blackbelt929
06-14-2009, 04:12 PM
Hello, this is my first short storie i've written, and was inspired by the work of Edgar Allan Poe. reviews are much apreciated! thank you
Our story begins with a father, and his son, Michael. Michael’s father owned a small convenience store and deli, which was favored by many locals around town. Michael’s father, Anthony, was well known throughout the community as a caring, considerate person, always trying to help people, and trying to make sure that no one went hungry. Anthony was known for knowing how to read people, and when someone was financially struggling, he was known for doing what he could to make sure that they had food to eat.
Michael was always trying to help his father run the store, stocking shelves, cleaning, helping customers find certain items, anything he could do to help his father be successful.
“Alright Michael” said Anthony.
“We’re closed, go in the back and start sweeping”,
as Michael was in the backroom cleaning up, he heard shouting coming from the front of the store. He looked through the window to see his father being robbed at gunpoint. He knew from previous conversations that if a situation like this were to ever happen, he was to stay in the back and phone the police. When he attempted to dial the number for the police station, he noticed that there was no dial tone.
“Don’t even bother trying to call the police old man!”
shouted one of the bandits.
“We cut the phone lines and chained every door shut!”
Michael, being terrified, had no idea on what to do. So he did everything that he could do, hide.
As Michael stayed in the back, trying not to make a sound, he heard one of the bandits shout
“Is there anyone else in this store!?”
“No” said Anthony.
“Well you don’t mind if we check the back now do you?”
as one bandit signaled to the other to check the backroom, Michael, with his heart racing and adrenaline pumping, slid into one of the empty boxes, and covered his mouth. He could hear the footsteps of one of the bandits coming closer and closer to the box. Every step of the man seemed to echo through the room, as if death himself was coming for him. As the bandit came closer, Michael’s heart began to pound harder and harder, to the point he thought his heart was going to explode. Just when Michael thought the bandit was about to turn back, the man started taping the boxes with his boot, as the man came closer and closer to the box where he was hiding Michael was sure that his life was coming to an end. BANG! An ear defaming gunshot came from the front of the store and the bandit went running to the front of the store.
“The old man’s dead! Torch the place!” shouted the leader.
As the men started pouring gasoline over everything, Michael, so terrified, could not move. As Michael stayed in the box, one of the men came running into the backroom pouring more and more gasoline over everything. The man went running into the front, and then there was silence.
All of a sudden, it seemed that the gates of hell themselves had just opened up and spewed fire everywhere. The heat, the flames, the intensity of the light was almost unbearable. But Michael knew that if he was going to survive, this would be his only chance to escape. As he crawled from the box, the flames singed his hair, and flash burned his skin. The pain was so sharpening, so stinging, and the agony of his nerve endings screaming with pain, made it almost impossible for him to move. The heat of the toxic, poisons smoke filling his lungs, seemed to burn him from the inside out, causing him to cough and scream in agony. As he crawled, he noticed the only window in the room was still open. Michael, his flesh charred and his nerve endings being singed and burned off still screamed in pure agony, shooting an unrelenting burning throughout his entire body, stumbled to his feet, and started for the window. As he approached the window, a box full of glass bottles exploded, sending sharp razor tipped slivers of glass everywhere, several of them lodging themselves into Michaels arm. Agonizingly, reaching for the window sill, Michael, using all of the strength still remaining in his body, pulled himself up out of the window, falling into the soft grass below.
Some years later, after the tragedy of almost being burned alive, Michael, miraculously making a full physical recovery, had not entirely healed. The emotional scars still had a very powerful presence. Whenever Michael was around any type of flame, weather it be a simple lighter, campfire, or even watching a video involving fire, Michael would receive flash backs, and in some cases, leading to panic attacks and seizures. Michael suffered from this anxiety for years. Not only was he embarrassed of being so terrified of fire, but it was almost impossible for him to leave his house without seeing some kind of flame.
Desperately, Michael went to several psychiatrists, doctors, spiritual healers, but none of them could do anything to help. Searching for help, but not being able to find any, Michael fell into a world of seclusion, terrified of leaving his house due to the fear of seeing fire or possibly being almost burned alive again.
After months and months of being secluded from the rest of the world, only leaving his house to buy food, he received a knock on the door. He opened the door to see one of his best friends from high school standing there in front of him.
“Jill?”
he said surprisingly.
“Hey! I just got out of college and now that I’ve gotten settled here back in town I thought I would stop by and see how my old friend Michael was doing, I heard about what happened to you when I was away and I was so scared, I tried to call you but I couldn’t find your number.”
“Its ok.” said Michael.
