Superstition

May the brave ones reading this book understand that its purpose is to force you to look for the reasons behind the names, the origins and stories referred to.

Preludes

— I can't speak for the quality, but it was expensive enough.

— So what does it do?

—He told me it's sort of like an aphrodisiac, but it's also relaxing at the same time. So, you'll probably sleep well, but you'll also have a boner and probably weird dreams. But, you always have weird shit happening in your dreams.

— Ha, ha, very funny Erica.— He answered with palpable sarcasm. As long as it fucks me up enough to take my mind off the teachers I'm down for anything.

— I'm being honest Adrian; you should write down your nightmares. You could end up becoming a famous author like Lovecraft or King. I mean, you are an awesome writer, I don't get why you are studying computer programming

— I might, I might. It could be a nice way to exorcise those demons into a page— Answered Adrian while snorting a line of crushed, yellow pills his girlfriend bought him. That was the last time he spoke.

As Adrian convulsed on the floor, Erica panicked and ran in her underwear through the students' residential hallway, calling for help. The other students flocked to the room and soon called an ambulance. After a night in the hospital, Adrian' parents were called.

Chapter 1

Ulises was the main electrician in a small, Tacuarembo town of Russian immigrants. He helped with the installation of the first generator and many other electrical installations. He was the one to answer the call; he had a calm and soothing voice, but it did nothing to mitigate the impact the news had on his wife. They took route 3 direct to Montevideo. After less than four hours, they were at their son's bedside.

Ulises always felt uncomfortable in places like hospitals, with too many people and weird energies. Adrian was in a deep coma, he looked pale and lifeless, but he looked much better than his mother, Devenna. She was inconsolable, feeling the pain only a good, loving mother could. Ulises, on the other hand, felt uneasy, he couldn't handle the situation. There was something weird and unsettling about it. He was normally quiet and stoic, but he couldn't stop pacing inside the room. When the doctor finally came, it felt as though a seal of silence and fear had been broken.

— This is difficult to say, so I'll be blunt. We are lost. Your son had an extreme reaction to a new synthetic drug. We aren't quite sure of the effect it had on him, it was possible an allergic reaction or something along those lines. You may have heard of the different reactions this drug has caused. There are videos all over the internet but there has not been a proper study done on it.

— No! That's a lie, Adrian is a good boy, he's a great student and an athlete, he would never take that kind of shit.— Devenna answered in a manic scream still holding her son's hand.

The doctor reluctantly looked at Ulises' long face and silently showed him Erica's statement and the toxicology report.

Ulises stayed awake until the first lights of daybreak began to shine through the windows, framing the mother and son like a renaissance painting. At least, that's what he thought as he was getting up. He walked to the bathroom to wash his face and he caught a glimpse of his reflection in the mirror and stared at himself for a while. The bags under his eyes weren't new but looked uglier than ever. His receding hairline, long face, and thin lips made him feel blessed that his son looked so much like his mother.

— "He just inherited bad things from me"— He thought— "My allergies, my baldness, and worst of all, my nightmares. All I can do is hope he doesn't have to go through the same messed up shit I did".