"Do ya want to go to the waterfall with me?", I asked my two younger brothers, Zack and Zen.

    "I don't know, Zoey, isn't that the same waterfall that those two kids went missing at?" said Zack, doubtfully. "I'm not ready to go missing".

      "Yeah!", Zen stated."Me either."

     "Don't worry, we’ll be okay, they probably just drowned getting too close to the water, we're just going to look at it."I say

     They looked at me suspiciously and then towards each other, looked back at me and nodded. As we slowly creep towards our mom and dad's room to get their approval, I wonder, how did they go missing?

     We knock on the door and enter to find our parents browsing the news with a horrified look on their face, before we ask anything, we peek at the tv to see what gave them such an expression. I then see it's about a waterfall, but not just any waterfall, the exact one we were planning to go to. I knew it wasn't saying anything good so i knew it was a definite no so i tapped my brother and gave him the never mind expression but he couldn't take a hint and mistook my expression for a hurry and asked them face. I thought siblings were supposed to understand you and have your back, boy was I wrong. 

      " Can we go to the Southlakerson Waterfall?", Zen gently asked.

      "Are you crazy!!," my mom cried. "You can get kidnapped, drowned or worse, KILLED. No way, not my babies, you ain't going nowhere close to that trap ever in your life." My mom exaggerated.

      My mom was over protective, when I was in kindergarten I was pushed down the slide and she then took me to a hospital, pressed charges and even home schooled me and my brothers all because of that minor everyday incident. To be fair, yes, she is a mother, a stay at home mother and that is her job and were her number one priority but still, she has to loosen up, we were put under her protection since the day we was born, we need space, cant be home alone, no friends unless their mom talks to her, its so annoying.

      "But Ma..""

       "No buts, that's the end of it, unless we're coming with you and there's a patrol officer."

        "Ugh, dad." I whine.

        " Listen to your mother", he starts. "I agree."(like he always does)

         I stomp out to my room and jump on my bed letting my head fall on the pillow. It's not fair, they're always in control of my life. I'm 13, fully capable of managing myself and my brothers. I leave my bed and start aggressively putting my clothes on as my brothers come in.

        "Why are you putting your clothes on?"Zack says confused."mom said we can't go."

       " Yeah!" Zen follows.

        " I don't care what Ma said,'' I mumble under my breath.

       "What?" Zack asked.

       "This is my life," I scream. "Not hers"

       We stand there in awkward silence as I heavily breath trying to catch my breath. I fall down on the bed tired.

        "I'm coming,"Zack says, breaking the silence.

        "Me too," Zen say

         "No, its to dangerous, I don't wan…:

        " I have a life too, and you don't own it and neither does ma so i'm coming."

        "Same here." Zen says

          Ever since Zack taught Zen how to talk and helped him clean his room he had copied him word for word and looked up to him like his hero making me kind of jealous but proud at the same time.

        "Well get some clothes on then, we leave at nine o'clock."

        "WHAT!" He says

         "That's when they're asleep and expect us to do the same."i explain

        "Okay." Zack agrees

        " Can I bring Cocoa? " Zen ask

        "Sure bud", I say , rubbing his head, making his hair a mess.

        That's his stuffed animal he got at our grandma's funeral, he calls it Cocoa because she always gave him cocoa. He takes the thing everywhere(even in the bathroom). I bet that if that teddy bear was alive he would follow its every move and completely isolate Zack and everything else.

      I go to sleep

      I awaken in a dark place, dark blue, I struggle to breath, I look up to see a fish, but ..