As Michael and Jill sat down at the kitchen table together she started to mention how she had heard from friends that Michael hadn’t left his house in months.
“So what’s this I hear about you not leaving your house for anything other than to go to the grocery store?”
“I don’t want to talk about it” said Michael.
“Michael, we’ve known each other for years, we know each other better than our families do, please talk to me?”
Michael, having flashbacks again, started to explain to Jill why he didn’t leave his house. “Ever since the fire in my father’s store, and almost being burned alive, I’ve been terrified of even the smallest flame. Even the flick of one of those disposable lighters gives me flashbacks. I’ve even had anxiety attacks and seizures from seeing forest fires on TV. I’m terrified to leave my house for a long period of time, because I don’t want to keep having these things happen to me.”
“I understand where you’re coming from; if I went through what you did I would probably be terrified of fire. But Michael, you do know that fire can also save peoples lives right?”
“I know, but it can end them just as quick.”
As Michael and Jill continue with their conversation, Jill, trying to convince Michael that fire can be just as helpful as deadly, received a call on her cell phone.
“Hello?”
“Yeah sure I would love to!”
“I’m sure he would like to come too. I’ll talk to him about it.”
“Ok, talk to you later, bye.”
“That was my cousin; she is having a party on Friday and was wondering if you and I would want to come.”
“I don’t think so” Said Michael.
“Michael, look at me.”
“Do you really want to overcome this fear of fire, or do you just want to stay here and hide?”
“I can do this myself, I don’t need help.”, he said.
“Michael listen to me, nobody can do anything alone or without the help of someone, now Michael, do you really want to loose this fear, or just stay in your house and hide until eventually this phobia overcomes you?”
Silence. Michael, not entirely sure, said what Jill wanted him to say, unable to think of anything else.
“I want to lose this fear.” He said.
“Then come with me to this party, I guarantee nothing will happen to you there, you know you can trust me.”
As silence again filled the room, numerous thoughts, flashbacks, and feelings surged through Michael’s head. He could see the store burning again; he could feel the fire burn and char his flesh, the very agony of his nerves shouting in pain was returning to him.
“Michael? Are you still with me?”
as Michael snapped out of this memory with a racing heart and a sweating brow, he was speechless. He was not sure as to what he should do. The terrorizing thought of being burned alive again raced and surged through his mind. But the sweet thought of being able to leave his house and become a part of the community again gave him a change of heart.
“Ok, I’ll go to the party, but I’m probably going to be very quiet and a little skittish.” “That’s understandable” said Jill.
“How bout this, we stay together, only splitting to use the bathroom.”
“That sounds like a good idea” he said.
As Friday came around, Michael had been very nervous all week. The war that waged in his head between the memories’s of what happened in his father’s store, and the sweet thought of being able to leave his house and conquer his phobia of fire. The telephone rings.
“Hello?” said Michael.
“Hey its Jill, I’ll be there in about ten minutes to pick you up, ok?”
“Ok.” Michael said nervously.
“You’re nervous aren’t you?” Jill said to him.
“Just a little.”
“Look, I give you my word that nothing is going to happen to you tonight.”
“That makes me feel a little better” said Michael.
When Michael and Jill arrive at the party, Jill’s cousin, Mary, greets them both with a warm welcome;
“Hey you two! How have you been?”
“I’ve been good” said Jill.
“Not bad” said Michael.
“Well come in, the party is just getting started.” Mary said to the two.
As the party goes on, Michael starts to get more and more comfortable being outside his house, socializing, playing games, and even having a beer.
“How you doing?”
Jill asked Michael.
“I’m doing good, I can’t thank you enough for getting me out of my house, but I’m getting sort of tired, think we could leave soon?”
“Sure, I’m getting tired myself.”
As Jill and Michael were getting ready to leave, Mary comes over to walk them out. “I hope you had a good time tonight”
says Mary. But just when Michael thought that he may have been cured of his phobia Mary lit a cigarette. The flick of the lighter and the flame erupting out of the plastic tube seemed to happen in slow motion. As the flame ignited out of the small plastic capsule, the memory of his father’s store flashed into his mind. The fire, the heat, the agony of the fire setting blaze to his flesh all started to come back to him. But Michael, using all the will power he possessed, forced the memory out of his mind, remembering what Jill told him, about how fire can be just as life saving to people as deadly, and chose not to see the flashback.
As Jill was driving Michael home, she said to him,
“I saw how you reacted to my cousin lighting that cigarette, and I’m very proud of you.”
“I remembered what you told me about how fire can be just as helpful as harmful, and I chose not to see the flashback. I’ve come to realize that if I just stay in my house and hide, my fear is just going to get worse and worse, until it eventually overcomes me.” “I’m glad to see that you’ve finally overcome you fear” she says to him.
