My little collection

I was walking down the street earlier this week, and then I saw it. I saw it the next day too; the day after that too, and the other and again. Today as well, it came into view.

It’s been like this for three months and it bugs what it might be. A wild man who somehow got lost in the city? A burglar who plans to rob me after extracting every single detail about me? No, had that been the case then he could’ve attacked me during my late-night returns.

When I first saw it, it was the size of a 5-year-old kid, but as time passed, it grew taller and larger. Nearly two heads bigger than me. What can it be? Who can it be? Could it be something I recognize? If yes, then how come I do not figure it out yet?

This is driving me insane. First, let me begin by explaining to you what kind of a person I am. I’m the type who doesn’t like extra effort. As long as work gets done quickly without trouble, I’m good to go. But something that ticks me off is repetition. I hate it when a matter keeps repeating itself. When someone keeps repeating the same mistake, for example. Or when something or someone won’t stop bugging me, like this incident that has been happening for a few months. It infuriates me to the bones. What is it? I’m tired of trying to figure it out.

Whenever I try to go near it, it disappears. Whenever I try to bring someone else to see it, obviously, it's always gone. I tried sharing this with a colleague, I knew what would happen, and it exactly did. He laughed it off as a delusion; he simply blamed it on sleep deprivation. It could be, but it’s definitely not, I’m sure of it. Lack of sleep isn’t enough to settle things. I’m curious. I’m curious to know what it might be.

I might’ve said I don’t like trouble, but this was something interesting. It sparked my curiosity. I was eager to know what it was. But every time I tried going near it, it vanishes. Vanishes into thin air, right before my very eyes. Unreasonable, right? That’s what I thought at first too. But, when I started researching about it, it all started making sense. Although, it was still not enough to confirm if my doubts were correct.

I let it slip out of my thoughts for a while, and it did help. But it never went away. That desire to know about it stayed deep within my heart.

I’ve decided. I’ll figure out who, why and what it is. Today is going to be the day I solve this mystery and close it. I’m no detective to be clear, but I certainly keep knowledge in crime and police. Perks of being insatiably curious, I guess. This is definitely the work of reading too many mystery and crime novels that I can’t keep myself unknown to the fact that something out of this world might appear in front of me one day. And it did. This was that inhumanly something and I won’t let it go that easily.

I will treasure it. Treasure it with my own eyes and two hands that God has given me. I will make full use of these hands, full use to capture that thing. I didn’t even realize how foul of a smile formed on my face when I said this. But it doesn’t matter. It’s who I am and I can’t change that. I could have, but that time’s long gone. There’s no time for change left.

I walk out of my worn-out two-story apartment and lock the old wooden door behind me. I’m wearing a big brown coat which matches perfectly with my brown boots and hat. I cover my face with a mask and put on sun protection glasses. Even if it’s drizzling outside, it might come in handy. Today was a special day. A day to uncover all the mysteries about that thing. I could feel a big grin forming on my face behind that mask, I liked the feeling of it.

I made my way to the street where I would encounter it every day. I walked to that specifically at the same time I’d see it every day. “9:03 am,” showed the watch. If I remember correctly, it appears exactly at 9:07 am every day and disappears at 9:07 hours and 23 seconds. Crazy that I’ve kept count of it, isn’t it? Well to me, it might not be as I can’t let this fact slip since it’s been like this for months.

I waited in front of the alley. It had no other entrance other than the one I was standing at. No one could leave or enter without passing by me. “9:05 am,” said the watch. Two more minutes, I sighed.   

The way into the alley was blocked by me, so if that thing walked in would not be able to enter.

A few seconds were left till the exact time it used to appear. It might not know I was here as it was a casual weekday when I was supposed to go to work. But that’s exactly the reason I decided to select a day like this; when it would be clueless of my presence.

“3…2…1…,” I blinked my eyes for a split second and there it was; the giant stood in front of me.