,it has soaked fur and is bleeding and screaming but its mouth isn't moving, it looks so peaceful as its blood pollutes the water and its once faint screams getting louder and louder and clearer and clearer till its in my head and feels like the source of the sound is right next to me. So I look to my side curious and it's a little girl, all black, eyes bloody and veiny, she just stares at me. I look at her nose and there's no air bubbles coming out, she's not breathing. We wait there in silence, then, she jumps on me and starts screaming loud with streams of blood coming out of her eyes. I  realize I can't breath so I push her off me and try to swim up but she grabs my foot and pulls me down while opening her mouth wider and wider to reveal fish coming out. I struggle to get out of her grip(feels like my mom if she was a monster). I then look up, there's a hand, I push as far as I can go and grab it, it yanks me up AND…

​

I wake up

​

     I see my brothers outside my room gently knocking, I get out of my bed and put my book bag on, open the door to let them in, slowly slide the window open and climb out onto the hands of our giant backyard oak tree.

     As we walked in the breeze of autumn, I noticed the look on Zen's face and how he was squeezing the stuffing out of cocoa. It was no doubt that he was scared, I was thinking of bringing him back and call the trip to the water fall off but I figure they'll handle it and I'm 100% sure that there's nothing among that water and is just an excuse for some depressed kid to run away, plus its a huge adventure and a act of bravery.

      "You okay", I hear Zack whisper to Zen.

      "Yeah, I'm brave, just like you", Zen whispers back.

      "You know you don't always have to be like me, you should be your own person, live your own life and follow your own dreams and through it all, i'll be there for you, whether me or you, I'll be there for you."

     "Okay", Zen says doubtfully.

     Once we arrived I stood there, the icicles that winter brought were already there, the moon light passed through the icicles creating a magnificent chandelier that made a rainbow dance on top of the water fall as it flowed through the pocky rocks. I stood there staring at it wondering, how could such a beautiful thing possess such a horrid history.

       I went closer to admire its beauty when I got yanked by Zack, I jumped. He gave me a concerned look and said…

      " You remember why we're here right, just to look at it and that's all, you know its history so don't get to close." Zack warned

      " Oh, come on, how can such a beautiful magnificent piece of artwork do such harm to me out of all the people? I can protect myself please and thanks, so please get off of me so I could go and I am going to look at, just, going to look at it a little bit closer." I was informed." Plus, there have been plenty of people who came and has not got hurt and has remained unharmed and just came to admire the beauty, just like us, unharmed and just came to admire the beauty.``

         He shook his head in disappointment, "I expected better from you."

         I snatched my hand from Zack." So did I"

        "Bye, come on Zen." Zack called back as he walked away.

         As Zen went to follow Zack I snatch Zen's wrist and pulled him to me.

         "No" I say.

         "He doesn't take orders from you, he can answer his own questions."

          "He doesn't take orders from you either, you leave, alone."

          "Fine." He says. "Be careful, alright Zen".

          Zen tugs off my grip trying to go to Zack, I grab him and tug him back, he trips and falls in the waterfall. I PULLED MY LITTLE BROTHER IN A WATERFALL THAT PEOPLE GO MISSING AT JUST BECAUSE I WANTED TO PROVE A FALSE IDEA.

WHAT'S WRONG WITH ME?

         I stay there with that same thought in my head completely ignoring the fact that my youngest, 7 year old brother, who didn't do anything to nobody is drowning. Zack runs up to the waterfall in an attempt to save him. I snap out of it and do the same, the whole time saying "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, i'm so sorry".

      Both of us get down and find Zen, we stay there for a little while then realize the situation, we try to find a way to escape the deep, watery, pit. Me and Zack try to find a way to get out by touching the rocks for the best way up, leaving Zen standing in the middle of the waterfall. We stay there looking for the exit speechless. 

     "AHHHHHH!!!!"Zen screams.

      We look over to see Zen getting forcefully pulled in the waterfall, before he fully goes in, I grab his legs, while Zack grabs his arms. We then pull him enough to see a hand, not just any hand, but a black hand with blue goo and  dark blue veins popping out of its skin and red bloody eyeballs as nails dropping little drops of blood  every time we try to get Zen out of the hands grasp.

