by JL Bryan
Chapter Six
By the time he reached the small door at the top of the stairs, Jason was covered in a fresh layer of dirt. He pushed open the arched green door and faced an unexpected rush of bright sunlight. How could it be daytime? He'd only been gone a couple of hours, at most. It shouldn't be much later than midnight.
He poked his head out the door. It was definitely daytime, though still shadowy in Mrs. Dullahan's back yard. It wasn't early morning light, either, but the full brightness of midday or afternoon.
His parents were going to kill him.
Jason looked at the house. Mrs. Dullahan wasn't outside, thankfully, and the narrow windows were shuttered or hung with dark curtains. Maybe she wouldn't see him.
The tiny doorway didn't look big enough for Jason to fit through. He took the instruments off his shoulders, and he put the lute outside first, laying it carefully in the high weeds. Then he pushed the drum out, scraping it on both sides as he forced it out the door. He lay flat on the ground and just barely managed to squirm his way through the little doorway.
Once he was out, the door slowly swung closed, while both the doorway and the door itself shrunk back to their original, even smaller size, as if the doorway had stretched to let him out.
Jason got to his feet and brushed off leaves and dirt. He wondered how many hours had passed. He'd left Katie alone, scared of the “monster” she'd seen. How long had she been waiting for him?
He climbed one of the old trees and out on a limb over the wall, then switched to another tree and climbed down. The instruments were strangely heavy for their small size, and they’d already made his back and shoulders sore.
He trudged through the woods, feeling drained, eager to reach his own bed and collapse. He knew he wouldn't get it so easy, though, if he'd left Katie alone all night. He'd have to get yelled at for a long time before he could sleep.
Jason reached his back yard, and he stopped in the garage to hide the instruments. His dad had an old Corvette convertible under a tarp, which had been there about as long as Jason could remember. He tucked the instruments in the narrow space between the draped car and the garage wall.
Then he approached the door into the house, took a deep breath, and walked inside.
His father was in the living room watching a fishing show, and he immediately stood up when Jason walked in.
“He's back,” Jason's father announced. Jason's mother came down the short flight of steps from the kitchen. Katie trailed behind her, looking scared.
Jason's parents stood together and glared at him.
“Um...hi,” Jason said.
“Hi?” his mother said. “Hi? After what you put us through, all you can say is 'hi'?”
“I'm sorry,” Jason said.
“Where have you been, Jason?” his father asked.
“And who were you with?” his mother asked. “And why are you so filthy?”
“It's really hard to explain,” Jason said.
“I told you,” Katie spoke up. “He chased after the monster. The burglar monster. Cause it stoled your earrings.”
“Oh, yeah, I got your earrings back, Mom!” Jason took the ruby pair of earrings from his pocket.
“They're covered in dirt!” His mom took them from his soil-encrusted hand. “Why did you take these?”
“I didn't,” Jason said. “It was—”
“The monster!” Katie interrupted. “The monster stole them and Jason brought them back. Like he said he was.”
“Katie, go to your room,” his mom said.
“Why am I in trouble? What did I do?”
“You're not in trouble. Just go.”
“But, the monster—” Katie began.
“Listen to your mother, Katie,” his dad said. “We need to have a talk with Jason.”
Katie frowned and stomped up the stairs to the kitchen.
“You still haven't told us where you were,” his dad said.
“I was in the woods. A guy stole Mom's earrings, and I chased after him, and...”
“And what?” his mom asked.
“Then I got them back.”
“From where?” his dad asked. “Who was this person?”
“It's really hard to explain. Can I just go to bed? I'll try to explain later.”
“You will not 'just go to bed,'” his mother said. “We were worried sick. You left your cell phone here, too, so we couldn't call you. Were you with those wild kids from that band again?”
“They aren't that wild,” Jason said.
“Mildred Zweig?” she asked. “And the Schneidowski kid? That Kavanagh girl, with all the weird colored hair? What's that hair about, if she's not wild?”
“How wild can you get in Chippewa Falls, anyway?” Jason asked. “Wearing plaid socks that don't match? Ordering the Tutti Frutti ice cream at The Creamery, just because nobody else does?”
“Don't be a smartmouth,” his mom said. “What were you thinking, leaving your little sister alone like that? Don't you know she was terrified when we got home?”
“No, I wasn't!” Katie shouted down the stairs. “Cause Jason got rid of the monster!”
“Katie, go to your room!” his father shouted. “Jason, you're grounded. Obviously.”
“For how long?” Jason asked.
“We'll talk in a month.”
“But I have band practice. And our audition is Thursday—”
“You are not going to Minneapolis with those kids!” Jason's mother said. “Not after disappearing all night like that!”
Jason still couldn't understand how time had flown by so quickly.
“I don't want to hear anymore about this band nonsense,” his dad said. “As soon as your final exams are over, you're getting a summer job. You need something to keep you busy.”
“But I have to at least go to the audition with everybody,” Jason said.
“Jason, no,” his dad said. “Not one more word about it.”
“But they're counting on me—”
“You should have thought of that before you decided to leave your sister alone and spend the night out with your friends,” his mom said.
Jason realized it was pointless to argue anymore. If he told his parents he'd chased a goblin to the fairy world, he'd probably just get grounded even longer. And sent to a psychiatrist.
“Now, go and wash up,” his mom said. “You're dripping dirt all over my carpet. And stay in your room while we rest. We were up all night worried about you.”
