An abominable time of year

“Ok, I’m ready.”

Arthur grabbed his duffel bag with one hand, and brought his scarf over his face with the other, and braced himself for the biting cold. He stepped out of his modest brownstone-styled apartment and made his way to a taxi waiting for him outside.

“Took ya long enough, you know I ain’t got all day.” The driver's thick East Coast accent echoed through the snow. He impatiently grabbed Arthur’s bag and chucked it into the trunk. 

“I gotta get home to the wife before 5:00, you know how they get during the holidays.” 

Arthur nodded apologetically, as if he had to deal with the same problem. With the slam of the trunk, it was go time. 

Arthur hurried into the back of the taxi, with the snowflakes chasing him into the car as he slammed the door. The car began its journey through the relentless snowfall, the windshield wipers rapidly trying to create a clear image of the road, as a white blanket kept trying to obscure the view. Arthur cupped his hands around his chapped lips and breathed out, “Almost there, it’s gonna be okay.” He thought to himself. He wiped the foggy window with a trembling hand, as he watched his hometown flicker by.

“I don’t wanna cause any trouble, but uh, are you sure you’re gonna be able to get anywhere in this kinda weather?” The driver asked, keeping his eyes on the road.

“It um, should be just fine. It snows here all the time, this is no different.” Arthur replied, hardly even convincing himself. 

Arthur had grown up in this small town his whole life. He tried to escape its grasp by going to college on the opposite side of the country, but record high rent prices and little to no job opportunities, forced him to come back. He shamefully moved back, with his tail tucked between his legs, as the cunning town welcomed him back with open arms. The town, named Almas, had only about 300 in population and was quite isolated from the rest of the world. The Appalachian mountains were to the East and the Canadian border to the West, trapping the town in their own little bubble. Most of the population was quite poor, with the majority of the townspeople working in various shops or factories clustered together. The town also seemed to be stuck in the 19th century, with only a handful of people owning a computer, or even knowing how to use one. With Arthur earning a bachelor's in computer science, as soon as he landed back in his small town, he became like a mini-celebrity. Anything regarding technology, he was the person to call. His many small jobs and favors kept him quite busy and sustained him enough not to have to move back home with his parents. He began to feel he had a responsibility and duty to help his people, so he stayed. The town also had a certain charm about it, pulling him to stay. But, every winter, that created a problem.

Now at the age of 32, he had his annual routines down to a T. Every year, when the inevitable first snowflake falls to the ground, he begins to plan his escape. Every year, for the last 10 years, Arthur leaves town on December 18, to get a couple day head start, and arrives back home on January 1. He has had to use every excuse in the book to get away. “My old roommate needs someone to watch her dog while she’s traveling, I really owe her one!”, “There’s an important AI convention I really need to go to!”, “My college is having their reunion!”. That last one was the pitiful excuse he used this current year. His parents knew there was no such thing as a “college reunion”, but they learned not to beg him to stay, he would go no matter what. 

Arthur pulled back an arm of his gray sweater to reveal a brown wristwatch. He looked at the time, a few minutes later than he was anticipating, and his right knee involuntarily bounced as the car slowly made its way into the airport drop-off lanes. As soon as the taxi came to a stop, Arthur threw open the door. The snow assaulted his vision and the quickening winds felt like they were blowing straight through him. 

“Hey I was gonna move up closer to the door, this snow is getting out of control.” The driver shouted.

“This is fine, thank you though, can you just pop the trunk?”

Arthur hastily grabbed his bag, handed the driver two crumpled 20s from his coat pocket, and made his way into the airport. Almas surprisingly had their own airport, just outside of the main downtown area, but still only carried 3 airlines. He quickened his pace, trying not to slip on the cheap tile that was covered in melted snow from wet snow boots. He quickly got his tickets, already paying for them months in advance, and swiftly got through security. For being an airport around the busiest holiday of the year, in the East Coast, the place basically looked abandoned. As Arthur finally approached his gate, he took a seat and sighed in relief. He once again looked at his watch, even being a few minutes early before boarding started. He slouched in his chair, loosened his jaw, and rested his shoulders. He should know better not to get so comfortable.

