Chapter Two Voices

         Chapter Two
                 Voices

    
    I tossed and turned in bed. Trying to fight the voice in my head that repeated the exact same two phrases.
    A new dog. A new dog. A new dog.
    I flipped over onto my stomach with my face in the pillow.
    In the end. In the end. In the end.
    “Ugh, shut up!” I yelled into my pillow furiously. If Bruno was here, he would crawl up on the bed next to me and try to be comforting in any way he could. If he was here.
    If he was here. If he was here. If he was here.
    I groaned. I lifted my head reluctantly and stared at the digital alarm clock on my bedside desk. It took me some time to realize what I was reading. It was one minute until midnight. My head fell back onto the pillow with a light spongy thud due to the mattress. I tried to pull my head back up and look through my window. I was unsuccessful.
    I lay my head over the pillow once more and pulled the blanket over my neck. I had nearly fallen asleep when the voices started again.
    A new dog. A new dog. A new dog.
    I groaned again and tried once more to look out the window. I finally did and was completely surprised at what I saw.
    The moon was full and the stars twinkled around it. There was even the silhouette of a large tree. I watched, astonished, as a small breeze sent a ripple the leaves. The stars looked so delicate, I thought that the next light wind would blow them away.
    My mind was temporarily distracted by the breathtaking movie-like scene. I forgot about the voices and Bruno. Not completely, though. I would never forget Bruno, and the voices were like background music in my head, coming from the deep recesses of my mind. After seeing the beautiful night, the harsh mocking voices morphed into a sweet, gentle murmur. I could barely make the words out.
      In the end. In the end. In the end.
    After being troubled for part of the night, I was able to bow my sleep deprived head onto the pillow and relax. It felt like hours and seconds at the same time, but I was finally able to sleep.
*    *    *    *    *    *    *    *    *    *    *    *    
    Austin Jonathon Bryce
    My eyelids cracked open at the words. Who was calling my name? It was a strange rhythmic voice I never heard before.
    Austin Jonathon Bryce  
    There it went again. The voice in my head, that had now returned to its normal state of savageness. The groan escaped my mouth before I could stop it. It sounded as if I had the stomach flu, but it was much worse than that. My whole body ached from the lack of sleep I just had. My body felt stiff, and I noticed I hadn’t moved from my posture of being flat on my stomach. I flipped over and stared up at my ceiling. It was a pale white ceiling with the large poster of my favorite band, Rockit, pasted on it.
    Austin Jonathon Bryce  
    “What?” I moaned harshly. I was starting to think someone was just messing with me. That’s one of the downs of being the youngest brother of two older siblings.
    Austin Jonathon Bryce  
    “You guys, cut it out!” I snapped, hoping they would see I wasn’t in the mood for silliness. Unfortunately, they didn’t.
    Austin Jonathon Bryce  
    “Shut up!” I yelled. “Leave me alone!” Was it me, or did the peculiar voice just chuckle? The voice chuckled again and said nothing more. It was as if I locked it in a cage in the far corner of my brain that I didn’t seem to listen to anymore. The voice was finally gone.
    I heard loud thuds as Eli scrambled into my room. “Are you okay?” she queried, panting. I had just realized that the voices weren’t keeping only me up. “You were yelling and screaming all night. I thought someone came in to strangle you or kidnap-”
    “I’m fine.” I broke her off. “I just had a rough night.” Eli stared at me blankly.
    “What’s going on?” I heard my dad say, as he walked into the room.
    “Austin’s been screaming all night and didn’t let me get any sleep.” Eli whined. I frowned. I didn’t scream all night. Just a couple of hours. But I didn’t question her. Her room was right next to mine anyway, so she should know.
    My dad looked at me with a worried face. “You alright?” he asked. It was impossible to lie to my dad. He had smooth blonde hair and light blue eyes that were hard to fib to.
    “I’m fine,” I repeated in a small voice, avoiding his truth prone eyes. Dad didn’t say anything more.
    “Get some sleep, both of you.” he ordered. He strode out of the room before Eli could object. She, too, departed.
    I stared back up to the ceiling. Why did I have to be the one in the family who heard voices. Why couldn’t it be Henry? After all, there was no difference between us two brothers except for age. My mind felt completely scarce of answers. Why did Bruno run away? I thought he loved this house and our family. Why did he have to leave, especially when I needed him most.
    I pondered on the subject for some time, before looking at the clock to see what time it was. Ten minutes until seven o’clock AM. It was a little early for a Saturday, but I got up anyway.
    As I headed for the door, my reflection in the mirror caught my eye. I looked completely different. I didn’t even think it was me. It wasn’t that the color of my skin or hair changed. It was the expression on my face. I was completely pale, my face a milky white color. My exhausted green eyes were wide with fear. My blonde hair looked droopier than usual. I couldn’t even recognize the pre teenage boy in the mirror.
    As I stared, the voices started again.
    A new dog. A new dog. A new dog.
    I ignored them and thought they would go away soon. They didn’t. The voices haunted and tortured me the whole morning. As I ate breakfast, as I did my homework, and even as I watched TV, hoping the characters on the screen would drown out the characters in my head. I finally gave up and decided to go for a walk.

