The family drives down the road in their light blue Jeep Cherokee XJ after church; windows rolled up despite the sunny day. Jonathan, freshly sixteen, sits to the left beside the window, as his two other sisters, Esther and Mary, discuss their experience at church. They claimed that they enjoyed it very much, but Jonathan didn't feel the same. He never enjoyed church; waking up early, dressing up and having to sit in an uncomfortable pew for what felt like hours. He felt relief as soon as it was declared ver and he could leave, at least after being forced into uncomfortable conversations with adults he barely knew.

He stared out the window at all the other people. They dressed and acted differently than him and his family, but they always seemed more happy than him when he got glimpses of them. He'd never been allowed to talk to any of them outside of school, which he was forbidden from doing unless he had to. His parents claimed they were sinners and would soon be banished to hell when Armageddon came and the good from the bad were separated. They were part of the good group.

As he continued to look out the window, he saw a sign that caught his eye: it was a movie theater, something foreign to him, that advertised a horror movie marathon that would go on throughout the entire month of October. It would start at 9:30PM and end at 5AM. It would be playing all sorts of movies, for just one ticket. He felt as though this sinful activity was calling his name, and he attempted to ignore it, but as the evening approached and they had just began their family Bible reading, he began to think about it once again.

As they read and discussed the story of David and Goliath, Jonathan had inadvertently separated himself from the conversation as he weighed the pros and cons of attempting to sneak out to view the movies. He'd never done such an act of rebellion before, and he knew that if his parents found out they would ground him til the day he died and never let him leave the house for anything other than church or school, but was doubtful of that happening. They were heavy sleepers, this he knew, because of how difficult it was to awake them when Mary claimed to be bleeding out of her 'thing'. He wasn't sure what she meant until two years later, at the age of thirteen, when his father discussed puberty with him. He wasn't certain if he was accurate or not, but he didn't have any other source of information, so had no choice but to trust his words.

As his bedtime at 9:00PM approached, he laid in bed and attempted to stay awake until he was certain his parents were asleep. As 9:30PM approached, the home was dark and silent, and he took this as his chance to leave. He had the benefit of having his own room, and thankfully, it was on the first floor, as his sisters and parent's room were upstairs. He carefully got dressed into one of his more comfortable outfits, a pair of Corduroy pants and a thinly striped blue shirt. He put on his sneakers, which he was only allowed to wear outside, and snuck as quietly as he could to the front door. He suddenly remembered that he would need money to pay for the ticket and went into the living room, where his mother's purse sat on the circular wooden coffee table. He grabbed ten dollars from her floral patterned wallet and snapped it shut, carefully putting it back into its place.

After opening the front door and closing it, he went over to the side of the house, where his bike leaned. He led it down the driveway and began riding it down the road, careful to watch for other drivers, though he doubted they would be on this section of the road so late. As he approached town, he slowed his pace and found a parking rack to put his bike in. He walked the rest of the way to the theater and paid for his ticket, collecting his change and walking inside.

As soon as he entered the theater, he felt like he was in a completely different world than what he had known. The carpet had a bright neon pattern and looked like it hadn't been vacuumed in months. Popcorn pieces were strewn all around the floor and the space smelled of butter and coke. The boys, mostly teenagers, wore baggy jeans and brightly colored graphic tees, and the girls, similarly aged, wore pleated pants and collared sweaters with simple striped patterns. Some wore plaid skirts along with similar sweaters and all the people hung around in lines, waiting to hand in their tickets, laughing and talking. The overwhelming noise and bright colors made Jonathan feel severely out of place, and he could feel eyes on him and his bland and conservative outfit.

He walked up to the line that formed behind the ticket collector, a scrawny teen boy with a blue hat and shirt, and a name tag that read 'Brian M'. Once it was his turn in line, Brian stared up at him, frowning and taking his ticket without a word, simply pointing to the room he would go to. Jonathan walked to where he pointed to, walking down the hall and up the stairs to his seat. He found a spot secluded from other people and looked around. He was afraid from the moment he took his seat that he would regret doing this, but there was no going back now, as the lights were dimmed and the first film played.

The haunting melody of the soundtrack to The Shining transports Jonathan into a world of terror and horror as the film's events play out across the large screen. As the end came and the credits rolled, Jonathan could only stare, mouth agape, as he processed the rush of emotions he felt during and after the movie. Other films that followed, like Misery and Carrie, endlessly fascinated Jonathan. As 3:00 AM approached, Jonathan began to feel himself fall asleep and decided to head back home. The many films that horrified him and gave him a sense of a world he'd never seen before couldn't leave his mind for even a moment. He could feel God's judging eyes over him every time a gory or horrid scene would fill his previously naive mind. The days following his night escapade, he would look into his parent's eyes at dinner, wondering if they would somehow figure out what he'd done that night.

He would stare at the large wooden structure that depicted Jesus' crucifixion, wondering if he would ever be forgiven for such a sin. Did he even truly love God in the first place, or was he destined from the start for a life of unforgiven sin? He'd regretted watching those movies, but he yearned to watch them again, to experience their haunting scenes just once more before completely separating himself from their blatant disregard for the Bible's teachings.

It was nearly a week after he snuck out, and the thoughts had only grown stronger. Every time he stared at someone for longer than he should, thoughts of replicating the murder and torture he witnessed in those films on that person would creep into his mind, and he would immediately begin reciting Bible verses in his head to avoid them. He was beginning to think there was something wrong with him, and he feared there probably was.

