The Architect

by J. D. Lander

  “But why would he go after her and not me?”

  “The Devil’s logic doesn’t make sense. He thrives on pain and he knew exactly how to torture me slowly. First, he went after Alice to hurt you. He isn’t done with us yet.”

  “Tell me what happened to her.” Connor pushed for the story.

  “She was at a party with her family. The Devil arrived as the man and she knew it was him immediately. Instead of putting the rest of her family in danger she ran into the woods. When she tired of running she tried to fight him but lost.”

  “How did she die?” Connor needed to know.

  “He stabbed her with a knife.”

  A single tear found its way down Connor’s red cheek and settled on the side of his chin before slipping off. Alice had been Connor’s rock throughout his life. She was his family that would always be there and support him in whatever decisions he would make. Now she was gone and he never got to tell her that he was gay. She must have known after all this time. The world felt empty and lonely for a moment. He felt himself sinking to a dark place. Adam sensed him slipping so he grabbed his hand and pulled him close next to him on the bed.

  Adam spent the next two days sleeping at Connor’s house, unbeknownst to Connor’s parents. Most nights he could tell that Connor was awake even though he lay still between periods of tossing and turning. The times Connor did fall asleep were short-lived, interrupted by images of the Devil that jolted him awake. Adam knew that the Devil would return eventually and this fact scared him more than anything. He wanted to hide Connor through the portal in the woods where he would be safe, but he couldn’t. This portal was his creation and the Devil could not enter. However, the Architect had changed it so no one could enter but Adam. Adam felt the change as he passed through the day that Alice had died. He had been sloppy and others could have stumbled upon it like Connor and Alice did. The Architect is all knowing and protects his people above all else.

  Getting through the days was a challenge for Connor. He felt guilty for not being able to tell the police what had happened to Alice. When the doorbell rang and the police questioned him, he had to act surprised. He had never considered himself a good actor but for some reason, reliving hearing the news was something of a relief. He could finally let his emotions be seen by his family. Alice didn’t have any enemies. The police were at a loss and had no leads. Connor knew that he was the one that had brought evil into Alice’s life, a guilt he would carry forever.

  As the police talked to his parents, Connor imagined them searching the woods through the night for Alice. He imagined the hope her parents must have had, wishing she was simply lost in the woods. He could see the horrified faces of the police as they stumbled upon her lifeless body. Connor knew better than to ask Adam for details. He didn’t want his thoughts to become any more horrific. Adam had already done something undisclosed to erase communication with Alice from their phones. The night of the murder, Connor had to lie to Alice’s parents, saying he had no idea where she was. That night, when he attempted to fall asleep, his thoughts stabbed at his gut and he began to sweat. He vomited twice in the hall bathroom before he was too exhausted to think any longer, allowing sleep to find him.

  The school allowed all seniors the day off to attend Alice’s funeral. Connor pulled his dusty suit out of the closet and squeezed himself into it. His shame kept him from attending the viewing the night before. Adam disappeared in the morning only to be waiting on the lawn in a suit when Connor’s family opened the front door to drive to the funeral. Connor’s parents didn’t even greet Adam. He simply got in the car. They spoke no words in the car as they drove to the church. His parents were never comforting and this occasion wasn’t any different. Adam secretly grabbed Connor’s hand in the back seat.

  Connor wanted to hate Adam for the death of Alice, but he couldn’t because he blamed himself. Adam provided comfort and security that no one else could. As they approached the church, the green light shown into the sky stronger than ever. Everyone entering the church was glowing brighter than usual. Connor wouldn’t shut the sight off in fear of the red light returning. To help alleviate Connor’s fears, Adam had explained that to summon him all he needed to do was say his name and feel the desire to see him. The desire was always there so this would be no hard feat.

