A Beautiful Monster

“Uh, Connie, maybe we should turn back?” Jacob suggested as he scanned the surrounding trees.

“Don’t be a wuss. It’s around here somewhere,” Connie said as she trudged up the hill.

You’ve been saying that for an hour now, Jacob thought as he continued to follow Connie.

As the two 12-year-olds continued their trek, Jacob turned back towards the direction of home. It had taken a few hours, but the pair had finally reached the deepest parts of the forest. From where they were, Jacob could just make out their hometown through the thick treeline. The dull colors of the distant town were barely visible through the mixture of red and brown leaves, the changing leaves signaling the arrival of fall.

“Um, it’s gonna be dark soon and our parents are gonna get worried,” Jacob mused as he squinted.

“Look, we’ve gotten this far. Don’t you want to know what I found?” Connie asked.

Jacob didn’t bother to remind her that she had technically forced him to come along.

Until a few weeks ago, he would never have set foot into the forest. The whole reason he was even here was because of Connie.

Jacob and Connie were supposed to be cousins, but until recently, neither had known the other even existed.

Connie’s family had been living in another town when her parents suddenly decided to move to the same town as Jacob’s family. Being the same age, Jacob and Connie found themselves attending the same 7th grade class.

When the school year began, Connie quickly distinguished herself from the other kids by constantly getting into trouble and having wild adventures.

Jacob didn’t pay her much attention as he didn’t find Connie’s activities all that interesting. Sure, he liked reading books about and drawing pictures of nature, but he preferred staying indoors rather than braving the wilderness.

Jacob was enjoying his comfortable life until the day Connie took notice of him.

Without warning, Connie took Jacob along with her to the outer fringes of the forest. Despite only going a few feet into the woods, Jacob didn’t find the outing pleasant. After it was over, he hoped that it would only be for that one time.

But as time passed, Connie began dragging him out on deeper trips into the forest. Despite all the time they spent together, Jacob still didn’t consider Connie as family.

Rather, he felt that she brought him along because she knew he didn’t have the will to resist her.

Jacob wasn’t very good at conversations, much less arguments, and Connie knew it. Which is why he was currently trekking through the woods on a Monday evening.

“Connie, look, this is fun and all, but could you just tell me what we’re doing out here? Otherwise, I’m just gonna go home…”

Before Jacob could continue, Connie suddenly came to a stop. Jacob, surprised by the abruptness, almost crashed into her.

Connie, after giving Jacob a look of mild annoyance, proceeded to crouch down. She signaled Jacob to follow suit. Shuffling along the dirt path, they both hid behind some thick bushes.

“Well, we’re here,” Connie whispered as she pointed to something past the bushes. “This is what I found the other day.”

Jacob shifted next to Connie and peeked over the bushes. Several hundred feet ahead of their position was a small cave.

“Wait, Connie. You brought me out here to explore another empty hole?” Jacob asked.

“This isn’t like the rabbit burrow. It’s not abandoned.” Connie gestured towards the forest floor. “Look at that.”

Jacob followed her finger towards the ground. All Jacob could see were dead leaves, trampled grass, a few bugs crawling about and… a tuft of white fur.

“Wait, white fur?”

“Exactly. There shouldn’t be anything living out here with white fur,” Connie explained. “When I first found the cave, there was no one home, but I made sure to remember the way back to it so that I could come today and find out what lives here.”

“Hold on, you didn’t explore the cave already? Why?” Jacob was surprised Connie hadn’t already looked into the cavern. Connie usually was quick to explore anything mysterious.

“Well, it was getting dark by the time I found it. No sense staying out in the dark. Plus,” Connie flashed a smile, “I figured having you with me might be useful. You know a lot about animals, and I needed someone to come with me into the cave.”

Ah, now it all makes sense. Honestly, Jacob should have expected Connie to bring him along for her convenience.

“Welp, we still got a few more hours of sunlight. Let’s get to it,” Connie proclaimed as she got out her flashlight.

As Connie began to step out of the bushes, Jacob silently groaned at the thought of climbing down another dank, dirty cave.

He was about to stand up and follow when out of the corner of his eye, he noticed something moving in the brush nearby.

