Wow! What a whirlwind the last few weeks have been! Sometimes it seems like life comes at you from all sides, and you don't really know which way to turn. So you just do your best and hope that it is good enough.
First of all, I have been very fortunate to have my book, Pumpkin Guts, Tater Eyes, and Other Tasty Treats, chosen for this year's Kentucky Book Fair. I was so excited to be invited as one of the featured authors at this year's event. The Kentucky Book Fair is held each year in Frankfort to showcase the year's new and best literature in Kentucky. The reading public gets to come and meet their favorite authors and get copies of their books signed.
But the best part is that the profits that are made by the Kentucky Book Fair go to help public and school libraries in the state of Kentucky. I am so honored to be able to help school libraries in my state. This is especially true since I am a teacher. I only want what is best for the schools. Did you know that SMS received a grant for $800 from the Kentucky Book Fair last year? That is great! If you all can make it to the fair on November 7th in Frankfort....I would love to see you there! Stop by my table and I will sign a copy of my book for you!
Another good event in my life is the fact that my dad, Lonzo Fugate, got baptized last weekend. Honestly, I never thought that I would see the day. However, he started attending church services with my mom a few years ago. Now he has taken it to the next step. Mom and Dad go to Eldon Miller's church. Eldon was the one who baptized my dad. I am very proud of both my parents and wish them all the happiness!
In case you haven't read my article before, my wife Lisa and I are still in the process of trying to adopt. We have had our papers in to adopt for almost 2 years now. Our program is through Children's Hope International. We are trying to adopt from Vietnam because we feel that we are meant to do this. Unfortunately, the Vietnam program has shut down for the moment. The United States and Vietnam are still trying to work things out. Meanwhile, the orphanages in Vietnam are overflowing with unwanted babies.
It just breaks my heart that Lisa and I are able to give a child a good and decent home environment but are unable to do so because of politics. We have everything for the baby. We already have two cribs, changing table, high chair, tons of clothes in all possible sizes, stacks of baby toys, and a variety of bibs, rattles, bottles, etc. We even bought a minivan! LOL! It is like...everything you need...just insert baby. Now, we play the waiting game. It looks like things may open up sometime in late 2010. Until then, we just wait...and wait...and make sure that our paperwork doesn't expire.
Finally, Lisa and I have been doing a lot of home cooking lately. A couple months ago, we went to see the movie Julie and Julia. Well, being the nuts that we are...lol...we went and bought Julia Child's book, Mastering the Art of French Cooking. Well, of course, we also had to have a Dutch oven to cook in...red and white...just like Julia's. And we have been trying out different recipes. We have made...so far....potato and leek soup, beans, vegetable soup, and chili. This weekend, I tried another Julia Child recipe...cream of butternut squash soup.
I had a nice, fat butternut squash that Mom and Dad gave me. I roasted it in the oven until the skin just popped right off. The flesh was nice and tasty....the roasting brought out the sweetness of the squash. Next, I combined onion, carrots, and squash with butter in my Dutch oven. I cooked them until the onions started to turn soft. Then I added both chicken and vegetable stock. The soup cooked for 30 minutes until all was soft. Then, I puréed it and added half 'n half, white pepper, and nutmeg.
The soup was very warming...the spices really added a kick. I served it along with corn muffins in the nice Longaberger soup bowls that I ordered off of Connie Hale. She sells the best Longaberger in the world! I invited Mom, Dad, and Uncle Robert to lunch. I liked it...and I think Mom liked it. I wasn't too sure about Uncle Robert or Dad. Lisa said that she did NOT like it...but she doesn't like cream of anything soup...LOL. Oh well....better luck next time!
I will close this article with a thought. If you don't do your best and fail....you've truly failed. If you do your best....you may not succeed....but you will never fail.
Until next time...class dismissed!
Sunday, October 18, 2009
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Monday, October 12, 2009
Fog
Staring into the swirling fog
A mist of timeless eternity,
I place my eyes on distant places
of memories
and cats
and tops.
The mindless mist envelopes me.
I lose myself in memory.
And try to find the road again
And hope to find the way.
A mist of timeless eternity,
I place my eyes on distant places
of memories
and cats
and tops.
The mindless mist envelopes me.
I lose myself in memory.
And try to find the road again
And hope to find the way.
Sunday, October 11, 2009
Dark as Coal, Part Eight...and the end of this little tale.
Mary froze as Walter slowly made his way toward her. At least, the creature had once been her husband. Now, it was just a slobbering pile of tubes, quivering greedily in her direction. Tubes full of sharp teeth. Drool and blood were dripping from the fangs of the beast as it drew closer. Mary didn't have to ask where the blood had come from. She had just witnessed it eating the remains of some other poor soul.
