Hellish: Chapter 1

Ayan

"Earth to Ayan!! Yo man what's up with you. You really seem distracted. Thinking about Heather huh!?" Sammy snapped his fingers near my face, pulling my gaze away from that shadow of a man which I swear I had seen. Distracted he said. Man, you don't know how much. 'Nah bro, Heather and I met up last night. Just a bad morning. I'm alright. Anyways, I gotta get to class, see you at lunch?" I really just needed an excuse to get out of there and leave, to see if what I had been seeing lately was just in my head, or actually happening. "Yeah, great," Sammy replied. He wasn't convinced or happy with my answer, but I didn't have time for anything right now. As soon as he finished speaking, I gave him a fist bump and left.

I started pacing towards that wall in the corner cause, I know I had seen something there. A shadow or a man lurking. It had happened at Heather's house too last night, but she said there was no one but I HAD SEEN SOMEONE. Great, now my girlfriend thinks I am paranoid. But I will show her what I was talking about. The wall was still, in the very corner and when I walked around the wall, to see, there was no one around. This was one of those corners of the school, which people found worthless enough to hang around. Not haunted, not the secluded spot for couples, but just existing. It was the wall near the Economics classroom, outside, facing nothing but a couple trees, a bench and the boundary wall of the school. I always found it weird how no one wanted to sit on that bench. It was cleaner, than other benches where people sat and had lunch. Hell, it was cleaner than the bleachers too, but no one ever came. Or at least I never saw anyone come here or even heard anyone asking someone to meet them at this spot. Maybe because it was near the Econ class. I mean who even took that class!? It was shitty enough in my opinion. Just those boring nerds took it and after the class, would head straight to the library or something. I sat at the bench, sipped some water. Looked around for 2 minutes, to see if someone came here. But no one did.

The bell rang, so I got up and headed to class even though I wanted to know if I am hallucinating, or my mind is sane enough and not playing tricks on me. I was walking in the hallway towards, the court, when I realised, I would have to face Heather. Which btw, I didn't want to do. Last night kinda put me in a really bad light. UGHH. I bet all her friends already know about what happened at her place. When I walked up to the court, the lights were off. I checked the time before entering to see if I was early. I was not. I had a feeling this wouldn't end well, but I walked in with my bag hanging off my right shoulder. It was pretty dark, and I couldn't see shit. I felt someone walk near me, and whisper in my ear, I couldn't even recognise the voice. It said, "OOooo, Heather, turn the lights, on there might be a shadow in the corner, oh no wait, maybe it's a ghost." The lights came when the voice stopped speaking and there were bursts of laughter erupting from each corner. I felt sheer rage grow inside me and I didn't want to stay calm. I saw Heather and her friends, laughing along with some other people who took gym, laughing in another corner. "What the fuck Heather!?" I turned towards her, the words left my mouth too soon and with pure anger. Heather walked towards me and did not stop laughing the entire time, making me even angrier. "Awww, baby, I'm sorry, come on it was funny even you admit it." Heather laughed. "NO woman, it's not funny at all, you cannot go telling everyone everything that happens between us!!" I spit out. Heather's smile vanished and turned into a frown, "Ayan it was a prank, chill. And honestly, it's your fault, you were the one who were acting like there was a ghost in my backyard. Omg Heather I saw something I swear, how did you not see it. God, it was embarrassing as it is. How would people react when they hear it. My boyfriend is a coward and is so paranoid, he sees shadows while he has a hard-on. I mean come on!!" My anger filled with disgust, and I could not believe she said that in front of her friends and in front of some random people who didn't even know me. I tugged my hair in frustration with my fingers. Before I could reply she goes, "I have had enough of your shit. I am done with you embarrassing me every time. Ayan, we're done." I could not even understand what she was doing, but all I could get out of my mouth was, "Yeah well good. Fuck you, Heather."

I broke up with my girlfriend in front of an entire class and her friends. I could not believe how shallow she was. I think I was too blinded by her, but she just pissed me off so much, I wanted to leave, at the same time I didn't want to be a coward and prove that bitch right. I saw the coach come in 10 minutes late, and we started with the class, and the worst part was, no one was paying attention, all eyes were on me, and people just kept whispering into each other's ears and glaring at me the entire time. I was just exhausted. I was mad, but I was even hurt. I liked Heather. But I guess that's why people say the winged Cupid is blind. I don't really know if it relates but it seems fitting even though I don't exactly know what it means.

I spent the rest of the classes lost in thought and the lurking shadow was completely out of my mind, till lunch. I met Sammy at lunch, and he seemed in a worse mood than when I last saw him in the morning, which could only mean one thing and it was not good for me. "Dude, I just heard, you and Heather really broke up?" He jumped straight to it. Okay. Quick and painful. "Yeah," that's all I could get out of my mouth cause I really could neither relive it nor believe it. "I'm sorry man, she is a bitch. Good riddance I say." "Yeah," pretty much all I can really say, I am parched and suddenly in dire need of some water. "Is she making up stories, or is it true though?" He asked while taking his plate from the food counter. I knew what he meant, and I didn't know if I should tell him, I didn't know if he would believe me or not, but he was Sammy, we grew up together, he would still say he believed me even if he didn't. So I began, "Yeah, I have been seeing this shadow of a bald man, lurking in the corners, I don't think I am hallucinating or anything, but I am seeing it. I saw it in the morning too and last night when I was at Heather's, but it was there, and I was sure she couldn't see it somehow even though it was right in front of her window. Sammy a kid could've seen it. Ughh. It's driving me crazy." We sat down to eat, and I gulped a lot of water before I could see Sammy's face. He was just eating, and his face was expressionless. "Chill dude," he spoke after taking a bite from his apple, "I believe you okay, next time you see it or feel it or whatever, we'll go check it out together okay. Fuck Heather and her cronies." I smiled and nodded and took a bite.

