"Alright, where do I go and how do I get there?"
I grin, putting the case in a secure place in my bag. Dad gives me a long look of worry before speaking.
"Just go around the park from here, it's beside the antique shop. You know that shop, right? The one ran by the old chinese lady who smokes a ton." I nod as I recall. I never really entered the shop myself but I know where it is. "Yeah, just beside that is a small jewelry store. It's newly opened so it'll be easy to spot. You know how to go there, right?" He asks and I nod, grinning in reassurance.
"And after that?" I ask as he turns around, looking for his watch and squinting at it.
"After he's done, go and deliver it to the hospital. Visiting hours end at nine so make sure to get there before that," he scribbles something in a torn piece of brown paper before handing it to me. "That's the... name of the person who ordered. And the room number he told me," he says as he walks me out. I fold the paper and put it in my back pocket without looking at it.
"Alright. The food's probably gone bad already so you can throw that out. Want me to buy you some take out?" I ask and he looks at me guiltily.
"...No, no. I'l make something on my own. You take care now, okay?" he pats me on the shoulder and I give him a reassuring smile. "I'll be back before you know it," I give him a mock salute before I leave, closing the door behind me.
I reach the edge of the park and look around.
Dad said I should go around the park to get to the jeweler... but if I go through it, I'll get there way faster, right? I take a look at my watch, it's quarter to eight. I don't know how long exactly a jeweler takes to put a jewel in those tiny holes. Does he still have to measure them? Does he already have pre-sized ones or does he still have to, like, polish some to the right size after I get there?
I look back and forth before deciding to go through the park instead.
♤ ♡ ♢ ♧
The park is really dark at night, I belatedly realize and remember with a wince. Too late, I'm already in and Mom raised no quitter. This is just a walk in the park. Literally.
I snicker at my own joke.
The former was just a figure of speech though. I don't actually know much about her. She died when I was born and Dad alone took care of me since. I've only seen her in pictures but based on all the stories he's told me, she's quite the fighter. I don't know if all those stories are true though. They're all the cliche never-backing-down-no-matter-what-she's-against and all that kind of stories after all.
She's kind of like the superhero I looked up to when I was younger though so even if she's just a memory passed on to me, I'm still very thankful for that.
Remembering about her now gave me more courage somehow and I confidently make my way through the dimly lit park.
Or that was the plan.
The moment I cover about half the distance, the already weak lights that illuminate the park slowly flicker off one by one. I freeze in my steps and look around.
You've got to be kidding. I feel like I'm in a horror movie or something.
The trees and the bushes are pitch black and the light of the full moon is my only help to track the brick path.
Straight ahead. Straight ahead.
I whisper to myself as I walk, my pace slowly speeding up as I struggle to keep my head looking forward, ignoring the shadows that I'm sure aren't actually there- just my brain playing tricks to scare the shit out of me.
Straight ahead. I repeat in my head. Straight ahead.
Something white passes by my peripheral vision.
Out of reflex, my head snaps toward the direction, making me curse at myself internally. Hell, what in straight ahead didn't you understand, Allie?! There's nothing there, of course, but I refuse to look around to check further. Straight ahead, I repeat to myself like a broken record as I step forward-
-and halt.
The path is gone.
What- How- it was just there moments ago!! I look up, moon's there. I look down, nothing.
I freeze.
I look up. Moon's there. Was it crescent earlier? Crap, I'm in so much panic that I can't remember. Phone. Right, phone. Why the hell didn't I think of that?? I pat my bag to find the zipper but it's nowhere to be found. Maybe it's just me lowkey panicking that makes me fumble around like a penguin trying to open a soda with its fingerless grabbers but either ends of the bag doesn't seem to have the means to zip it open.
I hear branches move and crack behind me, making me immediately whip around to look at the source of the sound. Whatever it is... doesn't sound normal. Rather, it sounds big. Too big. Enormous.
From the faint color that separates the sky from the shadows of the trees, I see something move, making me step back in cold sweat. Its silhouette is kind of dome-like and it's as big as the trees.
What on earth is that???
