4. Fear of the Dark

First, the lights flickered. Then, darkness flooded the room. Not even the light from the street lamps shone through the windows. Barry gnawed at his lip anxiously. His eyes searched frantically for familiar objects, but found himself completely surrounded by the looming blackness.

"Looks like the power is out," Joe commented. Barry heard the sound of the wooden chair legs scraping across the ground as he rose from his chair. "I'll go find some flashlights and candles."

Barry blinked repetitively in a desperate attempt to force his vision to adjust to dark. Slowly, the outline of some objects came back into focus. He could make out the faint outline of Iris' face in front of him. She appeared relaxed as she continued to eat her dinner.

A bright light flooded the room as Joe returned carrying two large flashlights, as well as a box of candles and matches. "Let there be light!" he exclaimed jokingly, setting the box down on the table. "It was so hard to find these things. I kept wishing I had a flashlight with me," he chuckled.

"Dad, please no more lame jokes," Iris groaned, rolling her eyes.

"I was just trying to lighten the mood," Joe said, then laughed again at his own joke. "Lighten the mood. Get it? Alright, I'll stop now."

Barry knew what Joe was trying to do. Joe knew about Barry's fear of the dark, which had only intensified after his mother's tragic death, and he was attempting help Barry relax by using humour.

Every night, when Barry lay alone in the darkness of his bedroom, he worried obsessively that his nightmares would come to life in front of him. Except, his nightmares no longer featured growling monsters with fierce, yellow eyes and gnashing teeth. Now, he worried continuously about a man surrounded by lightning zapping into his room to hurt him or someone he loved. The most frightening thing about that nightmare was that it wasn't a nightmare. The man in the lightening murdered his mother, whether people believed it or not.

After dinner, while Iris was taking a shower, Barry sat on the couch, clutching a flashlight tightly in his hands. Joe wandered over and sat down beside him. "The power should come back on soon, Barry. If not, you can keep one of these flashlights in your room tonight. I'm going to give on to Iris too," he said comfortingly.

"I feel stupid for being afraid of the dark, but I also feel like the fear is never going to go away," Barry sighed, resting his head back against the couch.

"Hey, remember how we had that discussion about it being okay to be sad? Well, it's also okay to be afraid," Joe told him. "Everyone's afraid of something, even grown ups. Sometimes they just pretend they're not afraid. And maybe your fear of the dark will go away as you get older, but there's a good chance a new fear will just come along to replace it. But that's okay. Maybe a part of you will always feel a little nervous about the dark. That's okay too. I'm hear to help you with your fears whatever they are, and as long as they last."

Barry stood up from the couch. Images of his mother tucking him into bed and comforting him, speaking to him softly until he drifted off to sleep, replayed in his mind. The feeling of longing to be with her tugged at his heart until it tore it in two. The pain was unbearable, like being starving with no food in sight. It made him feel sick. He missed her now more than ever. "I'm sorry, Joe," he whispered, his voice croaking as he attempted to hold back his tears long enough for him to speak. "It's just... my mum always managed to make me feel better about the dark... and now she's gone." Finally, he allowed the tears to flow from his eyes and trickle down his cheeks, as he raced away to his bedroom.

The following afternoon, Barry and Iris answered Joe's booming call for them to join him in the living room. In his hands, Joe held two books. "I stopped by the bookstore today and thought I'd pick you guys up a little something each." He paused and handed the first book to Iris. It was pink with a floral pattern and the words Girl Talk in bold across the front. "Now Iris, you're growing up real fast, and you're going to start going through changes..."

"Dad!" Iris groaned in embarrassment. Barry watched as a swell of red developed in her smooth, brown cheeks. She pressed her hands against her ears in an attempt to block out the awkward conversation she knew was about to take place.

"Let me finish, Iris," Joe scolded gently. "Now, you're going to go through lots of new things physically, mentally, emotionally, at school, amongst your friends, and while I'm always here to help you the best I can, there are things I won't be able to relate to, not being a woman myself. And I don't want you to miss out on getting the help and information you need, just because your mothers's not here anymore."

Iris cringed as she stared at the book, but eventually her grimace faded into a smile. "Thank you, Dad," she expressed her appreciation and walked over to give him a hug.

"No problem, sweetheart," Joe replied, hugging her back. "Now, for Barry." Joe pulled out a book with pictures of shadows on the front of it. The Science of Light and Darkness, the title read. "Instead of trying not to think about the dark, I thought maybe you should think about it, and learn about it. I know you love science, Barry, and there is plenty of science behind light, darkness, shadows, colours, reflections, and the way we see things."

Barry smiled so wide his cheeks began to ache. "Thank you, Joe!" he exclaimed. "It's perfect!"