Chapter 1: The First Encounter of Lost Memories

It’s been two days since I moved out and cut ties with my family. I don’t think I can bear their judgmental stares. It feels like I did something that made them hate me, even my presence. I think they were waiting for a chance that I would be the one to banish myself from them, and they succeeded. Well, I don’t want to talk about them now. I am no masochist.

My sister and I were close before, but not until her ex-boyfriend came into the picture. To be honest, our relationship stayed the same. From what I remember, I caught her ex boyfriend cheating on her. As a good brother, I punched that guy, and my sister sided with him. My papa doesn’t like me as much as his family. They were the complete opposite of Mama. I'm thinking of asking him why he didn't seem to like me. I mean, I’m not sure if I was, but being parents, they should accept their child for what he or she is to be.

I was currently at the side of the road, sweating from a long walk just to find a cheap apartment near the school that I enrolled myself into. It’s a public school and there’s no tuition fee to be paid, but I’m sure my requirements would drown me. I didn’t bring an umbrella with me, and I still have my suitcase. Maybe some people thought that I was not in the right state of mind, as maybe they saw me walking back and forth from this area. I found a good place to rest. There's a bench under the big Acacia tree. I went there and it's actually comforting to sit in a comfortable place with a nice view. I loved to play with the rays of the sun in my hand, blocking them then unblocking them after. It’s a fun thing to do.

I've been sitting for about ten minutes now when I felt that my throat began to be parched. That’s when I realized that I had not eaten anything since this morning. I was rummaging through my things to see if I had any food to eat when someone offered a water bottle. I politely declined by shaking my head when I saw it, but the person insisted. I said my thanks and accepted the bottle without looking at the person. I thought it had already left, but I felt a heat coming beside me. My eyes went there and I saw an old man with a cane in his hand.

“Drink it before you get dehydrated,” the old man said while his eyes were focused in front of him.

I slowly nodded and opened the bottle by twisting the cap, then chugged on it. I couldn’t hide my thirst and I heard the old man laugh.

“Thank you for this, Uncle,” I said as a thank you.

“No problem. Are you new here? I saw you two days ago. Are you looking for something?” he asked, and then he looked at me. I was taken aback by the sudden eye contact, yet I answered his question.

“Yes, I was actually looking for a cheap apartment here.”

“Oh! I know one. It’s cheap, and the people there are nice. Do you want me to show you?"

“Yes, yes, that would be my pleasure!” My excitement is overflowing after hearing it. I helped him stand up and guided him when walking.

“By the way, Uncle, what’s your name? We have been talking for minutes now and I still don’t know your name,” I exclaimed while we were in the middle of walking.

“You can call me Grandpa J.” He stopped walking and answered me.

“Oh, okay, Grandpa J, I’m Merchaiass. And thank you for being so nice.”

He only showed his smile and continued walking. We arrived in front of an… abandoned building. I mean, it looked like one to be honest, but Grandpa J said that the inside was still good. He invited me to enter. The first thing you will see is the reception area. The whole place is spacious and clean. Despite the good ones, I feel bad about this. I was on the verge of turning when a man popped out from nowhere and greeted us.

“Oh, Uncle J! What are you doing here?” asked by a man who’s currently wiping his hands full of grease.

“Well, I brought you another tenant here. He's young, so make sure that you’ll give him a great discount, aye?”

“You’re still a joker, Uncle J! We'll see if he deserves it. Come in, come in.”

“What’s in your hand? Did the tank not work again?” Uncle J asked while following the man.

“Just the grease. It’s nothing,” he stated.

“So who do we have here?” He asked after looking at Grandpa J and then at me.

“I saw him in the streets. He’s looking for an apartment for two days now,” Grandpa J answered.

“I can give you our lowest rate, but you need to decide now. Are you in or out?”

It took me minutes to answer, and, remembering that I didn’t have a choice, I answered yes. And here I am now, inside a tiny room with thin walls.

I was on my third day here and nothing strange happened until that one cold night when I remembered that one room I've been dying to visit, it was my first day here. I found out about it when I was touring myself around the building. It’s actually called a studio here based on Mr. Manore, the landlord. That room provided an eerie feeling which ignited my voraciousness to scrutinize and find out the depth of its history. My curiosity is starting to stir up and there’s something that pushes me to explore and explore.