“Nobody can do anything alone Jill, and you proved this to me.”
As the years passed, Michael slowly started to leave his life of solitude and become part of his community again. He later went on to publish a book titled “You’ll never make it on your own, a phobia story”.
After publishing his book, Michael, completely overcoming his fears, decided to do something that he thought he would never be able to do, he finally opened his own convenience store and deli, wanting nothing more than to follow in his father’s footsteps. Michael, after deciding to open the store, asked Jill if she would like to help him run the store
“Hey Jill, I was wondering if you would like to help me run a convenience store I’m opening up.”
“I would love to!” says Jill.
Jill and Michael have been running the store for about three years now.
“Jill, I never would have been able to do this without you.” “Michael, you’ve been my friend through thick and thin, you’ve helped me with situations I never thought I would be able to get through.”
“Well, we’re officially closed, would you help me clean up?”
“Sure.” She says.
As Jill and Michael are cleaning up, Michael thinks back onto what happened that dreadful night, hoping that it will never happen again. The door to the store opens.
“Get on the ground! Now!”
as Michael is kicked in the back and knocked to the floor, he realizes what is happening. The same fate that his father met was now going to happen to him.
“Tie them together!”
one of the bandits shouts. Michael, with his heart pounding tries to get up and fight of the attackers. BANG. Michael receives a gunshot to the arm, the same arm that the slivers of glass lodged themselves into. The memory of the stinging glass piercing his skin came back to him, the site of his father’s store ablaze; all was coming back to him causing his heart to pound even faster.
As the bandits tied Michael and Jill together, Jill, crying hysterically, says to Michael.
“What’s happening?!”
“I don’t know” says Michael.
“But I think I am going to meet my father’s fate”.
After the bandits took all the money out of the register and out of the safe, the leader signals to one of them and says
“It’s time”.
One of the bandits leaves the store, and races back in, with gasoline cans in his hands. Michael started to have more and more flashbacks as the bandits poured gasoline over everything in the store. The bandits headed to the door, as Michaels spoke his last words to Jill.
“Goodbye Jill.”
“Goodbye Michael.” She says, with tears in her eyes.
As the store is set ablaze, Michael, confirming and accepting his fate, closes his eyes, as the fire begins to char and burn his flesh, just as it did so many years ago.
Our story begins with a father, and his son, Michael. Michael’s father owned a small convenience store and deli, which was favored by many locals around town. Michael’s father, Anthony, was well known throughout the community as a caring, considerate person, always trying to help people, and trying to make sure that no one went hungry. Anthony was known for knowing how to read people, and when someone was financially struggling, he was known for doing what he could to make sure that they had food to eat.
Michael was always trying to help his father run the store, stocking shelves, cleaning, helping customers find certain items, anything he could do to help his father be successful.
“Alright Michael” said Anthony.
“We’re closed, go in the back and start sweeping”,
as Michael was in the backroom cleaning up, he heard shouting coming from the front of the store. He looked through the window to see his father being robbed at gunpoint. He knew from previous conversations that if a situation like this were to ever happen, he was to stay in the back and phone the police. When he attempted to dial the number for the police station, he noticed that there was no dial tone.
“Don’t even bother trying to call the police old man!”
shouted one of the bandits.
“We cut the phone lines and chained every door shut!”
Michael, being terrified, had no idea on what to do. So he did everything that he could do, hide.
As Michael stayed in the back, trying not to make a sound, he heard one of the bandits shout
“Is there anyone else in this store!?”
“No” said Anthony.
“Well you don’t mind if we check the back now do you?”
as one bandit signaled to the other to check the backroom, Michael, with his heart racing and adrenaline pumping, slid into one of the empty boxes, and covered his mouth. He could hear the footsteps of one of the bandits coming closer and closer to the box. Every step of the man seemed to echo through the room, as if death himself was coming for him. As the bandit came closer, Michael’s heart began to pound harder and harder, to the point he thought his heart was going to explode. Just when Michael thought the bandit was about to turn back, the man started taping the boxes with his boot, as the man came closer and closer to the box where he was hiding Michael was sure that his life was coming to an end. BANG! An ear defaming gunshot came from the front of the store and the bandit went running to the front of the store.
“The old man’s dead! Torch the place!” shouted the leader.
As the men started pouring gasoline over everything, Michael, so terrified, could not move. As Michael stayed in the box, one of the men came running into the backroom pouring more and more gasoline over everything. The man went running into the front, and then there was silence.
