Temptation Awaits...

Do you remember playing in leaves as a child?

I think we all have...

Laughing, rolling around, getting buried...

Something so innocent...

Or is it?

You be the judge...

When It Leaves

By

Savannah Rayne

Steven pulled the zipper of his navy-blue sweatshirt jacket up a bit further. The cool breeze of the autumn air made him shiver. Okay, maybe it wasn’t the wind blowing that caused the icy feeling that seemed to reach the inner depths of his bones. If he had to be honest, everything about this time of year gave him a chill.

Walking down Trellis Lane heading for home was something he had done more times than he could count. The large, white, two story home he had lived in all his life was in sight. With each step he took its image became clearer. Autumn colored leaves swirled around his feet and littered the street. They almost seemed to dance in time to an unheard tune as the wind blew, whispering through the branches of the trees. Their mass quantity covered the once lush green lawns of the neighboring yards. Most would marvel at natures painted splendor. Yet each and every autumn reminded him of that life altering day twenty years ago…

                                                ~*~

“Mom, please?” K.C. was begging to go outside and play.

“I said supper will be ready soon and…”

“Oh, Tina, let the boys go out and play for a bit. It won’t be long and the snow will fly and you’ll wish you could get them out of your hair,” her husband Randy laughed, looking up from the paperwork he had sprawled across the tiled-top kitchen table. Tina shot him a look over her right shoulder. Her raised eye brow told Randy he should have kept quiet.

“Yeah Mom,” said Steven, K.C.’s twin brother.

“Oh alright, I guess I’m out numbered, once again. But only for a little while.” She turned and made a face at her husband before she continued, “Just make sure you put your jackets on and stay in the yard, it gets dark early now and…” she was cut off by the boys chiming in together.

“Supper will be ready soon,” K.C. and Steven said, laughing in unison. Tina had to chuckle herself. Her five year old twins were becoming such cute little men and made every day an adventure. When the boys were placed in her arms for the first time, she worried about being a good mother. One newborn was quite a responsibility, having two scared her to death. Now she couldn’t imagine life without them.

The boys were fraternal twins, looking nothing alike. K.C. resembled his father, having the same light brown hair and crystal clear, blue eyes. He had been named after Randy’s grandfather Kevin Charles, but with such an adult sounding name, they soon found themselves calling him K.C. for short. Steven seemed to have inherited Tina’s family genes of a naturally tan complexion, darker brown hair and very dark brown—almost black, colored eyes. But that was where their differences ended. Even at their young age, their similarities seemed endless. They shared a wacky sense of humor, loving to laugh, as well as making others laugh with their antics. They also shared a love of the outdoors. Tina had to admit they got that trait from their father.

With gleeful laughter the young boys ran to the back hall to grab their jackets from the row of brass hooks that hung above the pine bench. Tina saw Steven jump up onto the bench and grab the jackets. He then leaped off, tackling his sibling on the way down. K.C. responded by grabbing Steven in a headlock, and the two started to roll around on the floor.

“That’s enough!” Randy yelled from the kitchen. “You boys take it out side, you know there’s no rough housing allowed in here.” He shuffled through the papers in front of him, remembering the tussles he and his brothers got into while growing up.

Heeding their fathers warning the two got up, put on their coats and bolted for the door. The sound of the slamming old, white wooden screen door boomed through the house as they headed for the yard. Both boys jumped off the deck of the large back porch to the ground, rather than waste their time taking the stairs. K.C. landed on his feet and took off running in the direction of the swing set, laughing and kicking at the leaves that covered the ground as he went. Steven’s landing wasn’t quite as smooth. He had lost his footing, twisting his ankle slightly and ended up rolling a few feet. He sat on the ground, waiting for the aching in his left ankle to subside.

“Come on baby, get up,” K.C. laughed, as he reached the slide of the swing set. He climbed the seven, green metal steps of the ladder, stopping when he reached the top of the slide. He stood on the small platform, with his arms straight out like airplane wings. “Look at me Steve—watch this!” Without hesitation, K.C. went under the safety rails, leaning forward on the opposite side before jumping, and landing in the leaf pile down below.