Without thinking, Jacob grabbed Connie’s arm and pulled her back behind the bushes.

“Hey, what was that for?” Connie was about to protest further when Jacob put his finger against his lips and gestured towards the moving brush.

Both of them turned their gaze towards the sounds of something approaching the cave.

What emerged from the greenery was nothing they’d ever seen before.

The creature was the size of a bear and had four legs, but the front pair had four digit paws while the back legs had hooves. It had a long body, but the front half was stocky while the bottom half was leaner. It was covered in white fur and had a mane which covered its head. The only discernible feature Jacob and Connie could see of its face was a small black nose on its medium length snout.

Jacob and Connie could only look in awe at the strange creature as it began to tread towards the cave entrance.

Jacob was so shocked by its appearance that he began to lean forward to get a better look.

Unfortunately, as he wasn’t paying attention to his feet, he stepped into some branches, causing them to snap loudly.

Jacob froze as he felt Connie flinch behind him. He then looked up to see if the creature had seen him.

It had.

The creature had stopped right before the entrance of the cave when it heard the noise.

As it turned to face the two tweens, Jacob got a good look at its face.

While its mane had hidden the creature’s face from the side, it was no longer obscured being directly looked at. It looked like a mixture of several animals, having characteristics of a cat, a dog, and a raccoon. But what struck Jacob was its eyes. Its right one was blue while the left one was yellow.

He had also seen plenty of pictures of animals whose faces had been captured by photographers. He had always noticed the alarm in their frozen eyes.

But instead of the usual emotions Jacob expected an animal to express, the creature regarded him and Connie with an intelligence Jacob had not expected.

Its gaze seemed to penetrate Jacob’s mind as he found himself getting lost in the deep colors of its irises.

At that moment, Jacob felt no fear, only a strange fascination that he had never felt for anything or anyone else before.

Then the creature turned away and crawled into the darkness of the cave.

For several minutes, Jacob and Connie didn’t move, still trying to comprehend what they had just seen. Connie was the first to come to her senses.

“What was that thing?!” Connie peeked over the bushes, hoping to catch a glimpse of the creature again. “I’ve never seen anything like that before! Do you think it’s some kind of new species or something?”

“I’m not sure. But whatever it was, it sure was beautiful.”

Connie gave Jacob a confused expression, but then quickly dismissed it. She gazed at the open mouth of the cave.

“Maybe we should get a closer look.” Connie began to stand up, but Jacob suddenly grabbed her right arm.

“No. I think we should go,” Jacob said.

Connie turned and gave him a frown. “What? Why?”

Jacob simply pointed at the sunset on the horizon before continuing. “It’s gonna be dark soon and we don’t want to be wandering around when that happens. It isn’t safe.”

Connie opened her mouth to protest but realizing that Jacob had a point, she submitted.

The two then proceeded to head back to town.

Throughout the walk, Jacob couldn’t stop thinking about the creature. It wasn’t just its appearance that struck him, but also the way it looked at him.

When their eyes met, Jacob felt some sort of connection with the creature, like he knew it wasn’t just some dumb animal.

In its pupils, he saw curiosity, interest, and empathy. For a moment, it was almost human-like.

She looked almost human-like.

“How do you know it’s a she?” Connie asked.

“I’m sorry, what?”

“You’ve been gushing about that thing for the last few minutes.”

Jacob blinked in surprise. Had he really said all that out loud and didn’t even notice?

“I guess I can’t blame you. That thing was pretty cool. I mean, did you see that mane? It was almost like a lion’s. And what about those eyes? I didn’t know animals could have different colored eyes.”

Yeah, it was pretty amazing, Jacob thought. It was nice that he and Connie agreed on something for once, though he didn’t say so out loud.

They continued to stride back the way they came for a little while before Connie spoke up again.

“You know, no one would believe us if we told them. Even me, and I’m pretty good at telling stories.”

Connie’s comment definitely was true. After all, who would believe two middle schoolers that some unique wildlife was currently living in the woods?

Definitely not their parents and even the other kids in their class wouldn’t believe them, even if Connie was the one to tell them.

Yet Jacob didn’t dislike the idea of no one else knowing, but him and Connie. The creature would be a secret; yeah, a secret that would almost exclusively belong to him.

