Henry woke up with dread in his heart. As if the universe was telling him that if he got out of his bed, he would regret it. Luckily, school was canceled because of the snow, so he could stay in bed for as long as he needed. That weather villain was really brewing up a storm.

No pun intended.

There was a knock at his door: three knocks, a pause, then one more. “Come in.” He struggled to untangle himself from his blankets and sat up in bed. Meanwhile, his door opened and Amanda walked in.

She held something behind her back as she shut the door. “Hey.”

“What’s up?”

“Since your wrap broke, I just thought I would…” She took her hand from behind her back and held it in front of her. In her hand was a leather cuff almost identical to his old one. The only difference was that this one had his initials in it. H.M.

“Thank you.” He took the cuff and secured it on his wrist. He flexed his hand a couple of times. It was stiffer than his old one because it wasn’t worn in yet, but it did its job. She didn’t leave his room after this, and he raised his eyebrow at her. On a normal day, he wouldn’t mind her in his room, they would watch a movie or something. But she knew that he would rather be alone right now. “Do you need something?”

She bit her lip. “I also wanted to ask you if you would be my side character. I’d be really happy to have you by my side and I wouldn’t rather have anyone there but you. I know you don’t want to be a side character but…”

He scowled. “But what choice do I have.” There’s a beat of silence. “Fine.”

She hugged him. “Are you sure?”

No, of course he wasn’t sure. He wanted to be a main character, but it’s not like he’d be able to actually be that. The mark on his wrist said so. He eyed Amanda’s own mark of a sword. “Sure.”

She sighed, leaving the room after that. He laid back in bed. Apparently, he didn’t have to leave bed in order to regret his day. What was he going to do? Was he meant to just sit back and let this happen?

He fingered his cuff. He’d have to go to her party now. He was planning on skipping it because it’s not like he would enjoy it, but now he’s required to go. She’ll announce who she wants as her narrator too.

“Henry!” His mom’s voice shouted up the stairs.

He got up, walked to his door and opened it. “Yeah?” He shouted back.

There was no response, and he rolled his eyes as he left the sanctuary of his room to go downstairs. He stopped before reaching the bottom steps.

His mom and sister stood at the front door, which was open. A man in a suit stood in the doorway.

He continued down the steps, joining them. “What’s happening?”

The man cleared his throat. “You two are Henry and Amanda Matthews, correct?” They nodded their heads. “As tomorrow are your birthdays and you are,” he nodded at Amanda, “or may be” he did the same at Henry, “starting your stories. You have the option to see the Oracle and know your story.” Henry blinked. Of course. How did he forget? “We’re required by law to ask and get your signature when you say no. It’s more of a formality, really.”

Amanda signed the contract when it’s handed to her and she tried to hand it off to Henry. He shook his head. “I want to see her.”

“Come on, Henry,” his mother gritted out, “don’t be silly. Just sign the paper.”

He furrowed his brows. “No. I want to know my story.”

Amanda only stared at him and the man cleared his throat again. “I’ll go get that contract from the car. This usually doesn’t happen.” The last sentence was mumbled under his breath, and Henry isn’t sure if it was meant to be heard at all.

As the man walked away his mom turned on him. “Are you stupid? Just sign the paper. It’s not like your part matters.”

Amanda gasped from beside him but he only frowned. His mom had been a main character for her story, and so had her parents, and her grandparents. His dad’s family was the same way.

Needless to say, he was the black sheep of the family.

His mom favored his sister, but actually hearing his mom prove it was a lot different than knowing.

The man walked back up and handed Henry his own contract, taking the one that was still held by Amanda. Henry dug his pen into the paper as he dragged his name on the line. There. Done.

He glared at his mom as he gave the contract back.

“Alright. People will be back tomorrow to take you to the Oracle. You have a nice day.” He barely finished his sentence when his mom slammed the door shut, storming out of the room.

Amanda had an unreadable look on her face. “Just don’t tell me what happens, okay?” And then she walked upstairs.

It’s fine. This would fix everything. The Oracle will tell him that she made a mistake, and everything will be okay.

Now, I’m sure as you can all guess, the Oracle does not do this, and everything does not turn out okay. But I’ll let you see for yourselves.

Henry woke up the next morning, but he didn’t really wake up because he never actually went to sleep. He had been laying in bed for hours, trying to go to sleep. He may have succeeded at some points, but at around six in the morning, he gave up.

Throughout the entire night, he had been waiting to feel some sort of difference. Midnight hit and he was the same. 1:30 hit and he was the same. Did the time you were born change if you’re in a different time zone? Maybe his birthday should have been yesterday.

He ran his fingers through his hair, feeling how wrecked it was before he got up to go downstairs. As he got to the bottom, he slowed down, trying to peek into the kitchen to make sure it was empty before he went inside.

The coast was clear, so he sped into the kitchen. He’d probably grab a box of cereal to survive off of for the day. With a box of Heros in his hand, he turned around, only to find his only exit blocked by his dad.

His dad gave the box in his hands a look, before continuing into the kitchen to the coffee maker; no words said. Henry took this as his cue to creep out, only to be stopped when his dad said, “So, I heard that you’re seeing the Oracle.”

He didn’t know why he thought that he could get away unscathed. His dad hadn’t been there yesterday, seeing as he always worked long hours, but of course his mom would have told him.

“Uh, yeah.”

“Why?”