“I’ll show you who’s a baby,” Steven yelled as he got up, the crunchy, autumn debris clinging to his rust-colored wool jacket. He ran towards K.C. and once he reached him, dive-bombed on top of him. The two young boys wrestled, rolling around amongst the leaves, laughing. K.C. pulled out of Steven’s grasp and tried to get up to run away, but was stopped when Steven reached out and grabbed his right foot, sending him sprawling to the ground once more.

“Who’s a baby?” Steven laughed, teasing his sibling.

“Not me,” K.C. said as he scooped up an arm full of leaves, then threw them at his brother. The leaves swirled around Steven as they caught the breeze, before they slowly floated back to the ground. The boys continued their horse-play, taking turns tackling each other and throwing leaves.

“You look like a leaf monster,” K.C. chuckled, when he saw that the leaves were now sticking in Steven’s hair, in addition to his wool jacket.

“I’m a monster,” Steven said in a low pitched voice, trying to sound scary. He stretched his arms out in front of him, walking stiff-legged attempting to imitate a Frankenstein type walk.

“Oh no…help me, help me,” K.C. squealed in a high pitch tone, feigning sounds of a girl. “The baby is after me.” He couldn’t hold back his boisterous laughter as Steven kept coming at him, walking all stiff like. He walked backwards so he could enjoy his brother’s leafy rendition of Frankenstein, calling out the occasional taunt. Without notice Steven broke into a run and in a few short steps, caught up to K.C. then jumped at him and tackled him to the ground once more. They took turns throwing more leaves at each other, along with a push here and a shove there. Their laughter echoed in the silence of the rapidly approaching night.

“I know,” K.C. stated as he got up, “let’s go around to the side of the house where it’s darker. We can hide from mom and then when she comes looking for us we can scare her.”

“I don’t like that idea, mom will be mad.”

“You’re such a baby. Baby, baby, baby,” K.C. taunted his brother yet again.

“I am not!” Steven yelled. “I just…”

“You’re a big fat wa-wa baby,” K.C. said as he started running to the side of the house. He was hoping he could get to the darkened side of their home and hide, then jump out and scare his brother. Looking back, he was glad when he didn’t see Steven following him yet. Acting quickly, K.C. ran to the medium sized pine tree and stood at an angle where he wouldn’t be seen. He figured its fullness would help camouflage him completely even though it was getting darker and harder to see. He wondered if Steven had decided to follow him and would show up soon, he was sure their mom would be calling them in for supper any minute. Now he merely had to wait.

Just as he was about to give up his hiding place, K.C. saw Steven come around the corner of the house. A devilish grin broke across his rosy, cheeks. Like a predator waits silently for its prey, K.C. stood poised, ready to pounce on Steven as he came closer to the pine tree. Barely able to contain his snickering, he watched anxiously as his victim took just three more steps in his direction and….

“Rarrrr,” K.C. yelled as he jumped out from his hiding place. Steven let out a scream and fell backwards. Exactly the reaction K.C. was hoping for.

“I’m telling mom!”

“No you’re not, baby. Come on let’s play some more before we have to go in and eat.”

“I don’t wanna—I hate you,” Steven replied, his eyes damp with un-shed tears.

“Baby, baby, run to momma then,” K.C. teased. “Hey wanna bury me in the leaves? It’ll be fun, like we did to dad with the sand at the beach.” K.C. hoped if he changed the subject, Steven wouldn’t go in and tell on him. He flashed his biggest grin, hoping it would help persuade his brother.

“I don’t think so.”

“You can bury me first. Look…” He laid down on the ground and started pulling leaves onto himself. “Come on ba—. Steve, I need your help.”

Steven hesitated, not fully trusting his brother. He was getting cold and really wanted to go inside the house and warm up. But as he watched his twin scooping the leaves and covering himself, he thought it would be fun to bury his brother and get back at him. Mom would surely be mad, and it was K.C.’s idea after all.

He crawled over to where K.C. was and started to help him. The leaves were thick on the side of the house because of the mature Oaks and Maples that had been there for at least a hundred years.

“I’m gonna lay back, you can do the rest of me okay?” K.C. instructed.

“Then what?” asked Steven.

“Then go get mom and tell her you can’t find me.”

“That’s mean and mom won’t like it.”

“I will jump out and scare her when she comes closer…she’ll think it’s funny.”

