Brother mine

I was devouring on a plate of hot omelette and toast when my phone ringed. I was inclined to decline the call, whoever's be it but I accepted it, after all its not everyday that I receive a call from my dear cousin.

"Hello," said I.

"Hello," he replied.

"How do you do?" I tried to say but I was interrupted by his "Now before you utter other words, dear little sister, tell me whether you are free this evening."

"And you ask me this on a Sunday, brother mine? Anyways I am free."

"See you at 6 pm at 'Robust', then."

Before I could complain about the high price there, I heard a bleep and then utter silence.

I wondered, to what I owned the pleasure of receiving a call from Alex, but it is actually no wonder at all. Cunning brains come together in roguish acts. Our family, since time immemorial has hosted get-togethers every spring. And the date winds up being somewhere near the beginning of April. I hope this time Alex and I can make it the best and the most memorable gathering for our family. Famous as we are for holding the 'Most notorious children' tag for years on end, the responsibility for creating amusement in gatherings is thrust on us entirely. And we like dutiful little children look after our family's yearly requirement of amusement earnestly.

The clock struck 5:30 pm and I kept aside the copy of 'Three men in a Boat' by Jerome K. Jerome, on the table. I put on my violet jacket, tied my hair and set out in the mild cold of a November evening. 5:57 pm flashed on my watch as the restaurant first came into my view. As I was about to push the glass door of the hotel, a man of remarkable height arrived and stood by my side, "How do you do?" I asked him without even turning. I didn't receive an answer until we were seated comfortably in the rearmost seat of the hotel.

"Hmm, fine, I am doing fine. You?" he asked.

"Hmm, seeing how it feels to be broke. You pay the bill, alright?" I said. He laughed.

We ordered two cups of hot chocolate and some garlic bread.

"So what do we do, little sis?"

"I don't know, something scary and new, this time. Something different and memorable, something that really raises the bar. Something that our little nieces and nephews could never think of doing," I concluded doughtily.

"Oh, that's a hefty lot of demands for empty pockets, mademoiselle," he said sipping his hot chocolate.

"Empty pockets, says the manager of the most successful hotel chain of the city," I said sweetly.

"Scary and real, you were saying, do you know what I am thinking right now?"

"How am I suppose to know what you are thinking, brother mine?" I retorted.

"Like minds think alike, and we have been completing each other's sentences from childhood," he said. "And I know a group of boys made for such mischiefs, from make-up to costume, they have it all. Even Uncle John would be petrified," his eyes gleamed with malice.

"Fine I would look after the accessories and on spot drama, then."

So the master plan was created and the effects were discussed, when Alex received a call and left the hotel hastily, forgetting to pay the bill which of course was destined to be paid from my dear pocket.

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     The mild sunlight of April touched my face gently, as I drove towards Uncle John's farmhouse. I felt giddy with excitement. I parked my car and knocked on the door, the smell of sizzling onions and meat from the backyard filled the spring air. The door was opened and a train of warm embraces welcomed me into the house. I could already hear Uncle Ted's booming laughter coming from the living room. Right there on the corner of the couch my grandma awaits me, she turns ninety this summer but I tell her that she doesn't look a day more than thirty. Little Selena, David, Charles and Camryn drag me outside of the house to play 'Blind man's buff' with them. Uncles and aunts, recognisable and unrecognisable, chattered away happily. Over the lunch, anecdotes of Uncle Ted's combat with the monkey and aunt Mary's stained carpet got repeated over and over again.

Working as per our plan I also asked Uncle Jack whether Alex was going to join us or not, though I already knew Alex was going to surprise us all by appearing after the prank gets successfully pulled off. Afternoon gave way to night and I started convincing everyone to watch Train to Busan together. My grandma objected, told us to spare her but I was reluctant to do so as I believed that until everyone saw the consequences of a certain catastrophe, they weren't going to fear it and I said "Granny, I thought you were afraid of nothing."

Luckily she rose to the bait and replied "Alright, count me in, then."

We all got seated comfortably, some on the couch, others on the floor and I hit the play button. How much attention I paid to the movie I know not, I think I paid more time in fancying how the appalled faces of my family will look like and how Alex and I would get beaten up to a pulp after the prank gets pulled off, but I could feel that everyone around me were watching the movie intently.

It was one minute to nine, the rapping on the door could come at any second now, a glance at the TV screen told me that even the protagonist was running to save his dear life from the living dead.

A very loud knock on the door and my mother volunteers to see who it is, I hit the pause button. I could hear her steps on the wooden floorboard.

A blood curdling scream reaches everyone's ears, I just hope she didn't faint, I sprint out of the living room and across the hallway, a few other's join me, my mother is deathly pale and before her I see several creatures, their limbs bent at odd angles, eyes bloodshot, skin loosely hanging around deep gashes in the face, blood dripping from their mouth, the rest of their body a mess of visible ribs, bloody flesh and white skin and some even chewing on a mass of scarlet flesh. Some more screams and lo and behold we were plunged into utter darkness. This was not planned, Alex is a genius, he can do anything to take the game to an extra mile. The scarlet eyes of the zombies gleamed in the moonlight. I stood admiring the beauty of my brother's efforts and then realised that I have to play my part by leading everyone up the staircase to a room where the final scare from the swarm awaits them. I back out, a step at a time, surprisingly enough I don't hear or feel any one else around me, they are advancing, I break into a run up the staircase to find a swarm of zombies descending from the stairs. Too late I am surrounded by them and I feel a cold hand on my shoulder and a bite on my neck.