"Help!" she screamed out. At least...that is what she wanted to do. But she could do little more than make a whimper. The black stare of the monster froze her in her tracks and made any voluntary muscle movement impossible. A tear of fright ran down her left cheek. She didn't want to die! Not like this!
She looked at what had once been her loving husband and sent all the love that she had left inside toward him. She took a deep breath and managed to croak out three simple words.
"I love you," she whispered.
A tube that ran out of Walter's ears latched onto her arm, digging its way inside. She felt the searing pain and heard a spatter as her blood began to flow onto the floor. She sensed other tubes whisking their way to the floor to greedily lap it up. Another tube, this one running from Walter's mouth, drew back...and prepared to impale her face. She tried to close her eyes...but couldn't. She didn't want to see what was about to happen to her...but she couldn't do anything about it.
And then...the beast stopped. The tubes fell limply to the floor. The one that was digging its way into her arm pulled out with a pop and another sharp wave of pain that shot up her arm and into her chest. She found that she was free....and she cried out in pain and clutched her arm, trying to stop the gush of blood.
The creature shook its head viloently. Blood and snot flew everywhere. And then, it let out a roar that seemed to come from its guts.
"Noooooo," it bellowed, a deep angry voice that mixed with Walter's voice, "Not her......never herrrrrr. Nooooooo."
"Oh Walter," she cried out, wanting to go to him...hug him...but not daring to take one step in either direction, "I love you Walter."
And then the demonic monster looked at her with eyes...eyes as black as coal...and for one brief moment, she saw Walter looking out of those eyes.
"And....and I...." it tried to form words around the drooling tubes that hung lifelessly out of its mouth, "I....luff...youuuuuuu."
And with another screech, it turned and raced to a door at the back of the stairwell. Mary found that she could move again, and for one moment, fought the urge to run away in blind panic. But then she realized that she had to follow the beast...had to find out what was going to happen to Walter...her Walter.
"Walter!" she cried out. "Wait!"
She didn't really know what to do. She just knew that Walter was still in there...still alive. She followed the bellows of rage and pain...and the trail of gooey, bloody ooze down another set of stairs behind the door that Walter had darted through. These steps led down....down into the dark basement of the hospital.
Every instinct in her body was telling her to turn around...to get out...to escape. And still she ran after the monster that was also her husband.
It was so hot in the basement. And steamy. The hospital was old...and it heated the place with steam. Of course that the basement would be hot....they had a huge boiler that was powered by....
And then she knew...knew where Walter was going. Knew what he would want to do. She cried out and ran after him even faster.
"Walter! NO!" she screamed, "There must be some other way. We can fight this! We can get you some help. Walter please! Listen to me!"
She turned a sharp corner and saw that it was already too late. Walter was standing in front of the large furnace that powered the hospital's boiler. He had pried the door open with his many tubes...searing the ends of several of them. The smell of rotten, burnt flesh hung heavy in the air.
Mary stopped. Crying she held out her arms toward Walter...but she knew....deep down inside, she knew that it was too late.
The horror which had once been the man she loved turned to look at her one last time. Mary saw one large, black tear run down his face. Then with a scream of pain, Walter flung himself into the furnace...using one of the tubes to pull the door shut behind him.
The flames of the furnace shot up....licking hungrily at their new prey. Mary watched in shock as it began to burn. The parts that were still a little bit Walter seemed to melt away....leaving a mass of tentacles and teeth behind. The creature screeched in pain and tried to claw its way out of the fire. But a creature born in coal didn't stand much of a chance. Like coal, it burned hot and true...and in a matter of mere seconds...the creature exploded in a fireball of light and heat. Mary raised her arms to shield her face and felt small blisters start to form on the tender, underside of her arms. She blinked several times to get riid of the afterimage that had burned itself onto her retinas. And then she looked back at the furnace.....the empty furnace. Walter was gone.
***
Two days later, the rains began. It was a dry time of year and everyone was welcome of the rain. It would be good for the wells. Plus, it would wash away some of the dust and smoke that had been lingering in the air recently. Large black flumes of smoke had belched out of the hospitals furnace a couple of day before...and had been hanging in the air....acrid and strong.
Karen Thronsburg was making a sandwich when the rain started. At first she was overjoyed as the rain pelted her kitchen window. And then she saw them...her two little girls playing outside in the rain. But no...they weren't playing. They were just standing there.
"Dang it if they aren't the stupidest girls ever," Karen muttered angrily to herself, "I sometimes wish I didn't have kids...so much trouble."
