The night was still young. The moon, full and bright, shone through the thick branches of various trees lining a beautiful yet sinister stone path. A boy, startled and shaking, began to walk down this sinister path. His steps echoed as if in an empty room, a sound that competed with the calm wind brushing against the trees.
"He...llo...?" the boy whispered, fear gripping his ability to speak. His chest was tight. His breath was short. An overwhelming pressure seemed to crush him. An alarm blared, and suddenly, the boy was in the comfort of his own bed, safe and unharmed.
"Ugh," the boy sighed. "My head hurts." He then sat up in bed and slowly slid his legs down the side until they touched the cold, hard wooden floor.
"Honey!" A voice called out from down the hall. "Hurry up and eat breakfast! You're going to miss your bus!" his mom called from the kitchen. The boy reluctantly got up and started toward his door. As his hand reached the door handle, the door suddenly swung open, smacking his tired face hard. "OW!" the boy yelled as his sister stared at him with a grin. "Whoops, sorry, Selim!" she said with a mix of sarcasm and glee.
"Sarah, how many times do I have to tell you to knock before entering my room?" Selim said, his face crinkled and frowning.
"Yeah, yeah, just hurry up. You're gonna make me miss the bus," Sarah said, paying no mind to Selim's complaining.
Still dazed, Selim strutted down the hall toward the kitchen. "Welcome back to life, sleepyhead!" His mom said sarcastically as Selim and Sarah both sat down at the kitchen table.
"Mom, my friends said they want to take me to the movies on Saturday. Can I pleaseeee go?" Sarah asked, using the most compelling voice she could muster.
Selim, with his head on the table, rolled his eyes. Then, under his breath, he said sarcastically, "More like hanging out with your boyfriend."
"I heard that!" Sarah said, annoyed and flustered. "And how many times do I have to say it's not like that! James is just a friend!"
"Well, honey, if I see good grades, I might consider it," their mom said lovingly while putting both their plates down on the table.
However, just as Selim stretched out his arm to take a bite of his breakfast, his mom shouted, "Oh my God! Look at the time! Selim, pack up your things, the bus will be here in five minutes!"
Dazed, hungry, and tired, Selim took one big bite of his freshly made pancakes before slowly strutting back to his room to pack. "He seems off today, Mom," Sarah said with a mix of worry and wonder. "He's just going through puberty; he'll get over it," her mom said sarcastically.
"Hey! Heyyy!" A voice shook Selim awake.
Confused and conflicted, Selim looked up to see his classmate, Brittney, gazing down at him from the front of his desk. "Class is almost over, and you were snoozing half the time! The other half you were just staring at the wall like some nut job," Brittney said with a hint of humor and worry.
"Have you been getting enough rest?" she asked worriedly.
"Uhm... I think so?" Selim replied, still confused about how he went from being at home just a moment ago to suddenly being in class.
"Well, my friends and I are going to the park tonight to mess around, and I was kind of wondering if you wanted to... maybe come with us?" Brittney said shyly. "If not, that's totally cool! I don't want to bother you if you're too busy... aheh," she chuckled nervously.
Selim, perplexed, replied, "Uhm... yeah... I guess? I don't have anything else to do... I think?" Selim was still very unsure of himself because he couldn't remember how he got to class in the first place.
"Great! I will come by your house after school to pick you up! I look forward to it!" Brittney said while walking away excitedly.
As Brittney walked out of class, Selim watched, putting a hand to his face. A mix of frustration and worry overcame him. "Am I going crazy? Why can't I remember anything?" he mumbled under his breath. "Ugh, I should get to my next class," he thought, making his way toward the hall.
"Hey, babies! How was school?" their mother asked as Selim and Sarah walked through the front door.
"Mom, guess who's coming over to pick up Selim?" Sarah remarked with a mischievous grin.
"Oh? Selim's actually hanging out with someone? That's new," their mother said, both sarcastically and excitedly.
"Brittney!" Sarah yelled, laughing hysterically.