The thought that he would be able to see the creature without anyone else’s knowledge actually sounded pretty good.

Jacob smiled at the idea.

“Well, the next time we come here, we should take a camera. If we take a few pictures, then we’d have proof and could show it to everyone at school.”

Jacob froze upon hearing this.

“Heck, if we show them to the whole town, we’d be heroes. Imagine how famous we’d get!”

“No!”

Connie stopped and looked back at Jacob with a confused expression. “What, why?”

Jacob was just as surprised as she was by his declaration; he didn’t know where he suddenly found the spunk. All he knew at the moment is that he didn’t want anyone else but them to know about the creature.

“I mean, if we showed people photos, they’d probably just think we edited them or something. Plus, even if they believed us, do you really think we’ll get credit for finding her? Someone else will probably get all the credit while we get nothing.”

Jacob winced at how weak his explanation sounded, but he hoped that appealing to Connie’s ego would dissuade her from taking pictures.

Unfortunately, his words had little effect.

“Well, then we just need to take a lot of photos. Oh, maybe we can find some of its fur,” Connie proposed. Jacob sighed in exasperation.

Okay, let’s try something else, Jacob thought as he decided to appeal to her humanity.

“Connie, if people realize this thing is up here, they might put her in a cage. It might have to spend the rest of its life in a zoo exhibit. Or worse, people might think she’s dangerous and try to kill her.”

If that happened, then I’d never see her again.

“Then we can sneak it back home and keep it as a pet. We can take turns taking care of it,” Connie responded cheerfully. Jacob, however, found her answer infuriating as he clenched his fists.

“No, we’re not doing any of that! We’re not telling anybody!” Connie jumped at his outburst then glared at him in extreme annoyance.

“Dude, what’s your problem?”

“My problem? My problem is that I don’t want anyone else to know about her. I don’t want anyone else to see her but me. That creature… she’s one of a kind and I’m technically the one who saw her first. So I get to decide what we do with it.”

“Hey, I was there too, you know,” Connie put her hands on her hips, “Which means I have as much right as you do to decide what we do with it!”

“Oh, of course, you get the final say. Like always!”

“What? What are you talking about?!”

“You always do this! You drag me around on your stupid adventures, get me into trouble all the time, and make all the decisions like you’re the boss or something.”

“But I thought you liked hanging out with me. You never said anything.”

“When did I ever say that I liked doing this? In case you haven’t noticed, I was fine reading books by myself. Then you came along and made everything complicated.”

“Wait, me? What did I ever do?”

“That’s my point. You’ve always been pushing me around. And I let you. Maybe because I was stupid or timid or something, I don’t know. But you want to know what I do know?

“No, what?”

“You don’t care. You don’t care about anyone but yourself. It’s all about what you want, what you think. Even now, you’re acting like your opinion is the only one that matters, pretending like I don’t exist.”

“What? Jacob, I do know you exist. Because we’re cousins. We’re family. You know that, right?”

“We’re not family. If you were, you’d have listened to me for once. At least once. But you never have.” Jacob took a deep breath after his vent.

Considering how long he had been holding his feelings in, it felt good to finally let it all out. Even if Connie wouldn’t listen, it was nice to finally tell it to her face.

Jacob looked back at Connie, expecting her to yell at him.

But he was surprised to see Connie with a hurt expression on her face. Connie opened her mouth to say something, hesitated, then began to speak.

“Jacob, is that what you really think? That I’m just here to make your life miserable? That I only keep you around because I think that you’re useful or something?”

Jacob nodded. Connie rubbed her left arm as she looked to the ground.

“Jacob. I’m really sorry.” Jacob looked at Connie as if she was a complete stranger. He had never heard her apologize to anyone before, not even to the teachers.

“You’re right, I guess I can be difficult and stubborn at times. But I don’t do it on purpose. It’s not like I’m trying to be mean,” Connie lifted her head back up and looked Jacob dead in the eyes. “Do you want to know why I wanted to hang out with you?”

Again, Jacob nodded.