She stomped out on the porch, "Kelly! Beth! GET OVER HERE NOW! What are you doing out in this mess! And don't even think of coming in the house all wet like that! I don't clean all day just for you two to make a big...."
And then she stopped. She stopped because there was something wrong with her little girls...her little girls who had been standing in the rain when it began to fall...through the thick black clouds of smoke that sitll hung in the air from the hospital furnace.
Their eyes! Oh God! Their eyes were as black as coal. And tubes were starting to sprout from their little mouths...from their ears....nose.....even their skin.
And then they spoke...in unison...
"I'm hungry."
They both began to walk toward their mother. She couldn't move.
Until next week....class dismissed!
"Help!" she screamed out. At least...that is what she wanted to do. But she could do little more than make a whimper. The black stare of the monster froze her in her tracks and made any voluntary muscle movement impossible. A tear of fright ran down her left cheek. She didn't want to die! Not like this!
She looked at what had once been her loving husband and sent all the love that she had left inside toward him. She took a deep breath and managed to croak out three simple words.
"I love you," she whispered.
A tube that ran out of Walter's ears latched onto her arm, digging its way inside. She felt the searing pain and heard a spatter as her blood began to flow onto the floor. She sensed other tubes whisking their way to the floor to greedily lap it up. Another tube, this one running from Walter's mouth, drew back...and prepared to impale her face. She tried to close her eyes...but couldn't. She didn't want to see what was about to happen to her...but she couldn't do anything about it.
And then...the beast stopped. The tubes fell limply to the floor. The one that was digging its way into her arm pulled out with a pop and another sharp wave of pain that shot up her arm and into her chest. She found that she was free....and she cried out in pain and clutched her arm, trying to stop the gush of blood.
The creature shook its head viloently. Blood and snot flew everywhere. And then, it let out a roar that seemed to come from its guts.
"Noooooo," it bellowed, a deep angry voice that mixed with Walter's voice, "Not her......never herrrrrr. Nooooooo."
"Oh Walter," she cried out, wanting to go to him...hug him...but not daring to take one step in either direction, "I love you Walter."
And then the demonic monster looked at her with eyes...eyes as black as coal...and for one brief moment, she saw Walter looking out of those eyes.
"And....and I...." it tried to form words around the drooling tubes that hung lifelessly out of its mouth, "I....luff...youuuuuuu."
And with another screech, it turned and raced to a door at the back of the stairwell. Mary found that she could move again, and for one moment, fought the urge to run away in blind panic. But then she realized that she had to follow the beast...had to find out what was going to happen to Walter...her Walter.
"Walter!" she cried out. "Wait!"
She didn't really know what to do. She just knew that Walter was still in there...still alive. She followed the bellows of rage and pain...and the trail of gooey, bloody ooze down another set of stairs behind the door that Walter had darted through. These steps led down....down into the dark basement of the hospital.
Every instinct in her body was telling her to turn around...to get out...to escape. And still she ran after the monster that was also her husband.
It was so hot in the basement. And steamy. The hospital was old...and it heated the place with steam. Of course that the basement would be hot....they had a huge boiler that was powered by....
And then she knew...knew where Walter was going. Knew what he would want to do. She cried out and ran after him even faster.
"Walter! NO!" she screamed, "There must be some other way. We can fight this! We can get you some help. Walter please! Listen to me!"
She turned a sharp corner and saw that it was already too late. Walter was standing in front of the large furnace that powered the hospital's boiler. He had pried the door open with his many tubes...searing the ends of several of them. The smell of rotten, burnt flesh hung heavy in the air.
Mary stopped. Crying she held out her arms toward Walter...but she knew....deep down inside, she knew that it was too late.
The horror which had once been the man she loved turned to look at her one last time. Mary saw one large, black tear run down his face. Then with a scream of pain, Walter flung himself into the furnace...using one of the tubes to pull the door shut behind him.
The flames of the furnace shot up....licking hungrily at their new prey. Mary watched in shock as it began to burn. The parts that were still a little bit Walter seemed to melt away....leaving a mass of tentacles and teeth behind. The creature screeched in pain and tried to claw its way out of the fire. But a creature born in coal didn't stand much of a chance. Like coal, it burned hot and true...and in a matter of mere seconds...the creature exploded in a fireball of light and heat. Mary raised her arms to shield her face and felt small blisters start to form on the tender, underside of her arms. She blinked several times to get riid of the afterimage that had burned itself onto her retinas. And then she looked back at the furnace.....the empty furnace. Walter was gone.
***
Two days later, the rains began. It was a dry time of year and everyone was welcome of the rain. It would be good for the wells. Plus, it would wash away some of the dust and smoke that had been lingering in the air recently. Large black flumes of smoke had belched out of the hospitals furnace a couple of day before...and had been hanging in the air....acrid and strong.