“I don’t know…”

“Look baby, just do it or I’ll tell mom you’re the one who ran over her flowers with your bike,” K.C. threatened. “Now hurry up and make me disappear before mom calls us in.”

“I wish you would really disappear,” Steven mumbled, as he reluctantly started to finish covering his brother with the autumn foliage. He scouted around the ground scooping up whatever leaves he could find. He looked down inspecting his work and saw that he could still see K.C.’s gold jacket. As if reading his mind K.C. said, “And make sure I’m all covered up. I don’t want nothing showing.”

“K.C. I’m cold. I wanna go in.”

“You’re almost done…just get some more to cover up my chest and face and then you can go get mom. Make sure you don’t see me, cover me up good, so I disappear.”

Steven did as he was instructed, gathering up several more large armfuls of leaves, throwing them on top of the still form of his sibling. All he wanted was to make K.C. vanish underneath them so he could go inside and warm up. It was really dark now and he didn’t like being out at night. The eerie sounds and blackness had always spooked him.

Looking around he spied quite a few leaves about ten steps away. As he started towards them, he hoped there would be enough to finish the job of concealing K.C.’s entire body. Half way to his destination, the wind began to increase. The gust created a strange buzzing sound. Leaves began to swirl about the ground, adding to the vibrant noise.

“K.C., I wanna go,” Steven turned towards K.C. to try to convince his brother to stop with the idea of being buried, when he saw something that made him stop talking mid-sentence and halt his footsteps. Where K.C. was lying on the ground, the leaves began to swirl in a large spiral. They lifted into the air, picking up in speed and quantity. The buzzing noise became louder, the high pitch was starting to hurt Steven’s ears. He watched spell bound as the vegetation lifted higher and higher, forming what looked like a tornado made of leaves to the five year old. The dead, autumn foliage that was covering K.C. seemed to come to life at the base of the leafy twister. The swirling mass was spinning so fast, just watching it was making him dizzy. Steven wanted to run but was frozen with fear, unable to move or scream for help.

Then he saw something that would give him nightmares for years to come. The leaves that had been covering K.C. were sucked up into the rapidly spinning leafy tornado, until the ground below was bare. Steven’s eyes were wide with terror. He opened his mouth and screamed but the buzzing was so loud, his voice seemed silent in the night. He stood there releasing scream after scream, watching the tornadic leaves spin faster and faster. His heart was racing, his head was spinning and he was starting to feel sick to his stomach. Yet Steven was oblivious to what his body was trying to tell him—to warn him. His focus was on one thing and one thing only, the ground below the twister was empty. K.C. was gone…vanished…disappeared.

                                                ~*~

The honking of the horn coming from Mrs. Leiberman’s vehicle, snapped Steven back to the present. He smiled and waved as he walked behind the blue Ford Focus and crossed the black-topped driveway. He continued the short distance to his home, then crossed the front yard and walked up the steps of the large white porch. He took a few steps to his right, and stood there staring at the large pine tree. He liked Angie Leiberman; she had been a good friend to his mom for many years. He remembered all too well the events that brought the women closer together…

The night K.C. disappeared; Angie Leiberman’s home was one of the first places his father had checked. The Leiberman’s had three children, and his dad had hoped K.C. had snuck over there to play with them as he had done in the past. When a search of the neighborhood didn’t produce K.C., his mom had called the police. He recalled Mrs. Leiberman being at their home, trying to calm his hysterical mother, while the police questioned him about what had happened. He remembered how his father had been angry at him, yelling at him to stop lying, every time Steven told the middle-aged officer that K.C. had disappeared in the leaves. For two hours they questioned him and his answer was always the same. None of the adults seemed to believe him or the details of the events that had happened right before his mother came outside looking for them.

Funny, he couldn’t remember what he’d eaten for dinner two nights ago, but Steven could recall each intricate detail of that night twenty years ago, as if it had just happened yesterday. For weeks officer’s had combed the area and questioned neighbors. Posters had been hung, and he remembered seeing the front page of the local paper lying on the pine coffee table in the living room. The headline read “FIVE YEAR OLD BOY ABDUCTED”, and just below it was a 5x7 color photo of K.C. smiling. An article, which lacked details, was printed next to the picture.

