Everything Ends

Jennifer stopped running through the forest after doing so for what seemed like eternity.  She had no idea where she was, why she was here, or who was chasing her. All she knew was that running for so long of a time made her very hungry.  Desperately, she looked around for something to eat, and her eyes settled on a tall apple tree.  Jennifer picked a couple and ate them as she leaned against a maple tree while watching mother nature take its course. 

She could see the sun was setting through the bright red leaves of the forest trees.  It was a cold October evening -  so cold that she could see the white puffs of steam coming out of her mouth. Soon it would be nighttime.  That meant that the temperature would fall so dramatically that she might get hypothermia.  Thus, she gathered up numerous dead brown leaves among the forest floor and pushed them all over her body as she lay down on the cold black dirt.

Jennifer became worried that "the man" or one of his "best friends" would find her.   What would she do?  She began searching for something sharp -  like a twig or a stone.  Her hand enclosed on a smooth metal oval-shaped rock.  Then, she remembered that it was a swiss army knife which she stole from the house as she made her escape.  After shrugging off practicing how to use the knife, Jennifer concluded that when the time came, she would know how to use it.  Being thoroughly exhausted did not ameliorate her survival instinct.  She began to become indifferent to her anxieties and needs.  Finally, the silent sinister hand of sleep had stricken her.

She dreamed about the past; how she got here.  She relived all the major milestones that happened   in her life.  She dreamt that when she was in high school, her mother got into a car accident and died, in October.  She dreamt her father exploding and being constantly angry, in October. She dreamt of after not being able to deal with her father, dropping out of school, in October.  She dreamt of  running away from home, in October.  She dreamt of the termination of her career as a lounge singer after being signed by a major record company, in October.  She dreamt of her first album staying at the number one slot for eight weeks, after being released in October.

After she became such a big star, Jennifer decided to make up with her father. She went to her former home frequently to visit her father.  Unfortunately, her father was sick.  Diagnosed with Alzheimer's in October, Jennifer's father had no ideal who this adult woman who continuously showed up at his house.

Jennifer loved her father, and wished that she hadn't run away.  But she loved singing and making music even more.  After all, she was the new rock sensation; often compared in popularity  as the Beatles of her generation.  Nobody could get enough of her, especially the old brown Chevrolet.

Everywhere she went, a brown Chevrolet followed her.  When she went on tour, a brown Chevrolet followed her bus.  When she went to visit her father, a brown Chevrolet followed her. After months of this happening, Jennifer started worring that someone bad might happen to her. Then, she never saw the old brown car again. 

A couple of days later, she went to visit her father, as she did every Thursday night.  After pounding on the door continuously, her father opened it and invited her in.  Jennifer sat down on the couch as her father started to speak to her.

"Who are you and what do you want?  I know why you're hear.  You've come to rob me."

"No! It's me Dad.  Remember, Jennifer.  Your only daughter," she replied.

"How can I have a daughter? I don't even have a wife.  Get away from me! I'll call the cops."

"I swear I'm your daughter.  Dad, settle down. I brought you a present." Jennifer cried.

"I don't want your present.  It's probably a bomb."  He ran to the kitchen and got out a vegetable cleaver.  "Don't make me use this, " He shouted, "Just drop the bomb and we'll take care of you."

"What are you talking about? Who is `We'?"

"Everything's going to be fine.  Just drop the bomb. This policeman will look after you."  Her father continued.

"What police officer?"  Jennifer screamed.  "Who else is here?"

A man in a police outfit walked out from behind the bathroom door with a gun in his hand.  He pointed the barrel at her and said, "Move and I'll shoot. Come with me."  He motioned her to walk to the garage.  As she walked, Jennifer saw an old brown Chevrolet parked in there.  The man then blindfolded, gagged, and handcuffed Jennifer.  The last thing she felt was a piece of cold metal hiting her head.

She dreamt of awaking in a bedroom with the man opening her door.  She dreamt about the man throwing hisself on top of her.  She dreamt of her hand grasping a TV Remote and she smacked it across the man's head.  She dreamt about the loud crunching sound as alarm clock met head.  She dreamt about running down the stairs and finding the door.  She dreamt that she took a swiss army knife as she bolted out the door.  She dreamt about running forever.

Jennifer awoke to the sound of a dog barking.  Looking into the distance, she saw a black doberman chasing after her.  Jennifer's first instinct was to run.  Unfortunately, her legs locked up.  Her second instinct was to fight.  After remembering the swiss army knife, Jennifer reached into her pocket, took it out, and opened the blade.  Meanwhile, the doberman stopped about four feet in front of her.  Both man and animal were waiting for the first attack.  Animal was first, and Jennifer felt her skin open up as the dog bit her.  Man was second,  and the dog whimpered for a second as Jennifer leapt forward and dug the knife right into the dogs eye.  She stood up triumphantly, and as she did this, she felt something bite her chest. 

Jennifer  looked down and saw blood spurting out of her  chest. After glancing up and seeing the man with the gun fifty feet away,  Jennifer lost the capacity to stand and so she fell to the ground.  Then, the man walked up to her and said, "Did you actually think that you could escape me?  You should have killed me when you had the chance."  He looked around at the forest and then said, "Don't you love October? Everything ends.  The birds fly south and party all night long in Miami.  The animals are getting ready to sleep through the long cold night.  Even I feel like I have to end things."  He then pointed the barrel at Jennifer.

Jennifer looked up at him and whispered,  "Why me?"

"Why not you?" The man shouted back at her.  "Why does it even have to happen in the first place?  Why do the leaves change color?  Why doesn't the whole world get together and declare peace?  The truth is that something makes all of us crazy.  For me, it's October.  Mother nature mesmerizes me by making the whole world turning shades of red, yellow, and green.  Every other month, I'm just a dead brown leaf trying to fade away on the autumn floor. I wake up, go to work, come home, and go to sleep.  But not in October.  Everything ends in October." And with that, Jennifer saw him pull the trigger.  How she loved that miserable month.