The Door

By Kayla Krause

Do not open. Do not open. Do not open.

Her long black nails gently grazed the wood paneling of the door. The white paint was peeling and chipping away. The blue butterflies were barely legible anymore. Her nails scraped it again. The sound could be heard from miles away. They echoed like they would on a chalkboard. She frighted herself with this sound. It pierced her ears and made her cringe in pain. Her compulsive urge to open the door and step outside was strong. She needed to see what was behind it. No one ever dared to open it. Not after what happened to him. No one even dared to speak his name. He came back and he came back mad. He reminded her of the story about that Alice girl. When she fell down that rabbit hole. Do not open.

She wrapped her long slim fingers around the doorknob and did exactly what she was told not to do. She felt the need to leave the dark world she grew up in. Her world was something from a Stephen King novel drawn up by Tim Burton. She wanted color. She had read about it, and she wanted it for herself. Do not open. She needed to know. Do not open.

“What if I do?”

Do not open.

“Why not?”

Do. Not. Open

“What did Jayden see?”

DO NOT OPEN!

The rusted door hinges creaked. They hadn’t been used in decades. She knew it was wrong, but the curiosity was stronger than her morals. She saw the world for what the media said. Disgraceful. Horrific. Evil. She didn’t want to live like that anymore. She wanted out. She needed to prove them all wrong. She leapt through that door with so much enthusiasm that a child would have been concerned. Silence.

Everything went quiet.

The light of the new world momentarily blinded her. Her pale gray, dirty, knees fell to the soft, green grass. She held her pale arms up to her eyes as a shield from the bright sun. The colors and warmth of this world greeted her kindly. She was confused as to why she had stopped shaking. The warm sunlight kissed the bitter coldness of her skin goodbye. She loved it. She loved everything. The color greeted her eyes with a cheerful hello, the gentle wind whispered melodies in her ear, and the flowers permeated her nose with magnificent fragrances.

She was still unsure why this world had been forbidden. It was a stark contrast to the bitter, dark, and dankness of her world. She didn’t understand why it had caused Jayden to become mad. She wanted to stay here forever. She couldn’t fathom going back. She looked up at the door from which she came. It was different on this side. The door had a manicured vine of roses surrounding it. It seemed to be well cared for. The paint wasn’t peeling away or chipping off, but it was coated in matte black, which was incongruous to this new world. The darkness with the ruby-red lettering stood in stark contrast from all the surrounding colors. They read, “Open At Own Risk”. She stared for a moment. Just looked in peaceful silence. Then, as if something had bitten her, she jumped from her seated position in the grass and slammed the door with an angry force. She scratched her nails in the wood paneling. Words appeared in horror movie fashion.

Do Not Open.