Short Stories Collection

She Followed The Black Rabbit

Sasha covered the tinted window with her books, stacking them in place carefully as her eyes trailed by the drops of water gradually sliding down the panel. On the first day of April, she could not find her resolve to laugh along with the jokes of others. How could she? She heard the news of her loss the very moment she woke up. Her best friend that had been missing for 5 months was finally found but dead. She thought it was a terrible joke, pranking the person who cares next to Olivia's family was beyond rude. It was beyond comprehension to even come up with an excuse as a prank of a missing person found dead.

After hearing the news she sent her condolences to Olivia's family via text messages. However, she was still incapable of accepting it and asked whether what she heard was true. Is it true? But she is really alive, right? She waited that time, believing it to be only false news as she ate her breakfast. The usual loud clanking of utensils was minimized and the bickering of her two siblings was absent. It was a very solemn breakfast that it was hard to breathe, added the possibility of the news being false clenched her throat more.

It was only after they ate and she returned to her room that the thing she anxiously hoped to be wrong was proven. She read the text Olivia's father sent but could not understand it, as if there was something blocking her brain to process the words from hurting her. She sat in her bed, staring at the short text from him. No, she's dead. Knowing that from Mr. Harrs himself, she could not bear to object to it. And so she sent her reply. Ah, I see. Thank you for telling me, uncle. Again, my condolences.

Good kid. Come visit us still even she's not here anymore.

Yes sir! I will!

It was clear that Mr. Harrs was forcing himself to be composed in his messages and Sasha felt guilty of even making him reply to her selfish question so she also returned it cheerfully. It was still morning but she felt her energy gone. She sat tiredly in front of her desk and kept on stacking books that Olivia and her read before as kids. Some books were torn from old age and some were torn from their fights. The memory of them playing tug of war on the books brought a smile to her lips when it concerns whose character they should be. Pages would be ripped until barely the book cover was left. They would massacre the poor books and in return, received harsh scoldings from their parents. They would bawl their eyes off and blame each other childishly, but it was a precious experience.

Olivia's funeral was held a week after the news. According to the investigation her friend's death was caused by kidnapping. It was said that she fought against the kidnapper and escaped but died from blood loss. They were not allowed to see her face, saying it was unrecognizable and rotten from the weeks of decomposition. Olivia's parents stood at the small mount bidding their daughter their last goodbyes. Sasha watched from the distance sitting with a chair in front of her vacant. She imagines Olivia, at least her soul was watching the scene with her. One of their hobbies was to stare into the distance and makeup stories about those certain objects. Her heart clenched as she saw Mr. Harrs comfort his crouching wife. Dark clouds were gathering in the afternoon of Olivia's burial. The heavens must be sending their sympathy but she had enough of the gloominess. The last thing she wanted was to see her dear best friend off crying.

In the middle of her mourning, she noticed something placed on the chair in front of her. There, the small red book with no title written on the front. She glanced around hoping to find the person who did it but the visitors were either too far or engaged in their own business for her to deduce the person responsible. Picking up the light book, she started flipping through the pages.

'Twas such a shame. A sentence was only read on a single page. Confused, she flipped to the next page but it made her more puzzled. She died upon returning.

"What...?" Muttering under her breath, she turned to another page. She would have been alive until now...

Another page. If she could have only stayed. Sasha paused, conflicted. The little sentences on each page were saying a message of a death of a girl. She feels wrong reading a book regarding death in her friend's funeral but curiosity made her flip to the next page. Olivia Harrs, I mean.

Lightheaded, she gasped. Her throat swelled and her eyes stung as her vision blurred. Her best friend's name, Olivia, resounded repeatedly in her head. Tasting bitterness in her mouth as she hurriedly turned to another page. Do not believe them. What was the writer saying? Do not believe who? If there was some kind of message the writer was trying to say, she would like to know.

She was not kidnapped.

Next.

She willingly came.

Rubbish. Is it saying that Olivia wished to die? Her shaking hands flipped the pages again. Don't rip this nor throw this. It was clear now. It was not written for others but specifically addressed to her. The messages were on point with her feelings and conversing with her.

Olivia Harrs fought to the death. Sasha could no longer choke her sob, her tears fell to wet the pages.

But she died in vain. What?

Something forcefully pushed her that made her tumble to the ground. Sharp teeth bit into her hand and yanked the book from her grip. She called after it as it ran into the thick foliage. She grimaced at the dripping red from the wound and chased after the thief. She was close to finding the reason of her Olivia's death. In the remaining pages, she would have read the revealed secret of her death. As ridiculous as it sounds, she was adamant in knowing the next words the author would show her.

She went deeper into the forest garden of the cemetery and noticed her little thief was an animal with dark fur as it wound through bushes and tree roots, occasionally ripping the book with its teeth. "Wait, stop!" She cried as she noticed they were heading to a small clearing and fears to give another chase. She would have no chance against the wild animal. It was nimble and could camouflage itself within the dark shadows of plants. She had to sprint after it without reducing speed and she was getting out of breath. Finally, the animal pass by the final rows of bushes, and Sasha had to skid to a stop. In the clearing, bodies of small animals splayed randomly with blood flowing from their bodies.

Biting her lip, she watched her thief viciously rip the papers of the book and dropped what remains to the ground. She could finally make out the appearance of it; its body was large but was bony. Its eyes flashed red as it proceeded to crunch down the nearest dead animal. It was a rabbit with a morbid appearance and the scene displayed in front of her did not help the sickening churning of her stomach. As if sensing her gaze, it snapped its teeth at her and turn around hopping into a large hole at the bark of the tree across the small field with an ominous-looking red light coming from inside.

Reluctantly moving forward, she shakily picked what remains from the book and read what she can make up from the shreds. She went to the last pages.

An ugly creature, right?

Haha, don't be so frightened.

Don't you want to know Olivia Harr's death? She paused right before she could flip to the next page. What she was getting into was dangerous. She knows, deep into her consciousness that the moment she flips it, there was no going back. Shivers ran down her whole body as she read the last passage for her.

Into the red hole, my dear. There was nothing else. It said to enter the very place the black rabbit hopped into. Trying to steady her breathing, she approached the tree and stared at the red light illuminated from the hole. She closed her eyes, remembering the moments she had with Olivia, her best friend, and her older-sister figure. Before she changes her mind, she stepped into the hole and disappears along with the red light.

At the place where her last foot was before she completely enters the portal was a carved message with the same handwriting from the book. Sadly, Sasha failed to read this when she stepped at it unknowingly.

Welcome to Murderland, Alice.