He didn’t turn around, still working on his coffee as if this was a casual conversation. His dad was always like that. “I don’t know…” If his dad turned around, the truth would come tumbling out of him.

“You know I only want the best for you, right?” His dad turned to face him. Henry only nodded, his mouth sealed in a thin line, gripping the cereal box like a lifeline. His dad sighed. “I hope you find what you’re looking for.”

He turned back around, signaling that the conversation was over, and Henry didn’t waste a second before he dashed out of there.

Back in the safety of his room, he dug his hand in the box, grabbing a fistful of cereal to shove in his mouth. Why did they give you the option to see the Oracle if everyone questioned you about it anyway? They acted as if he decided to star in a porno instead of having a conversation about his future.

What was the Oracle going to be like anyway? He found it hard to believe that no one had gone to see the Oracle before, but even that guy seemed surprised. He left the contract in the car for crying out loud. Should he even go through with this?

He shook his head. He already signed the contract. He made his decision. If he were to back out now, he may regret it in the future. Why throw away the only chance he may have?

Now that he was somewhat confident in his decision, he went to get ready. The man never specified an exact time of when he would show up, but it would probably be early. He didn’t have to worry about missing school since it wasn’t required to go on their eighteenth birthdays.

Being eighteen was meant to be some kind of rite of passage, but it was just another Thursday. Did his sister feel the same way? Maybe it was because he wasn’t a main character. It’s not like he was able to learn much about main characters, even with Mrs. Zaxby’s lessons. There were some things that she said only a main character would understand, as much as it hurt for him to hear.

There was a knock on his door not long after he finished getting ready. It wasn’t Amanda, so he walked over and opened the door himself. It was his dad.

“There’s some guy’s in suits that said they’ve been waiting for you for a couple of minutes now. I only noticed them cause I was leaving. Apparently, your mom said she would come and get you. You better get a move on.”

Henry frowned but hurried to slip his shoes on after his dad left. He wanted to wish his sister a happy birthday, but he’d have to do that when he got back.

The men had to have gotten their tips from some sci-fi government film. They all wore dark suits and sunglasses, and the SUV he was being led to was all black with tinted windows. Either he was being led to his doom or…

Yeah, no, that was pretty much the only option.

Luckily, they didn’t put a bag over his head as much as he was expecting it, but they did blindfold him. Was it this much of secret about where the Oracle was at? He forgot she was a thing until yesterday, and there were probably people like him. This much security was excessive.

It didn’t take long until the car stopped, and Henry was led out, none too gently. Apparently no one told them they couldn’t damage the goods.

There was a series of stairs, and their steps echoed all around. Henry tripped more than once until they finally reached the top. A door creaked open, and a smell crawled out that made him crinkle his nose. The blindfold was ripped off and he was shoved inside, the door slamming shut behind him.

The room was dim from where he was standing, but there were a couple of wooden steps that led to a landing above him, where a light flickered. The smell thickened as he walked up, the air becoming smokey which made him cough.

“Oh, hey.” A feminine voice drifted to him through the fog. In the center of the floor, surrounded by four candles, was a woman.

She turned her head, a smile on her face. “You’ll get used to the smell. Come sit.”

Her words were slow as she spoke, and Henry followed her directions as he sat across from her. Her smile didn’t fade even as she closed her eyes and hummed.

She held out her hands and he took them. “So, Henry. You wanted to see me?”

“How do you know my name?”

“I know everything.” Of course she does. That was a dumb question. She snorted. “Nah, I’m just kidding. They tell us so we can prepare. But congrats, you’re the first person I’ve seen in…” Her head rolled around. “Ever.”

“You’re not allowed to leave here?”

She shook her head. “But it’s cool. I got internet friends and whatnot. Anyway, we should get to work. So, you wanna know your story?” He nodded. “Alright, close your eyes.”

He did this, and nothing happened at first, and he was about to open his eyes when everything changed.

It all happened in about the span of five seconds, but to Henry, it was much longer. He lived his story as if it were happening, and at the end he jumped back, snatching his hands away.

The whole thing was a shock to his system, tears streaked down his face. “No!”

“Henry…”

“You’re wrong. That’s not going to happen.”

“Just calm down. It’s your story, it’s what’s supposed to happen.”

“That’s not my story. That’s Amanda’s story and I won’t be a part of it. You can’t make me.” He got up, heading for the stairs.

“You’re right.” Her voice trails after him. “I can’t. I’ll see you next time Henry.”

By the time she said her last sentence he was already pulling the door open to escape. He tried to run out but the men from before grabbed him.

“Take me home.” The blindfold was put on and his tears soaked the mask the whole drive home.

They dumped him in his driveway like trash and sped off. He laid there for a little while, curled in a ball. Maybe he should stay there until the trash gets collected and they can finally take care of him.

He didn’t know how long he was out there for, but the gravel digging into his skin helped ground him. It took his body a while to recover what happened with the Oracle, which heightened his emotions, but now that he’s come down he could think a little more clearly.

He got up, brushing off the pebbles that stayed embedded in his skin before he went to the front door. He opened it and was met with a scene that brought absolute despair to his heart.

There were a couple of balloons in their living room and a pile of presents off in the corner. There were some family members, but also unfamiliar faces, probably Amanda’s friends. And then there was Amanda herself, a dress adorning her figure, who was bouncing up to him with a grin on her face.

“You made it! I was just about to announce that you—”

“No.”