Eric in the Storm

Eric was a beautiful young man, walking around in the sun everyday. He had a lot of friends, both male and female. Everyone liked him as he brought so much joy to people's lives with his smile and warmth, always accompanied by the sun. And all people, boys and girls, longed to spend time with Eric. Everyone adored him, everyone except the Queen. She never liked Eric, as she felt he did not treat her more special than he did any other human being. And the Queen used to spend her days thinking of ways to get him out of the way. And so the Queen made a pact with the wind, the clouds and the rain to create a storm that would chase away the sun surrounding Eric's life.

One day, walking around in one of his sunniest clothes, Eric looked up and saw dark clouds gathering. The sunshine had a difficult time breaking through, this spectacle was very new to Eric, who waited for the sun to shine through and walk with him. But more and more clouds gatherd, the sky became darker and darker and all of a sudden wind was mounting. People ran into their houses as Eric still waited for the sun. When he looked up again he felt rain falling on his head, it started raining so hard that the streets turned blank in just a few seconds.

To protect himself against the cold, wind and rain , he picked up an old blanket he found on the street and wrapped it around his shoulders. The weather became very stormy and Eric felt lost. He did not recognize any street in this darkness, he did not know how to return home. Eric panicked, he kept waiting for the sun, but it wouldn't come. At the verge of desperation, Eric decided to set aside his pride and went looking for shelter, as it was unbearable to continue walking through this storm. For sure his many friends would offer him the warmth he needed to recover.

So Eric knocked on the first door he found on his way, requesting:
"Please, can you offer me some help? Is there anybody there?"
No answer came, "nobody home" Eric figured.
And so he went on to the next door:
"Hello, I'm a little cold and wet, can you be so kind to you let me in?'
A male voice answered:
"I'm sorry my friend, it is too risky to open up the door. You wouldn't want the storm to catch me, right?"
Eric continued, knocking on the window of a beautiful little house.
"Excuse me, can you provide some shelter? Hello, anybody home?"
A girl came to the window, and all she saw was an ugly man covered in a disgusting blanket.
"I don't let strangers in, my mom wouldn't want me to, go away!".

After numerous refusals, Eric arrived at a house that looked familair.
It was the house of Anna, a woman he recently met and who was very fond of him.
He knocked: "Hey Anna, it's Eric, can you let me in? It's stormy outside".
And Anna replied "Dear Eric, you know how I like it when you come over, but today you did not bring the sun? I can't let you in, as the storm may find it's way in too".
"Oh, I understand, Anna, but I'll be sure it doesn't get in, ok?"
"That is very sweet of you", Anna said, "but I can't take the risk. Come back when the storm is over, okay?".

At the verge of giving up and die alone in the streets, Eric decided to try the Queen's castle for shelter. And surprisingly enough, he was welcomed into the castle, offered warm clothes and a warm dinner. He told her about what had happened, that no one risked to give him shelter. Touched by his suffering, the Queen requested the wind, clouds and rain to make place for the sun.

Eric returned to his house after thanking the Queen, who told him to come by any time he wanted.
Back on the streets, people longed for Eric's smile and sunshine again, but he never replied to the many requests. Anna came by as well, asking him to come over and telling him how much he was missed by her during the storm. But Eric never went to Anna's house again, nor did he ever invite her over.