The Black Doors Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Nightmares

It was dark again when Destiny returned home from her summer vacation with her parents. She kept watching the lights flashing across the car windows. At least inside the car everything was dark, and quiet.

She always liked coming home after those long vacations.

They parked in their garage and made their way inside. As she lay down in her big, comfortable bed once again, relief washed over her.

She was home.

After a long, hot shower, Destiny wrapped herself in a robe, and stood by her windows, looking outside; up at the stars. She knew she would miss the open country space before too long. She would miss the silence and the solitude.

But she still had Tyler.

Drawing the curtains shut, Destiny let her robe fall to the floor before curling up beneath the covers, and closed her eyes, picturing her and Tyler as they had been sitting on the rock by the stream just days ago. She could see him smiling.

Good old Tyler, she thought. He always made her smile. He always took care of her. He was a constant in her life. As solid as that rock was by the stream. His face was the last thing she thought about before falling asleep.

It wasn’t much longer before Tyler asked her out, and Destiny went on her first date ever. Tyler’s father was the manager of a roofing company, and Tyler worked for him on the weekends, so he had enough money to buy the gas to pick her up in his father’s truck, pay for dinner at the local diner, and to take her out to the movies afterwards.

So, with the start of her Senior year in high school, Destiny had her first boyfriend, first kiss, and everything she thought she ever needed.

* * * 

Someone was yelling. Destiny’s eyes flew open. She sat up and listened. A few moments passed before she heard it again. This time it was more of a moan, and she heard shuffling steps coming from the stairway. Frightened, Destiny lay there in the darkness, praying whatever it was that was making that noise would go away.

Then there was the sound of something falling against wood, like the thing had slumped against the ground, and it let out an unmistakably recognizable noise. Destiny was on her feet, and she rushed out her door. The moonlight outside shone down directly into the windows overhead, and down onto the staircase. She could see a form lying on one of the steps, and she walked steadily towards it, and bent down.

“It’s okay, Adriel,” she said, kneeling besides him, “You’re having a bad dream.”

Slowly, the painful look on Adriel’s face vanished, and he looked up at her. Beads of sweat trickled away from his forehead, and his eyes were bloodshot, “Don’t let them take her,” he was begging, and Destiny realized tears were stinging his eyes, “Please. I promised Markus I wouldn’t let them.”

“Sweetie, it’s okay,” Destiny said, “It wasn’t real. You were just having a bad dream.” Her hands stroked his pretty face gently.

Then his eyes became steady, and Destiny realized he was becoming aware, and he drew away from her, his back against the wall, and his head bowed. “Excuse me,” he said dryly, “I was sleep walking again.”

“Again?” Destiny asked, “Does this happen often?”

Adriel nodded, and rose, turning away from her. For the first time he no longer seemed out of reach. Destiny stood up with him, “Adriel! Tell me what’s wrong,” she said, “I really don’t think it’s good if you’re sleep walking all the time like this.”

“Oh just stop it, would you?” Adriel snapped, “As much as you think it, you aren’t our mother, okay? You can’t just show up, clean a few dishes, and tell us what to do.”

“Fine!” Destiny began, “You know what, you’re right. I’m not your mom, and I don’t need to take care of you. But if you think that what you’re doing here is all okay, you’re wrong. You’re suffering, and don’t tell me I’m imagining it.”

Adriel turned on her, and their eyes met, “Really?” he asked, flexing his jaw, “In what way exactly am I suffering?”

“You’re never happy here, you live in this giant house, that you built for no particular reason, alone, you throw giant parties for people you don’t even like, you sleep walk and shout in your dreams like a madman, and you have secrets that I don’t think you share with anyone.”

“You don’t know me,” Adriel sneered, “You don’t know a thing about me, yet you insist on making your own assumptions. Last time I checked, you had your own issues to work out, so if I were you I’d sort those out first before moving onto mine.”

“You are cruel,” Destiny shouted, tears stinging her eyes, “You have no idea how lucky you are to have what you have, but you don’t care. You‘d trade all these people; your brother, your friends, for yourself. And you know what else, I don’t feel like staying here another moment. In fact, I couldn’t even to save my life!”

She ran passed him, up to her room, and flung the doors open, pulling her shoes on and the warmest jacket she could find, “Destiny, calm down,” a voice was saying from the doorway, “I didn’t mean what I said. We can talk about it. Just don’t go...”

Destiny was too busy fighting back tears to listen to him. In a hurry, she pushed passed him, ignoring his voice as she ran down the stairs and out the front door.