All of a sudden, it seemed that the gates of hell themselves had just opened up and spewed fire everywhere. The heat, the flames, the intensity of the light was almost unbearable. But Michael knew that if he was going to survive, this would be his only chance to escape. As he crawled from the box, the flames singed his hair, and flash burned his skin. The pain was so sharpening, so stinging, and the agony of his nerve endings screaming with pain, made it almost impossible for him to move. The heat of the toxic, poisons smoke filling his lungs, seemed to burn him from the inside out, causing him to cough and scream in agony. As he crawled, he noticed the only window in the room was still open. Michael, his flesh charred and his nerve endings being singed and burned off still screamed in pure agony, shooting an unrelenting burning throughout his entire body, stumbled to his feet, and started for the window. As he approached the window, a box full of glass bottles exploded, sending sharp razor tipped slivers of glass everywhere, several of them lodging themselves into Michaels arm. Agonizingly, reaching for the window sill, Michael, using all of the strength still remaining in his body, pulled himself up out of the window, falling into the soft grass below.
Some years later, after the tragedy of almost being burned alive, Michael, miraculously making a full physical recovery, had not entirely healed. The emotional scars still had a very powerful presence. Whenever Michael was around any type of flame, weather it be a simple lighter, campfire, or even watching a video involving fire, Michael would receive flash backs, and in some cases, leading to panic attacks and seizures. Michael suffered from this anxiety for years. Not only was he embarrassed of being so terrified of fire, but it was almost impossible for him to leave his house without seeing some kind of flame.
Desperately, Michael went to several psychiatrists, doctors, spiritual healers, but none of them could do anything to help. Searching for help, but not being able to find any, Michael fell into a world of seclusion, terrified of leaving his house due to the fear of seeing fire or possibly being almost burned alive again.
After months and months of being secluded from the rest of the world, only leaving his house to buy food, he received a knock on the door. He opened the door to see one of his best friends from high school standing there in front of him.
“Jill?”
he said surprisingly.
“Hey! I just got out of college and now that I’ve gotten settled here back in town I thought I would stop by and see how my old friend Michael was doing, I heard about what happened to you when I was away and I was so scared, I tried to call you but I couldn’t find your number.”
“Its ok.” said Michael.
As Michael and Jill sat down at the kitchen table together she started to mention how she had heard from friends that Michael hadn’t left his house in months.
“So what’s this I hear about you not leaving your house for anything other than to go to the grocery store?”
“I don’t want to talk about it” said Michael.
“Michael, we’ve known each other for years, we know each other better than our families do, please talk to me?”
Michael, having flashbacks again, started to explain to Jill why he didn’t leave his house. “Ever since the fire in my father’s store, and almost being burned alive, I’ve been terrified of even the smallest flame. Even the flick of one of those disposable lighters gives me flashbacks. I’ve even had anxiety attacks and seizures from seeing forest fires on TV. I’m terrified to leave my house for a long period of time, because I don’t want to keep having these things happen to me.”
“I understand where you’re coming from; if I went through what you did I would probably be terrified of fire. But Michael, you do know that fire can also save peoples lives right?”
“I know, but it can end them just as quick.”
As Michael and Jill continue with their conversation, Jill, trying to convince Michael that fire can be just as helpful as deadly, received a call on her cell phone.
“Hello?”
“Yeah sure I would love to!”
“I’m sure he would like to come too. I’ll talk to him about it.”
“Ok, talk to you later, bye.”
“That was my cousin; she is having a party on Friday and was wondering if you and I would want to come.”
“I don’t think so” Said Michael.
“Michael, look at me.”
“Do you really want to overcome this fear of fire, or do you just want to stay here and hide?”
“I can do this myself, I don’t need help.”, he said.
“Michael listen to me, nobody can do anything alone or without the help of someone, now Michael, do you really want to loose this fear, or just stay in your house and hide until eventually this phobia overcomes you?”
Silence. Michael, not entirely sure, said what Jill wanted him to say, unable to think of anything else.
“I want to lose this fear.” He said.
“Then come with me to this party, I guarantee nothing will happen to you there, you know you can trust me.”
As silence again filled the room, numerous thoughts, flashbacks, and feelings surged through Michael’s head. He could see the store burning again; he could feel the fire burn and char his flesh, the very agony of his nerves shouting in pain was returning to him.
“Michael? Are you still with me?”
as Michael snapped out of this memory with a racing heart and a sweating brow, he was speechless. He was not sure as to what he should do. The terrorizing thought of being burned alive again raced and surged through his mind. But the sweet thought of being able to leave his house and become a part of the community again gave him a change of heart.
