“Dad why couldn’t you get me the Smartphone that I wanted?” I asked “Everyone else has one and I still have this crappy flip phone, Even Tommy has one, you could at least get me a decent present for my 13th birthday!” I snarled.

“Look you know we don’t have the money for those kinds of things Troy” my Dad said. I knew this but I wanted these things so bad, my dad drove around in a 2001 Jeep Liberty, and had one of the old blackberry phones. I had known that ever since mom had died, well we weren’t sure what had happened we just assumed. The income of the family had dropped significantly. My sister Jessica had taken the hardest hit she had lost will, just given up taken the opposite road of me instead of getting mad she gave up on happiness and joy and had became a shell of her former self, she just sat in her room and read A LOT.

I stomped up to my room taking to steps at a time, unsatisfied that none of my friends showed up and of his crappy birthday present. I crashed onto my bed and looked around my room there were dirty clothes on the floor posters of my favorite bands and favorite sports icons, but I didn’t care at that point. I looked in my wardrobe for a clean shirt I had to dig under all of my stupid School uniforms, Khakis and blue shirts to find a maroon shirt. On my way back to my bed I tripped on my PS2, because we couldn’t afford a PS3, I kicked it aside, the anger and disappointment bubbling inside me. I took a second look around. It smelled like BO and the wall was painted an ugly baby blue my desk was covered with study material, as if I actually did study. Why did mom have to leave I thought.
I remember the day vividly I woke up and went downstairs and saw the time 10 o’clock usually mom woke us up and made us breakfast; I still remember the smell of her homemade pancakes, they were thick and fluffy and she put the syrup in the pancake, they tasted like heaven. I ran to mom and dad’s room to wake them up and saw dad crying “she’s gone” he said. I ran to the front door her car was missing her things gone from the house as if she was never there.
Suddenly I snapped back to reality. I looked out the window when I realized something odd, my neighbor Tommy seemed to not have been out of his house since he got that new phone he seemed to not act like his usual self. He knocked on the door, Dad was silent. Jessica being my stupid little sister walked to the door without Dads permission. Tommy knocked again Dad still wasn’t making a sound.

BANG, a gunshot ripped through the silence, a scream, the screech of something inhuman rang in my head. Then another sound the sound that haunts my dreams, the sound of a million little spiders’ legs clicking on the hard tile ground, but then there was silence.`
“Troy are you okay?” I stood in silence, shaking not believing what I had just heard.
I mustered enough strength to walk to the door and open it. I couldn’t believe what I saw, my dad with a shotgun slung on his back “Dad?”
”Look I’ll explain later we need to leave but as they were leaving”, we heard the sound of footsteps large footsteps he looked ahead and saw a giant thing, the only word that could describe it.
It was like a lion but it had a donkey like body and a barbed tail it smelt like moldy cheese. Jessica was in awe and shock at the same time in unison Jessica and Dad said “Chimera”. It walked toward them menacingly it had seemed that no one else was around to see it. Dad began to fire shots but it didn’t work dad sprang at it the shot gun became a sword and he told Jessica and I to go to the attic.

So Jessica and I ran to the attic. We entered and was hit by the smell of dead rats, as I walked dust was kicked up and saw to presents one with each of our names on it. Finally a real present; it was a dagger a single dagger, Thanks dad this will be so helpful and practical, because I use knives on an everyday basis. I ran my finger across the blade then noticed a red gem, a ruby. I wondered how much money had gone into this present. Jesus Christ dad, I could’ve bought a car with this!

I pressed the red gem and, it heated it felt like I was touching a stove and my finger nearly burnt, but like magic the blades became a broadsword like the ones the knights used. Dad has a lot of explaining to do when things settle. I turned around and saw that Jess had a military grade Sniper Rifle, envy filled me how come she always gets the better present. “Holy crap Jess do you even know how to shoot?”

“Nope”.

“Well then it seems that we have a problem, we don’t even know how to use these!”

“No we don’t but we sure can try.”