The hand pulls Zen one more time, we let go and trip into the waterfall where Zen has vanished, i think about what my parents would think, I , the oldest had disobeyed their warnings and commands and sneaked behind their back dragging my brothers into it and putting their life on the line, I, me, the very one who said that they was responsible , nothing would happen, just a myth, everything is fine, all lies, ALL OF THEM. Zack looks at me like I just committed murder, shaking his head in disgust, slowly backing away staring at me then turns around to a full on run.

“ Wait, Wait”, I cried while chasing after him. “ I'm sorry, I'm so sorry, sorry for everything.”

“ You killed him, basically killed him.” he screamed, getting as emotional as mom when her sister got married.

I run as fast as I could, get close to him and yank his hand fighting the urge not to beg for forgiveness.

“ Let's talk about this…”

“ There's nothing to talk about, not with you.”

“ Look we have to go back, we have to find Zen, I'm not leaving him.”

“ Yeah and you would never yank him in the water, huh, they just ran away, he’ll be safe. How many lies are  you gonna tell.”

“ Look, you wanted to come, I never made you. You had a choice, we all did.”

“ You had a choice not to throw him in the pit, he didn't want to, you made him stay and made him fall, he never had a choice, if he did he would of went with me, cause he trust  me, i would never do that unless it was for his own good, you did it for your own pleasure to see me leave alone, YOU threw HIM in the water fall and you want to talk about choices.”

“ Stop throwing that back in my face.” I pled

“ Why, so you won't remember, remember that all this is your fault, remember the hatred and agony you're going to receive the minute you walk through that door.” He says, pointing to our front door down the block.

“ Why can't you just remember, the hand, that hand was unnatural, it was looking at us with its nails, watching, bleeding?” I quickly say before Zack can say anything else.

We stay there in silence , he sits there trying to catch words so he can throw what I just said to my face, but he can't, he thinks like I just reminded him of something, something similar about that hand, then boom, it hits him, he takes a quick breath while his eyes instantly open, he runs, not saying a word, I chase after him.

“ Wait”, I called for him.

It triggers him and makes him go faster, real fast, while I try to catch him he leaps over something, I look down as it almost passes me and boom, I trip over a rock watching my brother glide through the street towards the waterfall, my vision getting blurry and ears ringing and ringing and ringing until suddenly...BLACK.

It was Monday morning, Zack comes shooting through the door saying get up, we’re gonna be late for school, I let out a deep sigh in relief realizing that it was just a dream. I get up and pull my clothes on thinking about how foolish and weird that dream was, I run down stairs and see mom and dad and start crying. 

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry" I start bawling, sorry about what dear, mom says, everything, everything, I'm sorry about everything, they start laughing and laughing but something was weird about it, I look down, I then remember that… we have home school, 

"Why are we dressed, why are they laughing and most importantly, WHAT WAS GOING ON?" I see Zen, at that moment, everything was ok, just fine, I sprint towards him with tears streaming down my face. I jump to him opening my arms ready to say sorry for everything and tell him how much I missed him, dream or not I feel ashamed and dirty for what I've done. We hug him and right when a wrap my arms around him he turns to smoke and everything is blue. I see a hand, the hand, I run and then trip over, the hand grabs my feet and pulls me to a dark place. I kick the hand and then it lets go, then long black nails slowly pop out of his skin, he presses his hand towards my face and  squeezes , I scream and everything is black I turn around quickly and its a girl that quickly whispers don't fight it and…

I WAKE UP

I wake up to concrete, I immediately get up and start running to the waterfall, the whole time seeing Zack nowhere in sight, once I get there he's in front of the waterfall, on his knees, chanting and praying.

“Zack”, I slowly say slowly coming towards him.

He jumps and dives into the waterfall, I stand there in shock for a while watching him disappear in the heart of the waterfall just like Zen and then jump in after him.

‘What are you doing’, I immediately start the minute I get there. “...and why were you prayi…”

“Sh”, he shushes me.” I know what took Zen”.