Karen Thronsburg was making a sandwich when the rain started. At first she was overjoyed as the rain pelted her kitchen window. And then she saw them...her two little girls playing outside in the rain. But no...they weren't playing. They were just standing there.
"Dang it if they aren't the stupidest girls ever," Karen muttered angrily to herself, "I sometimes wish I didn't have kids...so much trouble."
She stomped out on the porch, "Kelly! Beth! GET OVER HERE NOW! What are you doing out in this mess! And don't even think of coming in the house all wet like that! I don't clean all day just for you two to make a big...."
And then she stopped. She stopped because there was something wrong with her little girls...her little girls who had been standing in the rain when it began to fall...through the thick black clouds of smoke that sitll hung in the air from the hospital furnace.
Their eyes! Oh God! Their eyes were as black as coal. And tubes were starting to sprout from their little mouths...from their ears....nose.....even their skin.
And then they spoke...in unison...
"I'm hungry."
They both began to walk toward their mother. She couldn't move.
Until next week....class dismissed!
Dark as Coal, Part Seven
Mary Jones was walking with Jesus. They were at the mall, and Jesus was going on and on about the sale on jeans at the Gap. Mary thought this was really weird. When did Jesus start wearing jeans? But Mary was nice enough not to say anything. He was the Lord, after all.
They stopped off at Drinks N Things for a slushie. Mary got a blueberry. Jesus just got a water…but then turned his into a cherry slushie afterwards. Then he turned to Mary.
“Listen to me Mary,” he said, “There is something wrong with Walter.”
“What do you mean?” Mary asked. Only now, she wasn’t talking to Jesus anymore. She was talking to a life-size Pillsbury Dough Boy. He was slurping his cherry slushie down so fast that it was dribbling a red stain down his chest.
“You know what I mean,” the Dough Boy said, “He isn’t Walter anymore. He’s….well…let’s just say that he is something else. Walter is still in there…for the moment. But the other one is getting stronger.”
“The other one….and who would that be,” Mary asked.
“You know,” the Dough Boy said, “He has been called many names…but has no true name. The One Who Has No Name.”
And then he pointed off into the distance. Mary was suddenly aware that they weren’t in a mall anymore. They were in a corn field. And in the distance she saw a dark, twisting shape that was full of teeth and long stringing tubes. Gurgling loudly, it started making its way hungrily toward her. Startled, she looked back over to the Dough Boy. He was gone. So was Jesus.
It was just her….all alone…with the Beast. Sharp teeth touched her arm.
With a jolt, Mary awoke. Disoriented from the dream, she didn’t know where she was for a moment. And then she realized that she was still in the hospital, next to Walter’s bed. Walter’s empty bed. He was gone! While she had slept, Walter had gotten up and walked off!
Suddenly alarmed, she jumped up and ran out into the hallway. Where could he have gone? Why?
Nobody was in the hallway. She hadn’t half expected there to be anyone, but her heart still sank. Running past the nurses’ station, she heard the phone ringing off the hook and realized that the night nurse hadn’t shown up yet. I wonder where she is, Mary thought as she continued scanning the hallways and doors for Walter.
People, tired and haggard looking from lack of sleep, turned to look at her as she ran from doorway to doorway. They probably thought that she was crazy. Let them. Maybe she was a little crazy. It was that dream. That crazy dream. What had caused that? Probably that nasty hospital cafeteria lasagna that she had had earlier. Her stomach churned at the thought.
Yet still, there was no sign of Walter.
“Dear God,” she prayed, “Please…please help me find him. Help me find my Walter.”
Taking a sharp corner, she passed a security guard who gave her a strange look.
“Can I help you ma’am?” he asked, absent-mindedly reaching for his club. He didn’t want to take any chances with this wild-looking woman.
“My husband,” Mary managed to croak out in a voice so raspy that even she was shocked at its sound, “I can’t find my husband.”
The guard relaxed. He smiled reassuringly.
“Don’t worry ma’am,” he said, “I’m sure he’s around here somewhere. This hospital isn’t that big. Maybe he stepped outside to smoke?”
Mary didn’t bother to let him know that her husband was a patient…or that he had stopped smoking 6 years earlier. She just nodded and ran on, leaving the guard behind. He just scratched his head and shrugged.
“Females,” he muttered to himself.
As she neared the front entrance, Mary passed the stairs. On a whim, she turned and slammed through the stairway door. And there was Walter!
Only he wasn’t alone.