    Central Park is the best place to go to clear your mind. It was just a large area of rolling grass attached with a playground, and a tall hill in the back, which most parents forbade their children to climb. It was a five minute bike ride, and a ten minute walk from my house. I decided to take my bike so I could distract myself better, and the sooner I got to the park, the better.
    It was around ten o’clock when I turned the corner of my street onto Gem Avenue. It was a sunny day, and I was sure the park would be full of children. If I was lucky, one of my friends would be there to sidetrack my thoughts to something else besides the voices. I went back to the part of the neighborhood, Depth Drive, where Henry was trying to fight the wind yesterday. I turned the corner and was soon in the town square.
    I passed many shops-such as Lexis’s Market and the Valley Mall- and found myself in the vast green hills of Central Park. Peace at last.
    My guess was correct. All over the park were children running and playing. I scanned every bit of the area to see if there was someone I knew. And there was.
    In the corner of the park, was a girl with oak brown hair tied up in a ponytail, and right next to her was a dwarfish boy with glasses and blonde hair. I guessed the girl was Melanie Palmer and the boy right next to her was her younger brother. I wasn’t great friends with either of them, but at least I knew who they were.
    I parked my bike next to a tree and made my way over. When I was probably five feet behind her, I noticed who else was there. Oh no. It was a dog. It was a big, friendly dog. I knew it was a golden retriever because of its cream colored coat and wavy hair. Melanie’s brother bent down to pet it, and said, “You’re the best dog in the world, Conner.” Then he gave the dog a small treat.
    My stomach churned. I remembered when I would tell Bruno he was the best dog in the world. I even remember feeding and walking him right here in this park. I felt sweat on my forehead and goose bumps raised on my arm.
    ‘I have to go back.’ I thought hastily. Right when I turned, what else would it be, but two toddlers petting a Chihuahua puppy. There was a lump in my throat. I wanted to scream. Luckily, even if I tried, I wouldn’t be able to because my mouth was as dry as cotton.
    I tried to swallow the lump and cut through the grass to my bike, but two German shepherds had already beaten me to it. They were sniffing the bike cautiously, as their owners tried to tug them away with leashes. My head spun and I felt woozy. Now, clearer than ever before, the voices spoke.
    In the end. In the end. In the end.
    I felt a tap on my shoulder and almost fainted of joy of who I saw.
    “Austin, there you are!” Henry exclaimed. I had never been this glad to see his pale face, extremely spiky light blond hair, and worried blue eyes. “Where’ve you been? And why are you so pale? Are you okay, Aus?” I only heard the words, but my brain couldn’t comprehend anything he said.
    “I’m fine.” I sad for the third time that morning. I trudged through the grass toward my bike which was now completely vacant of dogs. I jumped on to it, while Henry jumped on his blue one. He led the way home while I straggled behind him, still being tortured by severe thoughts.
    A new dog. A new dog. A new dog.
    Many people would think I’m getting too worked up over a dog. But they wouldn’t understand what it is like to lose your BEST friend. I had grown up with Bruno. I got him for my second birthday when he was just a month old. Of course I barely knew what a dog was back then, Bruno was still a life long companion. It was so different without him around.
    Different. Different. Different.
    This voice was driving me crazy. I knew it wasn’t my mind talking to myself like yesterday in the car. It was as if someone was really talking, and I was the only one who heard it. The voice was like a cruel angry lullaby, if that’s possible. Instead of being soothing and giving me sweet dreams, it was grim and kept me up with nightmares. The person speaking sounded like a horrible witch, someone who was insanely evil.
    When Henry and I were finally at the house, we left our bikes at the corner of the yard and went inside.
    “Austin!” Mom exclaimed hysterically as I entered the house. She came over and embraced me as if I had just got home from war. Elizabeth, on the other hand, sat in our living room watching TV casually, ignoring the fact that I was even alive.
    “Are you okay? You were screaming all night, and you look so pale-” Mom droned on and on about how worried she was about me.
    I stifled a glare and smiled instead. “It was nothing just a nightmare. Nothing to get worked up about.” I slipped away from her arms and into the kitchen for some juice. Mom stared at me with a blank expression, sighed, and went upstairs.
    As I sat at the kitchen table, Henry threw me an odd look. I tried to look cheerful as I sipped the apple juice, with a bright smile and happy eyes. Henry wasn’t fooled.
    “Are you alright?” he asked. I knew he wanted a direct and detailed answer. Not any old excuse.
    As I drank the last of my drink, I tried to think of an explanation. Nothing hit me.
    “I’m fine. Why?” I asked, trying to look suspicious. Henry stared at me, trying fight through the fake barrier of my happiness, and into what I was really thinking. The truth was, I wasn’t thinking anything at all. Just listening to the voices in my head.
    He sighed and continued. “What do you want for your birthday?” Henry queried.
    “A new dog!” I blurted out. Henry stared at me, shocked. ‘What?’ I thought to myself, also startled by my hasty decision. ‘I never wanted that! Why did I say that?’ Henry continued to stare at me. I was about to tell him that wasn’t what I really wanted, but my voice beat me to it. “I want a new dog from the pet store in the town square.” My eyes opened wide with horror.
    “What?” Henry said, perplexed. Why was I saying this stuff? In the back of my head, I could feel the voice chuckle. The voices were making me do this? ‘No,’ I told myself silently. ‘I have to fight them.’
    “What I meant to say was,” I started, but the voice finished. “I want a cat!” Henry’s mouth fell open in  terror and confusion.
    “What did you say?” He asked in an appalled way. I gulped. The voice in my head was clearly taking over, just as I feared.
    “Henry, I-” I broke off as the voice in my head commanded me to.
    Tell him you’re going to the park. The person demanded. ‘Are you insane?’ I told it. Tell him! The voice shrieked as if the person speaking it was right next to me, whispering commands into my ear.
    “I’m going to the park, Henry.” I said, hastily.
    “Wait, but-”
    “Bye!” I rushed out the front door and onto my bike. I could hear Henry distantly yelling after me.
    Good. The voice praised. ‘What do you want? Why should I got to the park?’ I asked the person in my mind. You aren’t going to the park. You are going  somewhere new, that I will tell you the directions of. I opened my mouth to scream in horror, but somehow, the voice stopped me from doing that, too. Go left on Depth Drive. It commanded. I followed.