Penetrating the Pale Horse
“I hate you I hate you!” Jonas screamed then stomped to his room. He walked in and slammed the door. His small fists were clenched to the point that his nails dug into his palms.
He walked over to his Rhinoceros stuffed animal, Rhino, and sat on his bed with it in his arms. He placed it next to him and started having a conversation.
“I don’t know why they hate me so much Rhino. You’re lucky you don’t have parents. They never let me do anything! I’m not a kid! I’m eight now. I’m almost a teenager!”
He fell silent, only to hear his sister blasting music in the next room. He rose and quietly snuck out of his room and into hers.
She was sitting at her desk doing homework. “Hey Jonas,” she said, smiling at her brother. But when he just stood there against the door looking down at his feet, she knew something was wrong. “You okay?”
“No!” he shouted, then blushed. He walked over to her and looked up at her paper. There was a bunch of numbers and symbols that he didn’t understand. She picked him up and placed him in her lap.
“What’s wrong?” she said, wiping away the tears from his soft cheek.
“Nothing.” He crossed his arms and pouted.
“Come on, you can tell me.”
He sighed, a bit too dramatically then looked up at her under his shaggy brown hair. “They never let me watch anything!”
“Aw, hun,” she picked him up then sat with him on her bed. They both looked out her bedroom window, which was huge and overlooking the ocean. The moon was low and looked as if it were about to touch the sea. Its shine on the ocean glided across the waves and seemed like it would hit the siblings, but instead the sand swallowed it into its shallow abyss. “You know… sometimes mum and dad do things to protect us,” she said picking up Rhino with her black fingernails.
“That’s stupid. I don’t need protecting. I can take care of myself!”
She sighed and hung her head over the window sill and let the cold wind push her bandanna. “It’s not you that needs protecting.”
He scratched behind his large ear. “That doesn’t make sense.”
“I know it doesn’t now, but it will one day.”
He hit the bed with his hand and started crying again. “You old people are always saying that! I don’t want to know later. I want to know now!”
She started coughing so she hung out the window again. Jonas followed, hitting her back as if it would help. She continued to cough until they both started crying.
“You really want to know why?” she said between coughs. He nodded. “It’s to protect your innocence.”
Jonas just stared forward, trying not to look at his suffering sister.
“It’s because children feel like they need to grow up and become like adults. But what you and other kids don’t realize is that it’s your innocence that makes you special, kind, and brave.” She looked over at Jonas and smiled to hide her misery.
“What’s wrong?” he asked, noticing her tears had stopped and she just looked ready to die.
“Oh nothing,” she said pushing aside his shaggy brown hair from his face. “Every day I worry that I won’t be able to see you grow up.”
He picked up Rhino and chucked him at the wall. “Then I’ll grow up now!”
“No!” she said, running over to pick up the animal. “No, I want the opposite.”
“What?” he asked, taking the doll from her when she thrust it towards him.
“Don’t grow up,” she said, sitting back down.
“Why not?”
She smiled and wiped a tear from his cheek. “Stop crying or you’ll turn to rust.”
He chuckled and wiped a tear of hers away, too. “Okay. I’ll never grow up.”
She nodded, “Good. Now go to bed, silly.” Her voice was becoming raspier as she spoke. It was like she was aging a year for every minute that passed.
He jumped off her bed and ran to the door. “Don’t go tonight…”
“What?” she gasped.
He scratched the skin behind his ear. “I said don’t go tonight. Don’t leave me… I still need you.”
She smiled and adjusted the bandanna hiding her bald head. “I won’t. I promise.”
He stared at her before finally heading back to his room with Rhino.
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For the short story contest.
. I love how you portray the little innocent Jonas, 'cause I know it all happens to every kid in the world. They are all very interested and curious of their surroundings. 