  Once inside the church, Connor’s parents went over to Alice’s parents but he couldn’t bear to face them. He sat with Adam in the back, avoiding all the familiar faces he had met over the years. Barry was even there in the front with a girl Connor had never met. The church service ended and seemed like a blur to Connor. He left the church to head to the graveyard without remembering a single thing that occurred inside. He remembered seeing the priest and sitting. He remembered hearing the sobs, but his mind went blank soon after. It was like someone else was controlling his body and he was a passenger along for the ride. His attention couldn’t focus on things happening externally with so much inner turmoil.

  At the graveyard Connor watched as Ben hung onto his mother’s leg. Ben had always been a smiling child full of energy and now he appeared as if his battery had run out. The world was once a playground for him and he could run through the grass. Now, he hid behind his mother’s leg as if the world was going to harm him. Connor wondered how much he would understand and remember. There was no doubt in his mind that this tragedy had affected Ben as much as those around him.

  Connor grabbed a rose and placed it on the casket when the priest was finished. The roses were white and seemed innocent, like Alice. Adam placed a rose on the casket and they both headed back to the car.

  “Adam, do we have souls? Is Alice in heaven?” Connor rallied enough courage to ask.

  “I think every Architect’s plan is different. We are all energy and some Architects choose to recycle it while others just provide another place for that energy to exist.”

  “What does my Architect do?”

  “He has a place. A place that I have not seen and doesn’t exist in this plane.”

  “Then I guess one day, I’ll see Alice again. Let’s just hope she ages too because I don’t want to be the only one old and fat.”

  Connor laughed for the first time since he had heard of Alice’s death. Adam smiled as he watched Connor. Seeing him laugh brought hope to Adam that Connor would recover.

  Connor and Adam grew even closer as weeks passed. Adam could somehow now feel Connor’s emotions. If Connor was in danger, Adam would know. This fact allowed Adam to leave during the day and return only at night to watch over Connor. Adam soundproofed the room using his will so Connor’s family never knew of his presence.

  Connor wondered what Adam spent his time doing during the day. He stopped attending school and instead headed into the woods each morning. Anytime he asked Adam about it he would simply say that he was being an architect. One morning, Connor followed Adam to the portal. When he threw a rock at it, the rock acted as though nothing was there. He now knew that the place Adam escaped to was someplace he could no longer go. Connor felt Adam was keeping something from him. He decided he would ask that night.

  CHAPTER 11

  The Secret

  The sun began to set as Connor watched the woods outside his window. He knew that Adam would soon be on his way. When his mother called him down for dinner she complained that he never helped her set the table anymore. Connor was too distracted and ignored her comment. He watched the sun finally disappear beyond the horizon as he ate. When he was finished, he placed his plate in the kitchen sink and headed outside.

  A cold breeze blew as he walked across the yard. He wondered what Adam could be doing. To waste time he decided to take a walk so he headed toward the school. When he was younger, his father would run on the school’s track while he sat in the bleachers. Connor decided this would be a good place to sit and think while waiting for Adam. If Adam went to the house he could feel what it was like to be wondering where someone is.

  Connor climbed to the highest bleacher row and sat.
He looked up at the bright lights shining down on the track. Moths flew into the light and bounced off the bulbs, only to repeat the process over and over. He wondered if Alice saw a light when she died. Did God come and escort her to Heaven, or did she just walk into the light herself?

  Through the trees Connor suddenly noticed a blue light coming from the Athletic shed. He walked down the bleachers, skipping every other step. As he approached the shed the light seemed to get brighter. He arrived at the shed to find the door ajar. He held his breath, concerned for what he might find inside. Had something happened to Adam?

  The door creaked open and the inside was almost completely empty. “Adam? Are you in here?” he whispered. Most of the equipment was out on the fields. Connor looked up to see a blue light bulb. He turned off his sight only for a moment and it remained blue. Had someone left the light on? He entered the shed to shut the light off. When his hand touched the chain dangling from the light, he heard the door creak shut behind him. He turned to see a greasy man with flames of red light engulfing his skin. Connor felt like a caged animal, fearful of what’s next. The Devil had finally returned. “What do you want?” Connor demanded.

