Sweet is what girls want, right? Especially from their boyfriends on Valentine's Day.
Yes, I thought so too. Boy, was I wrong.
Apparently 'sweet' is what new couples or flash young couples do. According to Leah, sweet is unacceptable. At least, not for the second Valentine's Day a couple spent together. I didn't get it right. Never did, never would, if you asked her. Needless to say, we are no longer an item. Haven't been for two years. But that's not the point. Merely where it all started.
The 'sweet' gift (unknown to her, last minute, as usual) I bought for her appeared to be the last straw was a teddy bear which, when its foot was squeezed, lifted its arms up and said, "Love me! I want you to love me!" The more I think about it now, the creepier I realise it was. All along. Isn't hindsight wonderful?
But back then I was an innocent, love-struck guy trying to express it to his girl. I'd always loved love. Valentine's day. But it was only since I met her that I had a proper partner to spend it with. The bear had said it. All I wanted was for her to love me. That was all. Just love. The Beatles had said it too. Love is all you need.
At first, the teddy bears had seemed sweet. They were popular, too. I'd had to wait at the edge of a rather large crowd to get a mere glimpse of them. I felt luck stretch a little in my favour when I was able to snag one of the last ones left in the store. I'd taken it home, and right up until she opened it, it had seemed sweet.
"Are you serious?" she'd screamed. "I can't believe you thought I would actually like this!"
"Isn't it cute?" I'd asked in a whisper as with the hint of another failed attempt, tears formed behind my eyes and I felt my face grow hot with frustration. "What do you want from me?"
Two Valentine's Days after Leah's blow-up, when it was just me, myself and I, I noticed the bear sitting high on my shelf and pulled it down for old time's sake. A little rush of nostalgia I suppose. A vague shadow of that feeling I'd been after all those years ago. At first, the bear was completely motionless, moving only when I squeezed it's foot. At first.
After a while, the teddy bear's words, 'love me! I want you to love me!', started to sound a little creepy. I remember standing up, at which point, the bear, which I had positioned on my knee toppled to the floor. I began to walk away before looking back to convince myself the instincts were just scary mind stories. Mind stories that acted like snakes, hissing at an increasing volume to try to make you listen.
My eyes widened at the sight that greeted them. I looked away immediately, shaking my head before looking back again. I blinked. The bear appeared to have moved. It now stood on two legs, its arms extended out in front of it, reaching. For me. I converted to autopilot and slowly stepped backwards, placing all my faith into my intimate knowledge of my own dwelling so as not to trip. But, the faster I backtracked, the quicker the bear advanced, determined to maintain what distance there was between us.
I couldn't help but laugh as I caught a fleeting glance of myself in the mirror. I looked ridiculous. A middle aged man, wearing nothing but his singlet and boxer shorts running from a tiny, fluffy little teddy bear. if it were any other situation, I would not be able to stop laughing. But, the fact that I was being chased by a psycho teddy bear come to life could not be forgotten, and the situation demanded attention.
Thankfully, I managed to lock myself in my living room by wedging one of the old family heirloom armchairs against the door. I fell into the armchair the moment I'd successfully heaved it into place, breathing hard. I stayed there a few minutes while I regained breath before turning on the TV. Surely I was going crazy.
When I turned the TV on, an image of bears just like my own filled the screen. Hundreds, maybe thousands of them, all walking down a road somewhere, like a tiny mob. Hmm... It would seem that I was not the only one with a Valentine's bear brought to life.
"The Valentine's 'Love Me' Teddy Bears appear to have completely come to life," came the voice of a newsreader. "We have footage here of a whole army of Teddy Bears marching down Main Street.."
The screen flashed to a 'breaking news' screen before it cut to another reporter. "Anne, we have breaking visions here. People now appear to be marching and chanting with the Teddy Bears." Over the field reporter's shoulder, I could see a few people dotted among the crowd of bears, their arms forward. My living room was filled with their chant. "Love me! I want you to love me!" as the camera zoomed for a closer shot of them. I watched as the camera passed over countless people, their eyes so glazed over that they closely resembled
I gripped the arms of the chair so tightly my knuckles began to turn a ghastly shade of white. Right there, on the screen, was her. I couldn't help but laugh, full blown, just about fall off my chair, laughter. The girl I'd just wanted to show love was begging the world for it, just like the crazed Teddy Bears she followed blindly. It was obvious that she wasn't in her right mind. The Leah I knew would be scoffing at this. Complaining about how stupid it was. How the world was getting taken over by a whole bunch of desperate losers. How ironic it was that I'm not in any way a part of this... cult of beggars.
I shook my head as they zoomed out back to the reporter, who had turned her back to the camera. She too was chanting now, and her arms were out in front of her as she moved robotically toward the mob.
The screen filled with the panicked face of a man, attempting to film himself. "It seems that if you look them directly in the eye, it's like they hypnotise you," he said breathlessly.
"Thank you," the main studio reporter said as the camera crossed back to her and the newsroom. I marveled at the serious expression on her face. At the tiny, barely concealed giggle which momentarily broke her composure. I suppose the whole situation would seem quite humorous to someone not in the thick of it. But I was in the thick of it. I am in the thick of it, I realise as I hear the bear outside rapping on the door, louder now.
Days later, I am still trapped in my living room. I can hear the bear on the other side of that door. Still trying to break its way through the wood. There could be more bears now. I don't know, and I don't dare open the door to find out. I write this to get the word out there. To warn people. Get as far away from them as you can, and whatever you do, do not make eye contact. Should you make that mistake, you will be begging the world to love you too. Ironic really, given that's really how all this started. At least for me. One last, desperate, yet failed plea for adoration. But, you've been warned. Beware the bears.
