Enter the light of sundown.
The Old Pier stood before the two youths in a surprisingly normal manner.
The place looked awfully fine, a bit rusty, but it still looked habitable — anything far from abandoned. It was mostly made of white, old concrete, as the actual pier of the place itself wasn't till the very end, barely taking up a quarter of the area. There were several Cycladic buildings, painted with a shade of blue and white, settled at vertiginous heights, and flowed down inclined streets that were still built with concrete flooring. They were not associated with the amusement park, as they were placed on one side of the place, rather than blending with the rides, which served in their favor.
This town was known for a few of its beaches, but this place made it look more coastal than ever as if they were in another country altogether.
Zachary was shocked by the scene before him.
It was nothing like he had imagined. For a moment, he felt like a fool believing all those rumors and myths that ran about in town, when he usually hated rumors in the first place.
Yet deep inside, he felt… happy?
Perhaps it was because he stopped being logical about his thoughts for a moment that it made him feel different… or he was simply captivated by the place. But it was more than likely the former, as he still saw nothing out of the place. He was shocked by the magnitude of the place, not its beauty.
In his eyes, it was as black and white as everything around him was.
"Do you know why this pier is not being used anymore?" Lauren decided to break the silence.
They were standing in front of the place for more than five minutes, around the time they had gotten off the tram. Not a word was shared between them until now.
"Honestly… no," Zachary denied her question.
"Then why did you seem scared of it when I mentioned it back there?"
She laughed, touching on the fact that she noticed his odd and fearful behavior throughout the whole ride. Her eyes were keen when it came to observation.
"I just thought… I don't know…," He admitted his own fault.
"That's the power of the word of the mouth for ya. Can't exactly do anything about it now, can we. Unless… we go back in time!" Her eyes sparkled, "But that's impossible so we kinda have to live with this." She giggled, sounding almost child-like.
It still piqued his curiosity how such a place was left alone in this fair state. There were not even signs of it being demolished. It was just left like that, never to be touched or approached. Like a place trapped in a time capsule.
"Then why was it abandoned?" He asked.
Lauren, who was standing a little ahead of him, slightly turned her back and smirked, "Ghosts…"
"..."
「Huh?!!!」
Not a single thing to do was going to hide the pale sight of shock on his face. It was as if all his blood was immediately drained out the moment he heard what Lauren had said: Ghosts.
A sign of ghosts meant hauntings, hauntings meant danger, danger meant death, and death meant ghosts. It was all a loop—
Had his mind been in the right place (as it usually should), he probably would have not been in such a dilemma as he was at the time.
"H-Hold on now…!" He backed away with the look of shock still plastered on his face.
"I'm kidding, I'm kidding," she held his arms to calm him and pulled him a little toward her, "I was just making a joke. Ease up."
Zachary was a little vexed by her antics, "The next time you make one, I'm legging it."
"Okay okay, I'm sorry! I'll zip my mouth shut next time, alright?" She tried to hold in her laughter.
Lauren was amazed by his abundant fear of the paranormal. She never figured this apathetic boy that she had watched for over a year would quickly crumble away at the thought of hearing a myth being true. It almost brought a smile on her face, for a reason different than a simple reaction of laughter, that she saw a side of him no one else might have seen.
"It became a private property after someone bought the location," she turned her head back to the entrance of the pier as she explained, "Which helped the town back then build the new pier on the other side that we all know now. But then a few years after it was sold off, the owner just up and disappeared. No one thought of coming here anymore as it was still private property. So it kinda just became abandoned… and eventually the subject for silly rumors and myths."
「She certainly knows a lot about the town…」
Curiosity, it was embedded within her. That alone earned her the knowledge not even most of the locals who have lived decades here knew about. This was a sign of great potential within her that Zachary could not simply comprehend. He strangely admired that about her.
"That's enough stories. Come on!" She laughed heartily.
After that jovial conversation with him, she swiftly reached for his hand and grabbed it before dragging him into the pier.
Even though it was Zachary's first visit, it was Lauren's eyes that were filled with ecstasy and color when they walked in. She would never get tired of this place, each visit felt like a new experience to her.
That was mainly because she learned how to take in all a moment's worth.
"Oh look at this one!"
She would occasionally gasp or drop a comment or two as they roamed the pier's alleyways and took a look at every tiny detail that shined bright in her eyes. She was like a child who had just stumbled upon the world's largest amusement park, which was no particular lie. Everyone had their odd interests.
Hers was just… abandoned theme parks? That was Zachary's best guess.
Because they were all just decorations to him. Nothing noteworthy. This pier was less than fifty years old according to what he had heard. There was nothing amazing about it other than the fact that it was still "functioning" in some aspects.
He could not understand what she found so great with this place.
Yes, there was a certain amazing magnitude to it. But to him, it was as grim as everything in his world. Just what did she find so amusing?
Huge alleyways. Decrepit rides. Plant-decorated and mold-infested buildings (most likely due to its growing age). Steep streets. That was all there was to it. All grand and hollow but nothing of real value, nothing to spark up a feeling.
Watching the girl before him gape in awe brought him a bit of ease, with a somber reminder that he could not understand any of what she saw.
"Soooo, what's your favorite books?" Lauren asked all of a sudden.
Before he realized it, he was standing in front of a powered-down carousel.
She, on the other hand, was preoccupied on the side with what looked like a fuse box. It seemed that she was trying to bring this rundown old thing back to life.
"Um… Are you sure you know how to work that thing?" He ignored her question as he was more concerned with her own well-being.
She chuckled, "It's fine. My dad's an electrical engineer, I've seen him working before and even helped on certain occasions," she seemed proud with her statement, "Besides, I've done this a couple times. I turn it off each time I leave so it wouldn't burn out. There's only so much life a fifty-year-old machine can have."
"I see…," He sighed.
Noticing the tonal shift in his eyes to when he had entered the place, Lauren was starting to catch onto his thoughts. She wasn't a psychic. He just did a poor job of hiding his dismay.
"Am I boring you?" She nonchalantly asked.
"Huh?! No, no," he waved both his hands frantically in denial, "It's just… I don't get your enjoyment so much out of this stuff."
"Well, of course, you wouldn't. What normal person would enjoy working a few cables and the like?"
"No, it's not about that. You just… looked amazed by everything around here. But I… I didn't feel a thing." He tried to get his point across. "I thought you were striving for that 'world' because you lacked it, but you seem to be doing just fine right now in my opinion."
"..." Lauren's eyes widened upon hearing his words.
「Shit! Did I say too much?」
Even with that thought, he was as much shocked as her at how he was surprised by his bluntness. Normally, he wouldn't give a damn about what he said.
"You don't see the fun in the small things, do you?" She blatantly asked.
"What?!"
Her voice wasn't that of anger. The sound of her response didn't seem like she was berating or mocking him as a payback for his words.
In fact, it was quite the opposite.
She felt sorrow. Her eyes told a similar story. It was as if she was a kid who looked at another and felt sorry for them for not experiencing the joy they felt.
"You know what? I think I've had enough of these rides for today." Her voice still maintained that warm tone.
Zachary felt like he had stepped on a landmine and it was only a matter of time before it was completely set off. Everything he had tried to work for in the past day seemed to crumble all of a sudden in front of him.
"Wait, hold on, I—"
However, Lauren immediately cut him off by placing her finger on his lips.
The trip wasn't over yet.
"Follow me, it's time for the main event!"
Once again, she held onto his hand and dragged him around somewhere else while he looked as confused as ever.
There is more to this place than meets the eye.