THE WORLD is overflowing with the sins of human beings. Pride, greed, wrath, envy, lust, gluttony, and sloth are the sins we often commit in our daily lives. As a person who has nothing to do except to submit a great deal of transgression, wouldn’t you want to do something good once in your life before you die? “Confess your sin!” he said with an authoritative voice while holding the camera in front of me. I looked at him and noticed that his body was full of tattoos and scars,as if he had been through a lot of pain to become like that. He’s dressed in a plain black sleeveless shirt with a small tear in it where a sharp object has cut it, perforated trousers, and black shoes. I stared at the camera and looked at my reflection in the lens before speaking. “I did something inhumane to my sister’s best friend.” The man stared
I KEPT crying for over a minute before deciding to stop because my tears had dried up and my eyes were aching. Adrastos moved toward me while shaking his head. “Alejandro, That’s exactly what I mean. You’ll cry when it’s too late and there’s no way to change things?” he said straightforwardly after he faced me. “I will not change my decision. I will continue to commit suicide. I came here with the definite intention of ending my life,” I said calmly to him, insisting that I’ll never withdraw, so no need to make a fuss. Adrastos looked at me with disbelief in his eyes. “That’s not what I’m referring to. Because at first, you had no choice but to commit suicide because you signed a contract. What I’m concerned about is your decision to commit suicide,” he said in a sympathetic voice. &
MY legs weakened, and I lost my equilibrium, so I crumpled to the ground from the heaviness of what I had been feeling, as if several tons of lightning had buffeted me in the sky all over my body. I could only feel the anguish it manufactured. Over time, the tears that I had been trying to suppress fell, running down my face. Carmina crouched down next to me and opened her two hands wide, as if encouraging me to place my head on hers. She embraced me, as if she didn’t want to let go of me and lose sight of me. Even she was trembling in fear and grief at what was happening in our lives. “I-I’m sorry Alejandro... I can’t do anything,” she said, feeling guilty, so I hugged her back. “Don’t cry... I understand you had to choose between me and our baby, and I am grateful that you saved our baby,” I whispered in her ears. “Stop crying, okay?” She just nodded while huggi
THE car came to a halt in the middle of the night, indicating that we had arrived. I had only just awoken when a man carried me out of the car. How long might I have been unconscious? When I opened my eyes, I noticed the tree branches all around me, and the only source of light we had was the moon. Because of the unnerving quietness that encompassed this location, we could only hear the chirping of birds and noises from the surrounding forest. I altered my eyes to explore the environs of this location and ended up not finding neither buildings nor even a railroad near as possible except for the woods and bushes, hence I shrugged my shoulders. I’m not familiar with this location, and I have no clue where I’ve been because of my ludicrous willingness to inflict suicide. “Stand up, buddy, you’re too heavy for someone like me to carry you until we cross the border at our departure p
EVERYTHING began as I stepped into the building“Do you want to write a message to the people you’re going to give this money to?” Adrastos suddenly asked me.I just awakened abruptly and without warning to the realization after spending a long time dwelling on the events that led up to my current situation of live suicide.“Yes, please,” I replied to him.He handed me a pad of clean paper and a black pen, so I thanked him before I picked it up. I poured all my heart and soul out into this letter to show them how much they meant to me. Before I said farewell, I wrote what I really want to tell them and thanked them for everything they had done for me.Hello Mom, Dad, and Sister!How are you doing? I hope you’re in good shape because I’m going to a wonderful and tranquil destination haha. Is it unfair
THE young man leaned in the swivel chair and stepped foot on the desk, lounging and watching the humongousmonitor where he could view the events that occurred outside while drinking a ridiculously priced bottle of champagne in his right hand. He witnessed everything that happened before, during, and after Alejandro’s death, as well as reading the comments. The man-made a radiant face. “The downtrodden young man... He died because of being unjustifiably charged with a crime of a sin he did not commit,” he said, howling with laughter throughout in the room he was. “Who is as foolish as a nincompoop to commit suicide out of infatuation? The clichés!” he said as if Alejandro’s narrow-mindedness and imbecility disgusted him. “Only fools kill themselves for the sake of love. They don’t consider what is more important: their life or that pestilent love that has no value compared to the life th