As weeks turned into months, and months turned into years, K.C.’s file eventually joined the unsolved others and became a ‘cold’ case. No clues or evidence of foul play were ever found. It seemed as though K.C. had simply, disappeared. But there was nothing ordinary about what happened.

After five years, his parents divorced. His mom never stopped blaming his father for K.C.’s abduction. Tina, in a drunken-stooper, would scream at his father, that had he not insisted that she let the boys go out and play that night, her baby would still be with them. After years of being reminded of that fact several times a day, and tired of Tina’s drinking, Randy finally threw in the towel on the marriage, and left.

It was the loss of a child and the failed marriage that strengthened the bond between Mrs. Leiberman and his mom. Angie took care of her and watched after Steven when his mother was too caught up in her own sorrow, to worry about him. Eventually, with her best friends help, his grief stricken mother was able to stop drinking and once again be the good mom she had once been. Life gradually returned to normal. His mom became the manager of a little café downtown, and his dad was working in the foundry. His father eventually remarried and started a new family. Steven’s mother chose to remain single, making him, her only priority. She kept the house, refusing to move just in case by some miracle, K.C. was able to find his way home. She never gave up hope.

As if to taunt him and add to his melancholy, the leaves near the pine tree began to dance in the breeze. The dried up, dead autumn debris swirled and lifted into the air, blowing about seductively, swooshing from side to side as if almost saying catch us if you can.

Hearing the creak as the front door opened, Steven turned his attention away from the menacing leaves to see who was coming out.

“Hey sweetie, is everything okay? You’ve been standing out here for quite a while, I was starting to get worried,” Alexa said, wiping her hands in a dish towel as she stepped out onto the porch.

“Yeah I’m fine, I was just checking to see if all the leaves were finally down so I can rake them up,” Steven coolly fibbed. He didn’t want his wife worrying about him, even though he knew she would, just as she had done the past four autumns. Steven walked over to Alexa, taking her in his arms, giving her a hug and a kiss. “Don’t worry, I’m okay…really.”

“Your mom called and she’s running a little late, so dinner won’t be ready for about—”

“Daddy!” Skye, their three year old daughter interrupted as she came running out the front door and straight to her dad.

“Hey princess, what’s up?” Steven asked, as he bent down and picked up his little girl.

“Mommy’s being mean,” the young girl said in a very serious tone.

“Oh she is, is she? What did she do?”

“Mommy won’t let me play outside today. She said I have the snipples.”

Steven couldn’t help but laugh at the way Skye talked at times, still confusing the pronunciation of some of her words. He loved his little girl more than he could ever have imagined possible. Her mop of light brown hair, crystal clear blue eyes and impish grin, reminded so much of his twin brother at that age. The only difference was the curliness of her hair, which she had inherited from her mother.

“Well if Mommy says you have the sniffles, then you need to stay in so you don’t get sicker,” Steven said, feeling a tug at his heart strings at the look of disappointment that crossed his daughters face. He knew the reason Alexa had kept their child inside even though it was a sunny, fall afternoon. They had first met in high school and after a year of dating, they had talked about K.C.’s ‘abduction’. At first Alexa wasn’t sure what to believe, but Steven’s very detailed account of the events of that night, had made her leery of the autumn leaves ever since. She was the only person who believed what he saw and he was grateful for that.

“Anyway Skye, I thought you wanted to help me make pudding for Grandma,” Alexa said as she started towards the door. She looked back at her husband and child, motioning for Steven to come inside.

“I do! I love pudding and so does Grandma—she told me. And she said chocolate is her faborite.”

“Wow goofy, it’s a good thing it’s your favorite too,” Steven chuckled as he entered their home, following his wife.

                                                ~*~

Dinner was a happy, family time and one of Steven’s favorites. He loved sitting down each evening at the tiled-top table in the eat-in kitchen. It reminded him of meals he had shared as a youngster, during the good times and was now glad he had a family of his own to renew that tradition.

“Grandma can I have some more pudding?” Skye asked; her cherub face already smeared with silky, brown treat. Alexa interrupted by clearing her throat.

“Is that how we ask little lady?” she asked her daughter.

“Grandma please can I have some more?” the tot asked a second time, as she licked her spoon clean.

