by Zachary Belins

Created on: April 29, 2009

It could be called a cheery day, the light of the new sun streaming through the leafy canopy of the tree-heavy suburban lane, mighty oaks littering the yards of the moderately well-to-do. The road twisted and turned to the landscape, hills avoided rather than conquered. Many a house rested atop those natural monuments, with long driveways twisting slightly up to garages - some open with evidence of men working lethargically to get the lawn or automotive work done, some closed and defying any attempt to classify the contents.

The road ended in a cul-de-sac, four houses on generous lots surrounding it. One residence had a long, narrow driveway going about a hundred meters back into a densely wooded parcel, all but barring the house from view. Night came early under the oaks' shade, but it was recompensed with a plethora of fireflies that seemed drawn to the trees and land of that house alone - no other house was visited by the luminous insects. From twilight to dawn, the house seemed to be aglow with the flickers of radiance that gave it an otherworldly feel.

Up and down the street, children would play by day during the balmy summer and look up at the house with trepidation. As the sun sank low and cast long shadows, their near frantic amusement calmed down and they huddled together, throwing furtive glances down the road and to the house hidden and beginning to almost glow. At the safe distance they kept, there was no way they could see the fireflies. Ghost stories sprang up, and the tales snowballed into something crossing the border into the ethereal.

One late July day, the crickets made an unheard chorus as the children once again looked down the road and spun yarns. Jared Carter, an intrepid boy of fourteen seeking to move up in social status, watched on quietly. He looked harder than any other kid at the house that was the object of their fascination, imagining what it must be like. As one ghost story wound to a close, Jared boldly interjected himself into the group.

"Betcha I could go in there and come out alive," he said, puffing out his chest and brimming with bravado. A round of gasps greeted his claim, the terrible tales of flesh-rending horror brought to mind. Jared, however, was determined.

Another young man, Paul Montoya, challenged him. It became rather obvious that this was an important occasion, the two oldest boys along the road struggling for dominance in a juvenile fashion. The huddle grew.

"Oh yeah? I'd like to see you try!"

And just like that,

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