The First Task

Caleb had the most brutal day of his life ahead of him. He couldn't believe what he had promised he would do, but now that the promise had been made, it wasn't one he could back out of. Brushing his teeth briskly, his gums stinging, Caleb stared at the scowling face before him. It was the scowling face of Ulysses S. Grant, 18th president of the United States of America. His mother didn't believe in mirrors, but every room in the house had a blown up image of a world leader from 1872, her favourite year.

Caleb's mother was a lovely woman, but far too eccentric for her own good or for Caleb's. She had gotten him into this mess, after all. Or at least she was the one who had begged of him to do this task. For her. For the family. Caleb exited the bathroom, and passed Queen Victoria in his rush through the hallway, tipping his baseball cap at her portrait as he sped down the hall.

He wished with everything inside him that he had not agreed to this. It would be the first task of the day, and it would be one fraught with perils that no teenager should have to face. He helped his seven year old sister Lacey into her Barbie sneakers and matching coat, rolling his eyes behind her back. Everything seemed so much more ominous about this Tuesday morning when he had to start it off by walking his sister to school.