The leaf fluttered to the ground. It looked normal, but it would change everything. Usually, the start of fall signaled how close the long, slow sleep of winter was, but this year, it seemed to be different. There was no cheerfulness, there was no warmth. The land was secretly growing sick, and with sickness came death. The little girl skipped along happily beneath the trees, but then she came upon the leaf. It was the first fall leaf. Of course, she picked it up and admired it. It felt slick and slimy. The girl dropped it and started to move on, but after a few brief moments of hesitation, she came back for the leaf and tucked it in her pocket. After that, she continued on her way home. That evening, the girl fell under a terrible fever. Carlos walked down the sidewalk, on his way to school. The street was eerily silent in the early morning hours. Fog billowed at the edge of Carlos' vision. The morning had the crisp coolness of fall, but underneath that, there was something about the morning that was different from any other fall morning. Carlos shrugged off the strange feeling and carried on. He loved the way his feet echoed on the bare sidewalks, how they created rhythms that he would play over and over in his mind. Today, the noise seemed to be amplified tenfold. The day was long, but at the end of his day, Carlos wasn't tired. If anything, he was exhilarated. Now that his schoolwork was done, he was free to spend the day as he saw fit. He burst through his front door, dropped his backpack on the couch, and grabbed his skateboard. He loved going to the skating park whenever he had time. Sometimes, he would hang with a few friends, but most of the time, he stuck to himself and practiced a few tricks. He was somewhat surprised by the emptiness of the park, but he didn't mind--more space to practice! After he enjoyed himself for a while, he noticed her. She was curled up under one of the trees. She was one of his acquaintances from school. "Kelly?" She rolled over onto her side to face him. Her lips tried to form a word, but it only came out as a whisper. "Help..." Her bloodshot eyes bored into Carlos' eyes, and she reached out to take a hold of him with her cold, clammy hands. "Help..." Carlos was torn between pulling back and retreating or helping Kelly. She was obviously sick, and part of Carlos was more worried about keeping away so he didn't catch whatever she had. In the end, his kindness won, and he helped her to her feet. He half-carried her to her home, and then once he got her to her doorstep, he left for his own home. His dad was watching the news when he returned, and he caught a bit of one of the headlines as he headed for his room. STRANGE SICKNESS SWEEPS NATION; DOCTORS BEG EVERYONE TO STAY INSIDE, AND TO ONLY COME OUT IF THEY NEED MEDICAL TREATMENT. A dark frown fell onto Carlos' face as he closed his bedroom door. What was happening to this place?
Weekly prompt for Mystery! 541 words, 550 pts, elf added!
