A Rather Cursed Read

The Story of a boy, and the book that changed everything.

     The walls creaked as Ben moved swiftly through the library basement. The dust seemed to dance around him and Alice, his co-worker and best friend, and their footsteps echoed as they marched on through the dark and seedy room.
�Have you found it yet?� Alice asked, coughing from the fumes of all the boxes and shelves that had spent ages in the dark. Ben flashed his light around the room, searching intently, then turned and flashed the light into her face. She was so pretty with her long brunette hair, tan skin, and soft green eyes. Ben had always felt something for her, ever since they were kids, but he never had the courage to tell her. Every time he tried, he would freeze up, or something would happen that would make it seem like the �wrong moment�.

So he watched from afar, hoping the right moment would turn up. Despite the warm summer heat that waited for them outside, a cold chill seemed to be running up and down their spines.
�Hold on a sec!� Ben said as he tried maneuvering over boxes of books and old displays from the library�s past. Alex just crossed her arms.
�Ben, hurry up. Mrs. Lovington said she wanted that box now, and I�m not willing to lose this summer job because you decided to go on another adventure.�

Coming across a box that said �Fantasy Books: A-D� on the front of it, Ben let off a rather large smile.
�Hey Alice, I found it!� he shouted.
�Finally!� Alice replied with exasperation. Ben was just about to pick it up, when he noticed something strange with the shelf that stood behind the box. He stood up flashing his light at it intensively. Through a tiny space between a couple of dusty and seemingly age-old encyclopedias, he noticed that a large hole had been carved into the back of it. He moved the books out of the way. There, in what seemed to be a hidden indention in the wall, was another old and dusty book. Taking it from its hiding spot, Ben examined it. The cover was brown and dusty, much like everything else, and seemed to be worn and torn from years of use. Strangely enough though, it had no Title, no author�s name, or any information saying what it was. Ben looked over his shoulder, and could tell even through the darkness that Alice was growing rather impatient. Still, curiosity got the best of him, and he decided to flip through it. The pages were blank.
�That�s odd,� He thought to himself. �Why would an empty book be hidden down here?�

�Ben, come on already!� Alice shouted as she moved over and picked up the box herself. Obviously she couldn�t wait anymore.
�Alright, I�m coming!� Ben said. He quickly maneuvered back through the ocean of boxes and made his way up the stone steps that led to the library. Mrs. Lovington met them there with a smile on her face. She was a well mannered old woman with snow white hair and blue eyes. Her old fashioned sky blue dress seemed to compliment her appearance nicely.
�So children, did you find the box I wanted?� she asked.
Alice nodded, dropping it on the table right across from her.
�Lovely!� The old woman replied. �Ben, if you don�t mind, could you take the Box and-�
She suddenly stopped mid-sentence.
�Ben,� she asked. �Where did you find that?�
Ben then looked down at his side. There, in his hand was the strange blank book. He must have been in so much of a hurry to catch up with Alice that he had forgotten to set it down.
�Oh, this? I found it in the basement.� he replied.
Mrs. Lovington frowned, giving off a look of distaste.
�I see� she said.
�Well, since it belongs to the library, I would hope that you�ll be giving it to me.�
�Sure.� said Ben.
�But do you mind if I check it out for a little while first?�
�Absolutely not! You don�t know what that�I mean, that book is a relic, and having such an old and priceless thing leave the library is simply inexcusable.�
Ben raised an eyebrow.
�Okay, if I can�t check it out because it�s old, then why is it in a library and not a museum?�
�Just give it to me!� she suddenly shouted, trying to snatch it out of his hands.
�No!� Ben shouted back. They played tug-of-war with it for a little over a minute.
�Ben, just give it to her! You can�t legally have it anyway!� Alice shouted. Suddenly, the both of them pulled on it much too hard, and the book flew into the air. Everyone was forced to watch as it fell to the ground in front of them, staying open to a random page after it hit the ground. Mrs. Lovington�s eyes widened.
�Now you�ve done it!� She whispered.
�Done what?� Alice asked hesitantly. Ben looked down, fixated on the blank pages. Suddenly, words began to appear out of thin air onto them, as if the book was telling a story all on it�s own:

�This is the tale of Ben Martinson, a noble fellow is he. But does he know what his fate will be?�

