The Man from The Cult (Devil)

Irina was eight years old at that time. Living in a housing complex where the neighbors were very friendly, cycling in the afternoon with her friends of the same age. Wearing a white dress with a floral motif on the bottom, straight blonde hair decorated with a floral headband that matched the dress she was wearing. Some adults did their activities in the afternoon such as cycling or jogging, chatting with neighbors, or even eating together in the yard. Everyone looked happy and friendly, but not with one house that was always closed as if uninhabited. The house was right next to Irina's house. Irina sometimes wondered, was there still someone living in that house or not? But sometimes Irina saw a woman with her son going out using a car, just the two of them, no father or younger brother or older sister. Only a mother and a fairly tall son, who was a few years older than Irina. Occasionally Irina looked back at the house and found the owner of the house, a woman who had a son, but her gaze at Irina looked flat and tended to be scary. Until Irina did not dare to look back at the house, until now. Suddenly Irina's mother's voice was heard calling from a distance, Irina immediately rode her bike quite fast seeing that her mother had gone back into the house. Usually her mother would ask Irina for help with housework if there was a call like this, she was pedaling her bike so fast. Until Irina lost control and did not have time to pull the handbrake, until she hit the street lamp that was right in front of Irina's house. Irina did not cry, just sat still after falling from the bike seeing her knees and feet had friction wounds from the asphalt. The little girl just sighed knowing that her mother would nag because she was not careful, Irina tried to get up even though her legs hurt while pushing her bike. But a shadow made Irina stop and look to the right, where there was a house that was always closed. Irina was surprised, the boy who often went out with his mother was standing not far from Irina. The man was standing on the grass of her yard, precisely at the end of the grass that borders the grass of Irina's yard. As if the man didn't want to leave his home zone.. The man just stood watching Irina, Irina who was confused could only stay silent right where she was standing now holding her bike. Unlike other neighbors who would help when Irina fell off her bike, the man just stayed silent. Standing there like a statue, wearing an all-black suit with jet-black hair that was arranged as neatly as possible. As if he had just come home from an official event like a funeral. But no wonder, the woman who owned the house and her son always wore black suits. Like, they were mourning every day. Irina didn't want to stand there for long and see a strange person, because her mother was definitely waiting for her in there. But just a few steps away, suddenly the man's voice began to be heard. For the first time, after the last few years, since Irina and her parents moved into this house. Irina heard the boy's voice.. "Are you Irina?" The boy asked, his expression was just flat. As if he didn't want to play but just ask, but the direction of the boy's body followed Irina. As if wanting to invite Irina to talk or chat, Irina thought maybe the boy wanted to try to be friends with her. Irina would be happy to do it, because since childhood the girl was always educated well by her parents. How to treat others well, how to behave well to those around her, without discriminating anyone in front of her. "Yes, how do you know my name?" Irina replied, there was a smile on the man's lips. As if so happy to get a response from Irina and hear the melodious voice of the little girl. "I just know." She replied briefly, Irina put her bicycle on the grass of the yard. Walking towards the man who seemed to be able to open up to others, Irina thought so. "How old are you?" Irina asked, stopping right in front of the man who was taller than Irina. With thick sharp eyebrows and eyes as blue as the sea, beautiful, but mysterious. "Fifteen." The man replied, fifteen years old it seemed impossible to play bicycles with Irina. The girl thought again. "You?" The man asked back. "Eight." Answered Irina, the man nodded. Irina really wanted to ask why they always kept to themselves, but she was afraid to ask impolite and personal things like that because her parents raised her that way. So there was only an awkward moment between the two of them when a few seconds passed with the residence. "This is for you!" Suddenly the man handed her a rose, red, complete with a stem that still had thorns. Being given flowers suddenly of course surprised Irina, slowly her tiny fingers took the rose and thanked the man. "Thank you." Irina said, the man just nodded. "What is your dream?" The man asked Irina, being asked like that made Irina think while rolling her eyes upwards. "Maybe, to be a princess." Irina said jokingly, they both knew that it was not a real dream but just a fantasy. However, Irina's answer was able to make him laugh and the man smiled as if he wanted to laugh too. "I hope your dream comes true, but if you are not treated as a princess. Later you can come to me." The man said, Irina who was still young considered it as just a fantasy. Irina just nodded in agreement without knowing that the man took it seriously. "What about you, what about your dreams?" Irina asked back. "I don't have any dreams, everything has been arranged by my mother." He answered, Irina was confused. No wonder they always went everywhere together, it turned out that the man was always arranged by his mother and no wonder he never went out to play with boys his age. "Do you know your mother's dreams for you?" Irina asked trying to make the man not discouraged because he had no dreams. "Yes. My mother wants me to destroy the world order, eliminate human beliefs and lead humans into error!" He answered in a firm tone, Irina immediately fell silent. Really, at school or at home, Irina was never taught like that. Suddenly Irina took a step back