***
When the bell rang for recess, Max was about to leave the classroom when the teacher called him over to her desk.
“Am I in trouble?” he said, approaching her.
Ms. Hansen shook her head. “No. I just wanted to tell you not to let the other kids bother you because of your dyslexia....and because of your ears.”
Max frowned. The last thing he wanted to talk about was his disability and his unusually large ears that stood out everywhere he went.
“How did you know about my dyslexia?” he asked.
“I’ve been an educator for ten years. I’m familiar with all sorts of learning disorders.”
Ms. Hansen put a nurturing hand on his shoulder. “But the important thing is if there’s no adversity or challenges in life, then how can you grow, right? You need to embrace yourself entirely. Have some confidence. Only then can you grow. Only then will you be happy.”
He knew his teacher was just being caring and maternal and he appreciated it, but he didn't know her that well and he wasn’t in a mood to bare his soul to her.
So, he just nodded and said, “Can I go for recess now?”
Ms. Hansen said, “Sure, Max. Just so you know, you can talk to me anytime.”
He appreciated it, but didn’t say anything. He just wanted to get out of there.
Max went to his Safe Spot, just like he did every recess for the past few weeks.
It was a secluded area in a faraway corner of the playground. It was a place shielded from the rest of the world by gigantic oak trees whose branches covered the clearing so well that if you didn’t look carefully enough, you’d never even know it was there.
Max found the clearing the first day at the new school and immediately liked that it was hidden and private. It made him feel safe and secure. He could just do his drawings in peace. You see, Max was an artist and he loved to draw anything from beautiful flying unicorns to faraway castles.
But this time, when Max sat down in the clearing, he couldn’t concentrate. The rest of the kids were playing too loudly and their cries of delight were distracting him.
He looked up.
The rest of the kids were playing tag and climbing up the jungle gym and playing on the see-saw and the swings and sliding down the slide.
He wished he could join them. He wasn’t a loner. It was just that it was hard to make friends when you transfer to another school all the time, especially in the middle of the school year. Max had transferred to four different schools so far and he was getting used to the way things were. All the groups and cliques had already been established and it was hard to break in.
He had tried to break in the first day at F.D. Sinclair, but when the kids made it clear they didn’t want to include him, he stopped trying.
He remembered how the cool kids had formed a circle and chatted away while Max had stood there beside them, completely ignored.
He was jolted out of his daydream when a different group of kids appeared beside his Safe Spot. A mixed group of boys and girls, they were chatting excitedly about the latest hit music band. The girls were shrieking in delight. They were all from his English class.
Max looked at them.
Seeing them huddled in the group made him feel lonely. He would never admit it to anyone, but he yearned to be a part of their group. He had never felt like he belonged anywhere, not to any school, not to any group of friends, not to any foster family.
He had always wanted to feel included, that he belonged. He yearned for that feeling most of all.
He had always wondered why he felt out of place. Apart from his enormous ears, he was a normal-looking boy with short dark hair and dark eyes. He was of average build and height.
Maybe it’s my dyslexia, he thought. Other kids always made fun of me for that.
As he sat there listening to the happy carefree group of kids, he ached with the desire to be a part of them.
And so, he put down his pencils and sketchpad, he climbed out of his Safe Spot and said, “Hey guys, what’s so funny?”
The group suddenly grew quiet.
All six pairs of eyes were fixed on him.
An awkward silence followed.
Max was starting to feel like he had made a mistake talking to the kids.
The ringleader of the group, a spiky-haired blond boy named Kyle, pointed to Max and exclaimed, “Look everyone! It’s the big rabbit who said pee.”
The group giggled and guffawed, all except for one girl. She looked away, embarrassed.
Another boy said, “Hey, aren’t you that weird new kid who goes away by himself to draw and junk?”
A redheaded boy piped up, “I’m surprised he can even see his own drawings. Don’t his big ears block out all sunlight?”
The group, except for that one girl, erupted in laughter again.
His face reddening again, Max retreated into his Safe Spot.
Freezing winter rain began to drizzle, hitting him on the nose.
It only made him feel worse.
This was the second time he failed. The first time, they had just ignored him, but this time, they laughed at him. Being laughed at twice in one day was more than he could take. He wasn’t a particularly sensitive young man, but he had his limits.
And so, he decided to ignore what had just happened and return to drawing his pictures. He always felt better when he was doing his art. He was passionate about drawing. He had a lot of time to think about it, but he was thinking about becoming a professional artist when he grew up. It would be so cool to get paid for what he wanted to do anyway.
Art saved him. He felt like he could always retreat into his art and he’d feel happy again.
He picked up his pencil and drew a magnificent castle fit for a king. With multiple levels and hidden passageways inside, on the outside, it towered above everything around it. He drew the enormous castle on a hill that was surrounded by a beautiful town. On the top spire of the castle, he drew a special symbol: a right eye with several lashes and a symbol of a griffin.
He leaned back to examine his drawing. He didn’t know why his drawing was so specific. The images would always just pop into his head and he would draw them on paper. It was like a greater power was putting them in his head. It was like he was just a medium.
