The Next Day

Stretch. Up, touch the sky, reach. I faced the cream-colored ceiling, I only stopped when I felt the burn in my legs and arms.

Touch your toes, keep bending. Feel the burn. Stare at the aquamarine fuzzy carpet.

Something popped, I felt it.

Why did I put myself through this again?

Then it came back in flashes. The scarlet red nail pointing at me. That arrogant voice as she laughed at me. The genuine fear I felt. It was in my bones, I was frozen, I was helpless.

That's why I was doing this. I don't want to be that sad little girl anymore. I can't be that sad, pushed around, scared little girl anymore. I have to be better, day by day I have to try.

I cooked a pack of beef ramen for breakfast, the only kind I ever eat. I never try the other flavors and the chicken flavor tastes like chicken noodle soup. I hated that soup ever since I was a kid.

Grabbing the pan from the cupboard above my head, I boiled the water, cooked the noodles and mixed the broth packet. I thought about a cup of tea then thought against it. I didn't need to shit myself when I almost did last night.

I waited for my ramen to cool down while a cheap network show played on our TV. Stir it around, fold over some of the noodles and repeat till it tastes okay. As a dog jumps on a couch and misses it, I shoveled the ramen into my mouth. It was gone in seconds, and so was I.

Out the door and a pair of flip flops on my feet, I found myself knocking on the neighbor's door again. The same deep green colored door that opened and started all my troubles.

I heard heavy footsteps come from upstairs and Kenneth answers the door. His cocky smile made me want to punch him, but I held back the urge, I had to talk to his stupid face instead.

"So, what would you like to talk to me about?" Kenneth asked as he swung the door open.

Don't think, replay the events of this morning in your head. Look at his living room and take it in. There was a handmade quilt on the wall, it had Viking warriors on it. I swore some of the people on it could be related to Halvor and Kenneth.

"Uh..." He let me in and closed the door behind us. "I'm sure you didn't come over to talk about ramen so what's up?" I took a seat in a brown leather recliner that sat in the guys' living room. Kenneth leaned against the doorway.

"After Oskar was brought in and I went home, a demon came to my house." His eyes widen then became sharp with anger. He wasn't angry at me; he was angry that I was now part of their problem.

"You know which one it was?" He left the doorway and went over to the bookshelf that was across from me. He pulled down an old leather-bound book that had ropes that could compete in the oldest thing in the world. It was amazing how the book didn't disintegrate into dust just from his touch.

"Yeah, she said her name was Lilith." Kenneth froze. He wasn't even breathing. I could see that his chest wasn't moving.

He turned around, his face was stern and cold. "Are you absolutely sure it was that demon?"

I nodded. "Yeah, I'm sure. She came to my house disguised as Mindy then tried to kiss me."

"The fuck?"

"That's what I said!"

Kenneth shook his head. "She was probably told to try and seduce you. But as your friend?"

"Yeah, I was confused man. Then she molted and showed herself to me."

"Did she say anything?"

"Yeah, she said that the demon king or something wanted me because of you guys."

Kenneth cussed under his breath. "Shit. Halvor isn't going to be happy about this." He started to flip through the book in his hands. He knew what he was turning to from the frantic flipping he was doing.

He groaned and closed the book. "Did she do anything to you?" I shook my head.

"Nah man, after I said I wasn't going with her, she got a notification from her phone and left."

"She said she'll be back, didn't she?"

"Yeah." I didn't know what else to say. I could tell we were screwed.

Kenneth shuffled some things and random boxes on a shelf that was in the bookshelf. Some of it sounded like bells, other things sounded like jewelry. He pulled out a rock that appeared moldy and covered in moss. It was riddled with holes as well.

"Here, this might help." He tossed the moldy cheese rock at me. I catch it and look at it, then at Kenneth.

"Dude, the hell is with the rock?"

"It's a hag stone. Helps protects humans against evil. This one has been in my family for many generations." At this statement, I tried to hand it back, but Kenneth held up his hand to reject it.

"You need it more than us. You're a mortal, evil tends to cling to mortals a lot more."

I held the rock in my hand and smiled. "Thanks, Kenneth." He paused. Kenneth was taken aback for a moment then he smiled.

"No problem, Linsday." His phone buzzed in his pocket. He pulled it out and opened the notification. "Hey, you wanna swing over for some pizza? Halvor's buying."

I thought about this. My parents had to work late anyways. "Sure, see you guys at six." Kenneth nodded, I got up, and we headed to the front door.

I stood at the doorway with the rock in my hand. "Kenneth?"

"Yeah?"

"This is a problem I'm apart of now, isn't it?"

Kenneth's hand held on the doorknob and he sighed.

"I'm afraid so." He scratched his head and seemed lost in his thoughts for a moment. "Could you... could you please wait about telling Halvor about Lilith for now? At least till tonight, I think it would be better if we told him together."

I nodded once more. "Sure, I feel it would be better too." Kenneth looked at ease at this. "Okay, well, see you at six."

"See you at six."