A FEW DAYS LATER, Alejandro’s family frantically searched for him everywhere, but until now they do not have any findings about him. They never stopped desperately seeking for him, day or night, even though they were told not to find him in the message, but it still prevailed in their hearts to look for him. “Sandro, where did he go? What happened to him?” Alejandro’s mother said as it overwhelmed her with so much emotion it’s swelling up and pouring out of her eyes. Sandro moved toward his wife. “Imelda, love. Maybe Alejandro was just hiding from us because he was still indignant with us when we shoved him out?” he said to his wife. “Just why did you kick him out, Sandro!” Alejandro’s mom said as if she surrounded by a low blue flame as she punched Sandro’s chest with minimum weight. “Love, Imelda. Alejandro has violated the law. We are not going to cover him up just because he is our
I HAVE a puerile innocence expression on my face when I look at the camera. "H-Hello to everyone! I’m Gavin D. Bautista,” I uttered while swinging my hands left and right in front of the camera. Can my parents watch me here?I laughed in my mind, 'Hahaha.' I am sure my parents will be happy if they know I am going to die.The surrounding fell in silence. Why no one is talking to me? Are they not fond of me? Is it just because no one likes me because I’m unfortunate? My despair overtook me suddenly.The man coughs. “Kid, what are you doing here?” asked a man wearing a black tracksuit that wrapped around his entire body.What is his name? Is he the one in charge here? It’s a good thing he spoke to me because I assumed he’d refuse to speak to me. Thanks, God.
AFTER hearing what he said, a sour grin grew over my lips, and the sins I had committed in the past several years raced through my head. "Who am I to label them as a demon? Who am I to condemn them simply because they do something wrong? What exactly am I? I reminded myself that I was Zacheus, a renowned demon. As a demon, I'm here in the hornet's nest. They are like me. I am just like them. We are all demons disguised as humans. The only difference is that the demons here intend to murder me in order to lessen the number of demons around the globe.At least they have a valid excuse to murder me... That is sufficient for me because I also have a compelling motive to kill myself. We only shared the same desire to get rid of the devil, who is causing evil to proliferate throughout the world."Please forgive me for what I said earlier. I was only overcome with fear and said those words," I murmured, looking tensely at the ground that was covered with gold and diamonds. "And you're corr
IN THE aftermath of Adrastos's statement, four guys came up to me and tied my hand. My eyes widened, and my pulse began to race. "Why do you have to bind my hand?" I questioned them and winced as a guy abruptly tightened the shackles on the hand when I dared to speak."Perhaps you're preparing to flee because your brain has suddenly changed and you don't want to die anymore," the guy in front of me said.My brow furrowed. Why would I even attempt to flee if I knew I couldn't? I'm curious now that I'm nearing the end of my life. I am not that frightened to death. I am stick to my plans that I would commit suicide even before I signed up to be a participant here. I am fortunate in that I will continue to earn money even after I die.I shall not squander this chance to atone for my faults in the world. This is the only opportunity I have to help my family and other people. And this the one and only time I will have the oppo
MY GLANCE fell on his, and my eyes widened in surprise. "What? Are you sure you meant what you said? Is it permissible for me to send a letter to my parents?" The fact that I continued asking him questions indicated that my brain was still having difficulty digesting what he was saying.If I had the ability to write a genuine letter, I would write a real letter because I have a lot to say to them that I didn't get to say since I left without informing them of my departure. They were also unaware that I had left home with the intent of committing myself. And at the very least, in the letter, I am able to convey all the things that I was unable to tell them in person. They are entitled to an explanation.I didn't want my parents to anticipate my return to our home. I don't want them to wait for an event that will never occur again."If you want to leave a message, you may do so. Do you like it or not?" he inquired of me.
