WOODSBORO TASK 001 !!
seven years old, an age where all things that could shatter a child’s innocence should be kept at a distance from them. especially when the seven year old was curious and had more energy than a child that age should. when that child was carlos? well, he craved all things scary, but it came with regrets.
‘ mama, can i watch the movie with dad? ‘ the question comes with an instant glare from his mother, the kind his father would usually describe as if looks could kill. the boy shies away with a few steps back, he knows to take such a look as a no. ‘ go to bed, carlos. it’s late. you have school in the morning. ‘
he’s hesitant for a moment, looking over at the calendar. not that he needs it to know what day it actually was, because it was his favorite day of the week. ‘ nuh-uh, it’s friday, mama ! ‘ his mother pauses for a moment before sighing, she was obviously lost on her days lately.
‘ bed. now. ‘ and with that the little boy sighs and runs off to his room with a frown. when would he be treated like the big kids?
it’s a few hours later that he’s being shaken awake, eyes opening to the darkness around him. his father sits on the edge of the bed with a smile, before he’s being picked up from under the covers and gently thrown over his shoulder. ‘ wh━ ‘ he’s shushed by him and the little boy obeys the command. it’s not until he’s put down on the sofa in his father’s den that he sees the opening credits of the movie on the screen. our little secret, he’d been told and that’s what it was. it was the night carlos fell in love with horror movies and everything about them had been etched in his brain.
it’s a few months later that he hears of the horrors in his very own town. his father had brought it up before school, to his mom. they didn’t know he was rushing down the stairs barefoot with his backpack in tow. as soon as he had entered the kitchen she had silenced her husband, but it was no use. he knew. woman were killed and at first he didn’t realize the severity of it all. he never knew death before. the only thing he could think was that his real life had become his favorite genre and it all felt like a movie. he was in a movie.
‘ cool ! ‘ he yelled, jumping up and down. his parents don’t understand what he’s going on about at first, not until he’s raving on about what they were talking about. faces fall, his mom picks him up and places him on the counter with tears in her eyes. he knows this is bad, he knows this look. he had done something to upset her.
‘ it’s not cool, carlos. it’s bad. very bad. you hear me? death is bad. who ever is doing this is bad. why would you ever think it’s cool? ‘ he accidentally looks at his father and she knows in that moment. ‘ you let him watch horror movies, didn’t you? i told you that was a horrible idea. he’s too young for that kind of crap ! ‘
she realizes what she said in front of him and asks him never to repeat it again. a bright smile appears and he crosses his heart. ‘ scouts honor, mama ! ‘ he exclaims, sitting up a little straighter. his smile is matched with hers for a moment and she tickles his stomach gently, causing him to laugh.
the moment of lightheartedness quickly passes and she looks serious again. am i in trouble? ‘ how would you feel if mommy and daddy weren’t around anymore? ‘ she asks and he tilts his head in confusion. ‘ why would you leave me? ‘ he counteracts her question with unshed tears building in his eyes.
‘ we won’t ever leave you. we promise. ‘ oh how he wished she could have kept that promise years later. ‘ but just imagine it for me, okay? hypothetically speaking. how would you feel? if someone just took us away from you, without warning━ without reason ... how would you feel? ‘ oh, he knows that word ! it was that really hard word in the spelling bee. it had the definition stuck in his head for weeks while trying to remember its spelling. hypothetically; could you use it in a sentence, please? he had asked five times over, as if the sentence would change with every time he asked. as if the his teacher would accidentally spell it out for him if he’d asked enough. ‘ i don’t want that. ‘ he states simply, but the look on her face tells the little boy that it’s not enough of an answer, so he continues. ‘ i would be really sad, mama. i don’t want to lose either of you. please don’t leave me. ‘ he sees the frown on his mother’s face and it prompts the hug she gives him. along with another promise of never leaving him.
‘ death isn’t like it is in the movies, sweetheart. it’s pain. it’s agony. it’s being left behind. it’s a lifetime of torture and trying to find a way to heal, but there will always be that hole in your life━ your heart. a void. it’s not cool. it’s terrible and i don’t ever want you to say or think that ever again, do you understand me? ‘ he nods rapidly in that moment, sitting up as straight as he can once more, because he does understand.
he never wants to know what real death is. he never wants to feel that emptiness. he never wants to know what it’s like to lose his parents. he had put this shell around himself, almost as if to block his emotions. he’d never let them see him scared, never let them see him cry. he never wanted to make his mother sad again.
that was the day he had become scared of death and everything in its path. the day he had become a little more afraid to walk the streets of woodsboro. it was the day he realized that nothing was like the movies. it was worse. it was terrible. it was fear. it was the day he vowed to never let his life become one of those horror movies. but more importantly it was the day he promised himself he’d keep everyone he loved safe, a promise that to this day he continues to keep. ━━━━ or well, he’s still trying to.