Her hands went to her mouth to cover her silent scream as she watched the large black tubes suck up the rest of the bloody mess that was on the floor. What looked like a finger was the last thing to go. A tube sucked it up and into Walter’s mouth. With a loud crunch, he chewed it up…bones and all…and swallowed. Then he turned to face Mary. And his eyes…..oh God…his eyes! Dark as coal…and yet alive with an inner fire!
“Delicious,” Walter hissed, his eyes reflecting the light into a million prisms of darkness.
And then he started to walk toward her, his hands stretched out grotesquely like he wanted a hug….but Mary knew better. She wanted to run but couldn’t. The eyes…they froze her in place. Even her screams wouldn’t come.
“And now…for desert,” Walter grinned with a mouthful of fangs that glistened with drool and blood.
Until next week, class dismissed!
They stopped off at Drinks N Things for a slushie. Mary got a blueberry. Jesus just got a water…but then turned his into a cherry slushie afterwards. Then he turned to Mary.
“Listen to me Mary,” he said, “There is something wrong with Walter.”
“What do you mean?” Mary asked. Only now, she wasn’t talking to Jesus anymore. She was talking to a life-size Pillsbury Dough Boy. He was slurping his cherry slushie down so fast that it was dribbling a red stain down his chest.
“You know what I mean,” the Dough Boy said, “He isn’t Walter anymore. He’s….well…let’s just say that he is something else. Walter is still in there…for the moment. But the other one is getting stronger.”
“The other one….and who would that be,” Mary asked.
“You know,” the Dough Boy said, “He has been called many names…but has no true name. The One Who Has No Name.”
And then he pointed off into the distance. Mary was suddenly aware that they weren’t in a mall anymore. They were in a corn field. And in the distance she saw a dark, twisting shape that was full of teeth and long stringing tubes. Gurgling loudly, it started making its way hungrily toward her. Startled, she looked back over to the Dough Boy. He was gone. So was Jesus.
It was just her….all alone…with the Beast. Sharp teeth touched her arm.
With a jolt, Mary awoke. Disoriented from the dream, she didn’t know where she was for a moment. And then she realized that she was still in the hospital, next to Walter’s bed. Walter’s empty bed. He was gone! While she had slept, Walter had gotten up and walked off!
Suddenly alarmed, she jumped up and ran out into the hallway. Where could he have gone? Why?
Nobody was in the hallway. She hadn’t half expected there to be anyone, but her heart still sank. Running past the nurses’ station, she heard the phone ringing off the hook and realized that the night nurse hadn’t shown up yet. I wonder where she is, Mary thought as she continued scanning the hallways and doors for Walter.
People, tired and haggard looking from lack of sleep, turned to look at her as she ran from doorway to doorway. They probably thought that she was crazy. Let them. Maybe she was a little crazy. It was that dream. That crazy dream. What had caused that? Probably that nasty hospital cafeteria lasagna that she had had earlier. Her stomach churned at the thought.
Yet still, there was no sign of Walter.
“Dear God,” she prayed, “Please…please help me find him. Help me find my Walter.”
Taking a sharp corner, she passed a security guard who gave her a strange look.
“Can I help you ma’am?” he asked, absent-mindedly reaching for his club. He didn’t want to take any chances with this wild-looking woman.
“My husband,” Mary managed to croak out in a voice so raspy that even she was shocked at its sound, “I can’t find my husband.”
The guard relaxed. He smiled reassuringly.
“Don’t worry ma’am,” he said, “I’m sure he’s around here somewhere. This hospital isn’t that big. Maybe he stepped outside to smoke?”
Mary didn’t bother to let him know that her husband was a patient…or that he had stopped smoking 6 years earlier. She just nodded and ran on, leaving the guard behind. He just scratched his head and shrugged.
“Females,” he muttered to himself.
As she neared the front entrance, Mary passed the stairs. On a whim, she turned and slammed through the stairway door. And there was Walter!
Only he wasn’t alone.
Her hands went to her mouth to cover her silent scream as she watched the large black tubes suck up the rest of the bloody mess that was on the floor. What looked like a finger was the last thing to go. A tube sucked it up and into Walter’s mouth. With a loud crunch, he chewed it up…bones and all…and swallowed. Then he turned to face Mary. And his eyes…..oh God…his eyes! Dark as coal…and yet alive with an inner fire!
“Delicious,” Walter hissed, his eyes reflecting the light into a million prisms of darkness.
And then he started to walk toward her, his hands stretched out grotesquely like he wanted a hug….but Mary knew better. She wanted to run but couldn’t. The eyes…they froze her in place. Even her screams wouldn’t come.
“And now…for desert,” Walter grinned with a mouthful of fangs that glistened with drool and blood.
