I jolted up from my sleep. It was such a deep slumber, one I had never experienced before. Pearls of tears rolling down the corner of my eyes, a painful lump in my throat and a terribly aching heart, begging to be eased.
BADUMP….BADUMP…..
".....What was that?"
I vaguely remembered my dream.
*How vivid….yet, why is it that it's slowly fading away?*
As if hiding, yet waiting to be found.
I sat up on the edge of my bed, taking in the familiar view of a cheap apartment. The instant noodle cup from yesterday, the bag of trash I had yet to throw away, the cracked sliding glass door towards the balcony, the pile of clothes I left at the corner of the room...yeah, this is my home. My hand reached for the cell phone that had fallen in between the wall and the bed, fumbling around until I made a contact with the piece of metal altered by technology.
[15 Aug 20xx. 2.30pm]
Seeing the time, I unwillingly stood up to start the day with a sigh, stretching my body.
CRACKK— A merciless cracking sound filled the room.
*Oh, gods…So stiff!* I grimaced at the snapping sensation.
Rubbing my back, I treaded groggily towards the bathroom. My free hand reaches to scratch my not-so-itchy head.
"When was the last time I washed my hair again? The water got cut off often, even showering is hard…"
Cold, mouldy bathroom. Winter had begun, showering only once in a while won't be such a big deal. Putting on the Pozemon slippers, I turned to the sink with a single mirror. To be exact, the only mirror available in this small heck of a cheap apartment.
"Hm? Since when is it broken?"
I stared blankly at the reflective glass, carefully tracing a part of its thousand cracks. The damage was so severe that it failed to form my image properly, showing only the silhouette.
*How weird...is it because of the cold?* I pondered. "Guess I'll just use my phone as a mirror."
Shrugging it off, I swiftly brushed my teeth and prepared for the day. I threw on a thrifted winter jacket and pulled out a pair of dusty leather boots from the smelly shoe rack. With a knitted snow cap given by mother from last year, I am more than ready to go! Stepping out of the old apartment, the white scenery filled my eyes. Snow had piled up yesterday.
*...Odd, how come I didn't notice?* It must've been a hella good night sleep, I pondered.
After descending the two-story building, I slowly treaded on the snow, deep in a trance. Each step caused my boots to sunk into the white, frozen matter, leaving a trail of footsteps behind.
*...Beautiful,* I thought before pausing in my track.
Have I ever liked the snow before? Well, I did play with it back when I was a child. Sometimes I even pranked my baby brother with a surprise snowballs attacks. The boy will get all edgy throughout the day, nagging me non-stop. Quite fun, I'd say. Then again, seeing this view reminds me of someone; one that I couldn't really put my finger on— but must've been just as gorgeous.
Without thinking too much about it, I continued my walk through the layers of snow, my freezing hand in my pocket.
"I'll grab something by the convenience store," I muttered to myself, glancing up at the building in front of me.
The bell rung when I stepped through the automatic door. A teen girl standing by the register, scrolling down her cell phone. Not wishing to bother her, I browsed around, taking a packed rice set and a canned coffee. As I approached the register, I peered at the book shelves by the window.
The latest volume of the hottest light novel this year had just been released. Seems like action, fantasy genre had been hitting the top these days.
I took the novel in my hand. 'Blade of the Unwanted'; a story of an abandoned young child from the slum who somehow rose to the top.
"Yeah, with the power of plot armor, anything is possible," I scoffed.
Only two of it left, what do you expect from the best selling novel of the year? Had I been a bit later, I wouldn't even be able to get my hands on it. Thankfully, there's not many people living around this residence. Plus, no one would expect such a book to be sold here. Even I had no idea as to why is it here in the first place. After feeling the gaze of the cashier, I finally brought it to the register and paid for the items.
Being used with the girl's attitude, I gave a simple nod before making my way out. I thought we had been rather friendly these days, but the girl had just acted as if she never knew me. Back to square one, I suppose.
"It's the weekend today. How's mom and dad, I wonder? it's been a while since I last visited them. Curse that exploitative company!" I sighed, forming a cloud-like breath into the cold air.
Passing by the park on my way back to the apartment, I laid my eyes on a few children playing in the thick snow. One was rolling a large snow ball, one was collecting pebbles and branches while the other two were having their time making a snow fortress, mischievously giggling while hiding a few snowballs.
*Must be nice…all energetic and innocent,* I thought, a hint of envy was felt.
As I arrived by my front doorstep, a package was there, blocking the entrance. I picked it up without much thoughts, opened the creaking door and took off my worn out leather boots.
CRE-E-AK
"This damned apartment is about to collapse at any moment now, seriously," I complained.
Door closed, the packed rice heating, I took out the wrapped novel and put it on a small bookshelf next to my study table.
"1,2,3,4,5.....9 the finale."
I nodded in satisfaction. Yes, I bought each one of the series. The story is indeed fitting to be the best selling one, after all! Unwrapping the book, a canned coffee in my hand, now let's see how the story ends!