The boys surrounded Daniel, their leader speaking up proudly with a dirty smirk.
"Yo, what you holding here?"
"Uhm, I just found this key."
Daniel replied trying to be polite but also defensive. He didn't want to give it to them because it was his opportunity to gain money. The leader looked back at his friends talking to them.
"Guys, should we just take the key out of him forcefully or..?"
"Huh..?"
Daniel was confused and not really surprised or shocked. He did expect them to approach him just for the key and want it tho. Although it hurt him on the inside he remained with his usual "stone face" while watching them whisper something to each other.
After a bit of whispering among the group, their leader turned back to Daniel, with a fake smile offering Daniel a deal.
"How about we become friends, David?"
"It's Daniel-"
The leader cut him off, speaking in slight annoyance.
"David for a friendly nickname. So, friends?"
Daniel let out a "hmm" while thinking. He never really had friends since he got into the orphanage. The children of course were his friends but it felt more like family than friendship. He thought to himself.
"Well, I did want someone to hang out with. Also, I do need help in the apartment. I've never been in ones with actual stuff inside. I do need the money..."
He didn't give it any more thought and nodded.
"Sure, let's be friends."
"Okay, come with the key right here at midnight, byee"
Said the leader as they all walked away laughing, their cold and arrogant steps still being heard. Daniel was left there confused. They left so quickly, that he couldn't even ask them if they were free right now.
He thought that they were just busy right now, although the suspicion and insecurity still being in his mind. After walking out of the schoolyard, he headed towards the metro station. The sound of laughter and the voices of other people around him was filling his head.
But this time he didn't feel any envy. He felt happy...Happy because he finally got friends. As he walked into the station, he bought a ticket and walked inside sitting on a bench waiting. He saw a couple of people from his school also waiting at the train station.
All of them were in friend groups except the girl from his class. She always sat alone but didn't seem to mind. That's what he admired about her. Although he never really tried to speak to her or anyone else she was still different and amazing to him.
He was wondering how was she able to always stay alone and not feel lonely. He couldn't bear just standing around people and having to watch them while being locked in his communicational limits.
Or was he just like him but tried to act tough like he did? His train arrived and he walked inside, squeezing himself through the crowd. As he grabbed onto the steel bar, waiting patiently he saw everyone around him staring at their phones.
The patience or attention span of his generation sure was low. They couldn't even handle 10 minutes without a phone. If the world went out of power they'd probably go insane. As the stations went on it stopped on his station.
He walked out of the train going towards the exit. Like always he was spectating the world around him. He was nothing else but just a viewer of the others.
As he finally reached the orphanage the usual began. He was greeted by the other children. The second oldest child in the orphanage, Alexander ran up to him speaking with a smile.
"Why are you so late big bro? Let's go play basketball!"
"I was talking with some friends."
He replied calmly, still unsure about it all although his emotions covered it. Alexander nodded, trying not to ask too many questions, and walked outside, signaling that he'd wait outside.
Daniel walked into his room closing the door with a sigh. He splashed on the bed and took the black key out of his pocket, looking at it. It still had black mist coming out of it and he was hearing whispers.
It was like it was calling out for him and only him. There was something he felt about it. He couldn't describe it. Then as he was thinking about it he quickly got shot back into reality. He had to play with Alexander so he got up and changed his clothes.
While doing so he couldn't stop staring at the key. It was the reason why he finally got friends. He hid the key in his school back and walked outside.
Alexander was waiting in the backyard for him, shooting with an old basketball at a ring made out of wood that he and Daniel built a couple of years ago. As they started passing the ball to each other and shooting Daniel spoke up.
"Hey, Alex."
"What is it, big bro?"
Daniel looked at Alexander again, this time with unpleasant thought.
"You got friends at school, right?"
"Yeah?"
"What are their benefits?"
"Well..everyone views it differently but most kids around my age do it stupidly. They just think friends are the ones they do bullshit with or smoke behind the school."
Alexander then looked at Daniel again, continuing to speak trying to sound as clear as possible.
"Friends are the ones you can rely on. They'll be with you at your highest and your lowest. You know someone is your friend when you feel a special bond with them. You can even call them brothers. Like you and me. But the thing is..To call one truly your friend you need to know that both of your lives depend on each other."
Daniel was listening carefully as Alexander went on.
"If I step on a flower, the ground beneath it will also get damaged. If I kill a wolf its pack will attack me. The meaning behind the true "friend" is a thing our human brains cannot comprehend. It's only limited by our imagination."
Alex finished and then sighed, looking back at Daniel with a curious face.
"Why do you ask, big bro?"
"I was just curious about how you view it."
Daniel responded, trying to hide the true reason. Although Alexander didn't want to ask him more about it he was still worried. He knew Daniel didn't have any friends. Not just him but the entire orphanage.
As they went on playing the day passed by coming to what Daniel was waiting for...
[LOCATION: BULGARIA, CAPITAL CITY SOFIA, IN FRONT OF DANIEL'S SCHOOL
[DATE: 11.10.2024 Friday]
[TIME: 11:50 PM]
Daniel walked in front of the school, seeing that nobody was there so he leaned against the school's gate, waiting.
"I guess I'll just wait.."
He mumbled to himself as the moon shined brightly. He could see his reflection from a puddle. He was tired and sleepy, but he couldn't let his new friends down. He was flinching at every sound he heard, thinking it was them.
He slowly drifted off, still leaning on the gate but now with closed eyes and weak snores. He was in total peace.
At 12:34 AM Daniel woke up from laughter in the distance. He saw the guys coming at him so he took the key out of his pocket. The guys got in front of him. One of them spoke up harshly.
"Open it, faster."
Daniel nodded, innerly nervously as he reached out with the key in front of him and moved it in a manner of opening a door. At the next moment, a black door appeared, opening itself into a staircase that led downwards.
The four guys walked one after another into the staircase with Daniel following shortly behind them. Then he suddenly speaks up, trying to catch their attention.
"So are you guys free tomorrow?"
The guy that was right in front of him looked him through his shoulder with a sharp glare and responded coldly.
"No, now stay quiet, and let us take all the stuff in here."
Daniel was shocked and his mouth went wide open in surprise. His suspicions became bigger but he shrugged it off, trying to think that they're just busy and are acting this way because it's late.
At the next moment, he bumped into the guy in front of him. Daniel then looked around, seeing just an empty room. It looked like a basement. He also noticed a black mist similar to the one that the key was emitting.
"THE DOOR!"
Shouted one of the guys as everyone turned to look at it and saw that the entrance with stairs was missing. Then suddenly the biggest guy grabbed Daniel by the collar and got in his face aggressively shouting.
"IS THIS SOME KIND OF JOKE?!"
Daniel remained silent, just as shocked as they were. The other 3 guys watched the scene unfold. The big guy shouted again, this time louder.
"WHAT IS HAPPENING?! TELL US!"
"I don't know man.."
Daniel replied weakly, still in shock but then the guy raised his fist at Daniel and Daniel's instincts kicked it. He immediately swung back, breaking the guy's nose and sending him to the ground.
"Damn it guys, you really did use me..and of course, I was dumb enough to trust you. I don't blame you. Of course, it was my fault. A victim shouldn't complain when they get caught in something so obvious. Although..."
Daniel then turned towards them, this time with an angry expression on his face.
"You shouldn't have entrusted on scamming me either. So you gonna try and hit me t-"
Daniel stopped talking midway through his sentence and felt his back being wet. He turned back to where the big guy was but instead, there was just a puddle of blood. He then looked at his shoulder seeing blood dripping from its sides.
"The hell?!"
At the next moment fully black humanoid creature appeared in front of him. The only different color than black were its pupils and massive grinning mouth. They were purely white.
---TO BE CONTINUE---