The Notebook

I opened my eyes to sunlight filtering through my bedroom curtains, as it had most mornings since living here. Dust particles danced in the rays and entertained my groggy mind as I mentally prepared myself for another day.

The door opened with a squeak as I made my way to the bathroom to wash my face and brush my teeth. Every step taken in this old home seemed to set off a chain reaction of creaks and groans from the floorboards to the walls and beyond.

It’s oddly comforting to know the house must have spoken like this to you, too, Grandpa.

It wasn’t until after breakfast that I let reality seep in. Inheriting my grandfather’s home a month ago couldn’t have come at a better time; I was failing to make ends meet and could barely afford to feed myself. However, as his only living family member, I didn’t realize the burden of assuming his home and all of the memories inside. Not traveling to see him in years, knowing he was alone, didn’t sit well with me, either. In all honesty, I didn’t have the money to do so and couldn’t bear to drop my pride to admit I was struggling.

I guess we all live with regret at some point. I turned towards the staircase leading to my grandpa’s bedroom. Clearing out his clutter was emotionally draining enough, but up until this point I hadn’t been able to muster up the courage to touch anything in his bedroom.

“Today is the day,” I encouraged myself as I headed into his room.

It’s safe to say that in my grandpa’s old age, he had become somewhat of a hoarder. Without my grandma to keep him in order, the room was filled with piles of things that hadn’t been there years ago when I had last visited. As I began to sort everything, tears flooded my eyes. Between the mess of random knick-knacks and trinkets, I found an album of pictures of me, my parents, and my grandparents from long ago. Later on, I discovered the stuffed animal elephant I had slept with whenever I had sleepovers with my grandparents. Even holding my grandpa’s favorite tie made me teary-eyed.

The evening sky signaled that I had done enough for one day. Maneuvering my way out of the stacks of junk proved to be a challenge, though; my elbow knocked a stack of books to the floor, and I tipped over a box while attempting to undo the first incident.

“Whatever,” I huffed, deciding to leave everything as is before I made more of a mess. While stepping past the books I had just scattered, a small black notebook in the jumble caught my eye, and I grabbed it on my way out.

I started skimming through the pages and recognized my grandpa’s handwriting.

“Opening this notebook is an instant portal to another world,” I began reading.

So, you liked to write? That is a pretty fancy way to begin a story, Grandpa. Pausing to look out the window toward the nearby pond reminded me that I needed to hurry if I wanted to enjoy the sunset from the dock. I tossed the notebook on my couch as I headed out the door. Walking to the pond, I glanced in the direction of the road leading to my grandpa’s neighbors.

I guess this summer weather has really taken over the foliage. It’s already impossible to see through the leaves to the other houses. My shoes came off as soon as I reached the dock. It had become a daily ritual of sorts to watch the sun lower itself from the sky as my toes enjoyed the coolness of the water. The tranquil moment was broken by a splash on the other side of the pond, and I looked over to see something large swimming rapidly toward me. My body refused to move, maybe out of fear or maybe out of disbelief. I was far too fixated on the giant rushing towards me to even notice the sound of footsteps pounding behind me.

“Are you trying to become someone’s dinner?” a gravelly voice boomed behind me as I was suddenly lifted high above the pond. Not a moment later, the dock was plowed through by whatever beast was hidden in the water. Shocked, I turned to the voice. Holding me a story above ground was a humanoid creature made out of stone and covered in moss. At this point, I was pretty sure I was going to faint.

“Wha- What is happening?” I stammered.

“Don’t you have eyes, kid?” snorted the rocky figure. “Humans don’t seem to have any sense of self-preservation. Those serpents are bad news.” He pointed with his free hand toward the pond. The serpent had raised its head a few feet out of the water, glaring right at us. Its red scales were gleaming in the last of the sun’s rays. My thoughts were completely disheveled.

“Am I dreaming? Where did you come from? Why are you here?” I needed answers.

“I’ve always lived in these parts. I should be asking you where you came from.” replied the creature.

“I mean, I’ve been living here for just about a month now, but I’d think I would have noticed something like you or that serpent before.”

“Us golems are pretty hard to miss when we’re resting,” he chuckled.

I really hope this guy didn’t save me just so he could eat me instead. I shuttered.

“Well, I better be on my way.” The golem placed me a safe distance away from the pond.

“Th- Thank you,” I said as he started walking down the road, relieved that the interaction ended. The ground slightly shook with each step he took. It wasn’t until he disappeared that I realized the road wasn’t anything more than a dirt path.

