The Birthday Present
Written by Chris Zeid
Upon seeing the antique store, Eve felt a peculiar feeling in her stomach as if almost something were telling her it was not meant to be there. The weather outside felt different, a bit windier. It was the slightest of feelings yet just enough to notice. But for now, her focus was buying her boyfriend, Danny, a present for his 27th birthday. The two had been together for a few years and had finally made the decision to move in with each other. Some of the best times of her life had now been within this small amount of time she had known this man. When it came to special events like his birthday, it was important to find something that showed through her feelings for him. Even if it was small, the simple thought of caring was powerful for their relationship.
The time of day was what can sometimes be referred to as the magic hour. The sky was graced with a natural beauty just before the dark would take the day. Above the front door to the store read: Quentin’s Curious Finds. Eve felt compelled to enter. She opened the door to find herself inside a small room that couldn’t have been bigger than that of a medium sized bedroom. The room was completely empty save for a large desk the color of light walnut. There sat no one there with only an empty chair accompanying it and next to it was a closed backdoor. The walls were also empty yet painted in what Eve thought of as an inviting muted green. Old 50’s classics played through unseen speakers to complete the store’s strange and slightly vintage style. A light chill of goosepimples ran through her arms and down her back. She wondered what she had stumbled upon and that was when the back door opened. A tall, well-dressed older man in a dark gray suit welcomed her.
“Sorry about that!” the old man said in a deep voice which seemed to be full of bass and slightly rock the room. “Busy day today.”
He approached her and reached out his hand. “Quentin.”
“What?” she asked.
“That’s my name.”
“Oh, sorry. Eve.”
“And what can I do for you today, Eve?”
Eve looked around, still puzzled by her newfound surroundings.
“Ah, admiring my store?” Quentin looked pleased and proud of his room filled with seemingly nothing.
“What is this place? Don’t you sell anything?”
“Of course! Did you not read the sign?”
“Yes, I assumed you sold antiques or oddities or something like that?”
“And of course, I do. What is it you are looking for?”
“Well…,” Eve said. “My boyfriend’s birthday is coming up this weekend. I’d love to get him something special. We just moved in with each other, so maybe something for our new home would be nice.”
“And what is something he enjoys?”
“He loves coffee.”
Quentin smiled. He put his index finger up. “One second.”
He left to the back of the store and disappeared. After only a few moments later, he reappeared with a large picture frame that must have been three feet long. He placed it gently on top of his desk and looked back to her with a grin. “How about this?”
“Oh, that’s cool. Yeah, he’ll love this.” She had to contain her giddiness; she was excited now.
“Perfect,” said Quentin. “Tell you what, I’ll wrap it for you at no charge.”
_____
It was Friday night. Eve had told Danny that after a Birthday dinner, she’d have a fun gift for him. This was the first time to celebrate something now that they lived together, and he was looking forward to it. It made him happy that after even a few years into their relationship, she still wanted to do something for him for his birthday. That was something new to him. He had been in many relationships, but very few went past the six-month mark, and as the relationships had continued, the interest in the other girl’s desire to do things for him ceased. Those relationships had felt like a burning candle. The flame was hot and heavy and beautiful at first, but after some time passed, the flame blew away leaving behind one that was then partially melted. But it wasn’t like that with Eve, and even after a few years, things were still moving along great; their candle held a steady, bright burn. He was happy to have her, and he was willing to do what it took to keep that flame alive.
After a tasty Birthday dinner of some juicy cheeseburgers and crispy, salty fries, Eve brought out a chocolate cupcake with chocolate frosting and a candle in the shape of a 27 burning bright. She sang him Happy Birthday, and they devoured the sweet taste of the desert. Chocolate was his favorite and really how could anyone prefer anything else?
“You want to open up your gift?” she asked.
He licked a piece of chocolate frosting off the corner of his mouth, relishing the last taste of his birthday treat then smiled and told her he did. She left and soon came back with a present wrapped in confetti paper complete with silver ribbon and topped with a silver bow.
“Happy Birthday!”
He looked at the long present, curious to what his girlfriend had gifted him with. “What is it?”
“Open it up and find out, silly.”
He pulled on the silver ribbon and quickly tore open the wrapping paper to reveal the back of the picture frame. He continued to unravel the surprise in the same way a child would at their birthday party. He found it funny how no matter what age you are, that feeling of excitement that rises up when opening a gift never seems to leave. There’s a feeling almost as if life were as innocent as it were in those childhood moments. Removing the rest of the wrapping paper revealed a painting in an ornate black frame. Cast upon a stark white background was a black pen and ink illustration of a cob-webbed infested, dusty white skeletal hand that held a steaming mug of black coffee. The detail put into the piece was immaculate and well cared for. Below the illustration and painted in silver script was the phrase: COFFEE: Sleep & Naptime’s Worst Enemy.
“Woah!” he said. “I love it.”
She laughed, pleased with his satisfaction. Him opening the present was a gift to her as much as the gift was to him.
“Did you get this made? Looks like an original.”
“No, I got it from some antique store. Could be.”
“I think so.” Excited, he said, “Let’s get it up!”
Once they had it up, which they had decided would be next to the coffee pot on the kitchen counter, he took a good look at its placement and made sure it was straight. After he was satisfied, he stepped back to take a look with her.
“What do you think?”
“Looks great!”
And that was the moment when they noticed something peculiar with his gift. Without warning, the two felt a shiver of unease glide down the nape of their neck. The tiny little hairs against their skin slightly moving down to deliver an awful message of unnerve. Some kind of motion had happened within the artwork. It resembled the way a patch of water moves when a stone has been skipped upon it.
“You see that?” asked Danny.
“Yeah, what was that?”
Danny inched himself closer to the frame to gather a better inspection. As soon as he was only a few inches away, the skeletal hand dropped the mug into an unseen abyss out of view. The hand, now free, moved with quickness to Danny. It reached toward him, breaking through the artwork and out of the glass, shattering it into several tiny little pieces along its determined path. It was too fast for him to escape its grasp and before the two of them could comprehend this shocking animation, the hand grabbed him. It pulled him into the frame, into some other side of an unknown time and place. What was left behind for Eve of her boyfriend was unambiguously nothing—he was gone.
The skeletal hand then punched back through the frame yet again and pointed at her. It flipped over its hand and curled its index finger slowly over and over in a come-hither gesture. Filled with fear of an unknown, fear that was not only for her but fear for her Danny as well, Eve stood staring at the hand in utter disbelief. It was in these moments that a decision became apparent to her; the decision of what she must do. She had to go all in, she had to do the only thing she could think may provide her a chance to save him. Even if that meant the end, she had to take that leap of faith as it was her sole option. She stepped toward the hand, ready for what awaited her, ready to be there for Danny.