Diseased (3 page)
Authors: Jeremy Perry
“Do you see it now?” asked Ruth Ann. “Do you see what I’m talking about?” I did see it. But I didn’t want to. I nodded. “See, there’s no pond or ducks,” she said.
I watched Dozer return from the concrete slab.
It was all false, all of it, this entire time. There was no pond. There were no ducks. But what did I bury earlier this morning? Now, I wasn’t sure. More make-believe moments from a time which I had thought had been real. But Ruth Ann Montgomery convinced me otherwise. Was it a pile of leaves? Trash? I became frightened by this detachment from reality. I’d rather I hadn’t been told.
“Come on,” said Ruth Ann. “It’s over. Let’s go back inside.”
I walked away from what once was a pond that had not only reflected the beautiful sky on its placid water, but had also released a culminating brilliance of love and life upon my battered being and relieved a little unspoken heartache and misery each day that I had to spend at Ryker’s Ridge Institution.
The three of us went back inside the building, which I had always tried to escape, and I attempted to enjoy the rest of my birthday. Going straight to my room, however, I laid down to rest. I wanted to forget about this exhausting day.
When I awoke the next morning, I felt invigorated. I had slept wonderfully and had all but forgotten the happenings of the previous day. Today, I felt alive and very well.
I dressed myself and walked out to the living room where Clarence and Daryl watched television, intently, unblinking, and never moving. I smelled the air and again I knew Pat had already made her rounds of cleaning the ward. I walked over to the service counter to pour myself a glass of orange juice and grabbed a bagel from the tray.
Walking outside, I noticed a bright sun hovering above the eastern horizon, and the morning dew glinted off the green grass. The day was beautiful already.
I made my way to the weathered bench and sat my orange juice beside me. Looking out, the pond was more magical than ever. I saw the beauty in it as I always had. I didn’t care what Ruth Ann Montgomery had to say. I loved this pond, and I was going to keep it.
I tore my bagel in half, and from that, I ripped tiny pieces, throwing them out and into the water. Not long after, from around the bushes, over in the farthest corner of the pond, swam Mr. and Mrs. Duck, followed by a trail of little ducklings.
“Well,” I said to the family of ducks, “I see congratulations are in order.”
The family of ducks swam to the floating pieces of bagel and helped themselves. When the first half of bagel was consumed, I tore the other into tiny, bite-sized morsels and tossed them out to my feathered friends.
I enjoyed the ducks’ company and they enjoyed mine. And that’s all that mattered to me.
~~~
Jeremy Perry is an American author who writes across many genres. In 2011, he started the BROTHERS OF THE MOUNTAIN series and penned the short story FAITH, LOVE AND MOONSHINE: An Appalachian Tale. In 2013, he released his first short story collection entitled UNDER THE WILLOW TREE and Other Stories. His short novel MOONSHINER'S JUSTICE was released in 2016. Jeremy has noted Raymond Carver, Neil Gaiman, Louis L'Amour, and Elmore Leonard as some of his writing influences.
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All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means without prior written consent of the copyright owner. This story herein is a work of fiction. All of the characters, places, and events portrayed in this book either are products of the author’s imagination or used fictitiously.