“Jess there is a monster outside!”

“Chimera.”

“Whatever Jess, our Dad is a ninja or something and he just gave you a freaking sniper rifle and me some sword thing, what are we supposed to do?”

“I’m not losing another parent Troy,” she walked slowly to the window carrying it as if it weighed nothing, but with the power my weapon had it probably did, it was like watching a military movie she pointed the barrel towards it and fired.

The bullet emitted a faint blue aura; she missed and hit a tree that froze. What the heck Dad how come I get the short end of the stick, I get a dagger and she gets a ice bullet sniper rifle, that she didn’t even know how to use, I thought! I saw dad still fighting shooting it and sometimes running up and slicing a couple times, with a dagger identical to mine, he was bouncing around like a ninja, but he was getting tired he couldn’t maintain he fight for too long.

I ran outside as quickly as I could and I saw the beast, I stood in awe and fear, then I heard another gunshot and a whizzing sound the ground next to me froze.
“Jess!”
“Sorry still getting used to aiming” she said
BANG I heard Dad’s sigh of relief Jess had finally landed a shot on the Chimera freezing its leg to the ground I ran up and slashed one leg and dad got the other, we both jumped up excited about our victory, but then I saw something, a human figure in the distance, a woman, in the distance then I saw a series of numbers.
32765, 3756

I saw the world staring to fade, I had fainted or something been paralyzed unable to move, Dad had become just a faint outline and I looked in the attic window and saw Jessica’s outline as well. I screamed, asked them for help told them not to leave, but they had already left. I lay there on the ground in despair, Jess had said she wasn’t gonna lose another parent I had just lost her and dad. Why had they left why couldn’t they have taken me, a million questions bounced in my head as the world faded around me, I was lying in a puddle of sorrow, distress not knowing what to do.

Suddenly I was awake, on my bed in boring reality. I walked downstairs to the kitchen to see Jessica face in her book divergent, she wouldn’t shut up about it, and it was the only thing she would talk about. Where is dad I asked he came out of his room with a present and cake he placed them on the table, “HAPPY BIRTHDAY” Jessica who still kept the same neutral look on her face, pulled a party popper out of her book and popped it. I opened up my present not really paying attention, too puzzled by the numbers in my dream, “Surprise!” dad said. The new apple Iphone 5s. I had a shocked expression on my face.

“Dad how did you afford this?” I said.

I’ve been planning this all year putting a little bit of my money after every check towards it.”

I didn’t know what to say wordless, the rest of the day was amazing Jessica seemed to put on a slightly happier face than usual. I spent the rest of the day playing and messing with my phone setting up contacts and such. It was late at night and I remembered the numbers from the dream. 32765, 3756 I typed the numbers into Google it was an address, a Florida address. I looked at it on Google earth and there it was a cemetery. I sat in silence shocked, I decided to try and use street view to get a closer look.

There was one specific grave, Tracy Cade, to Troy and Jess I am sorry. My mom her last name different I realized she had settled in a small town, Oviedo, Florida, and she must have married someone else. Rage filled inside me I had always been bitter that she had left, and I thought that it was dad’s fault but now I know that she obviously cheated on Dad. The rage became grief I didn’t know what to think. I called Jessica to my room.

“What do you want” she said I gestured to the screen she saw the grave and I saw tears fill her eyes she lay on my bed not out of grief but out of relief she finally had and answer not a good one but at least she could finally relax, knowing what had happened.

“Do you think we should tell Dad?” she whispered

“No I think he has finally gotten over it we should wait for him to fully heal.” I replied


I realized that I had been a jerk all these years over, and that I had blamed it on Dad, know that I know I think it’s time I apologize. I walked downstairs somberly. Dad was downstairs he had ate almost all the cake. I apologized and said that I would not act like I have in the last few years.
Dad said “what is giving you this new perspective?” he had a puzzled look on his face, he thought I was just being a stubborn teenager.

“The greatest birthday present of all”

The End