Catherina - Day 4

A canopy of twilight sheltered the entertainment park, immersing it in a luscious shade of plum. The drowning sun grew moderate, tuning down its blazing orange. Whence it fell into the rectangular opening of that wooden construction, it plated each the inner sides of its frame crimson - a homely color of burning logs in the fireplace, a tinge of carrot velvet cakes, and one that of summer evenings.

The girl stood before that monstrous establishment, admiring its hollowness, planks of woods confining that massive, maroon balloon. She ought not to be here; a sultry breeze brought about the distant callings of her name. Family, teachers, and friends, figures of which faded behind her eyes – deep at her scotoma, where optical nerves pinned through retina – while her sight could accommodate nothing but that unfurnished site.

A half-built roller coaster enclosed in a spider web of scaffolds: wooden rail painted navy blue, and one-and-a-half circle ending abruptly at its height, a chopped-off arm pointing at the rising night. The girl knew by heart that danger laid before her if she wishes to ascend. The task itself was not physically challenging – she saw stairs leading up to a cabin on the top layer of the scaffolds – but what the cabin obscured implied a menacing force.

As the sun had fallen out of its frame and sunken to the vault of heaven on the other side, the darkened wooden giant made a flattering backdrop for creamy lights from the cabin - lemon margarine pie, pumpkin tart, and orange bread. They shone with affection, jack-o-lanterns smiling at your back, piercing through your spine, aiming at your breath.

The breeze died out a while ago, and the girl, playing a thread of her curvy hair, made a step forward. A single step, and that had made all the difference.

She walked ahead with her back straight, hands clasped in front of her chest as a medieval nun holding her cross. Beloved Maryjane touched the ground, producing soft sounds – a petty march. One foot fell on the ground and did not lift, and then the other. The girl had arrived, reaching the series of calf-high stairs. She took a deep breath as Mama said so: deep in, slowly out; inhale, and exhale.

The girl patted her dress, rid of non-existing dust; pulled the collar flat, two white triangles pointing down; pressed the lips into a thin, pale line, no smile before the victory. One ruby Maryjane against the edge of the stair; the leg muscles stiffened. Stress and stretch. The way that springs work. Racing up the staircase, the girl burnt with sweat, her porcelain cheek reddened. Seemingly a limited stretch from the ground, the stairs became infinite once the girl set a foot upon it. One stair, two stairs, and three - she lost count, almost falling, left kneecap injured by the blade-like edge of a wracked plank.

Indeed rolling and stumbling she was, the girl ascended with a dirty dress and a trace of blood down her left leg, creating a red dot on an equally dusty sock. In front of her laid a narrow pathway into the cabin, where green polyester nets made the interior a maze.

Lub-dub. Lub-dub. A heart was pounding, stronger and steadier than the girl's, coming within layers of nets, where a dim cluster of flame was jumping weakly. The color of rose, mademoiselle's cheek, and strawberry jam. Lub-dub; lub-dub. The girl tiptoed on, bowing her head and bent her body, guided by that vivacious call.

"Notice not to step into cracks." The girl heard a motherly voice talking in her head, "Beware of the beasts." Turning right and three consecutive lefts, the girl tiptoed around a room within the cabin. Who lives there? The room was no wider than her height, no longer than twice. Yet, she heard howling and growling, barking and hissing. There came the creamy yellow light she had seen.

Slowly she lowered her body, bent to a squat against the wall – a small hole on the plank, out from where a thin stream of light flew. The girl squinted to peak through the hole, palms touching the wall. Black figures she saw. Unlike humans but somewhat fluid, figures twined around each other when ripping, separated when swallowing – cannibalistic beasts.

Something sizzling on her left knee. The light leaking out had crept into her wound, bubbling was the blood. Softly the girl stood up and tiptoed on. Blood dripping off onto the ground, hissing when burning, inviting the beasts to a feast. A gigantic black shadow creeping up on the wall behind her, segmented by the green nets, announced the approaching.

No more tiptoeing, the girl ran. Only a corner away awaited the roller coaster. One more shadow coming behind her, and yet another. No more time to lose, the roller coaster was moving – the girl jumped in. No belts or black leather seats, the girl squeezed on to the wooden edge of her ride; she was ascending. Turning her head a slight angle, the girl saw several black, swirling palls of smokes bursting out from the cabin, tailing her.

Now that the ride had reached the zenith – creaking was the rail, unable to bear such weight - shadows hovering above her, arguing among themselves, fighting to be the first to devour. Descend. A tail of smoke behind the lonely comet – the girl shut her eyes, forehand against the rough edge of the wooden front plate. The first circle – she lost all other senses, only to feel a harsh break through the air.

Down, and upon the squeaking rail, the ride ascended that cut-off arm. Up, up, and up – faster than a bolt of lightning, it slid off the end - a lovely parabola. The girl opened her eyes, saw the night sky with a final trace of violet, burning off her predators until not a piece of ash was left.

Freefall. The girl was out of her ride, entirely in the air, spreading her limbs as if mimicking a kite. A distant sound of the roller coaster hitting the ground behind her, collapsing into thousands and dead. She could see a house with a thatched roof and wooden beams - another unfinished construction within the park's limit.

She descended as a feather by the breeze through an opening on the roof. A smell of thatcher dried up by the summer sun and humidified again by moist night. She sat on the second floor, which was a narrow loop around a central square opening. No more beasts from the roller coaster cabin, yet the inhabitants here could pose a threat.

The girl pushed herself up and walked leftward, fingers tipping the wall, leaving a clean trace out of dust. Pieces of thatcher had fallen on the back of her neck, and high above played a windy song. Lub-dub. Lub-dub. She heard her heartbeat, weak yet steady.

Arriving at a stair, the girl descended into another maze out of scaffolds and polyester nets. Turn right, and then left. Reverse and repeat. Something was following her, hiding in her own shadow, creeping upon her heel, and later the calf. The wound on her kneecap had healed, leaving a semi-solid scar with an uneven surface from busted bubbles. Turn right twice and then went left. The girl reached sunlight.

She exited to a springy garden with lush green grasses and trees in full blossom. Dandelions and daisies decorated the field, hundreds, thousands of little sun flourished the emerald backdrop. Tiptoeing across the garden, the girl was careful not to step on any little bloom. She cut through the flower field, stopped by a finely carved steel gate that opened to a pearl white balcony.

Marble paved, brass lined, and roses clustered, the balcony welcomed her with a slice of orange cheesecake. The girl sat before the little stand and took a forkful. She was tired now, listening to the pleasant breeze, bathed in the summer afternoon sunshine.

Gone were the darkness and night. She took a warm nap.

photo credit: https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.cntraveler.com%2Fgallery%2Fthe-best-things-to-do-at-disney-world&psig=AOvVaw1FctJ5gHkpRALQ48ijH4I6&ust=1591456670649000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAIQjRxqFwoTCPDQ3a386ukCFQAAAAAdAAAAABAD