Ben Chuckled.
�What my fate will be? What does it mean by that?�
�Silly child! Now that it has turned its attention to you, you�re fated to be doomed for eternity!� Mrs. Lovington said as she grabbed him and began to shake him rapidly. �That book is a very bad book, and if I were you, I would get rid of it immediately. The temptation involved with keeping it in your possession would only make things worse!�
Ben pushed her away.
�It�s just a book�What could it possibly do to harm me?�
�Books have a power all their own Ben, even if they�re not magic. They can warp the imagination, making you see things that are either of the impossible�or the inevitable. But this book is special, more special then any book in this library, In that the story is different with each person who opens it.�
�So, the book really is magic?� Alice asked.
�In a Sense, yes. As it Recognized Ben, it now controls him. Any moment in his Past, Present, or future could be changed to fit the story the book wants to tell. No matter what he does, he has no way of stopping it until the story finishes�and it�s because of that unpredictability that we keep it from leaving the library. The story could either lead you to happily ever after, or it could lead you down the road to tragedy and ruin.�
�If the book had such unpredictability, then why in the world wasn�t it destroyed?� Ben asked.
�I tried, but something inside stopped me. I guess being around these books all day gave me a hint of remorse. Maybe it was my love for them, being a Librarian and all.�
Alice leaned back against the table behind her.
�I guess we�re just left to wait and see how things play out then.� She said. Ben looked at his watch.
�Looks like it�s time for us to go Alice.� he said as he closed the book. Mrs. Lovington nodded.
�Hopefully I�ll see the both of you tomorrow then.�
She then looked to Ben.
�If tomorrow never comes for you, I only hope that whatever change the book brings also brings peace to your soul.�
A hint of nervousness hit Ben.
�Yeah, peace.� he said to himself. He then put the book into his backpack, which was behind the check-out desk, and walked toward the exit. Alice followed close behind, twiddling her thumbs as she went along.

When they got outside and down the steps leading up to the building, Alice suddenly stopped him.
�Ben, you don�t believe everything she was telling us about that book, do you?� she asked. Ben looked into her lovely green eyes, showing a look of discontent.
�I don�t know what to think. I mean, being the librarian and all, you�d think she�d be telling the truth. We did find the book in a hole in the basement wall for pete�s sake.�
�Yeah, but, didn�t she seem a little�I don�t know, unhinged when she caught glimpse of that thing? How do we know she didn�t plant it there for us to find or something?�
Ben closed his eyes, letting off a smile.
�Oh Alice, I�m sure Mrs. Lovington isn�t that desperate for attention. Besides, how do you explain the words �magically� appearing on the pages like they did then?�
�I don�t know. Maybe it was some kind of projection trick? Like they do in the movies?�
Ben gave her a blank stare.
�That sounds ridiculous. Besides, I probably would have seen the Projection lights. I�m pretty observant you know.�
Alice returned that blank stare with one of her own.
�Ben, you tripped over someone�s dog while walking through the park this morning, remember?�
Putting his hands behind his head, Ben chuckled.
�That dog came out of nowhere!�
Alice rolled her eyes, beginning to turn and walk away.
�See you tomorrow.� she said.
�If tomorrow comes, of course.� Ben replied.

He began walking in the Opposite direction, his footsteps echoing against the concrete sidewalk. A soft breeze blew through his chestnut colored hair, which he just pushed out of the way. He turned the corner at Fair Street, opting to walk through the park, which stood at the right. It was empty, which wasn't exactly typical for this time of the afternoon. Bored, Ben walked right to the swing set. It was sitting in the middle of the park, surrounded by trees. He remembered coming here when he was younger with Alice, and just playing the day away. it was memories like that that seemed to get to him the most, so much so that he had the strangest urge to feel what it was like to be that care free again. He put his bag down on the ground, making sure to keep a close eye on it, and sat down on the swing. The rubber seat was small and uncomfortable since the last time he remembered, but then again he didn�t really care too much. He scooted back, counted to three, and then pushed forward, gliding into the air and then back to earth again. This backwards/forwards movement happened for a only a few minutes before Ben noticed something odd. There was a strange light illumination from the inside of his backpack.

