My eyes were glued to the tv screen, watching as an elderly man stood on a dimly lit stage with
a kid about my age. The man wore a black suit with a red tie, looking stern and severe.
“And how old are you?” the man asked harshly.
“I’m 12 years old,” the boy answered softly.
The man nodded. “And what is your name?”
“Samuel,” the boy answered in a shaky voice.
The man nodded again before looking at the audience and raising his eyebrows. “Where are
your parents?”
The boy shrugged. “I don’t know,” he answered in a small voice.
The man sighed and looked at the audience again before turning back to the boy.
“And where do you live?
The boy looked up at the man, his eyes wide. “I don’t know,”
The man nodded before looking at the audience again. “So, you’re still a child, and you’re
homeless? That’s just great!”
The old man laughed before continuing. “I have something to teach you that will save your life if
you’re going to be homeless.” He said before turning to the boy, then striking him, causing him
to crash to the cold ground.
“Listen closely, you little brat! You’ll have to do whatever it takes to survive. You can’t be some
naive goody-two-shoes! If you want to live, you must learn to take care of yourself.” He said
before standing over the boy.
“So, what do you say? Will you follow my words of wisdom?” He asked.
The boy gave a slight nod as he held his head in pain.
“I’m glad to see that you’re willing to learn.” The old man said before pulling the boy up off the
ground. “Now, you’re going to take me to where you live.” He said before he began walking
away. The boy gave a quick nod as he followed after him.
The camera follows as the kid takes them to a playground where he’s been sleeping.
“A playground… I see.” The old man said with a smirk. “Very well, then! It seems that the place
you’ve been sleeping in doesn’t have enough suitable places for you to train. How about it?”
The child looked at the man with a curious expression.
The man glanced back at the camera, winking before turning back to face the boy. “I’m gonna
teach you how to kill.”
The camera pans around to the old man, grinning from ear to ear, seemingly thrilled at the
prospect of teaching a young boy how to kill. The scene switches to a close-up of the young
boy’s face, who’s frowned upon and disturbed. “Now, let me teach you how to kill.” The old man
said, gesturing with his hand as if he was conducting an orchestra.
“You see, killing isn’t all that complicated. It’s rather simple. All you need to do is…” The old
man said before being interrupted by my parents, who shut the tv off and stood in front of it,
hands on their hips in disappointment.
“I’m sorry, son.” My father said, “but we don’t think it’s good for you to watch this. We’re going
to have to take it out of your room.”
“Don’t worry about it, dad.” I replied, “I’ll be fine.
“Yeah, don’t worry about it.” My mother said, “this stuff is bad for you. You shouldn’t be
watching this.”
“I’m not a little boy anymore, mom,” I said. “I can make these decisions for myself.”
“Well, we don’t think you should be watching it, and that’s what matters.” My father said before
he and my mother took the tv and all the games out of my room, leaving me to stare at an
empty wall.
“I’m not a little boy.” I thought. “I can do what I want.” But then I realized… I was wrong.
My eyes fluttered open, and I shifted to my side, where I saw a few rays of sunlight creeping
into my room. I fell asleep in a silent, dark room.
I yawned, stretching a little bit before swinging out of bed. I grabbed a pair of sweatpants out of
a drawer, put them on, walked over to the door, and opened it. I walked into the hallway and
headed towards the stairs, where I heard voices.
“How is he?” My mother asked.
“He’s doing better but still has a while to go.” A woman’s voice said.
“But he’ll be okay?” My mom asked.
“Yes, I’m sure he will.” The woman answered. I walked down the stairs and into the living room.
“Hey, mom,” I said, standing in the doorway.
“Hey, sweetie.” She said as she got up and walked over to me. “How are you feeling?”
“Better.”
“I’m glad to hear that.” She said as she hugged me. “So, who’s this?” I asked, gesturing towards the
woman sitting on the couch.
“Oh, sorry.” My mom said.
“This is Dr. Gayle.” She introduced me to her. I
shook her hand. “Nice to meet you,” I said.
“You too.” She replied as she smiled at me.
“She’s the one who found your friend.” My mom said as she put her arm around my waist and led me
to the couch. “My friend?” I inquired, glancing back and forth at the two women. They gave each other a glance before mom gently placed her hand on my shoulder.
“I’m really sorry for having to tell you this, but they found your friend, Daniel, in a ditch last night.”
My mom said as she paused. I knew what was coming next.
“He’s dead.” My heart sank into my stomach, and a tear rolled down my face.