Until next week, class dismissed!
Dark as Coal, Part Six
Megan Whitely had the shakes again. Standing outside the hospital doors, she tried to look as sick as possible…which wasn’t too hard for her to do. A bad drug habit will work wonders on a person’s body…and not in a good way. It had started with alcohol…then some good old Mary Jane…and then heroine. Now…it was whatever she could get her hands on. Usually she got them off of her boyfriend..but they had broken up. He had started to lose interest when she had started to lose her teeth.
Megan tried to control her shaking. She didn’t want to appear to be a total pill-head. But some friends of hers had had some success in scoring a pill or two at the hospital before. They had told her who to talk to…how much money to bring. There was always someone who needed a little extra cash. Not that she had much cash to give. She had stolen some off of Hank, her ex-boyfriend, just before he left. She had pawned her son’s Wii system to get the rest.
Trying to mix in with the crowd, she stole her way through the side door and made her way down the mostly empty hallway. There weren’t too many people working this late at night…just a bare bones staff. But she was looking for Chuck…the night janitor. According to her friends, he was always good for a little “pick me up.” And she really needed picking up right now. Where could he be?
She rounded the corner and saw a security guard walking toward her. Snaking back around the corner, she dived into the stairway. It was dim in the stairway…not all of the lights were working. Her heart was beating wildly in her chest. She didn’t need to be nabbed by some dumb old rent-a-cop right now. She was sure that he hadn’t seen her….she hoped.
But what if he did, she thought, he could be out there right now…calling the cops to come and get you.
“Stop it,” she muttered to herself, trying to control her breathing, “He didn’t see a thing.”
She would wait here for a few minutes just to be sure that he was gone…and then she would look for Chuck again. If she could hold out that long. She was really starting to feel sick.
Something scraped on the floor behind her.
Stifling the scream that had come tearing up from her lungs, she whirled around. The staircase ended behind her. Underneath it…there was only darkness. It had sounded like something had moved under there.
“Is there someone here?” she hissed through her missing teeth.
Nothing. Not one sound.
“Chuck?” she hoped that it was him. She could get her fix and get the heck out of this creepy place. She never realized just how spooky a hospital at night could be.
And then the darkness moved. Something…someone…came shuffling out of it toward her. It was a man…a patient. His hospital gown was flapping along behind him.
“Jeez mister,” she tried to crack a smile with her ruined mouth, “You really scared me. Are you lost?”
The man didn’t say anything. He was staring at the floor like he didn’t know where he was.
Great, she thought, an escapee from the mental ward. Just my luck. Well….I’m not getting involved. I’m getting the heck….
And then he looked up into her face…and she saw his eyes. His dark, dark eyes that burned with a cold, black fire. And she found that she couldn’t move….she couldn’t blink….couldn’t even breathe.
“I’m hungry,” the man whispered in a rough, low voice…almost a grunt. And then he started to walk toward her.
She tried to scream….but no sound came from her mouth. She couldn’t look away…even when he started to feed. But she could feel the pain…..oh God! She could feel the pain!
Large tubes streamed out of the man’s mouth and gouged themselves into her stomach….sucking and pulling. She could feel small teeth at the ends of the tubes start to eat their way into her guts…tearing and crunching.
Red pain tried to push her down to her knees…but the force of the tubes kept her upright. They jerked her body from side to side…trying to get to the juiciest parts of her insides.
Other tubes had erupted from the man’s ears. These sprang toward her and impaled her neck…right at the jugular vein. Hot blood spurted out…but not a drop touched the floor. Other tongue-like tubes sprang from the man’s skin and lapped up the drops in mid-air.
She tried to scream. The agony of being eaten alive was unbearable. A large cramp hit her as the thing continued to eat into her intestines. She smelled a stench and realized that it was her. She could smell herself being eaten. The last thing she saw was two more large tubes erupt from the man’s eyes. And then…they impaled her own eyes….eating them before continuing on to gnaw their way into her brain.
Finally….death came to her.
And still the crunching and slurping and sucking continued.
Until next week….class dismissed.
Megan tried to control her shaking. She didn’t want to appear to be a total pill-head. But some friends of hers had had some success in scoring a pill or two at the hospital before. They had told her who to talk to…how much money to bring. There was always someone who needed a little extra cash. Not that she had much cash to give. She had stolen some off of Hank, her ex-boyfriend, just before he left. She had pawned her son’s Wii system to get the rest.
Trying to mix in with the crowd, she stole her way through the side door and made her way down the mostly empty hallway. There weren’t too many people working this late at night…just a bare bones staff. But she was looking for Chuck…the night janitor. According to her friends, he was always good for a little “pick me up.” And she really needed picking up right now. Where could he be?
She rounded the corner and saw a security guard walking toward her. Snaking back around the corner, she dived into the stairway. It was dim in the stairway…not all of the lights were working. Her heart was beating wildly in her chest. She didn’t need to be nabbed by some dumb old rent-a-cop right now. She was sure that he hadn’t seen her….she hoped.
But what if he did, she thought, he could be out there right now…calling the cops to come and get you.
“Stop it,” she muttered to herself, trying to control her breathing, “He didn’t see a thing.”
She would wait here for a few minutes just to be sure that he was gone…and then she would look for Chuck again. If she could hold out that long. She was really starting to feel sick.
Something scraped on the floor behind her.
Stifling the scream that had come tearing up from her lungs, she whirled around. The staircase ended behind her. Underneath it…there was only darkness. It had sounded like something had moved under there.
“Is there someone here?” she hissed through her missing teeth.
Nothing. Not one sound.
“Chuck?” she hoped that it was him. She could get her fix and get the heck out of this creepy place. She never realized just how spooky a hospital at night could be.
And then the darkness moved. Something…someone…came shuffling out of it toward her. It was a man…a patient. His hospital gown was flapping along behind him.
“Jeez mister,” she tried to crack a smile with her ruined mouth, “You really scared me. Are you lost?”
The man didn’t say anything. He was staring at the floor like he didn’t know where he was.
Great, she thought, an escapee from the mental ward. Just my luck. Well….I’m not getting involved. I’m getting the heck….
And then he looked up into her face…and she saw his eyes. His dark, dark eyes that burned with a cold, black fire. And she found that she couldn’t move….she couldn’t blink….couldn’t even breathe.
“I’m hungry,” the man whispered in a rough, low voice…almost a grunt. And then he started to walk toward her.
She tried to scream….but no sound came from her mouth. She couldn’t look away…even when he started to feed. But she could feel the pain…..oh God! She could feel the pain!
Large tubes streamed out of the man’s mouth and gouged themselves into her stomach….sucking and pulling. She could feel small teeth at the ends of the tubes start to eat their way into her guts…tearing and crunching.
Red pain tried to push her down to her knees…but the force of the tubes kept her upright. They jerked her body from side to side…trying to get to the juiciest parts of her insides.
Other tubes had erupted from the man’s ears. These sprang toward her and impaled her neck…right at the jugular vein. Hot blood spurted out…but not a drop touched the floor. Other tongue-like tubes sprang from the man’s skin and lapped up the drops in mid-air.
She tried to scream. The agony of being eaten alive was unbearable. A large cramp hit her as the thing continued to eat into her intestines. She smelled a stench and realized that it was her. She could smell herself being eaten. The last thing she saw was two more large tubes erupt from the man’s eyes. And then…they impaled her own eyes….eating them before continuing on to gnaw their way into her brain.
Finally….death came to her.
And still the crunching and slurping and sucking continued.
Until next week….class dismissed.
Dark as Coal, Part Five
Walter Jones was walking down a cold, dark tunnel. For a second, he thought that maybe he was still in the mine…the cave-in had trapped him…had trapped them all. But no….that couldn’t be right. He had been saved. Pulled from the mine just when he thought that all was lost, he had been so relieved to wake up in the hospital with Mary by his side.
But Mary wasn’t the first person you saw when you woke up, came a voice from his left, and you know it.
Walter’s head jerked in that direction, “Who’s there?”
But of course, there was no answer.
He tried to remember that day….the day of the cave-in. What had happened? Something about a rock wall….what had it been?
“Hey Walter!” one of the guys had yelled out, “Come and look at this!”
A bunch of them had been standing in the far back part of the mine looking at something. As Walter walked toward them, he saw that something was indeed different. The seam of coal that they had been following seemed to grow larger and larger the deeper they went. And then…it ended. And it didn’t just peter out….it ended all at once. But that wasn’t the strangest thing of all.
“What do you think it is?” one of the guys had asked…had it been Kenneth? He couldn’t remember but he thought that it might have been.
The coal ended at a large slab of rock that they had uncovered. But not just any rock.
“Would you look at that?” Walter had said, astonished at what he was looking at.
The wall was full of strange, dark carvings. At first, he thought that it might have just been one of the guys…fooling around….trying to play a prank. But this wasn’t just some random gibberish. It was different…more detailed. He had seen a show on TLC once about the ancient Mayans. On it, they had shown ancient ruins and carvings. This looked something like that. What had they discovered?
“Look down there,” Walter had said, pointing to the bottom of the wall. The writings ended…and there at the bottom was a picture of some kind. It looked like some kind of beast…not a deer or buffalo….something larger. Something with horns. Something with lots and lots of teeth. Something dark.
