The Hidden Magic World

"Dad? Dad? Dad?"  Chris, a boy 9 years old stood before a wooden door and knocked three times, calling his father with each tap. Click! The door swung open. Mr Carter, a tall, broad-shouldered man with a chiselled face and a shinning head, stood there, gazing into Chris's blue eyes—so much like his own. He let out a sigh, sounding slightly exasperated, "How many times have I told you to stop knocking like that?" "Apologies," replied Chris nonchalantly. "Mum said to tell you dinner's ready." "I will be there in a minute," said Mr. Carter as he suddenly reached out to ruffle Chris' blonde hair, but the boy ducked just in time, preserving his neatly combed style, as he bolted downstairs, calling over his shoulder, chortling, "Better luck next time, Dad!" Mr Carter snorted softly as he watched his son vanish down the hallway. "He is finally learning to dodge. Not all hope is lost, I guess. He will make a World class rugby player; I will make sure of it," he muttered to himself. As he spoke the last sentence, Mr. Carter paused before sighing helplessly. He and his wife moved here in 2001. As a newlywed couple, they had recently moved to the number 37 of Ivy Brook Avenue, a five-bedroom house, looking forward to writing the next chapter of their lives, only together this time. Mr. Carter was a sales director at a real estate company called Lands Worth. He had risen in ranks through his brilliant marketing acumen and selling ability, something no one could argue against. Curiously, though, many still wonder just what tricks he played to acquire a gorgeous woman like Mrs. Carter as his wife, given his receding hairline, which for sure many women found less attractive. Speaking of Mrs. Carter, she was a petite blond woman with delicate features and a degree in chemistry. Once there was a time when she was filled with ambition and dreams of making big breakthroughs in her field until she realized she was going nowhere with her research and was very much wasting her time. It was then, when Mr. Carter showed up in her life, and they fell in love and married happily. The Carter had everything they ever wanted. A year later, on November 14th, with the birth of their firstborn, a son they named Christoffer, their world seemed to complete itself. Funnily enough, on the night Chris was conceived, Mr. Carter who was in the delivery room supporting his wife go through childbirth, seemed to have been overwhelmed, and claimed to have seen a flaming owl appear in the room. He went on to further proclaim that the bird entered his child's body and disappeared, insisting the doctor the check the baby's health immediately. Whether it was joy or the pressure of becoming a father, one thing was sure; he was being delusional. To this day, nine years later, they call him...He-Who-Saw-The-Fire-Turkey! A black spot on his untainted reputation, this incident was. Everyone in the family teased him about it so much that he had grown numb to it. Yet, even after all these years, he could not shake the feeling that what he saw that day was truly real. A thought he found very much ridiculous. Still, this was not the biggest concern of Mr. Carter. It was his son, Chris. As a devoted rugby player and a fan, Mr. Carter always dreamed of competing in the World Cup for his country. In fact, he came remarkably close to achieving it when, heavens' above, he suffered a tragedy he could not recover from, ever. A leg injury even time could not heal and a void no love could fill. Chris' birth was like a beacon of hope in his life. A dream he could not fulfil, his son might. Just the thought of it had Mr. Carter impatient, he could not wait for Chis to grow up. However, his expectations were met with a cold shoulder from the toddler. Nine years have passed, and Chirs has grown just like any other child, yet he was not normal. From the very beginning, Chirs displayed signs of exceptional intelligence. He learned how to speak properly by the age of 2 and excelled academically, leaving his peers in dust. To outsiders, he was a rare genius. But his parents knew, Chris... he was more than just a genius. He was in a league of his own, hard to describe in just words. Chris only ever studied anything not more than twice or thrice before completely understanding it. He did not need anyone's guidance and formed an understanding of his own, remembering every word, every letter from any book he ever read. Yet, came with this blessing was a curse. Due to his incredible comprehension ability, few things ever got him interested in for more than a week. Rugby did not survive for even an hour. It was one bleak day, Mr. Carter remembered it clearly. However, what the Carters found even more worrisome was their child's unwillingness to make friends, and when asked why, Chris replied, "They are all whining idiots. I would rather read a book." The Carters found themselves unable to refute since children were supposed to be mischievous, it was what made children, children. Still, they were worried that the lack of social interaction and self-isolation would result in Chris being subjected to bullying and develop social anxiety, and mental depression along with other such problems. Thus, when Chris was 5, they decided to consult a child's psychiatrist. At the beginning, Chris was resistant to the whole idea. However, when faced with bribe—Ahem, gifts in form of numerous toffies, puzzle games and a new handcrafted chess set, he reluctantly agreed. The results from the counselling were not evident in the beginning but as time passed, a few months later, Chris showed noticeable changes in his behaviour; he become more tolerant of things he previously did not like, such as making friends at school and not getting bored of everything he did. Although the improvement was not much, it was still better than nothing. At least that is what the Carters thought. ...Or just that Chris made them think so. In the boy's eyes, counselling was merely the science of manipulating thoughts and emotions into what the society deemed appropriate and if one did not conduct oneself accordingly, they would be viewed odd, weird, or mentally challenged. It was sad, and knowing so, Chris understood that his parents were no different. Obviously, their minds had not evolved to a higher state of being, such as himself. They could not, if ever, see the world as he did. For that, Chris felt sorry for his parents. Nonetheless, the two were his parents and he shall still love them. Thus, to keep their hearts, he chose to pretend to be getting better, although, he felt he was perfect just the way he was. At first, pretending was hard, but boy he could pull off some Oscar winning performances every now and then, now. As Mr. Carter made his way downstairs, he passed by the extravagantly decorated Christmas tree beside the fireplace, that had colourful stockings hung around it, before making it to the dining room situated right next to the kitchen. Upon entering, he saw the beautiful blonde, Mrs. Carter, arranging the plates and Chris helping bring over food. Butternut squash, Roast gammon with potatoes and vegetable, brussels sprout with bacon, honey-glazed carrots, and lastly sticky toffee pudding for dessert caused Mr. Carter to gulp hard, he could hardly wait to begin devouring them all. At this point, Mrs. Carter noticed him standing at the door, she smiled gently. "Great, you are here. I was about to give you call once again. Wash your hands quickly so we can eat now," she said. "Sorry, you'd to wait," said Mr. Carter while he walked towards the basin in the kitchen. "I finished the meeting as fast as I could." "It's alright. Was it the same person who contacted you regarding the villa?" asked Mrs. Carter. Mr. Carter nodded as wiped his hand and took a seat at the dining table. "Yes. He's been planning to gift it to his wife for the new year. If all goes well, I will have sold yet another one of the "most valuable" properties from our company's listing." At the end of his sentence, Mr. Carter was feeling immensely proud. "A villa as gift for new year? How romantic!" exclaimed Mrs. Carter as she side-eyed her husband. "How come you don't treat me like that?" she asked with the purpose to annoy him, which worked perfectly as Mr. Carter's pride seem to hurt and he jumped to reply."Woman, you must be joking! It cost us our entire fortune just to afford this house, and you want a villa for a gift? Did you fail to tighten a few screws?" he said."Humph! Did I say I want a villa? Ever since we got married, you, Mr. Lazy bum, seemed to have given up on trying to put any effort in this marriage. It's always me who is making all the effort," snorted Mrs. Carter, clearly displeased by her husband's lack of understanding.