How did I not notice this? That road has been paved for as long as I can remember! A screech echoed from a group of trees located past the pond, disrupting my thoughts. Frightened, I started running towards the safety of my home as fast as I could. Once inside, I locked all of the doors and windows before allowing myself to rest. Surprisingly, I nodded off almost as soon as I huddled in bed.

Sunlight had barely begun to enter my room before I awoke the next morning. Sleep had emptied my mind of yesterday’s events, so I didn’t question what had coaxed me awake prematurely before rolling over to snooze some more. Moments before dozing off again, a loud scraping noise caused me to launch myself upright.

“What could that even be?” I whispered, worried the noise might be coming from inside. Everything that had happened yesterday started flooding my mind. I hugged my knees to my chest while trying to fight back tears. The noise started to grow louder, sounding like it was coming from the roof.

What do I do? Brainstorming, I pushed past my fear for a solution. The first thing that came to my mind seemed like the smartest option, so I rushed as stealthily as I could to my cell phone and dialed 9-1-1.

After several attempts, I still heard nothing and realized my phone and internet were disconnected.

“You have got to be kidding me,” I grumbled. At this point, I didn’t know if it was better to hide or to try to spot the culprit. More scratching started on scattered points of the rooftop, pushing me to investigate. Although peeking out the window felt almost like a death sentence, I peered cautiously over the sill and distinguished many differences in the landscape that I had failed to notice the day prior: there were more trees, both singular and in clusters, everywhere; the already-neglected lawn was overrun with plants I didn’t recognize; and substantial mounds of rock loomed in places they hadn’t been previously. Several minutes passed before I saw movement; something was flying towards my home. Shortly, the object became clear: a feline body, slightly larger and more muscular than a house cat with the head and wings of an owl, swooped overhead. A couple more flew in and landed on the rooftop. It wasn’t clear what should be done with my newfound information, so I continued observing.

My attention was pulled away by a rhythmic vibration felt through the floor that quickly turned into shaking.

“Earthquake?” I asked myself, unsure of what to do.

“Get away from here!” hollered a familiar, gritty voice as the world stabilized. I ran to a window closer to the uproar to find the same rocky giant from the day before. He was swatting above the roof, making all of the owl-hybrid creatures fly away. The scraping sounds had finally come to an end. I decided he was probably the closest thing I had to an ally, so I made my way out the front door.

“Hey!” I yelled from my porch, grabbing his attention as he started walking away. He turned to me and squinted.

“What are you doing at the old man’s house?” he questioned accusingly. I was caught off guard by the mention of my grandfather.

“Oh, I, um-” The golem cut me off before I could find my words.

“I protect this place when he’s gone,” he snapped as he confronted me. “I won’t tolerate you, or anything else, intruding on his home.”

“Do you mean my grandpa? He left this home to me,” I paused for a moment to restrain the sorrow that came with the rest of the sentence, “because he passed away recently.” The golem’s facial expression softened.

“He will be very missed.” A twinge of sadness could be heard in his voice. “I apologize for my hostility.”

“You couldn’t have known. It’s understandable,” I assured him. “I do have a question, though.”

“What is it?”

“Did my grandfather ever say how he got here or maybe how he would leave?” I queried. The golem thought quietly for a few moments.

“Unfortunately, I don’t believe so. I would ask how he got around so well in his old age, and he would laugh and say his notebook was all he needed for a journey.”

“I see,” I frowned, discouraged.

“Maybe he wrote down the directions in there. Anyway, I need to be on my way.” I thanked him and we said our goodbyes as he walked off. This time, I was disappointed to see the golem go. For the first time in a while, I felt a sense of connection with another being.

I’m sure I’ll see him again. I smiled to myself.

After spending the remainder of the day sorting through more of my grandpa’s bedroom, I opted for a much safer place to view the sunset and headed to my couch. I sat next to the small black notebook, lying open as it had landed the day before. Suddenly, the golem’s words hit me.

“Maybe he wrote down directions in there,” I recited as I picked up the notebook. Taking more time to study the handwritten pages, most turned out to be a guide on a variety of creatures, including the few I had come across.

As great as this may be while I’m stuck here, I’m not finding anything. I sighed and skipped to the last page, which was nearly blank.

Similar to the very first line, it read, “Closing this notebook is an instant portal back to your founding world.” I stared at the words in disbelief, realizing the notebook hadn't been shut since I had opened it.

You can’t be serious! Is closing this thing really all it’s going to take?!

Standing in front of the window, I folded the cover closed and watched as the scenery around me melted back into a familiar place.