Walking down the hallway at school towards the exit, he avoided eye contact with everyone around him and stared down at his brown, casual but uncomfortable shoes. He stepped outside and stood on the sidewalk, waiting for the bus to drive up. His mother was too busy to pick him up, which was a rare occurrence, and he was less than thrilled to have to ride home with all the other kids.

He steps onto the bus and walks to the back, where an empty seat greets him. He sits at the end of it, next to the window, and leans his head against the dark velvet seat, staring outside as the bus begins to move. He would most likely be the last person on the bus, as his home was the furthest out. He attempted to avoid looking at the person in the seat across from him, wanting to avoid making the wrong person angry.

The trip to his home was becoming long and Jonathan became more and more bored. He carefully took a quick glance at the person and at first, didn't think it was anyone he'd seen before, but upon further inspection, realized it was the ticket collector from the movie theater, Brian M.

Jonathan quickly looked away, not wanting to start a conversation. He was done disobeying his parents from now on. Brian also looked uncomfortable, and Jonathan felt more assured that an interaction wouldn't occur between them. The bus stopped and Brian stood up after glancing out his window, glancing at Jonathan in the time it took for him to walk down the aisle away from him.

Brian was clearly somewhat intrigued by Jonathan, perhaps because of his distance from the trends going on and bland style. Jonathan hadn't really been able to choose very much for himself, as his outfits all catered to what his parents viewed as appropriate, along with his interests that mostly involved some aspect of his religion, outright or not. He was too afraid to question his parents on why they lived the way they did, why they couldn't have a television or radio, or why the only book they ever read was the Bible. He feared they would get upset at his question of their judgment and punish him, as they had before with his sisters.

As the bus continued to stop and children began to step off, he was left with only a few other people before he could get off. As the bus drove down the long road past the main town towards his isolated home, he placed his backpack over his shoulders and moved to the edge of the seat as the bus came to a stop at the long driveway that led to his home. He stood up and walked down the aisle, going down the steps and onto the gravel.

Their dog, Ava, excitedly barks and runs up to Jonathan as he walks up to the house. He pets her black head and body and follows her inside the house, where the smell of stew lingers in the air. Jonathan smiles. This was one of his favorite meals.

"Is that you, Jonathan?" His mother asks from the kitchen.

Jonathan walks down the hall and next to the entrance to the kitchen, where his mother stands over a large pot, mixing its contents as steam flies up from it and into her face.

"Yes, mother," He answers, placing his backpack beside the bench in the hall.

"How was school?" She asks in her usual stern and emotionless tone. Her brown hair was in a simple bun, multiple strands sticking out the back.

"Good."

"Did you talk to anyone?"

"No."

"Good. Supper will be ready soon. Go get your sisters and wash up." She didn't turn over to look at him even once, and as he walked away, he wondered if she was even interested in his day at all.

He walked up the wooden steps to his sister's bedrooms, knocking on both their doors and calling them out. They stepped out soon after and went downstairs after they all cleaned their hands. Their father was already in his seat at the table when they walked into the kitchen, and after everyone else took their seats, their father began to pray.

"Dear Lord, thank you for this meal and the work put into it, and please bless all our actions for the rest of the day. Amen."

"Amen," The rest of the family said in unison, and their mother stood up to give everyone their meals, starting with their father and ending with herself.

Dinner was mostly silent excluding the small conversations regarding boring topics Jonathan had no interest in, and he was relieved once everyone had finished eating. He excused himself and went back to his room before family Bible study started, and soon, his door was unexpectedly opened up. Jonathan looked up as his father stepped inside and greeted him, sitting down on his bed beside him.

"So, how would you like to spend a day on the farm with me tomorrow? I've got lots of work to do and you would be a big help. I figured it works out well since you won't have school and might be a bit bored."

"Uh, sure." He wasn't really certain if he wanted to or not but didn't want his father to do all the work, especially if there was lots of it.

"Great! It'll be nice, we can have some father-son time. Bible study is starting soon too, so come out in a bit," He says, patting Jonathan on the back and leaving his room without shutting the door.

Bible study went by quickly and before he knew it, Jonathan was already in his bed, stuck staring at the wall as he was not tired at all. It was blank except for a decorative cross and a small painting of a blank, dreary field with a farmer stood in the center. His eyes were dead and he held a shovel in his right hand and a piece of straw sticking out of his mouth. That farmer reminded him a lot of his father on most days, dull and emotionless.

Jonathan was grateful for the weekend, though he wished it lasted longer. He wasn't as aware of what Esther and Mary's usual day at school was like, but for him, it was less than ideal. Though most people didn't bother him, a select few classmates would tease and bully him to no end, all because he didn't act as they did. It had been going on since he first started high school, but he never bothered telling his parents, as he did with most other things.

Like every other night before then, he thought constantly about the films he watched. It especially plagued his mind at night, when he was unable to sleep and had no other thoughts to distract him.

Eventually, sleep came to him and he could clear his mind for a while, until thoughts flooded inside him the next morning.

*****

Hey guys! If you couldn't tell already, the second half of the story is going to take place when Jonathan is a teenager in the 90s and will follow how he began to get into his life of crime and murder. Hope you enjoyed it! 

New chapter out next week, as always (: