In the abandoned, dark alley, Asher was shivering from the cold and bleeding from his throat. He struggled to breathe because the blood flowed into his lungs.
The helpless state discomforted him; he was suffering—the struggle of being desperate, the sorrow of feeling alone, and the unbearable thought of dying.
He was afraid, feeling lost and alone.
He couldn't tolerate the darkness enveloping him, and the stillness was terrible.
....
It was a day like any other in Asher's life. He left work after a hectic day. He had to provide for himself, but he didn't even make ends meet, so he could only afford to rent a house in the undeveloped part of the city.
As he walked towards his house after getting off the bus, he looked up at the dark sky without the moon and the streets around him. He felt his life was similar, dark, and dreary.
"Haah...what am I even doing? I work, and I work hard, but I still have to listen to the seniors berating me before coming home tired and just sleep. Why am I even trying so hard? To live this life in solitude?" Asher sighed.
Asher never had a family. People at orphanages just provide necessary food and shelter until you either get adopted or leave after you reach the age of 16. He didn't have any time to make friends, let alone have a lover, as all he could do was survive and provide for himself first.
On the street, cold waves of wind were blowing, giving shivers to the spine as Asher wore light clothes.
At that moment, the surroundings were desolate, with very few people around, while street lights were flickering on and off. It saddened him even more, making the situation unbearable.
Asher took his turn, going into the alley. As he stepped a little deeper into the place, he didn't realize when four people surrounded him. They all looked like regular street thugs with big muscles and tattoos on their bodies. The thing that was common among them was the heavy smell of alcohol.
"...what?" Asher exclaimed in shock.
"Haha, big brother, how long has it been? At last, we found someone; now we can go for another round of drinks." One of the big guys laughed.
"Haah, I was getting tired of waiting." Another one sighed.
"We shouldn't have waited here; getting some money in the city would have been effortless." The third one said this while drinking alcohol from an almost empty bottle.
"Well, it can't be helped, as we had to complete the task given by the boss." The big brother lamented.
'..what, what is going on? Why are they surrounding me? Another round of drinks? Get money? Are they trying to rob me?' Scared, Asher tried to think of a way out of this situation. However, he was unable to see anyone to seek assistance from in this abandoned alleyway that was encircled by them in the deep night.
As he thought of running away by pushing one of the big guys, the one called Big Brother grabbed his shoulders and said, "Now, where do you think you are going, boy? Give us all your money if you don't want to get hurt."
Asher tried hard but couldn't shake him off due to their difference in strength.
Bang!
One of the big guys couldn't take it anymore and punched Asher in the guts, making him fall to his knees.
Asher, crying out in pain, tried hard to breathe as a single punch took away all his strength.
"Big brother, I am getting tired; let's get this over with." The big guy took out Asher's wallet from the pocket of his trousers. "...this? What the fuck? Ah, this is so irritating."
"What happened, second brother?"
"Yeah, you look as if you just stepped on some shit."
"What have you got there?" The big brother asked.
The second brother landed another hit on Asher in the guts. Asher couldn't hold it anymore and fell on his face. Tears were already running down his face. "This fucker, he just got an empty wallet with a few coins. Ahh, fuck, fuck, this is too irritating." He kept kicking Asher while cursing.
Asher couldn't think straight, as all he could do was try to defend himself as best as he could while bearing pain. 'Why? Why is this happening to me? Why do I have to get robbed? Why do I have to bear this pain? It's not as if I don't have money; I am doing all I can to survive alone. All of my money is used on rent and living expenses. How can I, who always loses opportunities to grow and gets last in everything, have any money left to save?'
"...This?" all the other big guys exclaimed.
Bang!
But then, an alcohol bottle was smacked hard on Asher's head. "Fuck! This beggar is wasting my drink; I feel sober all over."
"Ah, this shit is ruining an already bad night; brothers, let's beat him hard."
Bang! Bang! Bang!
They all started venting their irritation at Asher. He kept begging for mercy; was it necessary to beat him just to vent their frustration? But they didn't care about anything; his screams didn't stop them from hitting him.
Soon, Asher stopped screaming, as he couldn't make a sound anymore. He felt a warm liquid around his throat, and something stuck in it.
"Brothers, stop! Stop! Look at him!" The guy who hit the bottle shouted at others.
"What?" The second brother shouted, irritated.
"This?" Another one exclaimed.
"How did it happen?" The big brother questioned.
"Why are you all making a fuss?... Huh?" The second brother was questioning, but he exclaimed.
They all saw a broken bottle stuck deep inside Asher's throat; blood kept flowing as he choked on his own blood.
All the big guys stared at him in shock for a few seconds before running away without caring about the life and death of Asher.
Asher felt pain all over his body—the pain he was used to feeling during his school life from bullies. This time, however, was different.
Soon, his vision blurred due to the lack of blood flowing to the brain.
'Is this the end of all my struggles? Will I finally succumb to an eternal slumber in the embrace of darkness?' Asher thought to himself.
At that moment, a dark glow appeared, like a shadow from his necklace, that engulfed his whole body before disappearing along with it.