Bobbing from side to side and making loud rustles in its wake.
Vic: hey… Why is it moving like...
The girl runs back to him and pulls against his hand towards her. He followed her like a magnet, almost like he had no weight.
Vic: whoa!
The two run across the scrubs.
Vic: Wow, you strong…
Girl: (looks back)
The thing is coming at them, making no noise except for the rustles on the ground.
Vic: I think I made a mistake…
Girl: It's a ghost! (Let go of his hand.) Stay away from me! Or run on your own!
The thing is getting faster.
The air is thick and unbreathable.
Their pacing gets faster.
Closer and closer, the gap is closing between them.
Vic: 'ngh' (picks up a rock, turns around, and flings it at the thing).
Though less than a metre away,
He fails to hit it.
Vic: damn! (turns forward) We're dead! We're so dead!! I am going to die!!
Girl: This is ALL YOUR FAULT!!
Vic: NO, IT ISN'T!
Girl: You shouldn't have-
Vic: I DID NOTHING!
Girl: SHUT UP!
Vic: noOOOOo!!
Girl: 'groan'
Vic: (runs up to the girl's side and grabs her hand) You're too slow.
He picks up the pace and outruns the figure; the gap between them is widening.
Vic: (looks around till he fixes his gaze to his left) There!
Swiftly, he swerves to the left.
DUFF
DUFF
DUFF
DUFF
The sound of his feet digging into the dirt, and the suddenness of it all takes the girl unawares.
Unconsciously, she grips his hand, holding on to him like her life depends on it.
The force from stopping and turning abruptly causes her to lose her balance.
She finds her feet floating in the air.
Girl: 'gasps'
Vic, like a homing missile, shoots himself at the building, careful not to lose sight of it.
He is fast!
Maybe even faster if he didn't have any baggage behind him.
The girl's feet touch the ground.
She starts running with him.
Struggling,
But keeping up.
Her legs felt like they would snap.
He made it to the lone building from earlier, but knocking was a secondary option.
BAM!
They burst in through the door.
The metal door did not yield.
Vic stopped in front of it; he had met his stop. He tried opening it the conventional way, but something in the handle was stuck.
Vic: Ah, damn!
Girl: hey…
Vic: (turns back to face the girl) Help me bust this door open!
Girl: …
Vic: what?
He looked above her head,
Nothing was behind them; nothing was following them.
The thing was gone.
Vic: what? Where did it go?
Girl: Wherever it went (turns around), it's gone now.
Vic: oh-okay. 'Groan' (slouches his shoulders)—that was intense, yeah! I am never doing that again (puts his finger on his chin). What was that thing anyway? And why was
Girl: 'Back then, this guy...' Hey, you didn't have to help me back then.
Vic: huh?
Girl: You could have just left me behind, and maybe you...
Vic: So what? I should have just left you? Like that would ever happen.
Girl: You don't know me! We're strangers -
Vic: yeah! But you were in need, and I had to do what I had to do!
Girl: …
Vic: No second thoughts! No matter who it is
Girl: (looks down at her feet) 'I should've done more to help... I'm so—so...
Vic: (puts his hand on her shoulder) Hey! Cheer up, yeah?
Girl: (slowly looks up at him)
The night could use a bit of a breeze; the mosquitoes were relentless in dealing with their faces; they were trapped in a limbo of a place with no way out so far, yet
He grinned from ear to ear.
Like it was your usual Saturday morning.
She looked at him, beady eyes; she wondered why his words made her chest feel so stiff.
Vic: You're giving off the impression that you're depressed, yeah.
Her eyebrows grew closer and closer together till they furrowed at the middle of her forehead. Her pupils constricted, and her lips puffed up.
A drop of sweat trickled down the side of her face.
Girl: what!?
Vic: Oh wait... (removes his hand from her shoulder) so you are depressed? 'Heh' of course, so obvious.
Girl: I am not depressed.
She actually was.
Vic: 'heheh' (he brings out his phone). fifteen minutes after three, well, I am getting that vibe.
Girl: There is no vibe; if it's my face, then this is my usual.
Vic yes! I've got a network now. It's one bar, though.
Girl: 'Gasp! Call someone! 'Before it disappears.'
Vic: Oh, I will. (dials a number on the phone) I hope they pick.
Boop boop
Boop boop
Vic: Why couldn't you call someone yourself?
Girl: … I don't know. 'I don't have a phone anyway.'
Boop boop
Boop boop
Vic: She picked! HEY BIMBO!!
A rather noisy background echoed from the phone, and a blurred voice followed.
Bimbo: Ello, who is this?
Vic: Bimbo! It's me, Vic.
Bimbo: which one?
Vic: ah! the one you know!
Bimbo: Which of the five?
Vic: five?
Bimbo:'sigh', good night.
Vic: No wait, it's Vic from school.
Bimbo: which school?
Vic: '!!' Uni-PT!
Bimbo: Oh, 'Scoffs.' I'm still hanging up. Good.
Vic: Wait, don't hang up; I need your help.
Bimbo: Be quick; I was doing my till-daybreak reading when your call came in, and I do not like unnecessary
Vic: whatever! So I was on my way to the lecture hall when I got lost on the road to the class area from the hostel, yeah? Any suggestions on how to find our way?
Bimbo: Which road did you follow?
Vic: Bush!
Bimbo: I thought I told you to stay away from that place! What part of 'no one comes out alive' don't you understand?
Vic: It's fine; this time, I'm not alone...
Bimbo: That does not help your case! You both need to get out of there.
Vic: how?
Bimbo: Look, I don't have time or brain cells to say anything to you; just keep heading north; that's the left side of the sunrise, or— opposite the moon in this case. Don't talk to anyone, and bring me... an egg roll as payment for these tips.
Girl: 'scoffs' Don't talk to anyone...
Vic: 'Heh', will do! later!!
Vic hangs up the phone and drops it in his big jeans pocket.
Vic: So (flashes his phone's light on the ground), which direction is opposite the sun?
Girl: 'ugh!'
Vic: (looks around and at the door behind him)...
Girl: …? (Looks behind him.) Come to think of it, is this building just out here?
Vic: My question exactly (turns around and knocks on the wooden wall of the building): Hello, anyone home?
Girl: (her eyes widen and her mouth drops) NO! What is your problem? Stop it; this could be a
Vic: Oh please, nothing would kill us in the middle of nowhere (keeps knocking).
Girl: It's dangerous.
Vic: Only one way to find out
Girl: w-what? (groan's)
She runs to hide behind the building as the door opens to reveal a familiar figure—the same tall, ominous figure they met a while ago.
The one that chased them through the scrubs.
It was covered all around with a sack like material, the only holes on it being from the seams of the sack. It looked like a masquerade, a first for Vic to face. But it had an unnatural aura seeming out of it, or maybe that was from its heavy breathing.
Vic: Oh (he starts sweating almost immediately and steps back), it's you, 'hehe', what's up?
Before Vic could say anything else, the thing grabbed itself on the head and pulled away the sack, revealing a nutty looking old man with irregular, incomplete teeth and white hair. He looked like he would crumble at any moment, though he moved like a person well in their twenties.
Vic: What in the flying...
Girl: (her eyes widen in shock) Huh.
Old man: 'ha ha ha ha' I'M FEMI!!
Vic: Uh… hello
Girl: 'So many questions...'
Femi: (rests his hands on the door) I sell things for free, my children... sacks, books, ink, 'hehehe' even (whispers) test results from the future!
Girl: 'Uh, that's no longer selling.'
Vic: (raises hand) Hey Shady Femi, do you have the real meaning of life?
Shady Femi: Hah! I'm Femi!! (Goes back into the shack and slams the door shut, causing the whole house to shake.)
Girl: Hey! (from her hiding spot) What on earth did you ask him?
Vic: (raises his shoulders and puts palms in the air, signifying; he doesn't know)
Girl: 'scoffs'
Vic: Are you hiding?
Girl: No, I'm being cautious (walks towards the door of the shack, dusting her hands). You aren't conscious of the dangers in this at all. What if?
Vic: why should I?
After a short pause…
Vic: So um…
Girl: huh?
Vic: I really need to know your name.
Girl: (looks at him with a dead expression)... I am… no one
Vic: … (smiles)
Girl: It's better this way.
Vic: 'heh heh, ha ha'ha'—that's such a useless meaning! You really sound depressed!
Girl: I... I'm not...
Vic: Depressed child, cheer up...
Girl: BEYOND THE POINT!!
Femi opened the door at that point with a calmer look. He was holding what looked like a newspaper in his hand.
Girls: (jumps back and hides behind Vic)'eep!'
Vic: Yo!
Femi: Here is what you're looking for.
The man handed Vic a newspaper, rolled up in a bundle like letter out for delivery.
A normal looking newspaper.
That was what it looked like.
Maybe it was because their source of lamination was the moon.
Vic: Nah, I don't really need a paper; I'm not a worldly person, you know?
Girl: I wonder if the guy sells buns.
Vic: Yeah, egg roll is how much?
Femi: HAH!
With one hand in the shack, he brought out a pack of something; he called them cheese balls, claiming to make them himself.
Femi: And have this newspaper as a bonus? And make sure to tell all your friends about it... It's not just any newspaper; this one knows things!
Vic: (takes the two items from Femi) Cool free stuff, awesome! (Looks at the paper.) One even has a story about riots and stuff.
