Chapter 2
Black. Pitch black. All that Todd could hear was the gasping of his own throat. A wet floor was below the little boy's clammy fingers and feet. Todd took in a shaky breath and held it. He could get through this. He was going to wake up and everything was going to be OK. Waking up to a mental institution. Oh yes, much safer than a deathly frightening dreamworld.
A great thumping noise resounded within Todd's ears. He gulped and hugged himself tightly. The noise grew louder.
Todd thought to himself of great, beautiful things. Walking through a plain door. The knob was calmly warm. Finding his way into the living room, a blazing fire roared. The noise again. Todd looked up to the wonderfully comfortable chairs and saw his parents. Happy. The noise again. They were laughing. The noise again. They were kissing. The noise again. Todd's parents looked down and saw him there. They stopped their laughing and talking and stared. The noise again. They stared, not of love. Not of hatred. But of a sickening unfamiliarity. They didn't know who he was. The noise again.
Gasping for air, Todd sat up in bed. Darkness shrouded around the little boy. Quick breaths escaped weakened lungs. Todd brought his tiny hands up to his hot face; his cheeks were wet with his tears.
A dull thudding noise echoed throughout the small room. Looking directly towards where the sound originated, Todd brought the covers up to his eyes. Light shown through, beneath the door. But the light was not the thing that scared the boy. It was the shadow that blocked the light. A shadow right outside Todd's door.
The door shuddered as the shadow pressed against it. A loud cracking noise and then a quiet click as the lock on the door was lifted.
Todd didn't know what to do. Something was able to get past the locked door without a key. Images of smiling insanity blurred through his mind.
Creaking, the door slowly slipped open. Only a sliver of light was exposed from the hallway. And blocking some of that light was...
"Shmee?"
________________________________________________________________________
"Eighty nine cents pl-," trailed off the store clerk. A grotesquely sickly man stood in front of the counter. The man was holding out a dollar bill in front of him, sipping a cherry drink. He also seemed to be spotted with blood.
Raising his eyebrows, Johnny motioned for the dollar to be taken from his hand. Slowly, the store clerk grasped the bill and quickly gave back the change. Johnny nodded towards the man and walked out of the store; a jingling of a doorbell was all that lingered.
"I wonder what was the matter with him," spoke Johnny aloud. Walking back to the little parked car, Johnny stepped over the still writhing man. Half of the man's torso was crunched underneath the tires of the car and blood was seeping over the asphalt.
"I hate jay-walkers," muttered Johnny slamming the car door.
"It sure seems like you do," said the plastic figurine sitting on the dashboard. It stared blindly at Johnny.
"I don't remember taking you with me," said the pale man. He picked up Reverend Meat and threw it in the back. It made a soft clunking noise as it hit the seat.
~
Endless miles of road and dirt flowed around Johnny. No matter how long he drove, it still did not give him any answers. He could not even remember the question.
"Why don't you turn on the radio?" asked Reverend Meat.
Johnny looked in the rear-view mirror and saw that the figurine was conveniently placed up behind the back seats. It stared into the mirror back at the man.
"And why should I do that? I thought we already went over the fact that I do not take orders from little figurines anymore," said Johnny. The Burger Boy just stared in the mirror. Johnny sighed and turned the dial on the radio. A mixture of static, music, and speech resonated through the tiny car. Finally, Johnny stopped the dial as a commercial started:
"The best meat around can't compare / To what we have to share / In the kid's meal always comes a toy / At the juiciest place: Bub's Burger Boy! Yes, that's right folks; Bub's Burger Boy is here to serve you! Just take the exit off of Highway 53 and you'll find yourself at the best gosh darned restaurant in town. And don't forget, we always serve with a smile!"
Johnny stared at the radio throughout the commercial. He looked back at the plastic figurine. It almost looked like it was smiling.
Black. Pitch black. All that Todd could hear was the gasping of his own throat. A wet floor was below the little boy's clammy fingers and feet. Todd took in a shaky breath and held it. He could get through this. He was going to wake up and everything was going to be OK. Waking up to a mental institution. Oh yes, much safer than a deathly frightening dreamworld.
A great thumping noise resounded within Todd's ears. He gulped and hugged himself tightly. The noise grew louder.
Todd thought to himself of great, beautiful things. Walking through a plain door. The knob was calmly warm. Finding his way into the living room, a blazing fire roared. The noise again. Todd looked up to the wonderfully comfortable chairs and saw his parents. Happy. The noise again. They were laughing. The noise again. They were kissing. The noise again. Todd's parents looked down and saw him there. They stopped their laughing and talking and stared. The noise again. They stared, not of love. Not of hatred. But of a sickening unfamiliarity. They didn't know who he was. The noise again.
Gasping for air, Todd sat up in bed. Darkness shrouded around the little boy. Quick breaths escaped weakened lungs. Todd brought his tiny hands up to his hot face; his cheeks were wet with his tears.
A dull thudding noise echoed throughout the small room. Looking directly towards where the sound originated, Todd brought the covers up to his eyes. Light shown through, beneath the door. But the light was not the thing that scared the boy. It was the shadow that blocked the light. A shadow right outside Todd's door.
The door shuddered as the shadow pressed against it. A loud cracking noise and then a quiet click as the lock on the door was lifted.
Todd didn't know what to do. Something was able to get past the locked door without a key. Images of smiling insanity blurred through his mind.
Creaking, the door slowly slipped open. Only a sliver of light was exposed from the hallway. And blocking some of that light was...
"Shmee?"
________________________________________________________________________
"Eighty nine cents pl-," trailed off the store clerk. A grotesquely sickly man stood in front of the counter. The man was holding out a dollar bill in front of him, sipping a cherry drink. He also seemed to be spotted with blood.
Raising his eyebrows, Johnny motioned for the dollar to be taken from his hand. Slowly, the store clerk grasped the bill and quickly gave back the change. Johnny nodded towards the man and walked out of the store; a jingling of a doorbell was all that lingered.
"I wonder what was the matter with him," spoke Johnny aloud. Walking back to the little parked car, Johnny stepped over the still writhing man. Half of the man's torso was crunched underneath the tires of the car and blood was seeping over the asphalt.
"I hate jay-walkers," muttered Johnny slamming the car door.
"It sure seems like you do," said the plastic figurine sitting on the dashboard. It stared blindly at Johnny.
"I don't remember taking you with me," said the pale man. He picked up Reverend Meat and threw it in the back. It made a soft clunking noise as it hit the seat.
~
Endless miles of road and dirt flowed around Johnny. No matter how long he drove, it still did not give him any answers. He could not even remember the question.
"Why don't you turn on the radio?" asked Reverend Meat.
Johnny looked in the rear-view mirror and saw that the figurine was conveniently placed up behind the back seats. It stared into the mirror back at the man.
"And why should I do that? I thought we already went over the fact that I do not take orders from little figurines anymore," said Johnny. The Burger Boy just stared in the mirror. Johnny sighed and turned the dial on the radio. A mixture of static, music, and speech resonated through the tiny car. Finally, Johnny stopped the dial as a commercial started:
"The best meat around can't compare / To what we have to share / In the kid's meal always comes a toy / At the juiciest place: Bub's Burger Boy! Yes, that's right folks; Bub's Burger Boy is here to serve you! Just take the exit off of Highway 53 and you'll find yourself at the best gosh darned restaurant in town. And don't forget, we always serve with a smile!"
Johnny stared at the radio throughout the commercial. He looked back at the plastic figurine. It almost looked like it was smiling.