“Yes, you may have a smidge more,” Tina answered, grinning at the chocolate faced little girl. She considered herself to be very blessed by having her son and his family living with her. When Steven told her he and Alexa were engaged, she was silently scared. She couldn’t bear the thought of being alone. But fate had stepped in two months before the wedding, when Alexa lost her job. Financially they wouldn’t be able to make it on their own with only one income. The couple asked if they could stay with her until things improved. A little over a year later, Skye was born and nothing was ever mentioned about changing their living arrangements, and Tina was delighted.

Tina spooned another dollop of chocolate pudding into her granddaughters bowl, then bent down and kissed the top of her head lovingly.

“Thank you,” Skye said, as she put a spoonful of the delicious dessert into her mouth.

“Let me help you clean up these dishes Mom,” Alexa said, rising from her chair and reaching for the empty plates.

“It’s my night dear, and I can get them,” Tina replied.

“Yes, but you worked late again and really I don’t mind helping,” Alexa answered as she walked the short distance to the sink and began running water to rinse the plates.

“I can help too!” declared a wee voice.

“You my dear are going to have a bath,” concluded Steven.

“See, there you go,” Tina interjected, “Let me get the dishes and you can take Skye upstairs and get her ready for her bath.”

“Are you sure?” Alexa asked.

“Yes, now scoot. Take our little chocolate faced monster upstairs,” Tina insisted. They all laughed, as the little curly haired girl let out a rather large burp.

                                                ~*~

Steven woke with a jolt, covered in sweat, from what he referred to as his autumn nightmare syndrome. It was the result of the same type of dream he had every Fall, for the last twenty years. When he was younger, he would dream he was playing in the leaves. The wind would begin to blow and an odd, loud buzzing sound was present. The leaves would then start to swirl high into the air. Amongst the buzzing noise he would hear the scared sounding voice of his brother K.C. calling out to him, “Help me Steven—help me.” He’d wake up crying out, and his mom had always rushed into his room to comfort him. She had even gone so far as taking him to the doctor, who simply said they were nightmares caused from the witnessing of K.C.’s abduction and that in time he would out grow them. But that wasn’t the case at all.

As he grew older the scene had changed and so had the nightmare. Especially over the last couple of years. The bad dreams became much worse and caused him to wake almost nightly during the fall weather in a terrified sweat, sometimes even screaming out loud. He dreamt he was raking leaves into piles along the side of the house. The winds would begin to kick up into an alarming velocity and the familiar loud buzzing noise would start. He would be standing there trying to keep his balance, fighting against the howling wind, when he would hear a deep-toned wicked sounding voice cry out, “Save me Steven—give me your baby.”

A few weeks prior, the night terrors had returned, as surely as the autumn season itself did every year. Night after night, he dreamt of raking the leaves, and gusty winds accompanied by the loud buzzing noise. Only tonight’s nightmare was different from the previous ones. In this one, he saw K.C., but not in a solid form. K.C. wasn’t a little boy though, he felt older somehow. The unmistakable male form, looked as if to be more of a transparent mist. He started conversing with him and K.C. was angry—yelling at him that he wanted to come home.

“Help me Steven. I need you to help me; you’re the only one who can,” K.C. yelled.

“Tell me what you need—I’ll do anything,” Steven replied.

“I need an exchange. I can’t come home unless I can leave another child here in my place.”

“I…I…why? I can’t just give you someone’s child. I can’t do that.” Steven was shocked. He couldn’t understand why his twin was asking that of him.

“It’s the only way Steven. You already have what I need. All you have to do is give it to me.”

“No! You can’t have her. I will never give her to you,” Steven shouted at the transparent figure.

“There’s only one thing left then for me to do—Baby. I will take her! I don’t need your permission or your help—I’ve never really needed your help at all.” Before Steven could scream a reply, the shape vanished.

Steven quietly got up out of bed and headed towards the hallway. He stood there for a minute, rubbing his hands over his sweaty face. His skin was cool and clammy beneath his fingers. This shit has got to stop, he thought as he turned to his right, heading for the staircase leading to the first floor.