I didn’t waste a second and pulled a net out of my left coat pocket and threw it on, which according to my calculation fit perfectly, and managed to catch it. There was no escaping from me now. It tried going back where it came from but failed. The reason for that? Ah, I know very well.

It struggled to escape. “Don’t try, you can’t run away now,” I warned. It grunted. That was the first time I heard its voice which made everything clearer than crystal. All my doubts vanished. The three months I spent getting to know about it didn’t go to waste.

“You ready to come out yet or want me to do that for you,” I took off my mask and glasses. My face had the most perfect grin on it.

It didn’t move. I warned it again, but no response.

“Looks like I’d have to do the work myself,” I pulled the net off and before it could run away, I pulled a knife out of my pocket and stabbed its leg. It screamed in vain. Ah, pure bliss.

“Aww, I didn’t know non-existent creatures could feel pain too.” I forced it to the ground and tried removing its mask. It struggled and resisted but still refused. I stabbed its left arm too. It let loose. The satisfaction. It was purely magnificent.

I grabbed the mask and looked at its covered face one last time, it still struggled, but in that injured state, it was helpless.

The moment I had waited months for was now.

I took the mask off. Took a second to take notice of the facial features, and remembered it all.

I laughed lunatic-ly. “Well-well,” I grinned, “How the tables have turned Mr. Lobart. See, me sitting on top of your miserable self; what a beautiful sight to see.”

He gave me a deadly stare. “Oh my dear, don’t look at me like that, you might make me feel embarrassed.”

“Now,” let’s get things done quickly since I am very much sure of the fact that you are aware of how much I hate delay,” I said with a smug.

“One jab to the stomach and it’ll all be over again,” I smirked.

“Wait,” he said coughing. Which is reasonable to how old he’s gotten. “And you expect me to listen to you?” I was in the best position to take him down with one jab but still listened; let a dying man have his wish one last time.

“Well, I can allow you to speak one last time, but make it quick, I got more important stuff to do, you see,” I let him talk.

“Wh-why did you-,” he was coughing endlessly, but like I cared about that. “Why did you do that to me?” He finally finished his sentence.

“Why, you ask?” I gave him a glance, “Well, not any particular reason, to be exact. I was just bored, you can say,” I said. “Bored?! How can you be so nonchalant? You took my family away from me!” He cried.

“I mean, not like they mattered to me in any way,” I said casually. Was I actually nonchalant? Huh? I don’t see that.

“You are such a heartless beast! A monster!” He yelled. I don’t understand what he’s talking about. Did I do something that serious?

I remained silent.

“What are you even thinking about now? You have taken everything away from me! My purpose, my will to live, my everything!” He kept yelling.

Ah, so loud. What a pain.

I scratched my ear with my pinky. “Then why are you still alive?” I looked at him. He looked at me with a shocked expression. “Then why are you still alive?” I asked again, this time leaning in closer, staring into his eyes.

His angry expression turned into a frightened look. “Aww, don’t be like that,” I pouted. “Weren’t you just screaming at me a second ago? Why that scared expression now?” Ah, what a loser. First trying to act like a hero, but remains the same scaredy-cat, I moved back from his face, “I despise people like you,” I gave him a hell of a look.

“You despise everyone!” He grunted. Well, yeah, maybe he was right. I despised everyone. But there’s a specific reason for that. I can’t go on hating on people for no valid reason, right? To hate someone is a strong phrase. To put it nicely, I’d rather say, I just didn’t like the sight of people. Even their existence pissed me off. But it was no time thinking about the rest of the human population when the real deal was right there in front of me.

“Now,” I began, “I remember I told you not to waste much time, didn’t I? So I think your time is over, I shall wrap things up and get going.” I got up; ready to leave but he stopped me.

“I’m surprised you can still move in that injured condition.”

“First, tell me,” he shot me a deadly glare. He shot me a deadly glare?

“Country pigs are getting out of control, aren’t they?” I joked. He didn’t find it funny. Well…that was disrespectful. But, okay, I wasn’t the type of person to get offended just by that. “Ask whatever you want but I shall tell you this one last time that this is the last question that you’ll ever ask, so make it worth it,” I said staring deep into his eyes. He gulped.