  The man didn’t answer, but Connor knew his death was the answer. The man showed his knife. Connor felt the air pressure in the room suddenly change, like a cold breeze entering through a cracked window. Adam pushed through the door, running around the Devil and to Connor’s side. Connor felt relieved, as if the Calvary had arrived.

  “I knew you would show,” The Devil sneered. “It’s useless though. I know you won’t break his rules. You’d be lost without him and you know it. Where will you go then? Will you leave your precious pet?”

  “What is he talking about, Adam?” Connor pleaded.

  “I’m sorry, Connor. I can’t do anything. I’m useless. The body he inhabits will remember all of this after he leaves it. I can’t break the Architect’s rules and leave proof. I’m powerless in front of him.”

  Connor felt the hair on his arms and neck stand on end. Suddenly, he didn’t feel safe or protected, as Adam had promised. The feeling was like holding a gun without bullets. What the hell was going on?! Connor did what his instincts told him to do, running to the back of the shed to put the greatest distance between himself and the Devil. He positioned himself behind a giant lawn mower, believing that he may be able to outmaneuver the man and escape through the door. Adam intersected the man as he attempted to chase after Connor.

  They fell to the floor. Connor could see Adam trying to restrain the man without causing him harm, but the man was too strong for him. The tides turned and the man was sitting on top of Adam’s legs with one hand around his throat. The other hand still had the knife. Connor saw the blade flicker in the blue light once again before he buried it into Adam’s right side. Blood poured onto the dirt floor as Adam, struggling, faded to a limp body with shallow breathing. Connor watched, stunned, unable to speak.

  Connor had wished for death in his past, but he no longer wanted it. He wanted to live. If he could lure the man out of the shed, then Adam could heal himself. The man moved forward toward the lawn mower, and Connor moved along its edge to keep maximum distance between them. The man made a run for him on the right, so Connor broke to the left and bolted toward the door. In his hurry, Connor didn’t notice the small table on the side of the lawn mower covered in glass jars of screws. He stumbled over it and landed on the dusty ground. He quickly spun over and grasped the man’s wrist, stopping the knife from hitting him in the chest. He grabbed the man’s wrist with his other hand and pushed with all his might. The man’s wrist didn’t back off any.

  Connor dug deep within himself. Unexpectedly, his body started to glow a bright blue. He saw his eyes glow blue in the reflection of the man’s own eyes. Suddenly, his strength increased, and he pushed the man’s wrist with such force the man fell sideways onto the ground. Connor made another break for the door. He could hear the man following close behind. Instead of charging through the door, he felt autopilot take over. It’s as if the blue light in him was fighting for the will to live by defeating the Devil. He headed toward the wall adjacent to the door. He jumped, placing one foot onto the wall, and back flipped over the man, landing behind him. The man turned as he regained his balance against the wall. Connor noticed the man’s red light was suddenly gone.

  From behind, Connor felt a knife sink into his upper back. Connor tried to reach the knife with his hands as he collapsed to the ground in excruciating pain. He used his hands to brace his fall and saw them turn red as blood streamed down his arms into the dirt. His breathing suddenly became difficult, as if someone had knocked the wind out of him. The man in front of him looked on in fear then ran out through the shed door. Connor rolled onto his side and turned his head to see the Devil standing behind him. The Devil had stabbed him in the back. Connor began choking on blood as he watched the Devil disappear in a red mist.

  Connor saw Adam begin to get up off the floor as his own sense slipped away and blue light overtook everything. Adam arrived by his side and propped him up. Adam shook Connor, yelling, “Connor, Connor!” to see if he would wake up. He checked for a pulse, but his wrist felt cold and lifeless. Warm tears poured onto Connor as Adam sobbed over him. Adam promised his dead body, “You’ll be okay.” Adam placed his hand on his chest and sent blue light shooting into Connor’s body as he rocked him back and forth. Adam began to pray to the Architect, as he had seen others do.