“Before I moved here, I used to pull pranks at my old school too. Everyone said I was the funniest kid in class. But no matter what I tried, I didn’t get any friends. So, when Mom and Dad told me we were moving here, I didn’t think things would be any different. But when they told me I had a cousin the same age as me, I was so happy. I finally had the chance to make a real friend.”

Connie gave an awkward smile before continuing, “Jacob, when I first saw you, you were reading that book about birds that live in the rainforest. Sitting there all alone, you seemed kind of lonely. I thought that you might want a friend like me. That’s why I took you with me so many times to the forest. I hoped that if we spent enough time together, you might learn to love it. That you might grow to like me.”

Jacob couldn’t believe what he was hearing. Here was the girl who has constantly been ordering him around, yet she was now spilling her guts out for him.

“Well, are you going to say anything?” Connie rubbed her right arm this time, “This is what you wanted to hear me say, right? That I’m sorry? C’mon, say something.”

Jacob was honestly not sure what to feel at the moment. Several emotions came and went as he tried to decide what to say next.

Connie apologizing did come as a surprise, but not an unwelcome one. There was something about her voice and manner that definitely seemed sincere. Accepting her apology didn’t seem like a bad idea.

Yet, he also felt strangely empowered seeing Connie this vulnerable. Perhaps he could get something more out of this opportune situation.

“I’ll accept your apology… but only if you promise to keep the creature a secret.”

“What?” A flash of indignation returned to her eyes as Connie scowled. “Seriously? After everything I said, all you can think about is that stupid thing?”

“What, all you have to do is make one simple promise and I’ll accept your apology,” Jacob said as he raised his hands in a dismissive way.

“I can’t believe you!” Connie shouted as she began to storm back down the path. Jacob cupped his hands at her retreating back.

“So was everything you said a moment ago just all talk?”

“I meant every word that I said, even what I thought about you,” Connie turned to shoot him a reproaching look. “But I guess I gave you too much credit.”

Connie then continued walking as Jacob shouted one more question, “So are you going to leave the creature alone or not?”

Jacob didn’t get a reply.

For the next few days, Jacob and Connie didn’t speak. Jacob went back to his corner at the back of the classroom and found some new books about mammals.

Similarly, Connie went back to troublemaking and bragging about her daring escapades to the other students.

Jacob noticed that Connie didn’t mention anything about the creature.

Well, that’s good I suppose, Jacob thought, trying to seem indifferent.

Truthfully, it did bother him slightly that he and Connie were on bad terms.

As the days continued to pass, Jacob became more and more uncomfortable trying not to look at Connie.

It didn’t feel right to leave things like this between them. Before he knew it, it was already next week.

But Connie didn’t come to school.

At first, Jacob assumed she had skipped classes to go on another exploit.

But then he began to hear rumors that Connie had disappeared over the weekend.

None of the teachers, the students, or even her parents knew where she had gone.

Wonder where she went, Jacob pondered before a sudden realization hit him. No, she couldn’t have gone back, right? Right?

Afterschool, against his better judgment, Jacob went back into the forest. Even though Connie had been leading the way, he remembered the path clearly. Well, mostly.

After several hours of tripping, sliding, and backtracking, he found himself approaching a familiar bush.

I’m probably wrong. Maybe she didn’t come here after all.

He took a deep breath as he peeked over the leaves. What he saw made his heart stop.

The clearing and the cave were almost exactly the same as last time.

Except there was a girl lying facedown on the ground.

“Connie!” Jacob cried out as he broke through the brush and went to Connie's side. He hovered around her, unsure of what to do. “Connie, Connie, can you hear me?! Answer me!”

Connie didn’t so much as stir. Jacob’s heart began to thump in his chest as the realization began to dawn on him.

Nononononono, this isn’t real. This is just a stupid joke. A prank. This isn’t happening.

Jacob, mustering up what little courage he had, gingerly grabbed onto Connie’s shoulder and turned her over.

Connie’s face was slashed along the left side and there were open gashes along her torso. Dried blood was everywhere, and her right eye was glazed over.

Jacob gasped in horror, unable to find his voice as he fell backwards onto his butt.

There was no denying it now.

Jacob felt his head spinning as well as multiple thoughts flooded his head.

Connie had come back here after all.