I slowly walk backwards, trying to be as quiet as possible. My heart jumps when my back hits a tree. I hear a soft "Psst," and my eyes turn to see something white in the bushes. My breathing stops, eyes widening in fear and shock. I feel like a deer in headlights as I meet eye to eye with a figure of pure white.
The figure moves and, upon closer inspection, it seems to be a person.
A person whose weird hair, clothes and complexion look so damn white that they're almost glowing. Wait, now that I actually 'look', look, they're actually giving off a faint glow. What on earth..?
Said person lifts their hand and puts a finger against their mouth, signalling me to keep quiet. They whisper some stuff but it's too damn soft that it made it hard to understand what they said. Recognizing my confused expression, they wave me closer. "Come here," the person in white whispers a little bit louder. That was a guy's voice.
Okay, sir, I would love to accept your help- being a walking lamp and all- but I'm not sure if that big thing that's over there in the trees wouldn't notice us if you catch it's attention- being a walking lamp and all.
As if on cue, a big crash is heard in the trees just across from us and we both whip our heads to look. The guy leaps towards me and yanks me to the back of the tree just as the big thing looks at us.
What seems to be dim red light projects from it, like a cheap LED flashlight that you can get from the school supplies store. It points directly to the spot I was on before.
The tree blocks the light from touching us but it isn't thick enough for two people to hide behind it comfortably. The man clad in white stood in-front of me, visibly shaking while I hide with my back against the tree.
His features are far more visible up close. He dons a white and light blue vest with a plush, checkered design. He has a white button up shirt under it and a fancy looking cravat, held in place by a chain connected to two spade pins attached on his collar. His white pants has a very light aqua colored cut in the middle, somehow looking like it can be removed due to the placement of the silver buttons surrounding it.
I look lower down and stare at his feet in confusion. They look... odd. His feet are long but he stands with his heels raised, the only part his tiny shoes are covering are his toes and the balls of his feet. His pants stop at his ankles which reveals checkered socks that are colored similarly to his vest.
The thing we're hiding from makes a low bass-like whirring sound and he steps closer with a little shiver. The ground slightly shakes under us.
It feels as if the closer he is, the more details get visible. Now that I look at him in this distance, he reminds me of a porcelain doll. His skin looks as white and as smooth as porcelain too. Glossy lips that has a faint gradient of pink purse as he nervously inches even closer. I quickly raise my hands up to save some space between us. He's getting uncomfortably close. I don't know if that unnatural white glow is normal or radioactive so I'll keep him at least a dozen inches away just to be sure.
His eyes dart around before looking at me, making me frown in disbelief. His irises somehow look whiter than his sclera and his pupils are of different shape and color. His left is a shade of mint and is a clover while his right is pastel blue and is a spade, it feels trippy just looking at them. Did he come from some convention and got lost on the way home? Why is he glowing?? Did he drink the water inside those glow-in-the-dark lightsticks so he can be true to the character he's dressing up as???
And are those big-ass rabbit ears real????
They've been twitching like crazy! I thought he just had a weird Final Fantasy kind of hairstyle earlier but no, those things are ears! And they look legit too- are they legit? Did I get injected by a drug on the way to the park without me knowing?
We hear whatever it is step closer, the sound of its feet digging into the soil due to its heavy weight apparent.
The man in white whimpers and closes into himself a little. His big ears almost fold, the proximity of it from touching the light making my heart jump to the moon and back. That's close. Too damn close. They're twitching like crazy because he's doing his best to stop them from folding.
My mom-friend instincts are blaring at me to try and calm him down but my survival instincts are telling me to shut up because there's something really, REALLY dangerous nearby. His lips are trembling in fear and he looks like he's about to cry.
The thing behind us lets out a siren-like roar.
Twigs, leaves and branches fall around us and I quickly reach as his ears begin to fold for real. I manage to stop it but my tight grip made him let out a pained squeak, thankfully covered by the loud noise. I loosen my hold as I silently mouth an apology.
Everything was still for a few moments before we hear the big thing take a step back, the red light moving away to point somewhere else.
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