Mason, ever the comforter, ruffles Lucian's hair. "Hey, everyone has an off day, even the great Captain Lucian. We'll figure it out, alright?"
Lucian forced a tired smile as Mason's ruffled hair stood on end. "Thanks, man," he rasped, voice thick with fatigue. Their gazes met, understanding passing between them without words. Lucian nodded towards the empty bleachers. "You guys head on home. I'll catch up soon, gotta shake this slump."
Mason hesitated, brow furrowed. A shadow flickered across his face, fleeting but unmissed by Lucian. "Alright, man," he finally said, slinging his bag over his shoulder. "But if you're still here by midnight, I'm dragging you out of here by your scruff. My mom makes killer omelets, and there's no way you're missing them after this disaster of a practice."
"Head up, captain." Aidan said patting Lucian's shoulder.
With a final "Good luck, luv," Mason finally followed Aiden out, leaving Lucian alone in the echoing silence of the gym. He stretched his aching muscles, the silence pressing in on him like a thick fog. The memory of the news report flashed through his mind, casting a shadow over his determination.
But Lucian was no stranger to pressure. He drew a deep breath, the rhythmic squeak of his shoes on the polished floor his only companion. He picked up a shuttlecock, his eyes narrowing in focus. It wasn't just about practice anymore. It was about reclaiming his confidence, his strength, proving to himself and the shadows lurking in the corners that Captain Lucian wouldn't go down without a fight.
And as the night deepened, so did his resolve. He might be alone in the gym, but he was far from defeated. He was Captain Lucian, and he would face the darkness, one smash at a time.
And tomorrow, he would be back on the court with his friends, ready to crush birdies and conquer whatever challenges awaited.
Lucian stumbled out of the gym, sweat stinging his eyes and exhaustion gnawing at his bones. His friends, blessings in disguise, had long ago departed, leaving him to the echoing emptiness of the court. He glanced at his phone: 12:15 AM. Great, just what he needed – a late-night adventure.
The usual post-practice throng of students had vanished, replaced by a chilling silence that pressed against Lucian's skin. He scanned the deserted parking lot, hoping for a stray cab or a friendly face. Nothing. His bike, as fate would have it, was out for repairs, leaving him with two dubious options: brave the icy wind for the distant bus stop or seek refuge in the eerie stillness of the campus.
A shiver, not just from the cold, ran down his spine as his gaze drifted to the far end of the road. A single headlight cut through the darkness, approaching slowly. A bus, its silhouette impossibly large against the inky sky. This wasn't any campus bus he recognized. It rumbled closer, its windows reflecting the moonlight like empty eyes.
Lucian's gut clenched. Was this some late-night service he didn't know about? Or something... stranger? The bus stopped right in front of him, the doors hissing open with a pneumatic sigh. Inside, the only light came from the dashboard, casting long, distorted shadows. And there, behind the wheel, sat a man. His face was shrouded in darkness, but Lucian could feel his gaze – cold, calculating, like a predator sizing up its prey.. Or was it just his imagination?
For a moment, Lucian stood frozen, his mind a battleground between caution and curiosity. The exhaustion from practice, the late hour, the unsettling news about the abductor – it all whispered warnings in his ear. Yet, the allure of warmth, of shelter, of escaping the icy grip of the night was almost overwhelming.
"Need a lift?" the man's voice rasped, cutting through the silence. It was a gravelly voice, weathered like an ancient scroll, and it sent another tremor down Lucian's spine. Was it the exhaustion playing tricks on him, or did the voice carry a hint of something… predatory?
Lucian forced himself to breathe, to clear the fog from his mind. He knew this was a decision point, a fork in the road where one path led to familiar streets and the other to the unknown, potentially sinister, depths. He had to choose, and choosing wrong could have consequences far graver than a missed ride.
Board the bus, succumbing to the lure of warmth and risking a plunge into the unknown? Or trust his gut, his instincts, and find his way home alone, facing the icy wind and the nagging suspicion that something lurked in the shadows, waiting for its next unsuspecting victim?
The cold air slapped Lucian back to reality. Enough introspection, he thought, shivering as a new gust swirled around him. His frozen toes and chattering teeth demanded shelter, not philosophical debates. With a muttered curse at his overthinking brain, he clambered onto the bus.
"How far does this thing go?" he asked the driver, his voice tight with nervousness.
The driver, still shrouded in darkness, offered a smile that didn't quite reach his eyes. "As far as the human eye can see," he rasped, the words echoing eerily through the empty bus.
"..."
Lucian shivered, not from the cold. The answer was cryptic, unsettling, and it only added to the creeping sense of unease that had coiled itself around his stomach. But he kept going, drawn by the warmth seeping into his chilled bones.
The ride stretched on. What should have been a fifteen-minute trip to his neighborhood felt like an eternity. He recognized the landmarks, the familiar turn at the bakery, the crooked streetlamp illuminating the park – yet the journey felt impossibly long. Was it the late hour playing tricks on his weary mind, or was the bus truly defying the boundaries of time and space?
Lucian's mind echoed with a chilling thought: "I think I got on the wrong bus."
Lucian's internal debate was interrupted by a new arrival. A small girl, no older than ten, boarded, clutching a lopsided teddy bear stitched with clumsy love. She gave Lucian a fleeting glance before settling in a corner, the bear clutched tightly to her chest. Her innocent presence contrasted sharply with the oppressive atmosphere, a fragile flame casting flickering shadows in the darkness.
Silence descended once more,broken only by the creak of the bus and the drumbeat of Lucian's racing heart. This uneasy peace was shattered yet again as the bus lurched to a stop. A drenched figure, rain clinging to his clothes like a spectral shroud, stumbled aboard. The driver didn't flinch, didn't raise an eyebrow at the dripping passenger who sank into the worn seat, leaving a trail of water in his wake.
The tension in the bus was now suffocating. Lucian's throat seemed to close up, his breath shallow and erratic. He stole a glance at the driver, whose silhouette remained an unsettling puzzle in the dim light. Why pick him up? Why this strange route? Why the unnerving passengers?
Then, as abruptly as it had appeared, the bus halted again. The rain-soaked man disembarked, disappearing into the darkness near a shadowy, glistening ribbon of water. A river? Lucian blinked, his stomach plummeting. He hadn't noticed a river on this route before. Had it always been there? ..What on God's green earth was happening?
As the bus lurched forward, a chilling thought crept into Lucian's mind. Maybe, just maybe, he hadn't gotten on the wrong bus. Maybe, he thought, a tremor running through his spine, maybe he'd gotten on the wrong reality.