Permanent

A teenage girl realizes she is stuck in an endless cycle and she needs to break free. She has a lot of work ahead of her as the rest of the world stands by, watching this all play out. People will try to help, but she must make sure they don't get too close or else it might end up being more than what she can handle on her own. Her life now is one that has become a life of fear and suspense yet there are some who refuse to leave her side. Can she survive? Will anyone even care enough to try to save her from herself? How far does one go to protect their loved ones? There's no telling where this story will lead us next or how long it may take for the ending. The only thing I know is that we have finally reached the beginning of our journey...

I told my mom we should never move, but she insisted getting away from the house and community was our only way to happiness. She said that "Mother Nature" told her so. She was in one of those weird phases of belief, but if “Mother Nature” really is real, and g-d truly does try to protect us then why am I here in Lotsee, Oklahoma? Why do I wake up every morning with the same routines and the same thoughts? Why is every day the same, and why is today different? Why did I wake up this morning with the thought of saving the city and ending the cycle, and why did I agree to take that journey knowing it may lead into something more dangerous. Life has never had questions ever since we moved here fifteen years ago everything has been just fine. Not great or good or bad, but just fine, so why today?

I decided I would activate my plan after school. On the school bus everyone was in their regular spots having the same conversations as yesterday, and the day before that, and yep, the day before that as well, and so on. "Good morning Addison," the bus driver says. "Have a seat." "Addie." I corrected it. He smiled his big smile with his 3 golden teeth shining in my eyes. I sat down in the back of the bus. It is too loud to hear anyone back there, so I don't have to question a bunch of tenth grade boys talking about what they believe to be the most "epic sandwich of all time." The back is also nice because no one can see me cry. If anyone sees tears they have to immediately report it to the doctor. Rumor has it that if you get reported to see the doctor bad things happen, but then again rumors are rumors. It is just another way to freak us all out and work on bettering ourselves.

After seven more stops I step out of the bus and glance around the familiar high school parking lot. Nothing has changed since yesterday. Still the same people. The same rusty painted lines, the same inspirational words that now reads "YO CA DO HIS '' Rather than "YOU CAN DO THIS '' I bet that has been up there for over forty five years. I look around some more, until I fall to the ground and see images in my head of trash, and dead people, and tears. Lots of tears.

I feel a thud as I bump into someone. My heart skips a beat as I see who it is – Luke, an old childhood friend who I haven't talked to in years.

"You know?!" He shouts as he looks into my eyes. Before I could even respond, he grabs me by the arm and pulls me towards his car.

"What's going on?!" I ask, confused but also excited to catch up with Luke.

"We're going on an adventure," he grins at me.

As we drive around town, skipping school I can't help but notice the strange looks we are getting from people on the street. Something was off, but I can't quite put my finger on it.

Luke, on the other hand, seems to be enjoying himself as he shows me around our hometown as if I just now moved here. We found ourselves at the local library, where we spent hours combing through old books, looking for clues about the town's history. I don’t know what, and I am not sure Luke does either, but we are looking for a clue. I have a feeling that when we find it we will know.

To my surprise, Luke discovers that our town has a dark secret. Every few years, the same thing happens; people disappear, or strange things happen, and no one seems to remember what has occurred. I flip the page and I see him. A man. I saw him when I fell in the parking lot earlier. He was in my mind. I gasped, and a tear fell from my cheek out of fear. I look down so no one sees, but the man on the paper his mouth begins to change. It is starting to form a smile of some sort. Luke looks at me, "you are starting to remember." I look at him confused, "what?" I ask. "He was your uncle." He replies, getting closer, “he started the cycle.” We left the library without checking out the book. Luke kept on driving with no destination and quiet music to blur the awkwardness. During the ride me and Luke looked deeper into the secrets of our town, I began to have strange flashbacks of my uncle. I remembered how he would often come to visit my family, but would be rude and dismissive towards everyone. As I piece together my memories, I started to realize that my uncle really was the source of the town's curse. He had been a bad person who had cursed the town so that everyone had to follow the same routine every day, and nothing ever changed. It was a never-ending cycle that only continued because no one knew how to break free from it.

I know that my uncle passed away years ago, but I also think that he must be still somewhere in the underworld, watching the town from afar. I feel that my uncle's ghost is haunting me, urging me to be the one to put an end to the curse by going to the underworld and face him.

We searched for answers, we encountered scary and dangerous situations. But with Luke's quick thinking and my resourcefulness, we managed to stay one step ahead of danger, or so we thought

Among our adventures, we found hidden tunnels beneath the city, creepy basements filled with artifacts, and strange accounts from people they met along the way. It was then that I realized we were both falling for each other.

Despite the chaos happening around us, we find ourselves enjoying adventures together, and I know that I can count on Luke to keep me safe.

One day, as we were about to discover the final piece of the puzzle, we were caught by the people behind the strange occurrences in our town. Imprisoned and separated, Luke and I were convinced that we were about to be killed, but with our combined will and determination, we managed to escape and reunite with each other. Together, we vowed to stop the cycle and protect the town's secrets from being exploited.

We became a team, working day and night to break the spell of the never-ending cycle. Even when it seems like we will never succeed, we never will give up.

Our friendship blossomed into a fascinating romance, and together we uncovered the secrets of our hometown, until I knew that breaking the curse won't lead to a perfect life. It will lead to a normal one. With mistakes, tears, fears, losses, and more. I would have to embrace the darkness within myself, to tap into my own inner power in order to save the town, and I can't tell Luke, the curse itself is gone, but now I carry that curse with me along with others. My uncle is gone. We worked together, but the darkness is still very there.

At first, it was easy. The rush of adrenaline, the feeling of being able to control the darkness within was, intoxicating. I reveled in the power that I had, using it to defeat the armies of darkness that threatened to overwhelm the town, but over time, I began to notice changes within myself. My heart grew colder, my once-bright spirit consumed by the darkness that I had unleashed within myself. I lashed out at those who opposed me, ruling over the land with an iron fist.

And then, as I stood atop the highest peak of the mountains, watching the sun rise over the darkened landscape, I realized the terrible truth: I had become the very thing that I had sought to destroy, but it was too late now. The world was saved from darkness, yes, but at what cost? I was no longer the hero that I hoped. I was a monster, a ruler who had sacrificed everything in the name of victory.

And though I wept for what I have become, in the end, I could only hope that my actions would be enough to protect the town from the darkness that still lurked within its shadows.

Two months later--------

Luke and I went on our first official date. We decided to go to the library for good old times. We were looking through all the history books we found two months before, and we acknowledged how we couldn't have done it without each other. Luke grabs the book with my uncle in it, and turns the page to his face, only his face was gone. Mine replaced it. I was on the center of the page. I looked up at Luke. I smiled and so did the picture. Luke drops the book, and screams. I’m still not sure if G-d’s here to protect us or if it's just the demons here to find ourselves.