He took a moment to think. I guess last wishes are supposed to be picked wisely, huh? He took a deep breath, “Tell me everything that has happened.”

“I’m afraid, my guy, that isn’t a question,” I wanted to rip him apart right then and there but I waited patiently, “But since this is your last wish, then I shall fulfill it, I’m a man of my word you see.”

“Then where shall I begin from?” I rubbed my chin while he stared at me with a tense look. What a pitiful look he had.

“Okay, let’s get back to the first day we met. You know…I’ve always admired you,” he looked at me. “Your goodness, your purity…everything about you is just so perfect. I couldn’t figure out how someone can be such a humanly human. It maddened me,” I said with a dreadful scowl.

“I can’t handle so much purity. Why does such a thing even exist? It should be illegal. And because of this hopeless personality of yours, you were considered as a god; not like I had a problem with that title, but the thing is what I didn’t like was you. It’s not that I hated that you were seen as the perfect being by the eyes of everyone, but because you were just too good to exist. Yes, I hated you for you. And I still do. And will always do until neither I nor my ashes are left in this world or maybe even after that too!” I let myself lose my calm for a second but got my exposure under control.

“But why did you kill my family?” He asked.

“I think I said no more questions, but I’ll answer because I don’t like playing with someone’s curiosity. So, you want to know that bad, do you?” I smirked.

“Let me unfold this great for you, but not so great for me secret before you. I killed your family because, as I said before, I was simply bored,” I smiled.

His expression darkened, I didn’t understand why, but I didn’t care and continued on. “I didn’t like that some worthless people get to experience this goodwill so easily, so I decided to finish them,” I gave the most beautiful smile I can as my mask and glasses were off now.

“To be honest,” I continued, “I wanted to finish you off too, and I actually decided I would, so I did. But I think my calculations of you being one hundred percent dead were wrong. That was my first miscalculation, did you know? And that’s how you’re here, in front of me, about to lose it all like a fucking baby,” I laughed.

“But don’t lose your calm just yet,” I raised my index, “I probably think you’re wondering how I anticipated the whole story of this act of yours and managed to catch you, aren’t you?” He looked at me.

“I’ll tell you that before you could set foot in heaven…or hell.”

“So the story began three months ago when you started this act of yours. That time I wasn’t at all suspicious as you used a kid's bodies to scare me, maybe you just wanted me to believe they were ghosts of your kids, which was absolute nonsense. That time it was alright. I didn’t care. But since you started using your own body, that is, more than six-foot-tall body of yours, and since I’m extra short compared to the average male height, it was too huge not to notice. That’s when it started bugging me. And when I saw that tremendously huge body, it reminded me only of you. I remember thinking, had I made any mistake in killing you which later on turned out to be true because I got to know that you were secretly treated in a hospital. That’s when I understood it all. You were not dead. I tried looking for all the similarities. When this thing of yours started three months ago, it matched perfectly with the time when you were discharged from the hospital. And the secret about you suddenly appearing and disappearing lies underneath me. There’s a secret door that lets you in and out. And since that door is below the foot, so it’s easy to disappear if someone sees you. And this time you couldn’t escape is because of the mud that’s stuck to it due to the rain; it won’t let it open. I did all my research you know, can’t let precious three months’ time go to waste.” And with that, my little thesis was over.

“So, my guy, I kept my promise and told you everything, even the things you didn’t ask but probably wanted to, I did tell you all. Now it’s time I take my leave. And give you yours too,” I smiled lightly.

I tackled him to the ground, he didn’t resist. I think finding out about the pointless truth hit him too hard.

“You did a great job pleasing people but that didn’t do well on me,” I smiled and held the knife with both my hands above my head, ready to give him the most heartless jab. Only the thought of pleasure running in my mind as I grinned there sitting on top of another body that would go in my little collection.