�What is that?� he thought. He quickly jumped off, still in mid-air, and as soon as he landed, felt a rumble under his feet. The world around him suddenly was moving at rather intense pace. The rumbling soon stopped as soon as it had started, and when he looked around, he could already tell that everything was not as it seemed. He quickly opened his bag, tossing the book against the ground and opening it. But before he could understand what really happened, a voice rang through his ears like the sound of morning church bells.
�Ben, why are you on the ground?� it asked. Ben looked up slowly to



find that Alice was standing above him, a face of uneasiness lined across her lovely face.
�Oh, hey Alice.� he replied. �I was looking at the book to see if anything had happened. I thought you went home?�
Alice�s face soon made an even more discontent face. Ben began to think that she thought he was crazy.
�Ben,� She said. �It�s only 8 o�clock in the morning. We were just walking to work together when you stopped to look at this imaginary book of yours, remember?�
Ben looked at his watch. There it was: 8 o�clock, just as Alice had said. It didn�t make sense. Did the book send him back in time? Was he living the day over again? Yes, that must have been what happened. Suddenly, he replayed everything he had just said through his mind again.

�Imaginary.� he thought. He then looked to Alice.
�Can you not see the book I was looking at?� he asked intently. Alice laughed hesitantly.
�Ben, there�s no book there. What are you-�
�I think I�m living this day again Alice. The book�.it�s trying to change things!� Ben abruptly interrupted as he got up and began to shake Alice intently.
�Ben, stop it!� Alice yelled. �Calm yourself down, there is no book!�
She then pushed him away turning quickly to walk away from him and out of the park.
�Alice, wait!� Ben exclaimed. It was no use; she left him behind, probably thinking he was some sort of nut-case. He looked to the ground, feeling sort of like he was going crazy himself. He then turned to his backpack, and the book that only he could see sitting on the ground. A sudden breeze blew past it, flapping the pages open. When it died down, he could see from where he was standing that new words had appeared upon it. At this point he didn�t want to look, he was afraid to, but his legs seemed to have a mind of their own. Being much closer to it, his eyes couldn�t resist taking a peek.

�Let us start from the beginning. Yes, when this day began. An award young Ben will be winning, for the biggest nut in the land. He�ll try to convince Alice, who will turn and run. But her looking glass will be broken, with the running of feet and the sound of a gun.�

     Confused, Ben tried to make sense of the books strange nonsense. Suddenly, three loud bangs broke through the air. Gunshots. Ben ran in the direction Alice had left and straight out of the park to find a huge crowd of people huddled together in the middle of the street. Pushing through the tons of screaming people, Ben came across just what he had feared. There, lying on the ground was Alice. A bullet wound pierced her, right around the place where her heart was.
�What happened?� he asked.
�There was a standoff at the bank across the street.� A man standing next to him explained.
�I guess the robbers tried to escape, and she got hit in the crossfire that ensued. A sad case indeed.�
Then it hit him. If Ben hadn�t went stopped to see the book, and went through his rant about living today over again, maybe they would have gotten past the standoff. Maybe Alice would still be alive. One thing was for sure, this wasn�t the day as he remembered it. Everything had certainly changed. Grief hit him hard, so hard that he couldn�t bear to look at his friend down on the ground anymore. He pushed his way through the crowd, running down the street and all the way home. Work just wasn�t on his mind today. As soon as he got to his house, he kicked open the door, running inside and quickly closing it behind him. Ben�s mother was sitting in the living room at the time, and upon hearing the door open, rushed to see what was going on.

�Ben, thank goodness! Are you alright? I saw what was happened to Alice on the news and-�
In too much of a crazed state to talk, Ben quickly ran up stairs. Upon entering his bedroom, he slammed the door and locked it behind him. He could feel his heart pounding out of his chest as he leaned against the brown wooden barrier that stood between him everything outside. He heard his mothers footsteps come creeping up the stairs, then the loud knocks on his door.
�Ben, are you all right?� she asked. Ben couldn�t answer. It�s not that he didn�t want to; it was that his words seemed to be trapped behind a wall of guilt. He could feel sweat coming down his face and his knees shaking feverishly.
�Alice�s Death was my fault.� He thought to himself. �If I had never found the book, then maybe she would be alive. Maybe.�
Ben�s mother was worried about his sudden silence, but she figured it was because he watched his best friend die and wanted to be alone.
�Alright Ben� she said. �When you�re ready to talk about it, I�ll be downstairs. I have to check on the chocolate cake I had baking in the oven anyway.�
He waited for the last of her footsteps to hit the stairs. When he knew she was gone, he grabbed his backpack, taking the book out. He stared at its wordless cover for what seemed like ages before tossing it against the wall in anger.
�It�s all your fault!� he yelled as it hit the floor. The impact knocked it open, and more words began to appear upon its pages. Ben tried not to look, because he had seen it do enough damage already. Yet, in the end he couldn�t resist. He just had to know what this book had up its sleeve next.