“I’m so sorry.” Dr. Gayle added, placing her hand on my other shoulder. “I’m so sorry,” I repeated,
bowing my head. It was true; Daniel was dead. The person who had saved me from the darkness
and depression I had been living in for so long was gone. As I walked to school that day, I was still
shocked about Daniel’s death. How could someone so close to me die? We planned on going to
college together and getting a job at the same place. I walked into school with a heavy heart. I was in no mood to be around anyone. I just wanted to go home and sleep for the rest of my life. As I arrived at my locker, there she was: Autumn. “Hey, I was wondering if you came to school today.” She said calmly.
“I’m here,” I replied without enthusiasm. “Are you going to be okay?”
She asked in a concerned tone. She knew about Daniel’s death. “I’m fine. I want to go home.” I said, and then quickly opened up my locker. Autumn was a concerned friend, but she would always be there for me. As soon as my last class ended, I immediately left the school building and went straight home. I thought about Daniel.
My mind constantly went through a million thoughts, and I couldn’t focus on one thing. The only thing running through my head was, “Why?”. When I got home, I quickly noticed that my parents weren’t home, but the TV in the living room was playing the same show I watched last night. I walked into the living room and sat down on the couch. “Daniel, why? Why did you do this to me?” I began to cry hysterically. I couldn’t help it.
My sobs were interrupted by the TV - The old man’s face was plastered onto the camera screen as if he was staring directly at me. I wiped the tears from my eyes and stared back at him, but my eyes widened when he spoke. “Daniel would have been a good man if someone had taught him how to kill.” The show then cut to a commercial break. I stood up and looked around the house. “Dad?” I called out, but no one answered me. The bile in my stomach was beginning to rise again, and I ran back into the bathroom and threw up all over the toilet seat. “You got good aim, huh?” I heard my dad say. When I looked up, he was standing over me with a smile. “I’m sorry,” I said
as I wiped the vomit from my mouth with the back of my hand. I was sitting back on the couch in the living room. My father was turning off the television, and I had a bag of frozen corn placed on my forehead to try and take down the swelling. “Are you sure you’re okay?” my mother asked me for about the tenth time since dinner.
“I’m fine,” I said through a mouthful of ice. “We’re always here for you.” She iterated. “I know, I really appreciate it. I think I need some time.” “I have something that’ll help.” Before I could protest, she had already gone into the kitchen.
The old man’s words crept into my mind. What had he meant? “It’s not magic. It’s just a chemical process. It has no power of its own.” She came back with a glass of water and some tablets. “Take these.” I took the pills from her and swallowed them, no questions asked. “What are they? “A mild sedative.” She answered.
“What? I’m not going to sleep now, mom. It’s only nine.” “You need to rest, dear. You’ve been under a lot of stress recently.” “I’m fine.” I lied. “You just need to relax a little.” She kissed me on the forehead and left for her room. I closed my eyes for a moment, but it was hard to relax. My mind kept racing. “You’re a failure.” The old man’s voice rang in my ears, and I jerked awake. I rubbed my eyes and looked around.
I was still on the couch in the living room, but everything was dark. Suddenly, the TV sprang to life, the old man’s face immediately appearing. His head was tilted to the side, staring at me as if I was a trapped animal waiting to be saved. “If you don’t wish to end up like Daniel,” His grin slowly crept across his cheeks, “Then you need to learn how to kill.” Before I could respond, I began to feel dizzy.
The man’s face began to distort as he spoke, his mouth moving at such impossible angles and speeds.
“Your parents are trying to kill you, and it begins with the pills you took earlier. Next, they’ll keep on
feeding you things, and you’ll consume them without so much as a whisper. Soon, you’ll be joining
Daniel, unless.” He tilted his head even further, looking like he’d snap his neck at any moment. “Unless you kill them. Tonight.” My mouth moved on its own. “How do I do that?” His grin widened, stretching past his ears and into his grey hair.
“There’s a knife in the kitchen. Pick it up, go to their rooms, then stab them.” Before I could retaliate, my body was already walking into the kitchen. With shaky hands, I picked up the kitchen knife that was conveniently lying on the counter, and then I stumbled up the stairs, the floorboards creaking and groaning under my weight. I stood at their closed door for what seemed like hours, motionless. The man’s words plagued my mind. I tried my best to fight back but found I had no control over my body. I screamed, but nothing came out. I yelled at my parents to wake up, but nothing happened. I trembled inside as my hand twisted the door open, and I stepped inside the pitch-black room, closing the door behind me for the final time.