A scratchy feminine voice came blasting through the cheap speakers.

“Attention all Gate 18 passengers to Tucson, Arizona. We are sorry to announce the cancellation of this flight until further notice, due to the ongoing blizzard. It has become unsafe to fly with such low visibility. Please locate yourself to the nearest help desk to get more information and to view other flights. Thank you, and happy holidays.”

The speakers buzzed off, and his heart sank to the bottom of his stomach. Without thinking he lurched up and practically ran to the nearest desk. The young woman looked at him quite startled as he approached.

“Hello sir, I’m assuming you had one of the canceled flights?”

“Yes, yes.” He tried to regain some composure and control his breathing.

“Are there any other flights, I- I don’t have to go to Arizona, just anywhere away from here.” Arthur could hear the panic take over through his voice.

“Um, okay let me see.” The anxiety obviously flowed onto the staff member, as she hurried and smashed at her keyboard, her long acrylic nails clicking away. 

“I’m very sorry sir, but all the flights have been canceled for the foreseeable future, until the snow stops it’s unsafe to fly.” The woman seemed to brace herself for his reaction. But all he did was slump his shoulders and shake his head.

“You’re welcome to stay here until there’s another flight available, I’ll let you know as soon as I can.” The woman managed to force a smile and signaled him to go back to where he was sitting.

Arthur dragged himself back to his gate area and sank into his seat. Both knees bounced uncontrollably and he slapped his cheeks with his numb hands, trying to awaken something in him. 

“Ok, this is okay. The snow has to stop soon, then I’ll take the first flight out of here possible.” He thought to himself. His knees slowed down to an eventual stillness, as he fell into a deep sleep. He awoke to the sun glaring right into his face, his arms being crossed his chest moved quickly to cover his eyes from the harsh light. For just a moment, he forgot where he was, then was brutally reminded. Some people on his same flight also decided to stay, still asleep, sparsely sitting away from one another. His mouth felt gummy and warm, and he smacked his dry lips together. He looked at his watch, it was 5:30 in the morning, December 19. He slept much longer than he was anticipating, the previous night's stress must have exhausted his body. He looked out a different window where the sun wasn’t blocking the whole view. He abruptly rose from his chair and ran to the window. The snow had stopped! The ground was barely even covered with an inch or two of snow. 

He looked to the desk, and a different woman stood there, sluggishly typing away at the computer with one finger. He grabbed his bag and made his way to freedom.

“Good morning ma'am, I was wondering if my flight will be taking off soon? Or any flight within the next few hours.” A bright smile flashed across his face. The woman was loudly chomping on a piece of peppermint gum, which assaulted his nose with the stench.

“I’m sorry but all flights are still canceled until further notice.” She didn’t even care to look up from her computer, its bright screen spotlighting her face in the dim airport.

“But, it’s no longer snowing! See!” He pointed towards the window and the woman looked at him unamused. 

“Yes the snow stopped, but it’s still too icy to fly.” She looked Arthur up and down. “It will probably be about a day or so before they can get all the ice melted.” She continued to smack the gum even while talking.

“No, no, this can’t be happening.” He grabbed the counter of the desk with both hands and tried to breathe.

“I knew this would happen eventually, I should have left long ago while I had the chance,” Arthur whispered to himself, but the staff member overheard.

“Sir? Do you need me to call someone for you.”

“No, no. Please don’t do that.” He tapped his fingers against the cool quartz stone and bit the skin around his nail, trying to think of a different escape plan. 

“I’m sorry I don’t know what to say, you can stay here as long as you like, but you should probably just head home until the planes can fly again.” The woman began to look scared.

“No, no, you don’t understand. I have to get out of here!” He accidentally shouted this time and he anxiously looked around to see if anyone was looking. Someone was looking, a security guard. The man in an oversized neon coat who easily was six inches taller than him came wandering over. 

