The Hidden Lie

Alesa

We sit at the bus stop. Not waiting for the bus. Just waiting. The air is cold and it’s 10 o’clock pm. The streetlights are on, and a shadow runs through the light. It’s quieter than a spider moving. You could hear a pin drop.  

We sit. An hour has passed, and we stare into blankness. We look behind us into the forest and see a flash of light. No light flashes by the old underground chamber. No one goes there.  

We wait. We wait as if we were to get killed if we didn’t. We don’t move. We stay still. Roman hasn’t moved an inch since we got here. 

It’s midnight. I turn to my left, he’s gone. Roman is gone. I told him if we moved, we would get killed. We do this twice a week and we do it all year long. He does it with me every other time and every time in between his sister comes.  

I stay still until the morning.  

*** 

It's morning. I walk across the street and back on the sidewalk. I walk and walk and walk until I reach my house. I reach my house to find Roman sitting at the dining table with a computer screen in front of his face. He is typing aggressively. He’s typing as if his life depends on it. I walk to the counter and set my stuff down loud enough for him to hear and stop his aggressive typing. We stare at each other. Why is Roman here? He was murdered. 

The murderer is rumored to be a wild animal. Some say it’s human. Some say that it’s not real. It’s real and it’s not a wild animal or human. I have nightmares. I went to a doctor for it. He didn’t do anything. In my nightmares I see what's happening to the people, just can’t see who they are. No one wants to see that monster. It’s worse than the most disgusting thing on the planet. I shouldn’t describe it.  

I walk over to the table where he is and look at him. I walk around him, studying him closely. 

“Are you okay, Alesa?” Roman said. 

“How are you alive?” 

“What do you mean? Of course, I’m alive. And where were you last night? I thought we were going to do it together?” 

“That’s not possible. It’s absurd. You came with me to the bus stop last night!” I started off laughing and started yelling at the end. Roman looked at me confused. 

 “Alesa....” 

“What? Wait. If you weren’t there, and other you got murdered......” I paused, “...that means there is a new monster” 

 Roman

“What?” Alesa pauses, “Wait. If you weren’t there, and you got murdered...” She paused again and turned around slowly, “...that means there is a new monster.”  

We stare at each other. A new monster? How is this even possible? We already have one on our hands. Another one is too much. 

“A new monster? We are already dealing with one already!!! This one shapeshifts though.” 

“Yeah. Let’s go to the library and research.” Alesa said. 

“I’m sorry, but I’m not going outside of this house until that monster is gone, Alesa!” I yell standing up now. 

“What choice do we have? How do we know what we are dealing with? I want you to come. Bring a knife. I don’t care! If you don’t want to come with, then fine. I’ll do this alone.”  

We stand there. I don’t want her to go alone but at the same time it's too dangerous for both of us to go. How did we become of this world. Dangerous for everyone, but too weak for them. Oh, them. I remember the first time they came. Holding guns in their hands. Not expecting us to fight back. They were right, we didn't fight back. We were too scared. Too scared to fight. Too scared to say anything. Fear got the best of us. 

The neighborhood looks normal. Suburban, small town, everyone knows each other. The best part is that it's not normal. 

Alesa

Roman ended up coming with me to the library. We walk through the doors and the floor beneath us disappears. We fall until we get a shock through our bones. There's a button. Its under a light but has a sign. I walk closer to see it. Roman sighs.

"The sign says to press it to make the monsters disappear."

We both think the same thing. There's nothing else to lose at this point. We walk together, hand in hand, about to press the button with our empty hand. So this is how it all ends....

Roman

We walk, hand in hand, and press the button. We fall again. It was a trap. I knew we couldn't trust it.

"So this is what happens when we follow your advice?"

"Oh, shut up, Roman. It's not like you had a choice to come or not." She said.

"Well, I think I did."

"Mhm, sure. Keep believing yourself."

We argue for the next few minutes, then black out. We wake up in a hospital room. No windows. No people. Just us. There. We are strapped down. This is officially the end.

Someone walks in. Wearing all white. That means they are a higher-up. Its okay. We take a deep breath, but before one of us can open our mouths, Alesa has a heart attack. I remembered as she has an anesthetic given to her, she has asthma. Her heart attack won't be good for her. The person holds a gun to my head.

If this is how I will die, then it shall be so. I would rather die with Alesa more than anything else in this world. She's my whole world. My best friend, my lover, and someone I wanted to spend the rest of my life with. We can in heaven. Somewhere, where the birds chirp, where there are no monsters, where we are happy. I love you Alesa Robins, and I always will.