I would do anything to get it.

Anything.

There was a knock at the door and I didn’t answer, but it opened anyway. I glanced over to see Tito and Marlon looking at me from the doorway. Still angry at them, I turned over and covered my head with my arm. They didn’t get how serious I was, why should I talk to them? “Hey, Mike?” I heard Tito’s voice. I put my pillow over my ear.

“Leave me alone.” I mumbled. Through the pillow I could hear muffled footsteps and feel weight on my bed. I groaned, knowing I couldn’t just kick them out. “Michael, we’re sorry.” Marlin finally spoke after silence. Of course, they always say they’re sorry, but do they ever really mean it? I sat up my bed and gave them both a harsh glare. “You said you wanted to be famous, right?”

“Yeah, and you just laughed in my face. I don’t like that.” I replied. They shared a look and I furrowed my eyebrows. “What are you guys up to?” Marlon got up and moved closer to me, causing me to eye him strangely. “Would you really do anything for it?”

“Yeah of course!”

“Well… I heard of a way from some other cats… do you want to try it?”by now I was fully sitting up with my legs off the side of my bed. How did I know this wasn’t a trick? Something to just get my hopes up? What would they know anyway and why wouldn’t they use the way for themselves? “Sure…” I said cautiously. “What is it?”

---

Right now we were in the basement where it was dark and only candles. It was a little scary, but I could handle it. Marlon was on his knees beside me as Tito poured some white powdery stuff from his hands onto the floor in a weird shape. It was different shapes layered on top of each other, with a circle as the start of it all. I stared as he did it. It was odd. I was getting weird vibes, but I couldn’t tell if they were good or not, but they were definitely there when Marlon and Tito placed the candles on certain parts.

We didn’t tell mother or Joseph. I don’t know why, when I wanted to they just objected and pulled me to the basement. I don’t know what they’d say anyway, I’ve never seen or done anything like this. Marlon said this was an easy way to get what I wanted. Everyone wants to take the easy way, right?

“You ready guys?” Tito said as Marlon and he finally sat down on either sides of me. I nodded. “Go in the middle Michael, but don’t mess up anything up in there.” I stood up slowly, not wanting to disturb the silence that hung in the room. Heat radiated off of the candles and seemed to only stay in the middle of the circle. I kneeled down in the same position I was before and looked to Tito and Marlon for further instructions.

“Just relax, okay? Don’t move no matter what happens or say anything.” Marlon told me slowly as if it were truly important. “Yeah, I got it.” I replied. He nodded and Tito and he closed his eyes and stated saying words I weren’t able to make out. Marlon said this was the easy way. He said we would summon a higher power to help us. Some friends had told him about it and some other bigger celebrities had done it too. They told him how to do it, but he didn’t want to try it himself.

Why? Didn’t he want to be good like Joseph had wanted him to? Didn’t he want to fix all those mistakes he would usually make? I didn’t understand. He was either just being the best big brother ever or this was a trick and he was hiding something.

My eyes widened, but I didn’t say anything or make anymore movements as the fire on the flames began to grow and grow as Tito’s and Marlon’s chanting grew quicker. I was tempted to get up and run out of there. It grew hotter and hotter in the middle, and it started to get harder to breathe. I gulped. My mouth started moving, wanting to call out to my brothers, but I was scared something would happen even worse than now.

Suddenly I was engulfed in a white light, but it wasn’t the calm and serene kind that would be seen in movies and imitated as the light that would bring you to heaven. It was a blinding light with searing heat that made me want to rip off my clothes and jump in ice. I thought my clothes and hair would burn off, but it surprisingly didn’t. I couldn’t speak or move or open my eyes.

Finally I opened my eyes, but I wasn’t the same. I wasn’t in the basement with Tito in Marlon and I wasn’t a younger version of myself. I was how I was now, but I wasn’t anywhere either. Instead of white light, I was surrounded by darkness. In the distant I could make out some figures, but I couldn’t tell what exactly.

I had no feeling, physical or emotional. My thoughts—they just floated around in my head and I couldn’t truly focus on any of them. “Michael…” a voice rasped. It sounded like it was coming from those figures in the distance. I could only make out the outlines, but had this strange urge to go towards them. Not having much control, I started nearing them. I was beginning to see them clearer, but I didn’t understand fully until they called my name again.