  When the blue light faded from Connor’s vision, he found himself suspended in the air upside down above Alice. She was in her blue dress standing in a grass field. He stretched his hand out to reach her.

  “Connor! Take my hand!” she screamed, jumping toward his hand.

  Connor reached toward her. He felt the tips of her fingers as they touched his. He felt like he was trying to escape a hole in the sky. Unexpectedly, blue light again enveloped everything, and he was pulled back into the hole. The blue light faded and Connor found himself in his bed with Adam sitting in his desk chair. Seeing Connor move, Adam immediately leapt to be by his side.

  “It worked! You’re alive!”

  “What happened?” Connor questioned, feeling weak and confused.

  “You died by a supernatural cause, which isn’t permitted. The Devil killed you. He is not allowed, according to the Architect’s rules.”

  “You brought me back?”

  “I pleaded to the Architect on your behalf, and he listened!”

  “How much time went by?”

  “A few minutes. Rest. Your soul has done more moving than anyone’s should.”

  “Why did I see Alice? Did I see Heaven?”

  “What you saw wasn’t Heaven. It was the world I’m creating.”

  “Then why did I see Alice?”

  “It wasn’t the first time I pleaded with the Architect. Alice did die here, but the Architect let me have her soul to help guide me. She is alive, or rather reborn, in the world I am creating. I’m modeling it after this one, but I still have a lot to learn.”

  “And did you plead with the Architect for my soul? Is that why I was going there?”

  “No. Your soul is made up of more energy from mine now. Somehow, you’re becoming like me the closer we become. Your soul will go there when you die unless something changes…”

  “I don’t get a say, Adam?! What about my parents? You make me feel so ignorant. You know all of this yet tell me nothing. What do I even know?! Does any of it matter? How do I not have any control over what happens to me?”

  “It matters. I can’t break the Architect’s rules, Connor. I can’t interfere, or I won’t be able to come here anymore. If I’m gone from this world, what will keep us connected?”

  “I want to see Alice.”

  “You can’t. You’re not allowed there unless you die.”

  CHAPTER 12

  Changes

  Connor stared down at his hands, folded on his lap, and looked at the green and blue lights dancing with ea
ch other. He rotated them and looked at his palms, as if the glow would fall to the floor like the mist it appeared to be. His light was permanently changed now. He had died and was caught between two worlds, only to be yanked back. How did the world expect him to be the same when it was so clear he wasn’t? The difference he felt inside was now on display to him externally. His entire life, he wanted to appear normal. Now the mirror showed him that there was no way to appear normal, even to himself.

  After Alice’s death and his death/resurrection, Connor coasted through each day, drained of joy. The school year was over. He barely remembered graduating. The numbness he had felt during his worst bouts of depression was now the only thing he knew. He remembered his name being called during the ceremony and a picture being snapped, and then the day ended like any other day. Throughout the past year he hadn’t thought about his future once. As high school approached its end, he should have focused on college and made a plan. Why didn’t he ever think of his future? He supposed he avoided it because he always thought he might not have one. Usually he had some sort of plan, but the arrival of Adam changed everything. Now the future was finally the present, and in life he would again have to move forward, in baby steps.

  All of his classmates applied and were accepted to colleges. He recalled them excitedly waiting for the mail, then bragging the next day about the caliber of school they would be attending in the fall. Connor never applied. The thought entered his mind, but he was unsure of how he could survive college when he had trouble getting through each day as it was.

  Connor’s depression made all of the joy he had experienced in life seem meaningless, but he knew it wasn’t. Alice’s friendship had meant the world to him, but even her cheery attitude couldn’t keep him from drowning once alone with his thoughts. Now, Connor felt more alone than ever. Adam stopped by randomly to check on him, but Connor never appeared happy to see him or responded to his questions with more than a word. Connor had waited for their connection to die as him and Adam grew apart, but it never did. Connor could feel him out there somewhere, and his light never changed back to solely green. His notebook, which had always been his savior from depression, laid empty on his desk.