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Henry The Doll

”Henry?” ,she said with a frail voice as the car drove away.
A crowd quickly gathered and someone screamed.
“Henry…?”
More people screamed, someone called the police. “Did anyone see the number of that car!?”, someone shout.
“H- Henry…?” But her son didn’t move, he just laid there –in a steadily growing puddle of blood. ”Henryyyy!!”

“Henry, it’s time to get up.”, she said as she moved the curtains and let the sun shine into the room. It smelled a bit of cloth and textile, but nothing a little fresh air couldn’t help.
A silent sound was heard from the bed when the quilt slid down from the body.
“Come on now hun.”, she said when the ruffed hair was turned against her. A pair of cold, dead eyes followed her as she went out from the room.

“Mom…”
“What is it darling?”
Their little girl turned her head to look at the person in the living room across the hall.
Her brother Henry was sitting in the sofa in front of the television, staring at it.
Then she turned her head back again, put her hand in front of her mouth and whispered in a low voice;
“Henry’s scaring me…”, was what she said.
That was when their mother put down her fork and took a good stare at her daughter.
“Millia! That is your brother!”, she said with a low, but still furious voice “How dare you say such a thing!?”
Millia shrunk in her chair under her mothers piercing eyes.
“But he’s been acting so weird lately! He never eats, he hasn’t said anything since he got home and he doesn’t go to school either! He’s just staring! –And that’s creeping me out!”
“Millia!”, her mother slammed her hands at the table.
“-Think now honey. Your brother was in a very bad accident just some month’s ago and he just got out of the hospital, it’s only natural that he’s a bit different at the start… from the shock you know.” ,her father continued, to calm the commotion.
“Thanks dear.” ,the mother said as she sat down again and the daughter kept quiet.
But every now and then during dinner, Millia threw an eye at her brother. He didn’t even watch the television… He just stared blankly in front of himself, not even once did he blink either…

“There now Henry, mom will help you.”
They stood in the bathroom and the mother started to undress her son.
“Now, now dear. You have to come out of it some time. But take your time, if we stress it you might get means of it later.”, she said as she undressed him.
Not even when she saw the stitches did she make a face. If I just continue like always, he will recover. As long as he doesn’t get upset he should recover just fine. –she thought.
“Now use the soap and wash yourself.” She said as she gave him the soap.
The boy just watched it, as if it’d be an alien object she had just handed to him.
Nice and steady, nice and steady… ,she thought and took the soap to help her son.

“Happy birthday!”
“Happy birthday Henry!”
Their mother and father completely shone of happiness and joy. On the other side of the table sat the little sister, Millia. She didn’t leave her brother with her eyes even for a second.
And he just sat there, same cold stare as always, not moving at all. His eyes were rested on the birthday cake in front of him.
Happy Birthday Henry 18 –it said with big letters under the burning candles.
“Oh, let us help you dear.” ,their parents said and with a glad “make a wish” ,their mother blew out the candles. Their father started cutting the cake.
“Not hungry?” ,they asked as Henry didn’t eat.
“Millia, eat your cake now.” ,their mother said.
Millia just stared at her sweet piece of pastry.
“Not hungry.” –she said.
“Eat your cake Millia!” ,their father said, as their mother started to get upset again.
“Not hungry!”, the little girl proclaimed.
“Millia! Eat your cake now!”
“Why do I have to, when he doesn’t!?” ,Millia shout back at her parents, who were now both burning red of anger.
“Millia! Your brother’s not feeling well!” ,her parents roared at her.
“Not feeling well!? He’s not feeling at all! He’s more of a doll then my barbies!”
“Millia!! You-“
-Suddenly it got quiet. A chair had sounded and Henry stood up.
“Henry…?” ,the mother said with a glint of hope. Her son, her little baby, he had moved!
For the first time in month’s he had moved! All by himself!
His cold eyes still stared firmly forward and slightly down, but now he moved. He walked, took step after step closer to his little sister.
Paralyzed, Millia sat on her chair. She was so shocked about her brother’s sudden showing of life and will -that she simply couldn’t move.
Without a word, without expression, Henry walked up to his little sister, faced her and then lifted his arms.
Millia suddenly screamed and the family’s state of paralyze let go of its grip.
Henry stood, with both hands around the neck of Millia, staring at her and choking her.
“Henry, what are you doing!?”, their mother shouted.
“Henry! –Henry!!”
But their boy didn’t react, his grip hardened around his sister’s throat and she started to turn pale.
“Henry! Henry let go of her!” ,their mother shout, but the boy was mad. He didn’t hear a word from his parents and just kept choking Millia.
Suddenly their father ran up from his chair and started trying to bend his boy’s hands open.
“Sarah! Sarah I can’t get his hands off her!” ,their father shouted with his voice brimming with panic.
“Henry, let go of your sister!” ,their mother screamed again. But their boy was just as untouched as before.
“Henry!”
Suddenly Henry let go of Millia and she fell to the ground. A fork was sticking out of his hand, held by his mother.
He looked at her, with his cold, dead stare. She cried, her face was red and her cheeks were drenched in tears. Then he looked at his sister, who was now held by their father, who shook her and tried to wake her up. Still not a sound from him.
“G- Go to your room!” –their mother shout at him.
He just stared at her firstly, then he started to walk towards the stairs.
“Sarah, call the hospital!” ,the father called as Henry disappeared up the stairs.