from the man. "I hope your dreams come true, you are more than worthy of being a princess!" The man said, the man's tone was very calming with a slight smile on his lips. In fact, Irina was scared of him with the answer about her terrible dream earlier. Irina thought, maybe it was just a joke. Irina tried to think positively, especially towards people she had just met, because everyone has a different sense of humor. "Noah!!!" A shout that was like a shout surprised Irina, from behind not far from the man, stood the woman who owned the house. Who was none other than the mother of the man whose name Irina didn't know yet. The man turned around, saw his mother had put several suitcases into the trunk of the car as if they were going to leave. The man turned back towards Irina with a slightly annoyed expression but it didn't reduce his flat expression. "My mother and I are moving!" He said, no less surprising than the woman's cry. They had just met and greeted each other after not talking to each other for a long time. And now the man was going to move. "Where?" Irina asked curiously, hoping that one day they could meet again. "I don't know." He answered briefly. "Can we meet again?" Irina asked again. "Maybe, after you become a Princess." The man answered, which made Irina laugh. Showing a row of white teeth between her peach-colored lips. "Okay, see you later!" Irina waved her hand. The man then turned towards his mother, Irina had forgotten to ask his name. But the man was already quite far from her and Irina didn't want to make the woman angry, it was obvious that the woman was looking at Irina as if she didn't like her. "Mom told you not to talk to other people!" The woman's voice was heard to her child which Irina could still hear. Irina saw several cardboard boxes also put into the back seat of the car, it seemed like they were really going to move from here. Even though Irina had just made a new friend, but she left so quickly without Irina knowing her name. When the woman's vehicle started to leave her yard, suddenly one of Irina's fingers was injured because it was hit by a thorn from the stem of a red rose given by the man. "Ah!" Irina winced in pain and at that moment the red rose fell onto the grass along with a drop of blood that came out of Irina's finger. Seeing her finger bleeding quite a lot, again did not make Irina feel excited. It did hurt but she only noticed the fresh blood coming out of her index finger then picked up the red rose stem again from the grass, and immediately the vehicle the man was riding in was no longer visible from Irina's view. The man had gone far away... Irina returned to her bike and took it to the garage. Entering the kitchen then washing her hands while placing the rose stem on the edge of the sink, she saw her mother busy in the kitchen preparing dinner. "Too long!" Said her mother who did not see Irina's condition who was injured in her knee and leg. Irina sat on the dining chair while holding her bleeding finger and knee, Irina's mother who realized Irina's residence, turned towards her daughter. And how shocked she was, when she saw Irina's finger and knee injured. "Gosh! Did you fall off your bike again?" Irina's mother immediately took a first aid kit from the cupboard and treated her daughter's wounds. Irina told her mother that she fell off her bike, although the wound on her finger was not actually from falling off a bike. Just didn't want her mother to throw away the red rose if her mother found out that it was the red rose that hurt her. "Okay, next time be careful!" Her mother said after putting a plaster on Irina's knee, foot and index finger. The little girl nodded with a smile, then helped her mother prepare dinner while waiting for her father to come home from work. And sure enough, after dusk her father came home with snacks in a bag. "What's the commotion next door?" asked her father who took off his jacket and put his work suitcase on the table. "It looks like a raid." replied Irina's mother which immediately surprised Irina, she had just wanted to put her food into her mouth. "So the news is true? That they follow heretical teachings?" asked Irina's father, Irina's mother was seen shrugging her shoulders. "I don't know! But there must be a reason why they are so secretive, let's just wait for the news tomorrow morning!" said Irina's mother, Irina who was only a child did not dare to ask further about it. But Irina was also not a stupid little girl, she knew what heresy and raids were. Suddenly she remembered the man's words this afternoon. Destroying the world order, eliminating human beliefs, Leading humans into error... Of course Irina did not dare to tell her parents about it and preferred to remain silent while observing a red rose that was still on the edge of the sink. And for some reason, Irina's breath felt heavy when she saw it. "I once heard a woman's scream right in the middle of the night when I woke up to pee." Irina's father said as if Irina was not at the dining table with them. "Is that true? I thought I was the only one who heard it." Irina's mother replied. "You too? I thought I was dreaming, but after looking out the window. The house next door suddenly shone brightly with dark red lights.." "...accompanied by unclear sounds but the woman's screams were heard so clearly. I wanted to help her, but suddenly a crow hit the window of our house..." "...but when I wanted to clean it in the morning, it turned out there were no crows under the outside window. There weren't even any marks on the window glass. Isn't that strange?" Irina's father explained at length, Irina was still there listening carefully. "Huh, thank goodness they've moved. Even before the raid, they had already made many of the neighbors uncomfortable, and they also looked scary." Irina's mother replied while eating her dinner. Irina was silent trying to digest everything that happened today, her life felt so cheerful even though there was a mysterious house filled with mysterious neighbors right next to her house. But Irina didn't think it would be this scary.