He didn’t know why, but he felt he had seen the castle before - no, he had been there before. The castle just looked so familiar to him. He had seen it in his dreams many times. it even felt like home to him. He felt like he had lived there before.
And that symbol - at least he knew where he got it from.
He looked down at the metal bracelet on his right wrist. Beads of metal formed the bracelet that he had always had. There were eights beads and every bead had a letter on it, except the eighth one.
S.I.T.T.I.B.I.
He looked it up on the internet once and found out that it meant Be Yourself in Latin.
And what was even more interesting the right eye symbol. On the eighth bead, there were no letters, just that special symbol.
He researched that too. It was called Ergon and it was the ancient spiritual symbol for the right eye of the soul. It was supposed to help people who practice hard tap into the spiritual world so they could see ghosts and elves and other magical creatures.
He didn’t know why he had the bracelet or why there was an inscription in Latin or why that symbol was there. He had asked his three previous foster parents about it, but all they knew was that Max had always had that bracelet, ever since he was a baby.
A girl’s soft gentle voice shook him from his thoughts. “That’s beautiful.”
Max looked up.
A very beautiful girl with long brown hair and gentle green eyes had stepped into the clearing and was now inspecting his drawing. She was wearing dark jeans and a blue shirt that had a picture of Belle from Beauty and the Beast on it.
Embarrassed, he quickly closed his sketchpad.
“Thanks,” he mumbled.
He recog
nized the girl as Jessica. She was in the same English class. She was also in the same group that had laughed at him, except that she was the only one who hadn’t. She was the one who had looked away when the rest of the group was laughing.
She said, “I’m sorry to be sneaking up on you like this, but that drawing was gorgeous. It really spoke to me.”
He regretted closing his sketchpad, but he didn’t really want her to see his drawings either. It was too private.
“Listen,” she said. “I just wanted to say I’m sorry for my friends back there. They can be a bunch of idiots.”
Max nodded, but he didn’t know what to say. He felt so tongue-tied around her. Maybe it was because she was so beautiful.
She continued, “I know it’s hard to have dyslexia. My big brother has it, but he goes to Learning Assistance and it really helps him.”
Max was appalled the moment she mentioned his learning disability. He wasn’t proud of it and he didn’t like to talk about it, especially not with a girl as beautiful as Jessica.
For some reason, he wanted her to think that he was smart, cool and smooth. Unfortunately for him, he was none of those traits at the moment.
She said, “And I read in science class that big ears can help you hear better.”
Max’s face continued to redden. He really didn’t want to discuss his unusual characteristics with her.
She spun a lock of her long hair with her fingers. “Listen, maybe we could hang out sometime. I really want to learn how to draw. Maybe you could teach me.”
She smiled hopefully, showing her two front teeth.
To Max, her teeth were beautiful.
Her smile brightened up her face, making him forget all about the embarrassing incident earlier.
He nodded. “Sure. We could do that.”
She flashed him a brief grin and then stepped out of the Safe Spot.
Max realized that he was holding his breath, so he let it out slowly. Jessica was the only person to have been nice to him the whole time he had been at that new school.
He realized he really liked her.
In fact, he felt light-hearted, as though a huge weight had been lifted off his shoulders.
Maybe this new school won’t be so bad, he thought.
If he and Jessica were going to be friends, then he’d have something to look forward to. It was only January, but maybe he could get through the rest of the school year and even enjoy it too.
Just then, Jessica stuck her pretty head back into the clearing again. “Unless you’re free right now.”
Max looked at her hesitantly. “Uh...sure. Have a seat.”
He patted the clean area beside her.
She sat down cross-legged.
A whiff of her strawberry-scented perfume made Max dizzy, but in a good way.
He handed her his sketchpad and a pencil. “What do you want to draw?”
“Can I see some of your drawings first? You know, for inspiration?”
He didn’t really want to show her his drawings. They were private, but she had a face that he didn’t want to disappoint.
So, he handed his sketchpad to her.
She leafed through it, pausing at each drawing to admire it.
“Wow,” she said breathlessly. “These are great. I love this one here.” She was pointing at the castle with the Ergon sign and griffin symbol on top.
His face getting hot, he mumbled, “Thanks.” He wasn’t used to compliments, especially not from pretty girls like her.
Then, Jessica began to sketch furiously on the pad. “I have an idea what to draw.”
Max watched as she drew a picture rapidly. He felt very calm as he sat beside her, listening to the gentle patter of the rain against the branches. Jessica had a very soothing presence and he was lulled, almost hypnotized.
When she was done, she showed him the sketch. “What do you think?”
It was of a girl floating on a cliff with the dark sky in the background, hail raining on her.
Puzzled, he asked, “Why did you draw that?”
She frowned. “I don’t know. It just popped into my head. What do you think? Any tips?”
He inspected the drawing. The technique was good, but as for the nature of the picture....
“It’s good,” he said.