"Sarah, how many times do I have to tell you—I wasn't even thinking straight when I agreed."
Their mother, also laughing jokingly, said, "Now, now, don't be doing anything funny, Selim. The last thing I need is to find out I'm having a grandbaby before you're even out of the house."
Sarah quickly butted in, sarcastically saying, "Oh yeah, what was that about me and James earlier, Selim?"
While the banter continued, a sudden doorbell ring made the whole room fall silent. Their mom slowly walked toward the front door, opened it, and a wide, gentle smile came over her face.
"Heyy, Brittney! How have you been?" their mother asked excitedly.
"I've been great, Miss Debra!" Brittney replied with a gentle yet nervous smile.
As Debra and Brittney chatted, Selim slowly emerged from behind his mom. Nervously, he realized this was his first outing with friends since he and his family moved.
After seeing Selim, Brittney said calmly, "You ready, Selim? My friends are already at the park waiting for us."
"Oh, ugh... yess—yes, I am," Selim replied, stuttering. An awkward smile slowly emerged on his face as he walked out to the front porch.
"Well, have fun, you two! And, Selim, I want you back before ten, okay?" Selim's mom said with a caring yet stern tone.
"Don't worry, Miss Debra, I will get him home on time," Brittney replied with a warm, heartfelt smile.
As Selim's mom started closing the door, Selim's heart began to race. Thoughts came and went in quick succession.
"This must be your first time out in a while," Brittney said, smiling gently.
"How could you tell?" Selim replied curiously and nervously.
"Well, you look like a puppy out of the house," Brittney chuckled, looking down toward the sidewalk.
"Ah... yeah, it's been a while since I've really hung out with anyone, so I'm a little bit of a novice," Selim said, scratching his face nervously.
As they walked, Selim looked toward the tree line; the moonlit trees eerily reminded him of the dream the night before. "Uhm... Selim?" Selim's mind jolted back to the present. "Have you been getting enough rest? You look worn-out," Brittney said with a concerned yet caring tone.
"Oh, no, no, I've been well-rested. I think maybe I'm just worried about my upcoming tests," Selim replied with an awkward smile.
"Oh, tell me about it. My mom's been hounding me like a workplace manager," Brittney said, chuckling nervously.
"Heyyy, Brittney! Over here!" A loud shout broke the awkward silence. "Heyyy, girl!" Brittney replied, running toward the park.
Selim picked up his pace to keep up.
"Tiffany, let me introduce you to Selim!" Brittney said with an excited smile.
"Heyyy, so you're the one she's been bragging about!" Tiffany teased, shaking Selim's hand.
"Hey—" Brittney replied, clearly flustered.
"Ah... nice to meet you, Tiffany!" Selim replied, clearly trying to act normal.
"Yeah, you're definitely a quiet one, aren't ya?" Tiffany said with a suspicious smile.
"Well, let's go catch up with the others. I'm sure they're complaining," Brittney said, dragging Tiffany away.
"Make sure to not lag behind, shy guy!" Tiffany shouted as Brittney dragged her further and further away.
Selim sighed. "Finally, I can catch a breather," he thought, taking his time to catch up to the others.
Just then, a glimpse of a figure caught his eye. Selim quickly turned around and found a well-dressed clown standing behind him. His eyes, his posture, his very nature felt like something far beyond the human grasp. The clown's eyes looked as if they were reading Selim's every move. The clown was quiet, seemingly calculating something.
Then, with a sudden burst of energy, the mysterious clown shouted, "Hey!" with an excited expression. The clown continued, "Would you like to see a magic trick?"
"Uhm..." Selim felt uneasy; something about this clown didn't fit right. But, against his better judgment, Selim agreed.
"Ahehe!" The clown chuckled, clearly amused by something. Then, the clown slowly reached into his pocket. Selim began to worry; fear gripped his chest, and he began wondering if he should run.
However, the clown suddenly pulled out a deck of cards, exclaiming, "Tadaaa! Ehehe!"
