The Mysterious Town

I walked inside the classroom to attend the last period and I heard the same annoying snickers and met a few shocked faces as well. Since the time I was pushed into the locker by Caleb, people were coming to my classes to just look at me. I felt like a showpiece kept on a show window for viewers to enjoy the sight of. One thing that surprisingly Arya noticed was that all these people were from the area where the Adolf family lives.

“Is there something on my face?”, I asked for the hundredth time.

“No! you need to just stay a little calm. People will forget what happened very soon.”, Anna said. I nodded and ignoring the distracting stares I focused on the laws of motion.

“Are you sure you wish to go there alone?”, Arya asked as I walked out of the school gates.

“He doesn’t live in a shady place. It is just the woods, and don’t you remember when mom and dad were alive, I used to go to their house every day.”, I replied.

I was seven when my parents passed away. I remember hugging them and saying goodbye not knowing this would be the last time I will feel my mom and dad’s warm embrace. I went on a camping trip with my brother. It was a three-day camp, but we were called back on the second day, under the reason of a family emergency. The whole ride back we both were tensed but none of our teachers told us what exactly had happened. When we finally reached home, we saw a lot of familiar faces on our lawn, but we couldn’t find the two people our eyes were yearning for.

I ran to my grandmother who started crying the moment I hugged her. That is when I realised something huge has happened. My brother was informed first, and he broke down the news of our parent’s death to me. According to the officer, they met with an accident and their car went down the cliff. The search for their bodies went on and on for a month but the bodies were never found.

My dad and Mr Daniel Adolf, Caleb’s dad were best friends. I remember we used to visit their place a lot for family dinners, and we even went on a few vacations together. Caleb came to this town when he was ten and I was eight years old. According to some Adolf family traditions, the eldest son must study in some boarding school for a few years. After my parent’s death and Caleb’s sudden return, I and my brother stopped visiting the Adolf house. That kind of explains why I am not close to Caleb, at all.

“When is Oliver coming back?”, Arya asked.

“He called yesterday! I guess he will be visiting next month.”, I replied feeling a little excited at the mention of my brother’s name.

Oliver Robinson, my elder brother, and the only person I consider as my family. After the death of our parents, he took over himself to take care of us. He was sixteen back then. After four years he moved out of the town and went to Texas to complete his studies. Everyone knows him here. My brother is a famous author, and he never forgets to mention my name in his books- Haley Robinson.

“Haley! Do bring back another invitation for us.”, Arya reminds me again as I walk in the opposite direction. I nod faking a smile which she knows very well.

“PLEASE!”, she begs to make a cute face. I give in and nod again this time with a tiny bit of sincerity. She squeals with joy and skimps happily to her car.

I feel nervous going back to the woods after so many years. I wonder if Mrs Adolf would even recognise me? If they would even let me inside their house. I walk towards the woods feeling something nostalgic hit me with every step I take.

I hold the envelope tightly as I tread on the road which is coming back in bits and pieces to me. I have a hazy memory of this place, but it is enough to make me feel things. I walk on the cemented road which soon becomes a rough, uneven path and the trees of all shapes and sizes are around me. As I walk deeper into the woods, I find myself standing in front of my favourite spot in the woods as a kid, the waterfall!

“I miss you mom!”, I whisper as I watch the water flow down and form ripples.

“What are you doing here?”, a voice startles me. Scared by the intruder I lose my balance and fall into the stream. I somehow compose myself again and sit in the stream trying to catch my breath.

“How do you manage to make such a memorable impression?”, the person asks.

I finally look up to find the stranger I banged my car’s door into, standing in front of me.

“Hey! You are Ethan, right?”, I ask ignoring his comment on my clumsiness. He nods and finally gives me his hand. I smile at him a little embarrassed and he helps me up.

“What are you doing here?”, I ask curiously.

“This is where I live.”, his reply is short and to the point.

“You live here?”, I asked pointing towards the waterfall. He laughs.

“I live in the Adolf mansion. I am Ethan Williams Adolf.”, he replies with a smirk. A typical Adolf family smirk!

“I had no idea Caleb has a younger brother.”, I said.

“Oh no! I am his cousin brother. We are both 20. I just moved here to stay with my uncle.”, he explains. I nod.

“What are you doing here?”, he asks.

“I am here to meet Caleb and return something that he gave me by mistake.”, I reply and show him the envelope. He looks at it closely and his expressions change.

“Caleb gave this to you?”, he asks in disbelief.

“Yes, he did, and I guess it is very important because your expressions changed the moment you read the invite.”, I said.  He smiled at me and asked me to follow him. He took me to the Adolf mansion and the whole way we were both quiet.

I was standing in front of the mansion, and I could see it had changed a lot. More like it was a new and modern version of what I remember as the Adolf mansion.

“Don’t you wish to come inside?”, Ethan asked. I looked at him to find he was already inside the gate. I ran towards him.

“You stay here, I will call Caleb.”, he said and left me standing at the entrance.

I decided to look around while waiting for that arrogant prince. I walked around to see a beautiful armour kept at the entrance. What a magnificent place! I walked to the other side where there was a vase with an intricate design. It looked expensive. Being the clumsy one I decided to maintain my distance from all the beautiful and expensive stuff around me.

“Well, look who is here. It is our little thief Haley, isn’t it!”, a familiar sneaky voice made its way to my ears.

I turned around to meet the face I dreaded to see the moment I entered the woods. Scarlett Adolf!

Maybe, I didn’t mention it, but Adolf mansion was more than just beautiful memories. These memories were also tainted with constant bullying by Scarlett Adolf, Caleb’s cousin sister whose life’s motive is to leech off from the Adolf family and hit on her cousin brother!