“Wh… WHAT. How” I said trembling.

“I was in my room when Zen came in.” He started. "He asked me to search up water monster on my computer and how to kill it because he thought there was a monster in the toilet and was afraid to go to the bathroom but he really had to use it. I told him there was no such thing but he wouldn't listen to me, I was right before grandma died and he was afraid that he would go away just like grandma so I gave in and searched it up on the computer to hope there was some myth that had a way of killing the ‘monster’ or convince him that it only exist in a certain area like the Far East. To my surprise, it was found in areas where a bad soul or a revenge energy died.”

“So somebody died here before all of this.”

“If this is that demon then I guess so” he agreed.” its name was SHUROKA[sure-oak-ah]. It lives in water and doesn't appear in its full form till it has a host.”

“ HUH”, I take  a deep breath, “ Zen’.

Out of nowhere Zack starts running home, I follow. We go up the oak tree, in the window, grab the computer and leave and I, just for me, snatch a knife. We run back to the waterfall and type in the history of this water fall, everything recent comes up except a video.

“Press play.”, I commanded.

The video starts:

Hi, my name is Ramone. I feel ashamed for what I did to my old friend and will never forgive myself for all the people I hurt, but at least I can tell the true story, the truth. When I was 14 I went to some waterfalls because my friend was dating a girl I liked, but he didn't know, but I thought he did. I went to them and punched him in the face, he was my best friend, he even loaned me money when I was poor. I was initially just jealous of him, I pushed him in the waterfall and he drowned. The girl fell in love with me right there and we said that he committed suicide. The parents believed me since I was his friend and would never lie on him like that, at least they thought. That's all I wanted to say, I love you best friend, peace.

“ Vengeance, revenge, it wanted revenge on everybody for believing in him.” Zack said.

“ Don't fight it”,I mumbled under my breath.

“What”
“DON'T FIGHT IT, I KNOW HOW TO KILL IT, WE CAN'T FIGHT IT , WE HAVE TO...INVITE IT.”

Whosh 

 

Something rose from the water, it was Zen, floating.

“Zen!”, we both screamed

And then Zen merged into IT.

“Its true form”, Zack mumbled under his breath

It was a long and tall black person with wide hips and a stomach that kind of overlaps to hips. It was all black and really tall and had its legs were crooked and their face was big and wide and their eyes were super small and all black and their mouth was super big and really long. Its hair was really spiky above her head and it was floating over her head like it was in the water upside down. It had blue veins all over and black goo everywhere on her feet and her feet was crooked and toes were at an angle and it looks like club foot. There was black goo coming out of its mouth and it had a really long pokey tongue that was coming out of her mouth and was wiggling around slowly and her eyes even though they were all black looked like they were staring directly at me. There was no more Zen in that, that's not my brother.

            “Why, why would you do this to him, please, just please let him go", I begged

            “Kill him" a choppy and croaky voice whispered in my head

            “Ramone?” Zack asked 

            It nodded, or what looks like a nod, Zack must have heard the voice too.

           “Water demon”, I mumbled under my breath.
          It then cocked his head towards my direction and slithered to me, a mixture of girl and boy, abnormal hips, and a stomach that is skinny up top and the slowly gets fatter and flabby as you go down until eventually a big roll of skin hanging off of it's hips with a giant belly button that goes inside making a giant hole in the flabby part of its stomach  and legs that are fat at first and then as you go down it starts to to get real skinny and the legs… has multiple knees bending in all sorts of directions and when it got to me it's mouth got real wide and long and took a piece of my hair and took his long twisted finger and put it in my life and together made a long black knife and disappeared back in the water right after it gave the knife to me and whispered I will have my revenge .  

No, I...I can't. I can't. WHY, WHY. This is what it's gonna take in order to get Zen. Either way somebody's gonna die. There must be another way, I beg in my head.