“H- he didn’t bleed…” ,the mother said. “he didn’t bleed…” –she repeated over and over again.
A week had passed and Millia came home from the hospital three days ago. Her brother had choked her so hard that her throat had broken. Now she had to wear a collar, to keep the throat from any excessive damage and she could only eat liquid food.
The family hadn’t seen Henry since the day the father had scolded him.
For hours he had shouted at the boy, threatened to raise his fists against him, to call the police about what had happened. But not a single reaction, not a twitch of an eyelid even.
So now they avoided him, they didn’t even know if he was in his room or not.
After another week, the mother couldn’t take it anymore. Her conscious was eating away at her mind and she had to check on her boy.
She opened the door, just as easily as ever. It had a lock… but it hadn’t been used for a long time. When she carefully peeked inside, her eyes spread open and her heart shivered.
Henry stood there, staring at her. Staring, with that same stare he had had since he got home from the hospital so long ago…
After a few moments of heart throbbing, the mother realised that he wasn’t staring at her. He just stared… Right in front of him.
“Henry…” she slowly said.
“If you promise to be a good boy, and never do it again… Wouldn’t you just come down and tell your sister that you’re sorry for what happened?”
A small time passed, then Henry moved.
His mother jumped and nearly gave up a shout when he did. Dust swirled a little and then fell to the ground as her son slowly moved.
In a hurry, the mother –almost ran, down the stairs to where the father and little sister were waiting.
After a while, Henry came.
Millia twitched as she saw her brother again and her father held her protectively.
“N- now Henry. Don’t you have something to say to your sister?”, their mother said.
Henry stared at her, then at is sister, who shivered even more.
They stood like that for a while, staring at each other. Then Henry turned around, to walk away. But their father got up and pulled his arm.
But he immediately let go as a tearing sound was heard and Henry hesitated a moment in his movements, but then he continued again, up the stairs –and into his room again.

Millia just looked at the mess in the hall. Cotton and stuffing everywhere in heaps. What had happened? Sounds of tearing of cloth could be heard from the living room and she carefully moved closer, then she screamed.
Her mother held a large knife in her hand, with which she stabbed Henry, who laid on the floor.
“Mom, what are you doing!?”
Her mother looked up from her stabbing, madness shining through her eyes as she looked at her little daughter.
“This isn’t my son.” ,she said.
“This isn’t my son…” Henry moved a little, and their mother screamed and then she started stabbing him again.
“This isn’t Henry! This isn’t my son!!”, she screamed repeatedly as the knife went in and out of Henry’s skin.
“Mom –you’re going insane! Stop it, you will kill him!”, Millia cried from the door.
“This isn’t Henry! This isn’t your brother!” ,her mother proclaimed as she kept on stabbing the boy on the floor.
“See!? There’s no blood! Only stuffing! –This isn’t your brother, IT’S A DOLL!!”, she screamed again and worked the knife even more frenetically.
But she was right, through the tears, Millia saw that there was not blood, the only thing gushing out of her brother’s body, was stuffing…

“I want my Henry back…”, the mother cried in the arms of her husband.
Henry had been stabbed through every inch of his skin. Stab wounds where everywhere on him and his joints had been bent in all kinds of different ways as the stuffing had leaked out.
“B- but he moved… He- he moved…” Millia said.
“Henryyyy!!!”, the mother screamed.

Henry, her son, had died that day at the accident with the runaway driver. The ambulance had taken his body to the hospital, but he was already dead, long before they got there.
His body had disappeared and later it had been found, but then it was alive.
Someone thought the death had been a mistake, the boy was alive, he was moving. Even though acting a bit strange, but that was only because of the trauma…

A dark shadow moved alone in the night. Not quite alone although… Thrown over its shoulder, was a bag of something… Something rather large at mass, but light to carry…
“Henry… what happened to my son…” the father said as he threw his burden into the deep ravine. Some cracking later, like the sound of bones that breaks, the content of the bag had reached the bottom, never to be found again.

-End

written by
Konani O_o

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