So I got up and started looking for things that I may have needed when time called. The blinding sight of the broken pieces of the mirror made me lose my control, and I started panicking as soon as I saw a reflection of someone behind me. It has a monstrous face and has mysterious and scary eyes that are staring at me like it’s ready to gobble me up if I flinch. The soles of my feet were glued together due to the different emotions invading my mind. I couldn’t move. I can’t shout. I rumble words that are eager to be free from my mouth. My throat is dry, and it’s even harder to breathe even though the fan is working perfectly fine. I tried to close my eyes, hoping that it would vanish and hoping that I could banish it. I sighed and uttered my thanks after I opened my eyes as the man behind me disappeared. That instance didn’t stop me from continuing looking for something worthy and capable of satisfying my desires and expectations. I pick up my phone to use it as my light throughout the adventure, and a device that’s used by a paranormal expert to talk to the creatures from another dimension. I grabbed the knob and opened the door. The hallway was so quiet to the point that it sent shivers down my spine. I’m reconsidering my plan, thinking if this will be a good idea. The other side tells me that it’s not, while the latter tells me that it will be. So, I decided to continue my plan. I went out of my room and turned on the flashlight on my phone. Then I heard some noise coming from the other side of the hallway. The sound of hitting and the small cries of someone had invaded my system. I followed the source of the sound, and I saw something horrible. A man with a bolo in his left hand started chopping that fresh meat that looked like human meat. The blood of the parts was so overflowing that even the floor of the room had it. My mouth went agape when the eyes of the man stared fiercely at me. I stepped back. . . but I couldn’t find my way to escape. I step on my other foot, which causes me to fall. I can’t stand up and my left foot brings me excruciating pain. Maybe I strained my foot. My anxiety began to rise as soon as I heard the sound of metal being dragged from the ground. It started with a faint sound and developed into a louder one. It’s coming. I can’t think of anything. I think this is the end of my life. So, I closed my eyes, waiting for that man to end my life when I felt a hand dragging me. An illuminated room enveloped my eyes. I couldn’t see anything, but I heard foot steps that were slowly coming towards me. Goosebumps are beginning to eat my whole system when someone says something.

“This is your last, so be careful.”

W-what? What does he mean by that? Why was this my last? It’s my first time doing this and I regret it big time. I wanted to punch myself for doing such things without a proper plan to begin with. I started crying and sobbing to let out my frustrations. And then, everything went black.

I woke up in a strange room. The masculinity of the owner was shown in every single detail of it. One thing caught my attention; it’s a painting of a man holding a knife and something that I can’t see. So I walk over to it to get a better look at it when I notice—is that a heart?! I thought it was a beautiful painting, but I’m afraid to say that it’s not. I started to look around when I felt the presence of a person at my back.

“Are you done searching my room?” says the person behind me.

“Excuse me, I am n-,” I couldn’t find a way to finish my sentence when I decided to face him. The water is dripping down to his abs. He certainly has the nicest body that I have seen in my whole life. I bring my eyes up, and my world stops when his almond-shaped eyes meet my rounded ones. I felt something tingling, a sensation that I hadn’t felt in a very long time. He raised his eyebrows at me and said something that was completely inaudible.

“I know that I’m hot; no need to say it again.” He said while smirking.

My blood is starting to boil up and I am ready to let it out when he talks again.

“How are your feeling? Are you good? If you are, get out.” While walking to a certain place to get some clothes.

“Why am I here? What happened last night?” I have a lot of questions, but I managed to ask just two.

“I brought you here, and nothing happened last night.” He said nonchalantly.

“W-what? I mean, why am I still alive? That man was ready to kill me when he saw me outside his room.”

He doesn’t say anything and just continues dressing up. He told me to go home and rest, to forget everything that happened last night, because it was doing me no good. I asked how he saved me, and just like my other question, it stayed hung up.

“Okay last, what’s your name? Are you new? This is my first time seeing you here in the studio.” I wanted to know his name, I don’t know why I’m doing this. I’ve never been like this before, and he’s a completely stranger! What happened to you, Merchaiass?!

“I’m Taddeio, and no, I’m not.”

“But how come I didn’t see you?” I certainly didn’t see him in my first weeks here.

“It’s only your first week here. I rarely go out.” Oh! That explains why, an introvert but still attractive. Wait, I didn’t say that. What am I doing— argh!

“I should go. Thank you for helping me out! I should try to remember what happened last night. I totally forgot about it.” I bade my good-bye and started walking to the door when he said something fishy.

“From now on, be careful. Don’t go home late and don’t go outside alone when the night comes. They might hunt you.”