But why did she come back after all this time?

Why not sooner?

Why not tell anyone where she was going?

Why not tell him?

As Jacob sat there, he could only blankly stare at what used to be Connie.

Besides the sick feeling in his stomach, Jacob felt several things deep inside him begin to stir. He tried to push them back down, but it hurt the more he tried.

Eventually, he gave up trying to and they bubbled to the surface.

Guilt and grief.

Jacob had never liked Connie. He was pretty sure he still didn’t. Even now, she was making his life miserable just by lying on the ground. She had forced him to come looking for her, forced him to be the one to find her body.

In the past, he had hoped Connie and her family would one day pack up and leave for somewhere else. But he would never have asked for something like this.

Yes, she was the most infuriating girl he had ever met. But there was more to her than that.

He had seen her at her most vulnerable, that self-centered and self-assured front melting away as she admitted her faults and asked for forgiveness.

He was wrong assuming he knew what kind of person she was, but now he would never get the chance to find out. He would never get the chance to apologize.

Something rustled to Jacob’s left. Still numb, he turned to the left to see what it was.

And standing before him was the creature.

It was just as majestic as the first time Jacob had seen it except for one glaring difference.

The dull color of red around its mouth.

Jacob’s eyes widened as it drew closer to him and Connie’s body. His body began to shake as it drew closer and closer. He desperately looked at its eyes, desperately searching for some semblance of the creature he had seen only a week ago.

But there was no softness or intelligence, just a cold look of indifference in its heterochromatic eyes. It’s face was now a mask of pure malice as it stalked ever closer. Yet Jacob still held out hope. Maybe he was just seeing things because he hasn’t gotten over the shock. It couldn’t have been her fault. It couldn’t have been.

The creature, not noticing or caring about Jacob’s presence, finally came to a stop over Connie’s body. Jacob held his breath, waiting to see what it would do. The creature slowly opened its mouth, showing its sharp teeth.

“Stop!” Jacob screamed as he grabbed a nearby stick on the ground and began swinging at the creature. More perturbed than scared, it backed off slightly.

“You killed her, didn’t you?!” The creature just stared at him.

“You’re the reason she never came home, aren’t you?!” The creature, looking bored, began to come back.

“Get away! You freak! Animal! Monster!”

Jacob couldn’t be sure if the monster had understood him or not, but the second it heard the last word

come out of his mouth, it rose on its back legs. And then slashed him across the face.

Jacob cried out as he held his face, blood gushing out of the wounds. He lay on the ground writhing in pain.

After a few agonizing seconds, he managed to open his eyes. Through the blood in his eyes, he could barely make out the monster nearby. The monster had Connie’s body in its mouth and was starting to carry her away.

In desperation, Jacob tried to follow it, but the stinging in his face forced him back onto his knees. Unable to find the strength to move, Jacob could only helplessly watch the monster and Connie get farther away from him.

“Wait! Wait, please!” Jacob managed to utter, “I’m sorry! I’m sorry, I didn’t mean it! Just, please, put her down!”

The beast stopped moving. For a brief moment, Jacob felt a flutter of hope in his heart. Maybe the monster can understand him. Maybe his plea got through to it.

But when it turned its head towards him, any hope was dashed in an instant.

The monster’s face, no longer hidden behind the mane, was a cold and pitiless mask. Its eyes were equally unapologetic and even had a hint of cruelty to them. It gave an impetuous huff, secured the prize in its mouth, and kept on walking. But it didn’t go back to its cave. Instead, it disappeared into the green foliage of the forest beyond. Soon, there was no sign of it.

Jacob’s face continued to sting, but it paled in comparison to the emotions bubbling inside him.

Connie was gone.

Connie, the girl who had inserted herself into Jacob’s life.

Connie, the cousin he had never truly known.

Connie, the only person who had ever tried to befriend him.

Connie, his family, now dead because Jacob had chosen an animal over her.

A beast that he had become infatuated without ever truly understanding.

A monster that he did not see until it was too late.

Now, both of them were gone. Connie and the creature.

Jacob finally broke down, crying for what he had lost.

Alone in a pool of his own blood, next to a deserted hollow and a dark patch of dried blood.