Here's the first part of the second story in my new book, "Coming Into Focus: Another Collection of Stories." It's about 3 thirteen year old boys growing up in 1979 who find a strange metallic object hidden in the ground.
“You leave her alone! Leave her alone or I swear, I’ll kill you!”
Steve frowned, rubbing his hand over his face. He knew it wasn’t working but he couldn’t find the right words. No matter what he tried, the dialogue didn’t sound right. The 13-year old ripped the page from his notebook, crumpled it up and threw the paper into the “Prometheus Pit.”
“I’m telling ya, it’s the kill you part,” Rocco said as he pretended to punch the trunk of a large oak tree near the northern edge of the pit. “Heroes don’t kill.”
“But it’s only a threat, Rock,” Cris chimed in from the other side. “And besides, it’s Captain America. He was in World War II. You don’t think he killed Nazis during the war?”
“Yeah, but that’s different.” Rocco replied. “Soldiers don’t go around killing people after they come back from war.”
“What about the Punisher?” Cris said with a smirk.
“We’re talking about heroes here, dude.” Steve interjected. “Not some gun-toting maniac like the Punisher.”
Cris rolled his eyes. “Yeah, yeah,” he said, pretending to fire repulsor rays like Iron Man. “I still don’t know why we even need a script, Steve. Let’s just get into it without a plan. More fun that way if you ask me.”
“You always say that and then we end up jumping around grunting and yelling like idiots. If you guys stop distracting me, I’ll figure it out.” Steve said, laughing. “Five minutes tops...if I can’t get it right by then, we’ll wing it, okay?”
“Sure,” Cris replied at the same time Rocco said, “No problem.”
Steve wrote in the notebook furiously, not wanting to let his friends down but also worried, if he took too long, they’d get bored and start without him.
Cris Subrizi, Steve Youngblood and Mike Rocco became friends over 2 years ago, meeting in Mrs. Ryan’s 6th grade class. Now that they’d entered 8th grade, they looked forward to graduating Junior High in June with the class of 1980. None of them knew where they’d be going to High School yet but they knew it wouldn’t change their friendship. Almost from the very beginning, the three young men were inseparable. While most boys in their class played basketball or wiffleball during recess, the three friends preferred to sit in a corner of the schoolyard and talk about their shared obsession: comic book superheroes. The Avengers, X-Men, Justice League, Spider-Man and Batman were their favorites and the boys spent countless days drawing their heroes and debating who could beat who in a fight.
Over the years, they broadened their horizons with shared tastes in music, TV shows and movies. Now that Cris and Steve were 13, with Rocco’s matching birthday still a few months away, their play action had matured and grown more sophisticated as they themselves had. Although still very slender, Steve had filled out slightly in the past year, growing to 5’9’’ tall. His straight, blonde hair, blue eyes and ever-present glasses set him apart from his buddies. Rocco was the same height but dark haired and outweighed Steve by almost 50 pounds. Cris was a couple of inches shorter but all frenetic energy with wild, curly, dirty blonde hair and weighed a few pounds less than Rocco.
They’d been coming to Forest Park since May, riding their bikes up and down the hiking trails, trying to find a place to make their own. The 2nd weekend after school started, they discovered this humongous hole in the ground, dubbing it “The Prometheus Pit” after an issue of the Micronauts comic book they’d recently read. The pit itself was sort of oval shaped, like the paramecium Mr. Simmons droned on about in science class. Although the bottom was uneven, it was approximately 10 feet deep, with plentiful roots and other natural outcroppings protruding from the embankments, making it the perfect play area.
On the first day, the three friends managed to push a large, fallen tree into it to use as another prop. The tree wedged itself on the southern edge of the pit, leaving almost 3 feet beneath it. They’d jump and swing to it, pretending it was safe harbor in an imaginary world of danger. The woods surrounding the Pit became known as “Sanctuary.” The three boys loved yelling the word at the top of their lungs, each doing their best Quasimodo, The Hunchback of Notre Dame impersonation. This place was special and their friendships stronger for it.
Once they found both Sanctuary and the Prometheus Pit, the boys spent hours creating scenarios to enact as their favorite heroes, taking turns each day so everyone got a chance to choreograph the fun. Today was Steve’s turn and he wanted this adventure to be epic. He looked up through the trees to the bright, blue sky, refreshed by the view on a simply perfect Friday afternoon. As Cris and Rocco surveyed the surrounding area, Steve put the finishing touches on his latest masterpiece of roleplay adventure.
After a quick double check, Steve looked up with a beaming smile. “I got it!” he said. “This is gonna be good. It’ll be tough for the heroes to wriggle out of this one!” The other boys came over to see, eager to read their latest, action-packed thrill ride. Steve handed them the book and they read it simultaneously. They both grinned. The friends then took their predertermined spots around the outside of the pit.
“Speaking of wriggling out of things,” Rocco said, grabbing the rope they’d tied to an overhanging branch of the oak tree. “Did you see those jeans Rose was wearing in homeroom today?”
Steve crouched on the edge opposite Rocco, poised to spring, “Oh yeah! When she sat down, there was a gap in her pants so I could see her underwear! They were red today…so hot!”
“Oh, man!” Cris said, perched on a large root next to the oak. “I wish I’d seen that!”
“If you think that’s good,” Rocco responded. “You should’ve seen Carole Friedman’s top yesterday. She was passing out the tests in Math class and when she leaned over, I saw lots of cleavage. Black bra, I think.”
“Damn, you guys have all the luck!” Cris said dejectedly.
“It’s not luck, man,” Steve said smiling. “It’s pure skill.”
“Ha!” Cris said. “Yeah, I guess if you stare at Rose’s ass long enough, you’re bound to see something sooner or later! Nice job!” The boys all laughed together.
“Okay, now to business. We’re the Avengers today so I’m Cap,” Steve said, before pointing at Cris and Rocco. “Rock, you’re Wonder Man and Cris, you chose The Beast. Got it?”
“Aw, dude!” Rocco said to Cris. “You were The Beast when we played X-Men the other day.”
“Yeah, but this time I’m blue and furry! Besides, I like Hank McCoy aka The Beast, so sue me.” Cris replied, shrugging his shoulders. “Let’s do this!”
They all nodded in agreement. Steve raised his right hand, with four fingers extended. He began to silently count down, until they heard a noise from somewhere in the woods. The three boys froze where they stood.
For more, go to my Kickstarter campaign and donate. For a small contribution, you can own either the e-book or paperback version of Coming Into Focus. There are a lot of other reward bonuses for contributing too! Check it out here: