Darkness crept in every corner as the midnight air surrounded Lianne’s bedroom. The silence was deafening, but it was suddenly broken by her frightening shout.
“Nooo!”
She sat on the bed, panting, beads of sweat ran all the way down her temple to her neck, and her eyes stared widely at the window.
For almost a year now, she had finally dreamt it again.
A man standing on top of a cliff as if waiting. His face covered by the shadow. The ocean waves were furiously splashing the cliff, but he was unaffected by the sight. His hair and coat were wet with the rain.
Lianne was there, standing some distance behind him, but she was transparent. She didn’t have a solid body.
When he turned to his back, it looked like he was looking at her, his eyes aglow, but it was dishearteningly sad. Then, his lips moved to shape a name - her name.
&nbs
For all these years, I have been waiting for her. Now, that I have finally found her, I’m not sure if I should act promptly. Oh, how I wanted to touch her! She is just within my grasp. Right there. Just right there. This distance is killing me. Truly. But, will she remember me when I show myself to her?~Ruen, from his journal ‘Finding Her’***“Hey, Jen, have you ever been stalked before?” Lianne asked while sitting comfortably beside her best friend who was eyeing a football player just two seats apart from them.“Huh? I’m sorry. Wha- What did you just say again?” Jen replied apparently enjoying herself staring at the hot jock.“Nah! Forget it!” Lianne answered clearly annoyed.“Oh! Com’n Lianne, I’m sorry. I’m just keeping myself entertained.
It took her time to be comfortable in the room. Even though she was exhausted from the trip, she wasn’t able to rest. Lying in the queen-sized bed, she felt as if she was going crazy with the dead silence. Even the wall clock in the room wasn’t even making a sound.In comparison with this room, the room in her apartment would probably be labeled a ‘commoner’ room certainly. The recurring color theme was white and gold. The curtains were damask and the shade of a lighter blue and with trimmings of silver. There were beautiful porcelain wares in a shelf located on the left side of her bed, next to a vanity mirror that was probably worth a million bucks.In line with it, there was a huge two-door walk-in closet and an elegant bathroom. To her right, she could see another Victorian-style single sofa chair with a cushioned footrest and across it, the French door that she had intentionally left ajar. The room was dim, with
They all went down below the curved narrow stairs leading to the basement. It was lighted with electric, white fluorescent lights now, but during the past times, that part of the mansion only glows when there were torches burning.The staffs call it ‘basement’ but it was more than that. It actually was a dungeon, servicing the worst of rule breakers and slaves during its time.Side by side sticking like a panda, the gang meticulously observed the area. Three years ago, it was publicly open for all who wanted to have a taste of fear inside the Since Mansion, but now, it was closed in order to preserve its history and all the antique possessions relocated in there.Lianne, even though being strong-willed as she was, couldn’t handle the sight of the dungeon. It was not for ladies like them to see.There was a gloomy, heart-wrenching aura they couldn’t describe; maybe because of t
POV: Lianne DievinIt was the third day of our stay here at the Since Resort. Jen woke me up from her ever special alarm tone in my cellphone, saying that she will be with her newfound boyfriend, Roland, the entire day.Alona and Rachel had already informed us last night that they would go horseback riding today. So now, that leaves me on my own. The advantage of it now was that I can choose whatever activities I wanted to do this day. And speaking of activities, I decided to play Sherlock Homes.I went down to the customer information section and showed the male attendant the old rusted key I found at my doorstep. I was wondering if this was a duplicate of Madame Brenda’s key to the storage room.He did take a careful inspection of it and then informed me that it wasn’t the key to the storage room. It was actually a key to another room. He told me that it was
Sprawling on the carpeted floor, Lianne’s eyes rested intently at the king-size bed as surge of memories flooded inside her. She saw herself in the same bed with the mysterious man, passionately making love. It did stun her greatly, but the memory brought her briefly to tears at the same time. It ached her heart and as the flashbacks continued; she saw the mysterious man caressing her neck passionately and her, in the dream, moaned and submitted herself to him.Ruen…All of a sudden, the name echoed in her mind.‘Ruen…’ And then she saw herself utter his name in the flashback.At first, Lianne was confused, but a sudden realization hit her.‘RUEN!’ Her mind shouted, this time with renewed determination. It was as if she was a baby, learning her first words.Before she could lift herself up, the unknown man
POV: Lianne Dievin“No...” A choked cry burst out from my lips as I covered my mouth with my hands. I looked at my mysterious man, Ruen, with thorough concern enough to create beads of sweat on my temples. My breathing doubled. I was hyperventilating, as if no oxygen was filling my alveoli. I could feel my pulse bounding like crazy too, so tangible under my skin.I glanced at the finger inserted on the trigger and I immediately shook my head.‘Please don’t move. Please don’t move!’ my mind chanted.I longed to see this man since I saw him in the library. There were so many questions I wanted to ask; answers I wanted to hear from his mouth. I certainly don’t want him to die so soon.However, surprisingly, this new man who called himself Cain somehow knows something too. As to how and why, that&r
POV: Lianne DievinWe went back to the mansion after we made a short stop at the police office. I did have a hard time with the police’s interrogations but luckily I managed a good alibi. I just can’t disclose them all of what happened! If I did, I’m pretty sure they would think me crazy or some daydreaming woman. I didn’t press any charges also, just so I could keep myself from any more pressure with these uniformed men. One gun-wielding man was enough for me.Luckily, Alona and Rachel’s family connections with the resort owner made us stay for four more days. Now, I could at least make up with my friends after stealing their vacation time inside the hospital.And surely enough, Jen immediately left me to date with her boyfriend. It was after lunch when Alona suggested we visit the resort’s famous cave and hot spring at the foot of the moun
POV: Lianne DievinThe cave was definitely not what I expected. It was actually even more. It was located at the foot of a mountain bordering the resort and another small town on the other side. The facade was neatly maintained by the staff of the resort and a makeshift sturdy stair made of wood provided an entrance to the cave.The inside was beautiful and huge. We were awestruck. It had a floor-to-ceiling length of about five storeys high, and the center cave expanse could be compared to a football field. One could immediately see a wide body of water and a natural waterfall connected to it, providing the cave another striking scenery.There were stalactites and stalagmites everywhere, but unusually, it had a weird color of crystallized green. There was a small opening right above our heads that invited the afternoon sunlight in, reflecting the walls and flooring thereby giv