* * *

“No! I won’t stay here another moment!” Destiny’s mom was shouting, “I couldn’t even stay here to save my life!”

Destiny was sitting on the top step of their stairway, staring with a dead expression at the kitchen door. She was wearing her light green sweater, listening to her parents yelling. Then her mom appeared, carrying her bag and a jacket. It’s not like Destiny wasn’t used to them fighting. They’d been at it a lot lately. But this was different. This time, she knew it was over.

Her mom didn’t even stop to talk to her. She met her gaze once as she pulled the door open. Destiny remembered it, because it seemed to have happened in slow motion. She remembered how her mom’s face had turned upwards, as if she had heard something. Then their eyes met.

Destiny didn’t know what she could’ve done to make any difference. But in that moment, she was sick of being a child. She was sick of standing around while they fought.

No, this time she let all the anger, hurt, and betrayal she’d been feeling show plainly on her face. Her mother’s mouth opened, almost as if in a gasp, before she disappeared out the door, slamming it behind her.

* * *

The transportation station was up ahead. Destiny could see the man’s blank face where he stood in front of the ticket booth. She stepped in front of him, wondering if he even recognized her, “One ticket for anywhere, please,” she said.

The man didn’t hesitate. Reaching back, he pulled a ticket from a wheel and tore it off, handing it to Destiny. Destiny looked at it for a moment, then back up at the man. He had moved away from the booth, and was motioning for her to follow. Destiny followed him, knowing that this was probably the least smartest thing a girl could do, to a bus parked in the parking-lot nearby. The man opened the door for her, and stepped into the driver’s seat without saying a word, and started driving.

Destiny sat quietly in one of the seats. The bus was deserted except for her and the driver. She kept an eye on the window. Slowly, they passed through the city. There was so much she still hadn’t seen, she realized. During all the time that she’d been there, she’d never even gone downtown, at least not to visit. She didn’t know any of the street names. There was so much of Adriel’s art she hadn’t seen...

She pushed the thought away, just glad that she finally had a way out.

The bus drove on for a while longer. When they had crossed the bridge, and the city was long gone, everything went black outside. The tears had dried on her face.

Slowly, the bus came to a stop. Destiny hesitated for a moment, “Where are we?” she asked. The bus driver just motioned for her to exit the bus. She stood up, and walked slowly towards the door, each step feeling as if she were carrying sandbags attached to her legs. When she had finally exited, she looked back up at the bus driver.

“Now can you at least tell me where I am?” she asked him.

For the first time, the bus driver grinned, “This is anywhere,” he said. Then the bus doors slammed shut, and it took off down the road.

Destiny stood in the darkness for a moment. It was almost impossible to see. The only light came from what shone off the street from the moon, “Okay,” she said to herself, and her voice sounded alone, and insignificant in the darkness, “This wasn’t very smart.”

Ten minutes passed. Then thirty. Still nothing changed. Darkness was just darkness. A dog was barking. Suddenly, Destiny became aware of a house just off the road a short ways. That was probably where the noise was coming from. She could see moonlight shining off a chain-link fence and the windows of the house.

Other dogs began to join in. Destiny was getting nervous. She started walking faster. The dogs were barking ferociously now. The noise was getting closer, and she heard the sound of a dog just barely clearing the chain link fence.

Destiny screamed, breaking into a run. She looked back over her shoulder, and saw them, several of them, chasing her. Her foot caught on something as she ran, and she tripped, stumbling onto her stomach. In moments, the dogs would have caught up with her, their fangs snarling, and lips drooling with saliva.

Just as they began to circle her, there was a roar, and the flash of bright light beams. The dogs whimpered in surprise and jumped out of the way. Destiny was looking all around, but the bright light in the almost complete darkness had blinded her. She felt someone grabbing her from above, and she let out a scream.

“It’s okay, Destiny, it’s me,” Adriel’s voice said, and he pulled her into his arms. The dogs had turned back onto the attack, and Destiny heard them snapping their jowls beneath them. In moments, Destiny felt herself lifted up, and she was seated on the motorcycle with Adriel’s arms close around her on either side. The engine roared into life, and they were racing down the street.

Destiny turned her face into Adriel’s shirt, and started crying. She was glad he wouldn’t be able to hear her sobs over the sound of the engine. “Thank you,” she was mouthing into the fabric of his black t-shirt, “Thank you.”

They didn’t stop driving. Not when the city lights loomed up happily overhead. Not when they crossed the bridge. Not until the adrenaline had worn off, and Destiny was asleep.