�Poor Ben indeed, lost in grief over his maiden. But more danger is to come as the sun is fading. The night brings much terror, much dread for our hero. But can he save his mother before the timer reaches zero?�

He wasn�t sure how his mother was in danger at first, but then it hit him.
�The cake!� he shouted. He knew that although his mother liked to check on it, having a bit of a sweet tooth and all, she had a timer in place to tell exactly when it would be done. He unlocked the door and was just about to make his way downstairs when he heard the doorbell ring.
�Who could that be?� he heard his mother exclaim. He heard her open the door and as he crept down the stairs, noticed that their visitors were a pair of police officers. They had apparently gotten word that Ben was the last person Alice talked to and needed to know what he knew about the entire situation. As he heard the men close the front door behind them and make their way into the living room, Ben made his way back upstairs. He wasn't in the mood for interviews. Unfortunately, it wasn�t long before the police were standing outside his bedroom door because they were tired of waiting for him to come downstairs.
�Ben, we need to ask you a few questions. Please let us in.� one of them asked. Ben didn�t want to, but he figured that he had no choice. If he had stalled any longer, they probably would have just busted the door down. He sat down on the bed, and for over an hour they asked him questions.
�What were you talking about? Why where you arguing? Can we see the book you�re talking about? Why not?�

They just kept coming. Ben was nothing more then relieved when they were done. Though, in telling them everything that happened, he just knew that they thought he was crazy, and that everything he just said was madness. Yet, they didn�t make too much of a fuss out of it, this time at least thank goodness. They were just about to turn and leave, when suddenly one of them stopped in his tracks.
�Does�does anyone smell smoke?� he asked. Ben�s mother had been standing in the doorway, fixated on the entire situation and not paying attention to anything else. When she began to smell it as well, she ran downstairs in a panic.
�oh my gosh, my cake!!� she exclaimed. Ben and the police officers followed her down, only to find that the entire area was not only starting to fill up with smoke, but the living room had just begun to burst into flames. Ben tried to open the front door. Jammed shut. He then ran through the burning flames to grab the fire extinguisher sitting in the kitchen cabinet. Empty.
�The book is clearly trying to burn us alive�.� He exclaimed to himself.
�Hurry, get upstairs!� one of the policemen exclaimed. Not wanting to argue with the officer, everyone ran upstairs and into Ben�s room. Luckily, a tree sat right outside his window with branches thick enough to hold up even the largest of people.

�We have to go out through the window!� Ben exclaimed as he opened it.
�Worth a shot!� one of the policemen shouted. They all let Bens mother go first. The tree seemed to hold her alright. The police wanted Ben to go next, but he insisted that he go last�.mostly because his thoughts about the book and the temptation to look at again were holding him back. Not putting up with such nonsense, they tried to grab Ben and force him out. Temptation got to Ben though, and he was able to get to the book first so it didn�t really matter if they dragged him out or not. They were able to get down from the tree with ease. As Ben stood there, staring into the large pile of burning memories that was once his house, his mother ran to the neighbors house to call the fire department, if they hadn�t already. It wasn�t hard to notice that there was a fire after all. He wanted to throw the book into the flames so bad; to end this horrible day and the horrible hold it had taken over his life once and for all. But he couldn�t. Every time he tried to throw it in, he just couldn�t release he grasp on it, as if his hands were covered in some kind of invisible glue, which would be somewhat fitting for an �imaginary� book. Giving up, he walked away. The firefighters probably wanted him away from the blaze regardless when they got there.
Ben walked over to his neighbor�s house, where his mother told him they were willing to give them a place to stay until they could get back on their feet. Ben figured that was a nice thing of them to do. He never really talked to them that much, but knew that they were pretty good friends with his mother. Sighing, he walked inside and sat down on their couch, which had been converted into a bed. He stared at the book. At this point he had so many emotions running through his head about it, that he just felt obsessed with it. Everything it had done to him had gotten to him, and was running through his head like a bad movie that seemed to never end. They continued to do so until he felt like he was way too tired to think, and before he knew it, he was fast asleep. The next morning, he woke up to find that everyone had vanished. His mother was probably out talking to the fire fighters, insurance agency, and anyone else that could give her any information as to what survived the horrific fire and what to do next, and his neighbors had probably left for work. He looked at his watch. 7�oclock.
�I guess it�s about time I get out of here too.� he told himself. He took a shower, got dressed, then picked up his backpack and got ready to leave. The book had been sitting on the coffee table right across from where he slept all night, but he was trying to resist the urge to bring it with him. Every time he tried to leave to go and work at the library, he would stop and stare as if it was calling to him. It soon got to the point where he couldn�t resist anymore and was out the door quite quickly.