Femi: (grabs Vic on his collar and pulls him close)
Vic: 'Gah!'
Femi: (stares right into Vic's eyes) TELL THEM, TELL THEM ALL ABOUT MY NEWSPAPER, YOU HEAR ME?? I NEED TO BLOW!
His voice was awfully deep; it caused Vic's ribs to vibrate as he kept his eyes glued to Vic's pupils, chasing them about in their sockets. Vic paused in shock; it looked like he was trying to assimilate what was going on. He snapped back to his senses moments later with a stern look.
Vic: (slaps Femi's hands off his collar) Okay, weirdo.
Femi: (makes a hardy laugh) I'm FEMI.
He was moving.
No,
Floating back into the shack.
Laughing and cackling with his hands all over his body. Vic and the girl stared at the crazed man, but the girl was quick to recover from his petrifying spell.
Girl: (whispers) Give him back the newspaper; we don't need it.
Vic: (stares hard at the girl) Why on earth should I listen to the sadist who wants me to return a free newspaper?
Girl: … well,
Vic: (turns to look at her) Good, so we're done here. (turns to Femi with his eyes closed) Catch you later, Shady... (He opens his eyes only to see a road in front of him and hears a car, a red van to be specific, passing by. Femi, along with the shack and the bushes from before, were gone.)
…
…
The sun broke through the grey clouds from the morning before, and the sinister wind continued to hover over the land.
No, the problem was that it was still morning.
They had spent a whole day's worth of time in the scrublands; the morning daylight was surprising.
It was the same morning they left for school.
But it, itself,
Never left.
They stood there, their minds shattered for the moment.
Everything that was happening threw them off balance.
Bewilderment will be an understatement.
A mosquito, carried by the wind, flew onto Vic's face and began to draw out blood.
He didn't even flinch.
His heartbeat only accelerated.
Girl: (looks back and runs to the opposite side of the road.)
Vic: the school area! Finally (grins and follows her with a walk), we won!
Girl: (shakes her head in disbelief) What just happened? Did you see? Am I the only one who saw?
Vic: (looks around with his hands on his waist, pretending to be shocked) Some sort of local juju manifestation, that's for sure, I wonder...
Girl: Aren't you shocked? THIS ISN'T NORMAL
Vic: … (He returns to a calm position and points at the girl next to him.) You ask too many questions!
Girl: no…
Vic: Sometimes you have to push back your confusion and remember the life in front of you.
The girl stared at him blankly.
Girl: …ehn!?
Vic: (walks towards the direction of his lecture hall) We got out; that's all that matters.
Girl: But how? Who was that sicko? He probably did.
Vic: Can you stop shouting? It's too early to be mad. So annoying.
Girl: (looks at him, her expression confused, then follows him) 'Finally, a worthy opponent to my confusion—I'm so glad.'
There's an awkward silence between the two. Vic stares at her, as if trying to take in her features again, but looks away when she looks his way. Then the girl sighed and stopped to let Vic keep walking; he stopped eventually.
Vic: … (turns to look at her) What? You lost something? Do you want water? Oh wait—(grins)
Vivian: (she stares down at her feet.) I'm Vi-Vivian; that's what I'm called.
Vic: (He looks at the clouds first, then at the girl in front of him.) Well, nice to meet you, Vivid Vivian. I'm Vic!
Vivid Vivian: T-that's not my adjective, its...
Vic: Yeah, I figure it's the opposite of that, but... that's what I want to know you as! (He does a cheeky grin.)
Vivian: (she looks at him in wonder and shock.) . Don't say cringeworthy things like that (she continues walking), by the way we're in the same department.
Vic: Oh yeah, how neat.
Vivian: Shush, that's not good.
Vic: says the pessimist herself.
Vivian: I can't believe you took those things from a stranger.
Vic: A stranger in an evil forest too. (Looks up.) I have a good feeling of things; we're going to be seeing Femi soon.
Vivian: 'How can you say that!!??'
She couldn't help but think of what they had just passed through that morning, the large empty scrublands that had served as an open maze, Shady Femi, the masquerade that had chased them around the place like the maniac he was, or the teleporting act they featured in just now—all because she followed a guy,
A definition of a stranger,
A person she should have nothing to do with but was now sure was a psychopath of some sort.
Vivian: 'I have a bad feeling about my life now, an awful one at that.'
Cheer up. Those were the words he repeated to her.
They were the ones that stuck.
She'd been told a lot of things over the years,
Negative, scarring,
Truths, lies, and some she was unsure about.
But he was the first in half a decade to tell her those words again.
Vivian: ….
A faint smile grew across her lips.
She had to find a way to get away from Vic asap.
But little did she know of the future events that would bring them together.
Time,
And time again.