The Key to Happiness
Lia BerkovichUnaware of their surroundings, Key walks out of the house, pencil in hand, and takes the first steps of their embarkment to school.
The clouds look as if they were grabbed out of a painting and placed directly above the earth, spread out along the sky to make the
people who like looking at pretty things open their mouths wide and gasp when their eyes make contact. Key takes the usual route
across eleven driveways, six green trash bins, and eight trees with squiggly branches. They take everything into account, except for
the one thing that hasn't been there any other of the one hundred-twenty-two days they've been taking this route.
When Key first stepped over it, they had no intention to investigate what they’d just overlooked. A few more steps were taken until
curiosity loomed at the back of Key's brain. It wasn't a flower, or any sort of bug. A dropped plastic bag? Key turned back around,
bent down, and went through several options flying though their head. Deciding that it wasn't anything ordinary, they place their
hand out in front of them and, keen to find out what the odd being is, go on to touch the side ever so gently. Nothing happens.
About three inches in diameter, the being is a sphere-shaped ball of fuzz. It seems to have no front or back, but a weak, thin stem
resembling almost a dandelion twice its normal size. Key decides not to pick it up by its head anymore, but instead grab the bottom
of the stem and slowly pull it out of the dirt. It easily releases, and Key stands in the middle of the silent street, unsure of what to do
next.
They’re definitely keeping it. No doubt. It would get completely squashed in their stuffed backpack lugging who knows what, and carrying
it in their hands would impair them for the rest of the long day ahead. Home is completely in the other direction. The edge of the stem begins
reaching towards Key. They bring it up to their face and watch closely as the stem extends, past their ear, and up onto their shoulder, right
near the strap of their backpack. They try to pull it off with no success. Horrified, Key frantically tugs harder and harder, watching the stem
pull back like a rubber band every time. Finally, they give up, and the being springs upright, sitting happily on Key's shoulder as they keep
walking to school, a bit more frustrated than usual.
Key has an interesting position in their life at school. They keep to themselves during the day, waving to the occasional few classmates who
walk past them in the hall. Once Key reaches school today, though, it's not the same. They're getting waves from strangers, and greetings
from classmates they've never interacted with. Key quickly gains popularity, but every hello has been said towards the being. In all honesty,
Key loves it. They never thought they'd enjoy popularity to this extent. The Being gleams and the stem grows thicker with every compliment
it gets. One afternoon, on their way home, Key gets a strange, pleasant feeling in their mind. The Being is telling Key how much it loves them.
It's giving them praise and love, and Key is proud to be connected to the Being in this wonderful and strange new way.
Key’s glorification by the Being continues for weeks. This is the happiest they’ve been in a long time. Brighter and brighter the Being grows,
beaming with pride and keeping Key hard at work, getting them to feed it with flattery. It begins to tell Key its secrets, and confides in them
its unfiltered feelings. People at school marvel at this renowned friendship, jealous of how close Key and the Being had become. Certain times,
though, the Being would begin to wilt. It warns Key it'll wither on the daily, and petrified, they do everything they can to ensure its wellness.
Key tells it their secrets and shares with it their deepest emotions, hidden well below anything they show on the surface. The stem has thickened
to the point where roots are embedded into Key's shoulder, a nagging pain unnerving them at every small movement. The Being feeds off of Key,
and soon, they have no more joy left to give. Key’s supply of energy for the Being has grown to a gradual halt, and only after these few weeks do
they really comprehend the true intention of the parasite that's been haunting them without their realization.
Key is afraid to take action, and doubts cloud their already flooded mind. They dread the amount of pain it would take to detach the being, but
are aware of the worse consequences if they don’t, and take no hesitation in grabbing the stem of the sickening creature and pulling. The roots
have dug too deep under their skin. They don’t see it as a small, joyful form anymore, but a gruesome, manipulative monster. With every tug, Key
winces in pain, but it’s a small price to pay for the stolen vitality they need restored. Noticing they’re wasting energy, Key rushes home and opens
the left drawer under their kitchen counter. They run their hand over the pens, pencils, and other scattered stationery until they reach the scissors.
A single gleam of light shines across them as Key picks them up and grips them tightly. One deep breath was all it took, as Key had mentally prepared
for this moment long before they reached home.
It only hurt for a split second, and the rest was relief at its purest.
Key’s skin hastily sealed over the lasting root edges that hadn’t made it out in time, meaning a minor part of the being had still remained in them.
Otherwise, Key felt it was a job well done. They threw the Being in the garbage and saw it driven off the next day by the neighborly truck on their
way to school once again.
Key passes the familiar eleven driveways, six green trash bins, and eight trees with squiggly branches, with no chance of disruption.
Jaye, two blocks down, is inspecting a peculiarly large dandelion he’d just come across.