Walter had bent down to brush some of the coal dust from it. And as his fingers touched the rock wall…everything had gone dark…..as dark as coal.
What had happened?
Walter tried to remember. His head started to hurt. Had something fallen on his head? He reached up and touched the back of his head. His fingers brushed up against the shard of coal that was imbedded in his head. A sharp jab of pain shot through his entire cranium.
You might not want to do that, the voice beside of him came floating out of the darkness again, If you want to live..that is.
Walter closed his eyes, although he didn’t know why. It was so dark in here. And then he remembered….there had been….screams?
Yes…he was pretty sure that there had been screams….and then the ground had been shaking. And then….the screams had stopped. There had only been silence…and darkness. Had they all died in there…had he?
Now Walter…if you had died….how would you still be here? the voice whispered.
Walter groaned. His head hurt. His eyes hurt. And he didn’t want to think anymore. He didn’t want to remember….what had happened in the tunnel. How he had survived. How he had been so hungry….for so long. What he had done…
I’m hungry right now Walter, the voice slithered around him like a cold wind, It’s time to eat.
“But you just ate!” Walter cried out, “Not again..not now…it’s too soon!”
The pain in his head increased making him cry out in agony. He dropped to his knees in the darkness. I SAID….I’M HUNGRY!
And in the darkness of the hospital room, Walter’s eyes opened. If his wife Mary had been awake at the moment…she wouldn’t have been pleased…she would have been very concerned. Both of Walter’s eyes were pitch black.
“Let’s go eat,” he whispered.
Until next week….class dismissed.
But Mary wasn’t the first person you saw when you woke up, came a voice from his left, and you know it.
Walter’s head jerked in that direction, “Who’s there?”
But of course, there was no answer.
He tried to remember that day….the day of the cave-in. What had happened? Something about a rock wall….what had it been?
“Hey Walter!” one of the guys had yelled out, “Come and look at this!”
A bunch of them had been standing in the far back part of the mine looking at something. As Walter walked toward them, he saw that something was indeed different. The seam of coal that they had been following seemed to grow larger and larger the deeper they went. And then…it ended. And it didn’t just peter out….it ended all at once. But that wasn’t the strangest thing of all.
“What do you think it is?” one of the guys had asked…had it been Kenneth? He couldn’t remember but he thought that it might have been.
The coal ended at a large slab of rock that they had uncovered. But not just any rock.
“Would you look at that?” Walter had said, astonished at what he was looking at.
The wall was full of strange, dark carvings. At first, he thought that it might have just been one of the guys…fooling around….trying to play a prank. But this wasn’t just some random gibberish. It was different…more detailed. He had seen a show on TLC once about the ancient Mayans. On it, they had shown ancient ruins and carvings. This looked something like that. What had they discovered?
“Look down there,” Walter had said, pointing to the bottom of the wall. The writings ended…and there at the bottom was a picture of some kind. It looked like some kind of beast…not a deer or buffalo….something larger. Something with horns. Something with lots and lots of teeth. Something dark.
Walter had bent down to brush some of the coal dust from it. And as his fingers touched the rock wall…everything had gone dark…..as dark as coal.
What had happened?
Walter tried to remember. His head started to hurt. Had something fallen on his head? He reached up and touched the back of his head. His fingers brushed up against the shard of coal that was imbedded in his head. A sharp jab of pain shot through his entire cranium.
You might not want to do that, the voice beside of him came floating out of the darkness again, If you want to live..that is.
Walter closed his eyes, although he didn’t know why. It was so dark in here. And then he remembered….there had been….screams?
Yes…he was pretty sure that there had been screams….and then the ground had been shaking. And then….the screams had stopped. There had only been silence…and darkness. Had they all died in there…had he?
Now Walter…if you had died….how would you still be here? the voice whispered.
Walter groaned. His head hurt. His eyes hurt. And he didn’t want to think anymore. He didn’t want to remember….what had happened in the tunnel. How he had survived. How he had been so hungry….for so long. What he had done…
I’m hungry right now Walter, the voice slithered around him like a cold wind, It’s time to eat.
“But you just ate!” Walter cried out, “Not again..not now…it’s too soon!”
The pain in his head increased making him cry out in agony. He dropped to his knees in the darkness. I SAID….I’M HUNGRY!
And in the darkness of the hospital room, Walter’s eyes opened. If his wife Mary had been awake at the moment…she wouldn’t have been pleased…she would have been very concerned. Both of Walter’s eyes were pitch black.
“Let’s go eat,” he whispered.
Until next week….class dismissed.
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