The clouds coalesced into one thick clump. Maybe a heavy rain will fall soon. Joe's afternoon coffee had run out tens of minutes ago, bored him and chose to knock on the dark blue bedroom door with so many Squidward character stickers on it.
A low reply sounded, Joe ventured to open the door halfway, peeking at what someone was doing in there.
"Have you eaten yet?"
"Already." the short answer Joe got.
"What are you doing? Why don't you leave your room all day?" he asked again kindly.
Although it was a bit awkward because they didn't have much time together, Joe still tried to pay attention like an older brother to his younger sister.
An oversized jacket draped over the girl's small body. The hair that used to be in a ponytail was now left untidy. A smile appeared on the girl's face. Showed a bunch of clean teeth to show Joe.
"Sorry. I'm too busy studying for tomorrow's exam." she said
"Is that so? Then continue your studies. Brother will bring bread to your room later."
Joe's vision immediately blurred. changing like a broken television screen. The faint occurrences Joe saw without her understanding until he stopped at one scene. The sound of the rain thundered.
The dark room was getting scarier because the lightning outside shone in suddenly and continuously. Vallen looked worried, rubbed the back of his hands and kept calling someone. This has been more than sixty unanswered calls.
Dad's been gone a long time ago. I don't know which way to go with his shabby car in the middle of this thunderstorm. The night was getting late and his sister never gave news. Joe and Vallen kept trying to contact, he kept saying a series of prayers so that no bad luck would befall their family.
It was nine o'clock precisely, when the bell rang once and the door opened. Joe immediately ran outside, found her sister standing dumbfounded. Drenched and full of mud all over her body.
"Where have you been? Why can't you be contacted? And why is your shirt covered in mud like this, son? Did you fall somewhere?"
Vallen's panic made Joe's heart even more uneasy. He was also asking the same thing in his heart. What exactly happened to this one and only little sister?
"Mother can ask sister anytime. Now let sister take a bath and rest." Trying to calm his mother down, Joe ushered his sister into the bathroom. Prepare a change of clothes with care.
"I put your change of clothes on the bed."
There is no answer. Only the sound of the shower Joe heard from inside the bathroom. He looked at the slightly messy gray room. Lots of scribbled paper scattered everywhere. Joe's attention was drawn to a large scratch on the study table. Just about to approach the sound of a loud thump came from the bathroom. Panicked, Joe tried to knock impatiently on the bathroom door.
"What's wrong? did you fall?!"
There has never been a reply.
Even more panicked, Joe forced the bathroom door down. Easily the door opens. And all he found was a nightmare.
"a-sister?!"
The tap water continued to flow to fill the bathtub which was now cloudy due to the water mixed with mud and the limp body couldn't breathe.
Joe's breath hitched. Immediately he woke up, wiping his forehead which was covered with sweat dripping sweat down to his chest.
The sudden beating of his heart made Joe take a deep breath. Damn nightmares that reoccur.
Joe was embarrassed and almost desperate. If he lost his sanity, he would love to be swallowed up by the earth.
Joe and Vallen try to escape the harsh reality. Leaving the house full of laughter and sorrow they used to live in for a long time. Joe thought things were starting to get better. A new home, a new atmosphere, a new life without a trace of sorrow from the past. Joe is wrong. maybe everything was left there. Buried in something called the dark ages. But one thing remains, the memory is still there. Haunting every dream of Joe and Vallen.