."
"Ooh! Take my picture!" Lora jumped up and down as giddy as a school girl.
"Alright, um, why don't you get in the lake, and do something." I muttered, checking on how much film I had left, "I can only take a couple more pictures."
Alexander covered a laugh with a cough and said, "Do something, you are an amazing director Mary."
"Shut up Alexander the Duchebag." I muttered while taking a picture of Lora diving in to the lake in her black and red bikini.
"Alexander the Duchebag, I like it!" Alena shouted from her towel on the rocks.
"Alexander the Duchebag?" Alexander said raising an eyebrow at me while I focused on Lora swimming by a cluster of lily pads like a frog.
"Yes, like Alexander the Great, but instead it's Alexander the Duchebag, because you're not great you're a douchebag." I muttered while snapping a picture of Lora resting the top half of her body on a rock with her legs kicking lazily in the water.
"Impressive." Alexander muttered and then his shirt fell on my head.
"I swear to god if you do a cannonball—"
"Cannonball," Alexander yelled and only gave me a fraction of a minute to turn around and protect my camera.
"Alexander you're an asshole!" I yelled at him once he came back up. To tell the truth I took a picture as he flipped his wet long hair back, but I swear my finger slipped. Thank god the flash is off…
"Come on Mary! Get in the water!" Alexander said trying to splash me but I took a step back.
"I don't have a swimsuit on!" I shouted back.
"So? Get in here chicken!" Lora yelled at me laughing.
"Did you just call me chicken?" I laughed and took a quick unexpected picture of Alexander lying on his back in the water, Alena mimicking him on the rocks and Lora smiling at me as she treaded water. Hopefully I had a costumer that wanted a picture of three teenagers playing in a lake.
Alena sat up and pulled down her large black sunglasses and smiled, "Yeller belly!"
I laughed and shook my head at her, "So, now we're in the wild west? Great."
"Just get in," Alexander said smiling to the sky.