After venting years of pent-up emotion for this particular moment, I allow myself to fall back on the couch, letting out a bitter laugh.
After years of self-damnation, the laugh came out with a sigh of frustration and relief. For a moment, I felt like I was better than everyone.
I grabbed the coffee on the table, took a sip and spat it back.
"Tch, what is this grave puddle?"
I set the mug on the table. My gaze falls to the book once more. The blood-ink is drying on the pages. Looking back, I don't know why I chose that sentence to write first. It's like the words just popped into my mind.
I picked up the book. Tracing the now dry blood-ink on the page. After a momentary bliss of pride. I kept thinking to myself. 'What now?' Sure, I've made progress after all these years. But I know that even if it's the end of me, it'll not be the end of my research.
I must think of the next step, I must..
Then, a soothing voice whispered in my ears. A shallow sound that can barely be heard, sending a shiver down my spine. I tried to make something out of it and look for the source of the whispers.
I looked around the room to find any clues, but found none. Then, a clear whisper lingers in my ears. 'Come.' The voice said.
"Come, and see the world unrevealed before you."
"Come."
The voice is soft and weak, but clear enough to the naked ear. I immediately know where the whisper is coming from. I opened the window, and I was right, the voice was getting clearer. I quickly grabbed my bag and stuffed the gospel alongside the quill inside the bag.
I rushed out of the building, searching for the direction of the whisper, ignoring the noise of the bustling city. I recognized that the whisper came from the south and ran in that direction. As I run, the voice keeps getting clearer and louder.
I ran for a couple of meters until I stopped in front of a park. The whisper can be heard clearly. I started walking around the park, looking for the source of the voice.
Then, my eyes landed on an old playground. I remember it now. I used to go to this park when I was a naive child.
I approach the playground. The familiar slide, the rusting swings. It's just like I remember from my childhood. Nostalgia hits me right in the guts. I trace the slide with my fingers, as if wanting to go back — back to where it all began.
Suddenly, my eyes landed on something that doesn't belong — or perhaps, someone.
At that time, it felt like time was frozen in place, as I laid eyes on the figure in front of me. He is a man in a black coat, holding what seems to be a book in his hand.
The man closes his book and turns to me with a smile.
"Hey."
He greeted me nonchalantly as he stood up and walked up to me until we were just a few centimeters away.
"I've been waiting for you, Frienzi Escoffier."
I raised an eyebrow at the mention of my name. I didn't know the guy, yet he knows me. Is he a friend, or a foe with a woe?
—Penning a new chapter…