“Ok, I’ll go to the party, but I’m probably going to be very quiet and a little skittish.” “That’s understandable” said Jill.
“How bout this, we stay together, only splitting to use the bathroom.”
“That sounds like a good idea” he said.
As Friday came around, Michael had been very nervous all week. The war that waged in his head between the memories’s of what happened in his father’s store, and the sweet thought of being able to leave his house and conquer his phobia of fire. The telephone rings.
“Hello?” said Michael.
“Hey its Jill, I’ll be there in about ten minutes to pick you up, ok?”
“Ok.” Michael said nervously.
“You’re nervous aren’t you?” Jill said to him.
“Just a little.”
“Look, I give you my word that nothing is going to happen to you tonight.”
“That makes me feel a little better” said Michael.
When Michael and Jill arrive at the party, Jill’s cousin, Mary, greets them both with a warm welcome;
“Hey you two! How have you been?”
“I’ve been good” said Jill.
“Not bad” said Michael.
“Well come in, the party is just getting started.” Mary said to the two.
As the party goes on, Michael starts to get more and more comfortable being outside his house, socializing, playing games, and even having a beer.
“How you doing?”
Jill asked Michael.
“I’m doing good, I can’t thank you enough for getting me out of my house, but I’m getting sort of tired, think we could leave soon?”
“Sure, I’m getting tired myself.”
As Jill and Michael were getting ready to leave, Mary comes over to walk them out. “I hope you had a good time tonight”
says Mary. But just when Michael thought that he may have been cured of his phobia Mary lit a cigarette. The flick of the lighter and the flame erupting out of the plastic tube seemed to happen in slow motion. As the flame ignited out of the small plastic capsule, the memory of his father’s store flashed into his mind. The fire, the heat, the agony of the fire setting blaze to his flesh all started to come back to him. But Michael, using all the will power he possessed, forced the memory out of his mind, remembering what Jill told him, about how fire can be just as life saving to people as deadly, and chose not to see the flashback.
As Jill was driving Michael home, she said to him,
“I saw how you reacted to my cousin lighting that cigarette, and I’m very proud of you.”
“I remembered what you told me about how fire can be just as helpful as harmful, and I chose not to see the flashback. I’ve come to realize that if I just stay in my house and hide, my fear is just going to get worse and worse, until it eventually overcomes me.” “I’m glad to see that you’ve finally overcome you fear” she says to him.
“Nobody can do anything alone Jill, and you proved this to me.”
As the years passed, Michael slowly started to leave his life of solitude and become part of his community again. He later went on to publish a book titled “You’ll never make it on your own, a phobia story”.
After publishing his book, Michael, completely overcoming his fears, decided to do something that he thought he would never be able to do, he finally opened his own convenience store and deli, wanting nothing more than to follow in his father’s footsteps. Michael, after deciding to open the store, asked Jill if she would like to help him run the store
“Hey Jill, I was wondering if you would like to help me run a convenience store I’m opening up.”
“I would love to!” says Jill.
Jill and Michael have been running the store for about three years now.
“Jill, I never would have been able to do this without you.” “Michael, you’ve been my friend through thick and thin, you’ve helped me with situations I never thought I would be able to get through.”
“Well, we’re officially closed, would you help me clean up?”
“Sure.” She says.
As Jill and Michael are cleaning up, Michael thinks back onto what happened that dreadful night, hoping that it will never happen again. The door to the store opens.
“Get on the ground! Now!”
as Michael is kicked in the back and knocked to the floor, he realizes what is happening. The same fate that his father met was now going to happen to him.
“Tie them together!”
one of the bandits shouts. Michael, with his heart pounding tries to get up and fight of the attackers. BANG. Michael receives a gunshot to the arm, the same arm that the slivers of glass lodged themselves into. The memory of the stinging glass piercing his skin came back to him, the site of his father’s store ablaze; all was coming back to him causing his heart to pound even faster.
As the bandits tied Michael and Jill together, Jill, crying hysterically, says to Michael.
“What’s happening?!”
“I don’t know” says Michael.
“But I think I am going to meet my father’s fate”.
After the bandits took all the money out of the register and out of the safe, the leader signals to one of them and says
“It’s time”.
One of the bandits leaves the store, and races back in, with gasoline cans in his hands. Michael started to have more and more flashbacks as the bandits poured gasoline over everything in the store. The bandits headed to the door, as Michaels spoke his last words to Jill.
“Goodbye Jill.”
“Goodbye Michael.” She says, with tears in her eyes.
As the store is set ablaze, Michael, confirming and accepting his fate, closes his eyes, as the fire begins to char and burn his flesh, just as it did so many years ago.