Selim, still disturbed, watched in silence as the clown began to shuffle.
"Pick a card! Any card, young man!" the clown exclaimed, his ridiculous smile stretched ear to ear.
"Uhm..." Selim replied nervously, pointing to a card.
"Splendid! Yes, splendid indeed! Ohohoho!" The clown laughed hysterically while shuffling the deck once more.
Selim watched with a mix of anticipation and fear. His breath became heavy, and his mind raced.
"You seem quite scared!" the clown said with a mix of sarcasm and glee. "Any bad dreams as of late, Selim?"
The clown began to laugh hysterically while simultaneously shuffling the cards.
Selim's eyes widened. The very fabric of his being felt crushed, his heart began racing, and his mind held only one thought: Run.
Selim quickly turned his back and ran toward the park. As Selim's feet splashed the puddles on the sidewalk, he could hear the hysterical laughter in the distance.
Selim kept running; everything in his body was screaming danger. As he continued, he spotted Brittney and her friends at the playground. "HELP!" Selim screamed, panting and out of breath. However, as he got closer, Brittney and her friends slowly disappeared through a thick fog that suddenly covered the whole park. After realizing this, Selim only screamed louder, "HELP! SOMEBODY! PLEASE!" But silence quickly fell on the park, and the only thing Selim heard was the shuffling of cards behind him.
Selim turned around, out of breath and tired. Fear was absolute within his body and mind.
"You know, it's quite rude to run when someone's in the middle of their act, Selim!" the clown laughed as a sinister smile crept from ear to ear.
Selim's whole body felt heavy. He landed on his knees, simply accepting death.
"If—if... you're going to—to kill me... please... do it quickly," Selim said, his voice stuttering and weak.
"AHEHEHE! What a hilarious young man! Oh, no, no... I'm not going to kill you! Ohohoho!" The clown chuckled while still shuffling his cards.
"Then...?" But before Selim could finish his sentence, the clown interrupted, "Tell me, young man! What do I look like to you?" the clown said, suddenly stopping the shuffling.
"It's not what you look like that scares me," Selim continued. "It's what you feel like that scares me," Selim said, barely able to pronounce his words correctly.
"OHOHOHO! This is exactly why I like you!" the clown said, pulling out a card. "Tell me, young man... Was this your card?" The clown's sinister smile gave Selim a chill.
"No... no... I picked the King of Hearts," Selim said, half confused and half terrified.
"Ohohoho! Then, dear child... what card do you see?" The clown's face suddenly became serious and even more bone-chilling.
"I see... a 0? I have never seen a card like that before," Selim replied, his face wrinkled with both terror and confusion.
The clown burst out in manic laughter, further adding to the unease. Then, suddenly, the clown became silent and replied, "You see, young man... you must become nothing in order to have everything. You must be willing to be the 0 in this deck we call life, in order to see true value."
Then the clown smiled gently. The fear Selim once felt left at once, and he felt a sense of love radiating from the clown.
Selim, perplexed and conflicted, asked, "Why... why don't I feel any evil intentions from you?"
"Ahahaha!" the clown laughed. Then, with a warm smile, he simply replied, "Who said angels looked pretty?"
The clown flicked his fingers, and the fog that once consumed the whole park disappeared, along with him.
"Hey! Selim! What are you doing?" A voice cried out from a distance.
Selim, still on his knees, quickly turned around to find Brittney and her group staring at him worriedly.
"Yo, bro, what are you doing? You look like you're praying," one of the boys said with a hint of mockery. Brittney slapped the boy's arm with a look of discontent.
"I... uhm... I got to go. I'm sorry, guys, I think I need to get some sleep," Selim replied, quickly turning back toward his house.
Brittney sighed with a worried and disappointed look in her eyes. Her friends, however, began mocking him and laughing amongst themselves.
Brittney stood still, watching as Selim ran further and further away, her hair blowing beautifully in the wind. Her friends' voices faded into the background; her only concern was Selim.