Far From a Fairytale

Chapter Twenty-One~ The Children are Being Eaten

✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:* 💎 *:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧

It was nearing eight o'clock. Kareena was in her room with her glasses on, reading a scary graphic novel. Reaching what she knew was going to be a terrifying scene, she closed the book, her finger still inside keeping her place and rushed off to Aidan's room. Without bothering to knock, she burst through the door, making Aidan peer up from his phone, which he was scrolling through as he sat on his bed.

As Kareena's eyes adjusted to his lit-up room, having been reading in the dark with her light off but curtains open, it took her a minute to notice the look of confusion and slight judgment that was on her friend's face.

Aidan's lips parted slightly, about to ask her what was wrong, but he shut it when she began rambling. "Can I read in here?" She asked as an innocent child would to their parents, clutching the book against her chest as she did. "I'm at this part, and I just know something awful is going to happen and well, to be honest- I'm afraid."

Aidan did his best not to let out a laugh since he knew she was serious, but he failed when his mouth remained tight, but his body vibrated. Smiling, with a hint of amusement in his words, he answered, "Sure, come on in." He patted the place on his bed next to him, which Kareena threw herself in.

"I don't understand why you would want to read something you're afraid of." Aidan said, looking over to the panels of unsightly drawings and small fonts she was reading over intensely.

"I always thought the point of fear was that when you face them head-on and get over them you remove their power and feel accomplished."

"Actually, the point of fear is to act as a signal for danger, so you can understand the correct response in the situation. Take blood, for example. See, humans aren't naturally drawn to blood, so it is a perfectly healthy fear. Humans are supposed to be afraid of blood."

Kareena paused her reading, intrigued by the point of conversation. Turning and giving him her full attention, she continued to listen. "It's an evolutionary reflex and survival mechanism. When we, as humans, see blood or something bleeding, we assume it's because there is something dangerous nearby, therefore we tend to stray from- or fear it. The only reason not all of us fear it: surgeons, doctors, serial killers, is because of systematic exposures- the more you see and handle it, the less you fear it."

At the end of his explanation, Kareena was astonished. With a short and satisfied sigh, she let out, "huh, learn something new every day."

"Learning at least one new thing every day keeps our brains fresh." He smirked as he flicked her forehead and turned back to his phone.

With her book open in her arms, Kareena continued to think about the fact she learned. She looked at the colourful panels in front of her but wasn't paying enough attention to understand them. "So do you think I'll be able to get over my fear of the dark?" She wondered.

"Hard to say, you always have to be willing." He answered.

A few seconds later, just as she was about to focus back on her reading, she felt something furry skitter up both her legs and take place on her chest. Shocked for only a moment, Kareena lifted the book peeking underneath her book, she saw two ferrets taking a nap.

Brandy and JoJo were Tommy's pet ferrets. They were three years old and this was their first year without Tommy- he couldn't take them to school due to the dormitory's strict rules. But on the brighter side, The ferrets loved Kareena, more than anyone else, including Tommy. They were very protective of her.