     He took the same route he would always take, the one he always used to walk with Alice. When he got to the spot where she was shot, he noticed that a roadside memorial with pictures and good wishes had been placed there. Alice�s parents, as completely distressed as they were had said on the news that their daughters funeral would be over the weekend. Ben of course got an invitation but was unsure about going. Not only did he not want to see Alice in that way, but he was completely unsure as to what the book might do between now and then. He picked a flower that was growing in a nearby grassy knoll and put it by there.
�Love you Alice.� He said as he walked away. When he got to the library, he walked in to find Mrs. Lovington surprised to see him.
�Ben, you shouldn�t be here today. After all the tragedy and-�
�There�s a book in the basement� he interrupted. �One hidden behind a shelf in a hidden indention in the wall. I want to know everything about that book.�
Mrs. Lovington stared at him with shock and surprise.
�How do you know that old thing exists?� she asked.
�It�s a long story.� replied Ben. �The point is that that book is the thing that lead to Alice�s death, and I need to know what it is and how it got here.�
Mrs. Lovington sighed, sitting Ben down at one of the tables on the back room.
�I remember first seeing that cursed thing fifteen years ago. A woman donated it, a bit on the nutty side she was. She said that the book had brought her much bad luck�that it had lead to the death of her only son. Of course, I wanted nothing to do with the thing, but she forced it on to me. Soon enough, the temptation to read it soon got to me, and when I looked upon its blank pages, terrible things happened. It got to the point that one day, in order to protect myself and everyone else; I had to get rid of it. Hide it, from anyone who wished to looked upon it and become cursed themselves. I put it into the library basement and never looked upon it again. I just couldn�t find it in my heart to destroy it�Maybe because the book had such a wondrous hold on me.�

After hearing Mrs. Lovington�s story, Ben knew what he had to do. He had to do what Mrs. Lovington couldn�t and destroy it once and for all. He got up, abruptly leaving work and walking through the park toward his neighbor�s house. Once there, he took a lighter from the kitchen counter and walked down the street to where his house once stood. Standing in the rubble and ashes, he clicked the lighter on and was about to end it all, when he the urge to look upon its pages hit him one more time. It was so great that he looked at it without even thinking twice. Once again, words began to appear.

��and here we come to stories end, with Ben crazed from despair. The loss of his house, his friend, his state of mind, has all been too much to bear. Though he may destroy this book, in these ashes it will lie. No matter what Ben does to me, in the end he�s meant to die.�

�Shut up!!� Ben said. He immediately put it under the lighter, setting it ablaze and tossing it among the mountain of ashes around him. He breathed a sigh of relief as he watched it burn away for good. It was over. He didn�t have to live with it controlling his life anymore. When he was done taking a deep breath, despite the remnants of smoke that still loomed, he walked away with a smile on his face. In fact, he was in such a good mood, he decided to return to work in order to get at least something done down there. He took his normal route through the park again, and gave Alice�s memorial a quick and simple salute. But he only got to the street in front of the library before things seemed to be out of place. As he tried to cross, he had become so engulfed in his joy that he wasn�t looking at what was in front of him and ended up tripping over his own shoes. He fell to the ground hard and immediately began to hold his leg in agony. That was when he heard it. The honking of a large moving truck headed in his direction. Ben could see that the driver was trying to stop, but considering that he kept looking down at his breaks, they appeared to be busted. Ben got up slowly.
�Crap.� He said as it came barreling toward him. But it was too late to move, and that was all he remembered before everything faded to black.

Reviews

[Kostas M.]

I must admit that it is kind of a big story to post in here, and maybe kind of difficulty for someone to read. But I must also admit that it kept me reading it to its end.
It did remind me of that old -great- movie called Jumanji. Lol. Only your story was a bit more "wicked" to its end.
I'm into fiction literature, especially drama-horror stuff, and I think your story is worth the time.

That is one powerful story. The plot and pace of the story is wonderful. The action kept it moving. You wouldn't per chance have some kid find the book in the ashes of the house would you to make a new "chapter" in the life of the book. Just a thought. I could so see this story as the plot for a movie!