“Sometimes, I just get images in my head and then I draw them. I’d really like to be a professional artist when I grow up.”
“Really?” Max was surprised they had so much in common. “Me too.”
“Yeah, but my parents are always saying it’s not practical. They want me to be a doctor or a lawyer. Typical, huh?”
“Yeah.”
“You’re really good at it,” she said. “Keep going and you’ll be a professional before you know it.”
Again, Max wasn’t used to getting compliments, and so he said nothing.
She smiled. “So welcome to F.D. Sinclair. The students are crazy. You’ll love it here.”
For the first time, he cracked a smile.
All too soon, the bell rang and recess was over.
Jessica tucked a lock of ear behind her ears. “Same time tomorrow?”
Detecting a certain shyness in her voice, Max nodded. “Sure.”
“Bye,” she said.
Then she got up and left, the scent of her pleasant perfume trailing behind her.
Max gathered his drawing materials and headed back into the school. He was completely charmed by Jessica. He liked her encouragement. They also had a lot in common so he could really see himself being friends with her. He liked how she didn’t mind his dyslexia or his big ears.
He couldn’t wait until the next day so that he could teach Jessica how to draw again. She was the only person to be nice to him at this school or any of his other schools. She made him feel accepted. He couldn’t forget how she made him feel.
He headed into the hallway. A little second-grade girl with a ponytail was inserting a one-dollar coin into the vending machine and then press on the ketchup chips option.
The machine whirred, but nothing came out at the bottom.
He could see that the bag of ketchup chips was stuck.
With a sad face, the little girl turned to him. “The vending machine ate my coins.” She looked like she wanted to cry.
Max felt a pang of sympathy for her. She was just an innocent little girl and he didn’t like to see people in pain.
And so, he reached into his pocket for his wallet. “How much do you need?”
He wasn’t rich, but he wanted to use what meager resources he had to help others. He always believed that money was just little bits of paper but if it could be used to make others happy, then he would do just that.
The little girl said, “Just a dollar.”
So Max inserted a loonie, a one-dollar coin, and the bag of chips dropped to the bottom.
The little girl giggled with glee. She reached her little hands in, picked up the bag, opened it and offered some to him. “Want any?”
He shook his head. “No, thanks.”
The little girl smiled, thanked him and then went on her way.
Max didn’t feel like eating. He just wanted to help that poor little girl.
It was turning out to be a good day after all. First, Jessica and now this good deed. He felt so cheerful that he almost felt like whistling.
He was about to turn around to head into his classroom when the lights above went out. Now, it was a gray dreary winter day and so when the lights went out, it made the school seem darker still.
Kids in the other classrooms expressed their surprise, but Max’s surprise was even greater.
What happened was that his bracelet was now glowing a bright gold.
He felt that the bright light was a kind of warning to him. It was warning him that something unsavory was nearby.
His eyes wandering, he happened to catch a glimpse of the vending machine again, but this time, instead of snacks like chips, cookies and bubble gum, there was a sha
pe, no - a creature, inside the machine.
It was long thin dark-green shape. It resembled a ferret, except that it had no ears or nose - just two lumps of coal for eyes. Clouds of white mist swirled around it, giving him a mysterious aura.
It was the most terrifying creature that Max had ever seen.
Max’s brown eyes widened and his mouth dropped open.
The creature pressed its paws against the glass and hissed. Then it opened its mouth, which was full of sharp shark-like teeth.
When it spoke, its voice was both raspy and screechy at the same time.
“Stay away,” it hissed. “Stay away from Purgatorio.”
Then, it used its paws to scratch at the glass.
Unable to believe his eyes, Max took a step back.
The creature continued its efforts, batting and swiping at the glass, creating a loud knocking sound that echoed through the hallway.
And then, its paws smashed through the machine, sending bits and pieces of glass flying every which way.
Max held up one hand to shield his eyes.
The creature’s wildly ferocious eyes told him it wanted to kill him.
It poked its head through the hole, its teeth gnashing, spit spraying everywhere.
Max was immediately overwhelmed by its putrid stench. It smelled like a mix of rotting garbage and dead skunk.
He put his other hand to his nose.
As the rest of its body scrambled through the glass, Max desperately tried to think of what to do.
And then, something even stranger happened.
His hand was glowing orange and then white.
His hand was on fire, but it didn’t hurt and he didn’t smell anything burning.
Instinct told him to raise his fiery hand toward the creature.
The creature’s eyes showed fear. It quickly tried to reverse its tracks and head back inside the vending machine, but it was too late.
Fire leapt from his palm and ripped into the creature as it cried bloody murder.
Then, the fire disappeared from his hand.
Just then, the lights turned back on.
Max’s could not believe what had just happened.
What was that thing? he wondered. A ghost?
But he wasn’t sure if it really happened.
Did that really happen or had he imagined it all?
He examined the vending machine closely. The snacks were all there. It was as though nothing had happened.
But then, he looked closer still.
Right where the creature had smashed through the glass was a hole big enough for paws to fit through.
***