I was about to say thank you to him, but then something hard, hit my head and it hurt. "Fuck," I groaned in pain. I didn't know what it was. I turned around to see, what just happened. A tall, slender, girl, dressed in green and white printed pants, white heels and a white tank top with beaded necklaces and stacked bracelets, was standing next to me, collecting her books and muttering apologies to me and Sammy. I had never seen her around. Her brown eyes and fair skin looked beautiful when the sunshine shone on her arms and face coming from the cafeteria windows and doors, as if the rays were struggling to get in and dying to land on her. I was rubbing my head as she spoke, "Oh My God, I am so sorry, I lost my balance and all the books left my hand, I am so so so sorry. I hope you didn't get hurt." She sounded genuinely concerned, I smiled and said no. Sammy gave me a glare that said 'sure it didn't hurt, that 800 page hard cover book didn't hurt your head'. She kept talking, "I'm sorry!! I'm new around here, I'm not used to this place, and I don't usually hit people on their heads, I just went to explore the library and my friend was supposed meet me there, but he didn't, so I had to carry a shit ton of books, and a pile of books and heels, really don't go well together I'm sure you know. Oh sorry, that came out wrong, I didn't mean-" "Relax. It's fine. Really," I smiled, and she began again, "Right, I'm sorry, you must want to have lunch in peace and don't want books attacking you or some random people ruining your conversation. But well, you weren't talking when I came here, oh God, I didn't mean that gives me a right to interrupt, not that I did, but just-" "Heyyy, there you are, wow, I see you've been hanging out with jocks now. Good choice huh. From library nerds to handsome jocks. Not bad Liv." A tall, brown haired, guy, with glasses but a built body, interrupted her mid-sentence and came and took the pile from her hands. He is in one of my classes and I had seen him around, but I never got to notice him closely. He was wearing a black scarf around his neck, black dress pants and white short sleeved shirt. He was pretty peculiarly dressed but it did suit him I give him that. He sure pulled it off. "No, they're not my friends Ty, I just dropped the books and one of them hit-" she was telling 'Ty' and paused looking at me realising we didn't introduce ourselves, "Ayan" She nodded, "-Ayan and I kept blabbering you know me, and I guess they want me out of their hair now. Let's go. Also, I didn't know you were a jock huh." She looked at me and I was just mesmerised. The way she kept talking, so carefree was so different from Heather. She was so conscious all the time, it was exhausting. She smiled and wiggled her eyebrows in a sort of teasing and impressed way and 'Ty' presumably her boyfriend I don't know, pulls her away before it got awkward, "Okayyy, Liv let's go they don't want to read Pride and Prejudice. We do, let's leave them be shall we!?" He gave her a look which she understood somehow, and I was jealous of their understanding and silent communication. I never had that with Heather. I don't know why I got jealous, but I continued eating trying to distract myself and not wanting to be a part of a conversation with this strange girl who mesmerised me the minute she threw the book. UGHH. She shot an apologetic look to 'Ty" who now I think looks really weird and is dressed very inappropriately, or whatever. He does not look good now, and why does she keep calling him Ty!? Who calls anyone that anyway!? And he keeps calling her Liv. Great. She turned towards me and Sammy and apologised for the hundredth time, "Right, I'm sorry for everything. Have a nice day." She smiles again at me and Sammy and leaves with 'Ty'. Ughh. I could eye roll so hard right now my eyes might not even come back down. But then I remember her smiles and the sunshine falling on her skin and hair. She is obviously beautiful, but her smile is nothing compared to that.

I look at Sammy and he says, "Well that was interesting." He takes one last bite and chuckles. His laughter is contagious, and it makes me laugh too. We keep our plates and I know, and Sammy knows. He says, " I feel like you're gonna be whipped and you don't even know her name man. She didn't even tell you, and you didn'teven ask her." I chuckled and turned right after keeping my plate. The laughter ends and I see a freaking bald man standing in the far and if the cafeteria. I have never seen him before in school. He is walking freely, and no one is objecting to it. I am positive it was his shadow I saw both the times. I look at Sammy, the hair at the nape of my neck is rising and I am growing colder by the second, like the temperature is dropping more and more. Sammy seems to be in that previous zone, he is smiling, and I ask him before I lose the man again, "Sammy, 3 o'clock tell me honestly what you see. Far end of the wall. Don't lie or joke around." He understands the seriousness and realises what I mean, he turns around and is shocked to his core, his shock is literally dripping from his face when he says, "Dude, I'm sorry that far end of the wall, I see nobody." I look back to see if he is still there. He is and he is just looking down at his feet and pacing. Even though it's not rational and I don't believe in ghosts or magic, I don't know what it means but I can think of only one thing as to why only I can see that man. The hair on the nape of my neck rises again, as he looks at me and I look away the second I sense his head moving in my direction, and I start feeling even more cold. My hands are practically shivering. He just disappears when I look again, and I am frozen in my spot. Literally.