August 2017 Story Writing Event/RichardCarter

Magic doesn’t need to explain anything to anyone. It has nothing to prove and nothing to be. It just is.

These thoughts drowned Erik’s head as he heard this by a friend just an hour ago. It was becoming his own sort of deep quote, akin to his usual ‘Vision to see future’ quote. It just wasn’t as deep as what he heard. Every minute he just thinks about all the times he and many others claimed things as magic.

Erik didn’t want to believe it, however. He thought it was just a way for people to understand magic, by not explaining it at all. As if the true explanation for magic is expunged from the world and is only told by this one quote. He knows other people were quick to understand and believe it. But not Erik. Erik wanted to prove the quote or even the world that magic can, and needs to be explained.

But before he really tried to make that claim a reality, he sat on his bed, thinking heavily on how. He isn’t a human that has been the chosen one to hold any magic, that’s for sure. And he really doesn’t have the capabilities, as a 20-year-old to roam around the world to try to prove this claim. And he can’t just walk up to someone and go: “HEY! Do you have MAGIC?” ‘Maybe it’s just a slanderous claim,’ He thought. ‘Am I just thinking too deeply into this?’ He thinks again, asking about his mental state and if he really is just taking this quote too seriously.

“There needs to be an explanation,” Erik says in reply to his friend, trying to reason with him.
“Man, I don’t know what else to say. I ain’t going to stop you, but you sure as hell won’t make it.” His friend replied, adjusting his stool, taking another shot of rum and cola.
“Couldn’t you at least try to make me feel motivated-...?”
“Nope,” His friend interrupts, looking at Erik cheekily. “You’re just a bit too crazy for me to handle.”
“Alright, fine, fine. I’ll show you one day. I’ll keep finding out until I die.”
“Good luck, bub. Look, I gotta drop out. I just can’t hear your rambling.”
“You’re such an asshole, y’know that? Go ahead.”
His friend chuckles at Erik’s snark before stumbling out of the bar.

Erik stood up from the edge of his bed and makes himself some cereal, surrounded by silence with the occasional white noise from a car or two. He was definitely getting himself prepared in a sense. His train of thoughts rides through his brain again. Maybe magic is going on right now and he isn’t knowing of it. Maybe he really is magic! ‘...No. No, that’s ridiculous,’ He thought. ‘Magic couldn’t just be with me without some sort of knowledge of having it. That’s not how the books make it be believed.’ He nods his head, agreeing with himself.

Erik stands up from the bench at the park. He’s been watching the park for about 3 hours now. No signs of magic anywhere. He thinks it’s just a mild way to see if he would see any magic, but his skin really wouldn’t agree with that. He really didn’t want to move either, his sunburns would burn and make him suffer his punishment for trying such a stunt. He didn’t want to move a muscle, he wasn’t in shade, no sunscreen.

Erik slowly looks down at the empty space near the bench and saw something he didn’t see before: A water bottle. Those types of water bottles that have metal on the outside so you couldn’t see through, which would make them the same temperature as the water. Erik slowly reached forward to see if it was any cold, growling frustratingly as the sunburn pains him to move his arm. But when he grabbed the water bottle, he sighed with relief as it was freezing cold.

Erik quickly pressed the water bottle over his arm, flinching as the bed squeaks beneath him. But it took a while for him to adjust to the bitter coldness as he switches the bottle to every area of exposed skin. An hour passed as he’s done so, feeling grateful for this luck. Although he does feel bad for the person who left that water bottle there. But at that moment he didn’t think of that, just knowing that he had something for his sunburn.

Erik began ranting to himself soon afterward, feeling weirded out about that water bottle. As he thinks about it some more, he was growing more certain that the water bottle was NOT THERE before he sat on that bench. He was thankful that there was something to help him but he just couldn’t get that thought out of his head. Maybe…