They wore cloaks that were reddish brown. The hood was over their head, but long enough to cast a shadow over their true faces. It was probably too gruesome to even see or they wanted to hide their identity. I narrowed my eyes at them, gaining my feeling back. Laughter arose from them in a taunting matter as I did this and clenched my fists.

“What am I doing here? What do you want?” I asked through my clenched teeth. They shouldn’t be able to reach me. I was only away from home for less than a day and I was only at Neverland for a day and a half. I knew it was a bad idea to stay away for a week.

“You belong to us, Michael. Ever since that fateful day, you’re ours and you can never leave us.” They spoke in synchronized voices, all different tones. I could feel my heart rate quicken as I got angrier. “I’m not yours! I was a kid! I didn’t know the consequences, we didn’t know!” they just laughed again. “It’s too late now.” They rasped.

“What do you want from me?” I mumbled. “You tried to get away, Michael. You didn’t listen when we said don’t visit those hospitals and sick children and do another anchor concert. You didn’t listen; you didn’t obey, you must be punished.”

My eyes widened as they spoke and my body relaxed from its angry pose and tensed from worry. Punished? That could be anything. “What do you mean?”

They chuckled evilly, but instead of anger I felt fear. “We can do anything we want… we can hurt your friends, make you suffer with that medicine you so dearly need and hold on to…” I stare at them, wanting to see their faces. I wanted to run up to them and pull it off, but I couldn’t. I did and didn’t want to at the same time. What would I see? Something more horrible than what they make me do and say? “We can even kill you.”

My breath hitched and I couldn’t swallow. “W-what?”

“You heard us.” Something shone out from their shadowed faces. It was yellow but in an upward facing crescent. Were they…? I think they’re…

Smiling?

“I-I’m sorry.” I stuttered. I hate them. I’ve never felt this way about someone or something, but they were really pushing me. They want to hurt my friends, me—even kill me?! I can’t have that, I can’t let them do that. “It’s too late.”

I noticed that the darkness around us started to fade. I don’t know how darkness could fade without light, but it was doing it and I knew it meant I was leaving. “Please!” I cried out desperately. They always did this, toyed with me. They wanted to play with my emotions and break me. I hated it I hated them.

Why did I join them? Why did I want all of this so bad?

Why?

---

Slowly I opened my eyes and looked around. I was in a room, one that was familiar, but I don’t remember how I got there. Groaning, I sat up and tried to look around some more. My head was pounding. “Michael!” two voiced shouted. I flinched and looked the direction. It was Matt and his sister. “What happened?” I asked while rubbing my head. “You passed out from a high fever, my mom said. She said she was going to the store to get some medicine to help you. We wanted to call 911 but she said no so we just let you relax.”

I smiled at the two and nodded. I was glad they didn’t call the ambulance, there would have been a lot of unnecessary drama. That would have been something they liked. “Thanks guys.” I said. “I think we should call your mother and tell her I’m okay now.”

“Are you sure, Michael?” his little sister asked.

I smiled and rubbed her head. “Yeah, I’m sure.” There was something that caught my attention from the corner of my eye. I looked and opened my eyes wide. “We can do anything… even hurt your friends…” their voices echoed in my head. I just saw a shadow rush into the closet. “Guys, I think we should go outside.” I said, trying to get up quickly. Looking out the window, I saw that there was no longer a storm. There probably was never one like they all said. “Why Michael?” another shadow darted past and it seemed to be getting closer to Matt, hiding in the shadow his dresser cast. Matt looked up at me and I sighed. “I’ll try my best to explain it to you later,”

I grabbed both of their hands and they practically flew as I pulled them along with me. We were out of the house in a few seconds and I looked up at the window of the bedroom we were just in. There was a dark shadow looming there, but it didn’t seem like anything was casting it. But I knew what it was. “Hey, when your mom comes back, how about I give you guys a new house? Would you guys like that?”

They both smiled wide and in unison shouted, “YES!”

A/N: One last part after this.