“Do we have a problem here?” He asked the young woman, ignoring Arthur completely. 

“No we don’t have a problem, I need to get out of here! There has to be a plane going somewhere! Not- not even a plane, a train, bus, anything please!” Arthur slammed his hands down on the counter, feeling himself losing control as his anxiety was like a small snowball careening down a hill into a massive boulder. 

“Sir, I’m gonna have to ask you to calm down.” The security guard grabbed Arthur by his upper arm. Arthur pushed the massive man back against his chest.

“Hey man don’t touch me! You don’t understand, please!” 

“Ok, I’m gonna have to ask you to leave.” The man more forcefully grabbed Arthur's arm and tugged him out towards the exit.

“No! You can’t do this! Please! You really don’t understand, you have to believe me!” Arthur fought against the security guard, which resulted in him having to be basically carried outside. 

“There are monsters in this town! You have to get out of here! You have to leave while you can! Please believe me!” Arthur struggled against the massive man carrying him to his demise. “Get your family and go! Trust me, man, everyone is in danger!” Arthur shouted and wreathed until the security guard threw him onto the sidewalk.

“Sorry man, but if I see you back here in the next 24 hours, you’ll regret it. Don’t freeze out there.” The guard spit onto the icy ground and walked back into the safety of the warm airport, with the automatic doors shutting behind him. 

Arthur stood frozen, hugging his arms against his chest. He could already feel the town’s spell starting to wear on him. He bit the flaky skin off his lips, racking his brain for a plan. He couldn’t leave, there was no possible way he could just walk to another town, he would have to cross the mountains to do that. He accepted that’s what he had to do, there was no other choice, no one would believe him. He picked up his bag and made his way back to town. There were no cars on the street, no taxis, no other pedestrians, just Arthur and his jagged, fogged breath in the chilling winter air. He finally arrived back at his house. He walked up the concrete steps, careful not to slip, and unlocked his front door, then quickly locked it again once he was inside. He walked to his bedroom and lamely threw his bag to the floor, and sat on his bed. Without thinking, he got back up, grabbed his duffel bag, unzipped it, and dumped the items out onto the floor. He brazenly went to his kitchen and began to fill the bag with food, canned beans, beef jerky, half-empty gatorade bottles, and granola bars. He swiftly pulled open his junk drawer and rummaged around for a lighter, a notepad, and a pen. He then went to his linen closet by the front door, grabbed his rifle, and slung it over his shoulder. “No more hiding.” He said to himself as he stepped out of his apartment for the last time. 

He began to make his trek towards the mountains. He lived on the outskirts of town and there was a trail into the relentless Appalachians not too far from his house. As he got closer to the mountains, the snow began to get steeper and steeper. He clawed his way through the snow, eventually getting up to his mid-calfs. At the start of a trail, there was a meek pine tree that had a wooden sign nailed into its flesh, stating the name of the trail. Arthur, already worn out, threw his bag to the ground and rummaged around for the pen and paper. He wrote a quick note, his hand shook with exhaustion and was numb from the cold, making his message barely legible. He tucked the note neatly between the top crack where the wooden sign and tree met. He never had been in town this close to the day when the transformation happened. He could feel his veins begin to pulse with fear and anticipation. He left his beloved watch behind on his nightstand back at home, so he had to use the sun to track the time. The winter solstice was quickly approaching, and that's when he knew the change would occur. It quickly became evening, the air growing even colder and darker. Arthur sat by the tree for a while, eating the few granola bars he had brought. Once he got deeper into the mountains he would start a fire, he didn’t want to take the risk of someone seeing the smoke. He slowly rose back up and got his gear ready to start walking again. He found himself getting used to the cold pretty fast, even taking off one of his jackets. He looked back at his town, one last time, and took his rifle off his back. He arranged the gun to lean against the tree, right under his note. He walked up into the mountains, never to be seen or heard from again. In frantic handwriting, the note read, “Come and get me.”