“Maybe it’s magic!” He yelled suddenly, much to the dismay of his friend who fell off the stool, also spilling his glass.
“Agh, cleanup on aisle 35, what the hell was that for... Wait, did you just say magic? Oh, no. You’re not…”
“Oh yes. Yes, I am.” Erik replied, smiling.
“You’re just gonna think that’s magic? Maybe you were just blind or something.” Erik’s friend replied, getting back on his stool and placing the now empty glass upright on the counter.
“No, no, I can confirm that it just appeared suddenly!” Erik quickly answered, tapping his fingers on the counter.
“You’re just rushing conclusions, Erik. You’ve been rushing with stuff every single day now. Sometimes it’s like you came out of nowhere.” His friend replied, sighing, obviously annoyed. He thinks about Erik’s mental state at this point, maybe he is going crazy.
“Damn it, man, can’t you just try to believe in me for just a little bit?” Erik said, slumping down.
“No! You’re just batshit insane!” His friend replied quickly.
“Ok, whatever, you do you,” Erik replied, almost ignoring the insult. “Refill!” He called out.

After getting his drink he sits back down in front of his laptop and begins to type.

“Journal Entry #21
It happened again! I swear I did just leave that bottle of soda on the counter, it wasn’t there seconds ago! I think I’m ready to post this story out to the internet, and maybe people will finally believe in me again! It’s been so long since I’ve gotten incriminating evidence but this is it! I’m going to debunk that quote once and for all!”

Excited, he closes his laptop before freezing. Around him was… wait, no, that’s not right. He was in his living room, but now he’s in the bedroom? ‘Since when did I switch positions?’ Erik thought. It took him a bit to process before he claps at himself.
“Did I just teleport?!” He yelled at himself.

But his friend flinched.
“HUH?! Erik, what are you saying?”
Erik stumbled as he looked back at his friend. Then around him. He’s back at the bar. But he was just in his bedroom…
“Wait, what? Wha…” Erik looked all around him, his heart pounding like crazy. Everything was going way too fast for him. He just teleported two places. And his laptop is still in front of him, sitting on the counter.
“Dude, are you okay? Seriously you’re just making things up out of nowhere!” His friend replied, gripping Erik’s shoulder, shaking him a bit.
“What… What just happened?” Erik replied, shaking. “What’s happening?!”
“Ok seriously, do you need some help? You’re… you’re freaking out!” His friend replied, now holding both of Erik’s shoulders.
“No, hold on, dude, did you not… did you not see me appear out of nowhere?!” Erik asked, wanting to know if he was having a double dream, or… truly magic.
“No? I mean you weren’t… there, but-...”
“Say no more, I- I need to go!” Erik interrupted, grabbing his laptop before heading out.
“Wait, hold on!” His friend tried to grab him but Erik was already out of the door and into the bedroom. Erik sat on the bed, opened his laptop and quickly began typing his new journal entry.

“Journal Entry #22”

Erik looked up. “Wait… What the f-” Erik said to himself. Wasn’t he just in the bar? And now he’s in his bedroom? Erik put his laptop on the bed and quickly opened his bedroom door to see the wall of a where his bedroom is. Erik rubbed his eyes. Now he really wasn’t teleporting around. He even pinched himself like he would do when he was a kid, but quickly stopped as he did feel pain. He looked at his watch, it wasn’t blurry… He tried to make his laptop float with his mind as hard as he can but nothing. No. This wasn’t a dream. This was the reality. Erik felt himself about to pass out, everything was going by so quickly he felt like vomiting.

Erik wanted to go to the laptop and explain everything but he stopped and just thought. ‘The internet won’t believe me! I don’t have any concrete proof, and… oh god, why is this happening? What do I do?’ Erik thought. He felt scared, confused, but interested in his possible ‘teleportation’ powers. He thinks for a bit of what happened. He sits down on the bed and just thinks. How did this happen? Why? When?

When. This once intrigued him the most. He thinks so the past, more specifically since he heard of that quote that has plagued his mind, and what he would soon accuse of causing this whole mess. “Magic doesn’t need to explain anything to anyone. It has nothing to prove and nothing to be. It just is.” He tries to think about everything up until then. ‘Well, if I exclude the … teleportation and the water bottle suddenly appearing, what else happened…?’ He thought.

Have you paid attention?

It took him a good long hour for him to recollect everything to realize that for the past many days… he was teleporting all over the place without any… notice. The water bottle appeared, he walks through the bar’s door to the bedroom… Erik was dumbfounded. He was blind to all of this nonsense and now he’s realizing it.