My Curse

By the time I figured out what he was, it was too late

15 Years Earlier

I met my husband when I gave him a job. I'm the owner and chef of the homie little restaurant in Louisiana. My restaurant had everything you'd expect in Louisiana. He claimed to love cooking and I needed a dishwasher.

He kept the job for a year before he said he wanted more. He wanted to cook, and I needed some help. So I started teaching him simple dishes and eventually he knew every dish and was just as good as me.

Then he invited me to his house. He cooked the best food I have ever tasted. He could cook the entire time. He stayed as a dishwasher because he had just came from another restaurant that fired him for being a bad cook. How could they ever say he wasn't good. I fell in love.

At year 2 we moved in together. We got an apartment near the restaurant. We would switch weeks. He cooked and I cleaned, the second week I cooked and he cleaned. It worked for us. We always worked at the same time. And we always took the same time off.

We spent a full 5 years together, both in working life and private life. We had laughs and cries. Spent time cooking for each other, he taught me things and I taught him things. He didn't know how to make macarons so I taught him.

After 5 years of always working, we finally took a vacation across the country, we visited every state. The Space Needle, The Washington Monument, The Great Lakes, etc. When we were in Disneyland, in front of the castle, he proposed to me. I said yes.

It took another year to plan and have the wedding. I didn't want it into a church and I didn't want it during Mardi Gras. We booked an event place in the country. It had green hills, a playground for the kids, and a beautiful lake. We hired chefs to make everything, we didn't want to cook all the food and the cake for our wedding. Our cake was big enough to make for 200 people, it had owls everywhere.

It took another 2 years to get pregnant. It took 2 long years to spend 48 hours in labor and to have twins, a boy, and a girl. I was blessed. My babies never cried unless they were hungry.

On their 4th birthday we had a party for them. They wanted cupcakes instead of a cake decorated with My Little Pony and Hot Wheels. They were smart for their age. In preschool, they measured 2 levels above normal.

At the end of their party, a car drived by and shot a gun. No one got hurt... except for my daughter. She got shot straight in the head. I later found out that my husband was in a gang. He left in the worse way. He always said he was sorry but I couldn't forgive him.

I never let him back in my restaurant. I never let him see my son again. Not even on his birthday. He lost his sister, I lost my daughter.

I couldn't protect my son any longer, not from this. I eventually forgave my husband. I loved him, unfortunately.

At his 7th birthday, we had the first party since his sister. I watched every car that passed by, never lost track of my son. He had a good time. At the end of the party, I turned my back for 1 minute and I hear... bullets.

I pray, pray so hard that he is protected. I pray every God and Goddess that will listen. I pray to help my son. I look at my son and I see him collapse.

I scream

By the time I figured out what he was, it was too late.

I run to him and to the bullets. I reach where my son was and there was an... owl... a barn owl... No bullets, just an owl. I pick him up and see that his colors are coordinating with his clothes.

My son is an owl.