"HAVE A pleasant evening, live viewers! I want to inform you that I spotted the individual who paid a large sum of money to assassinate our Suicider tonight! Are you ready to learn who he is and what manner of murdering he used to assassinate our Suicidal Individual?" Adrastos asked all people who were watching and waiting for me to perish immediately.After he stated that, the notification bell sounded numerous times, suggesting that they could no longer wait to find out what happened next.A smirk crept on my face. 'They're salivating at the prospect of seeing a victim die in front of them,' I said to myself.I know they want me to die tonight because they can no longer bear that I am still alive and breathing in the world as a result of the crimes I have done. I'm curious whether it's a passion for them to watch someone die in front of them, or if they just have a brain malfunction that allows them to accomplish
DO YOU want to be someone else's meal when you die? What if, instead of having your body buried six feet into the earth or cremated, you were used as food for others who were starving? When you're in the kitchen to be a food to others, what would you you feel? Would you be furious with them if you knew what they were doing was for the greater welfare of others?Will you become a part of other people's bodies if they devour your body in various ways? Can individuals sleep easily if they know that the food they ate was made from a dead human being? There are a lot of questions in my thoughts about cannibalism right now since it seems that I will be used as a dish later on by other people if I commit myself here in this world.It's a little frightening to consider that some of the meat we consume on a daily basis is derived from people rather than animals. And it's terrifying to consider that your body has devolved into food for other people. I
ADRASTOS' gaze was drawn to me all of a sudden. "Tonight, Live Suice has another immoral guy for us to punish! I'm aware that you already know his name and are aware of the offense he committed, but I feel compelled to mention him again for those who did not know his name or committed the fault done by our Suicider tonight. Zacheus Vincenzo is his name, and the evil he did was stealing people's taxes! He coerced his father into stealing from the treasury, despite his opposition. He is a self-centered youngster," he said.I shook my head as he introduced me to the crowd a second time. The Live Suicide notification bell rung repeatedly, indicating that a large number of individuals left a remark in the comment box.There seem to be an infinite number of negatives I shall get from them.As my thoughts moved to another realm, Adrastos spoke in front of me, and I returned to reality and focused on him. "I understand how enrag
WE CAME to a halt in front of a massive door, and they shoved me inside. I shifted my eyes throughout and there are many lights and cameras that encompassed the whole room. "What exactly is this? Are they about to assassinate me here? This room does not seem to be a murder scene, but rather a film set," I thought to myself."You go on the stage," the guy behind me ordered, pointing to the little platform crammed with cameras. There is also a mic stand placed there. Is this a concert that I attended? Is there singing contest so there is a mic placed there?Even though my mind was racing with questions, I obliged the guy's order and proceed towards the stage. As I ascended the platform, the light, microphone, and camera in front of me all went flash. I also seen the new face that was staring me in the face intently. Who is he? Is he the Adrastos to whom the guys who pursued me earlier referred? What is his function in this instance?&nb
"I AM going to enter the entrance, farewell," I informed them as I began walking towards the abandoned building's entrance, bypassing Azrail and Dabria.When I reached the door, I rolled my eyes and realized that this structure was rather ancient, judging by the damaged walls and filthy inside. Despite its unsightly and aged look, you can see that it is still capable of fighting till the next generation, as long as it is not struck by an earthquake, which would completely destroy it.I glanced around and saw that its construction was similar to that of a hotel, as I noticed an elevator that was broken and several rooms below. I'm curious as to whether this structure is livable at this point. Perhaps when it is repaired, it will regain its previous splendor and the building will be reinforced to accommodate the influx of people.While I was glancing around, someone spoke close to me, which caused me to jump in fear and my
THE THUMPING sounds in my chest made me feel as if I was about to hyperventilate. My mind and heart were debating whether I should be full of joy that I was about to die or panicked and terrified that this would be my last day on earth.I closed my eyes with a resounding sigh. “Zacheus, all you have to do is to be delightful. No one compelled you to commit yourself to Live Suicide; you chose to do it on your own. Take a stand for it. Imagine that you will sacrifice your life for the sake of your parents and others.” I pondered this for a moment.My mind is playing tricks on me, and I’m not sure whether I’m deceiving myself into making the choices I’m about to make. Maybe dying in Live Suicide is a better option than dying from my sickness, which would surely take my life if I don’t die here.And at the very least, if I die by Live Suicide, I will get a substantial sum of money that I c