Nostalgia Trip (A Videogame Creepypasta)

Chapter Two

Hey guys, thanks for checking back in with the blog. I'm glad to have received a few upvotes here and there. It's nice having my humble little corner on the internet. As I promised in my last post, I was able to ask my mom a few questions regarding the photographs. For starters, she was able to identify the blond kid I couldn't recognize. His name was Sam, and I used to be friends with him in elementary school. Unfortunately, this information didn't clarify much for me. I can't recall having been friends with a kid named Sam in school. I chalked it up to my memory failing me.

I asked her about Mr. O, and upon doing so I could have sworn I saw her smile fade a bit. She relaxed back into her seat and looked up towards the ceiling, pondering for a while. Before I could ask her what she was thinking, she abruptly looked me eye to eye and told me he was an imaginary friend of mine, confirming my suspicions. She offered me a grin and explained how she would often catch me in my room, murmuring to myself about the numerous adventures Mr. O and I had gone on. Curious, I asked her whether she could recall what adventures, in particular, I claimed to go on with Mr. O, but all she could offer me was a shrug.

I nudged her a bit as to why I appeared unhappy in the last couple of photos. She told me that sometimes as a child, there were days where I didn't seem to have my "spark," as she put it. It was never of much concern to her; Kids can be quite moody. Once more, this left me slightly confused, because, for the most part, I recall having been a pretty happy kid. Still, it isn't abnormal for us to forget certain things, especially when they happened years ago.

At that point, she yawned and headed to bed. She's got quite a busy work week, so I didn't prod any further. I can't imagine the stress she must endure as a single mother. Following in her footsteps, I made my way to my bedroom and laid down on the bed. Extending my hand out to the right, I snatched up the DS sitting on my nightstand. After a long day of work and school, I figured I would treat myself to some more nostalgia.

In truth, I wanted to explore my world in "Township: Village!" a bit more. So, as I witnessed the faint glow of the DS screen, I spam clicked my way through the main menu and hastily opened the application. The typical intro played, and I selected my last save file, where I resumed my journey. Traveling down the dirt road to the edge of town, I decided to exit the area and explore the rest of the world. My character made his way past the perimeter of the town, following the path which continuously stretched across the screen.

Deciding to turn the volume up a bit, I took in the various sounds in the game. The birds chirped softly in the background, and the wind blew quietly throughout the area. I nodded my head to the tune of a gentle melody provided by the game's soundtrack. That's when I noticed it. Not only could I hear my footsteps, but footsteps that marched in a pattern that was incongruent with my own. I stopped walking, and the second pair of footsteps ceased shortly after. Turning around and approaching the origin of the strange noise, I was met with the image of Mr. O, standing perfectly still. He didn't speak a word to me. He simply gazed upon my character, never blinking, not once glancing away.

Mr. O would continue following me down the trail. Upon reaching a clearing, I noticed a tree standing in the distance, a tire bound to one of its branches with a rope. Beyond that was the school I remembered attending. The yard and blacktop in front of it were empty. I discovered that the same could be said of the corridors as I entered the school, wandering through its hallways. Most of the classrooms were non-descript. A few that I entered had been titled with the names of teachers I remember having. "Ms. Martin's Room" contained a row of seats in front of a big whiteboard. "Mr. Adam's Room" had a large, multi-colored rug in the center, where backpacks and notebooks were lazily strewn about.

I really did spend an inordinate amount of time on this game. Not only had I built a town with several houses, but a replica of my school too. Well, as close to a replica as my young mind could create. I was no architect, so the school was depicted inaccurately. As I left the classroom, I heard the second pair of footsteps trailing me once more. I suppose this Mr. O model was a companion character of sorts? I'll have to find a way to make him stop following me, it's beginning to become bothersome.

I explored the gymnasium, where two basketball hoops stood opposite each other. Memories of me dashing around on the court, trying to score against my classmates came flooding back. Then, I explored the cafeteria, where not-so-grand memories of my tray being filled with slop put a damper on my mood. Towards the end of the hall stood an unmarked classroom. Entering it, I found that it contained a single desk in the middle of the room. There was a piece of paper sitting on the desk, serving as a name tag.

"Jeremy L."

Why exactly was my desk here? There was nothing else in the room, and the room itself wasn't named after a former teacher of mine. I walked back to the door, ready to leave. Only, I couldn't. The door was locked from the outside. I tried opening it multiple times but to no avail. The only other exit appeared to be another door on the opposite end of where I stood.

When I walked through it, I found myself standing in one of those in-classroom restrooms. I wasn't alone. He stood there, towering over my character as always. That same grin was still plastered on his face, and his eyes never stopped tracking my movements. I wasn't sure how I was going to leave the classroom. When I tried exiting the bathroom, I found that the door wouldn't budge. It had been locked shut from the outside as well. I turned, facing the tall man standing before me. Approaching him, I clicked on his character, causing the screen to fade to black.

When the screen regained its color and I was re-introduced to my surroundings, Mr. O was gone and the bathroom door was left wide open. All that remained was a bag sitting on the bathroom sink. Opening it, I found a note inside, accompanied by a cookie. "Thank you, Jeremy. Remember, Mister. O loves you."

Exiting the restroom, I made my way to the other door. It was left wide open as well. As I made my way down the halls, I didn't hear any second pair of footsteps. I didn't hear anything at all. No birds, no music, just the sound of my character marching down the marble floor. There was only one room I hadn't yet explored. Attempting to open the door revealed it to be locked. There was, however, a sign posted next to it. Reading the sign revealed a name written in bold black ink.

"Mr. O."

At this point, I'm left scratching my head more than anything. Sure, every child loves their imaginary friend. However, this all seemed a bit... much. Also, I can't explain a few aspects of the gameplay, and it's been bothering me. Mister. O is a customizable character that was created for my world. This means that my interactions with him are not pre-programmed into the game. They were programmed after Mr. O was created and inserted into the world. Now, I don't know about you, but I can't imagine myself coding such complex interactions into this game as a small child. I know damn well it wasn't my mother, either. Bless her heart, but she's about as proficient with technology as a snake is with flying. Trust me, I've spent hours trying to teach her how to send an email.

I chose to put the game down and hop on my computer. At that point, the blue light was all that kept me from passing out. Despite my drowsiness, I was able to google "Township: Village!" for the Nintendo DS. I found nothing. Not a single seller of the game on eBay and Amazon. Not even an obscure forum post about the game on Reddit or Quora. Either this was a highly unknown game, or it was a completely original copy altogether. Now that I think about it... I don't remember how I got my hands on this game in the first place.

Not wanting to get up and knock on her bedroom door, I texted my mom, asking her whether she knew how I got the game. She told me she had no idea where I got it, and always assumed that one of my childhood friends gifted it to me. I simply started playing it one day. Remembering that Sam fellow she had mentioned earlier, I asked her if she had his contact information. Sadly, she didn't. He hadn't been in contact with our family for ages. I guess it was a long shot, but it was still worth the attempt. After all, you miss one hundred percent of the shots you don't take.

I plugged my charger cable into the DS and set it back on the nightstand. I'll play with it some more tomorrow after I finish with my school work.

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