The last door on his left was partially open, casting a soft glow from a Cinderella night-light. Deciding to set his mind at ease, he walked into the room of his sleeping child. Skye was snuggled into the purple and pink covers, holding her favorite stuffed animal, a small white puppy. Her breathing was soft and steady. He said a silent prayer thanking God that she was alright, before he turned and exited her room.

Steven silently crept down the wooden steps to the kitchen below. The moonlight shone through the large, lace covered window above the sink, giving him just enough light to find his way around the room. He walked over to the refrigerator and took out the carton of orange juice. He then went to the table, pulling out a chair slowly, trying not to scrape the chair legs across the floor. Opening the carton, he then took a long swig of juice. The cold, fruity beverage felt good as it slid down his throat.

Suddenly, the kitchen light snapped on, the glaring brightness blinding him, causing him to squint.

“You know you should really use a glass,” Tina scolded. She stood poised against the doorway, in her yellow bathrobe. “Trouble sleeping again?” she asked, concern in her voice.

“Sorry Mom, I didn’t mean to wake you. Yeah, had a bad dream…again.” He raked his fingers through his hair, trying to shake the memory of the images the nightmare had left him with.

Tina joined her son at the kitchen table. “You didn’t wake me, I was already up. Been doing some tossing and turning myself tonight. I hate this time of year,” Tina confided. “I miss him so much.”

Steven nodded his head, understanding the feeling very well. He thought about telling his mom about the nightmare that prompted his now being awake at the table, but decided against it. He didn’t want to worry her; she apparently already had enough on her mind.

Wanting to change the subject Tina asked, “So what would you like for your birthday sweetie? It’s only two days away and turning twenty-five is kind of a milestone. I mean you’re turning a quarter of a century old and all,” she laughed softly, trying to lighten the mood.

Steven raised an eye brow as he looked at his mom and chuckled. “Guess I never looked at turning twenty-five that way before.”

“So, what’s it gonna be?” Tina asked.

“Oh Mom, you don’t have to get me anything,” Steven tried insisting.

“Nonsense, birthdays are special and deserve to be treated as such.”

“Okay then, how about a nice, quiet supper at home. You can make me a kettle of your homemade chicken noodle soup and a batch of chocolate chip cookies for dessert,” Steven said rather proud of himself for thinking of something simple.

“Really? That’s all you want?” Tina asked, looking a little disappointed.

“Yup, that’s it. I have everything else I need.”

“I suppose I can do that for you, but I think Skye may object to a birthday party without a cake and some ice cream,” Tina chuckled.

“You’re probably right,” Steven said as a yawn escaped from his mouth. He took a final drink from the juice carton, smirking when he saw his mom shake her head. “Think I’m gonna try to go back to bed. The alarm clock will be going off soon to get me up for work. Might make more sense to just stay up.”

“Yeah me too, have a busy day at the café today. Free cup of coffee, with the purchase of a doughnut. Them old guys love that,” Tina laughed as she got up from her chair. She went to her son and gave him a hug, “I love you kiddo, try to get some sleep.”

“You too Mom.” Steven watched as his mom went back to her room, and after a few minutes he saw the light go out. He got up and placed the juice back in the refrigerator, then went to the sink to wash his slightly sticky hands. As he ran his hands under the luke-warm water, he looked out the window. The moon’s glow lit the yard just enough to distinguish what were actual objects, from shadowy silhouettes. The tree limbs moved to the breeze, casting shadows on the ground. He could see the leaves stirring, as the wind took a breath and blew new life into them.

Steven walked towards the wall where the light switch was and shut it off. He then soundlessly went back up stairs and once he reached the doorway of his bedroom, was glad to hear the soft snoring coming from the bed he shared with his wife. He took extra care climbing back into bed, not wanting to wake Alexa. Once he was settled, lying on his left side, he glanced at the digital alarm clock on the night stand. With any luck, he would fall asleep before the alarm began to beep in two hours.

                                                   ~*~

Are you intrigued yet? Do you need to find out what happened to K.C.? What about Steven’s upcoming twenty-fifth birthday…will that play a part? Will there be cake and ice cream? Is Skye in danger?

To answer these questions you’ll just have to head on over to Amazon.com to find out!

http://www.amazon.com/When-It-Leaves-ebook/dp/B006CXG8ZU/ref=sr_1_16?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1324488934&sr=1-16