Thirteen Minutes Only || Horror

Part #6

[A/N: Since Halloween is right around the corner and this is a horror book, it only felt right to finish the next chapter and upload before the 31rst- 😅 so consider this a Halloween special ☺]

...

How even-? What?

Tears fell more ferociously to the extent that her cheeks went chapped dry, the lump in her throat growing heavier. After that the room fell lethally dead silent, nothing but the sound of her own breathing and thumping heart audible to her. It was almost as if everyone in the room wanted her to guess what was next.

What even could be possibly next? She thought, and it wasn't wrong to think that either. Now that everything was laid out in front was even was left? Where next? To the left where nothing's right or to the right where nothing's left or just keep where she was and try to pretend none of this ever happened. The latter had been what she had been trying to avoid all this time and now that is was out of question she realized how stupid it was. How stupid any of it was.

"Aren't you curious? Ju?"

What is even there to be curious about?

"Don't you wanna know what happened?"

He fastened his steps towards her and her heart lurched. She was surprised it was still beating after the news she'd heard. As he got closer, the more she wanted to climb into the window to her left and dive 2 floors down. Whether she'd die from the fall or survive with a few fractured bones and torn ligaments was something to be dealt with later

What happened...? Is that something even something she wanted to kno-

"I was murdered"

Jules froze and only her cold fingers twitched. She thought she had heard enough for one night. Apparently, not.

Apparently, there was more.

Apparently, she hadn't been traumatized enough.

She dared to blink and in that fraction of a second, he slipped from vision. From her vision at least.

"Murdered?" Her lips quivered as she formed the word, dread rising by the second. This is not what normal 9 year old should be saying. They should be whining to their parents for the latest fancy toys but here she was being forced into a cornered conversation which included death and most probably violence too. Yesterday, she would've never guessed how much of a horrifically coverted life she had been living.

"Yesss" he hissed, " You know what that means right? Nine year olds these days know basically everything."

How she wished she didn't.

"And in case you don't-"

NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO- PLEAS-

"it means when someone else" he said, adding extra emphasis on 'else' to make it obvious as if she already didn't know "takes your away your lif-"

She gulped.

He couldn't have been... murdered? Right? Could that have been why mom always said that 'he's in a better place now' whenever Max aske-

OH MY GOD. MAX.

Jules's eyes frantically searched around for him.

"WHERE IS HE? WHERE IS MAX??" 

She can see her mother bolt upright through her peripheral vision, panic flooding through as she realized there was no trace of her son in the room.

"I'm sorry, who?"

He so nonchalantly asks like they are talking about the weather.

"STOP PLAYING DUMB YOU IDIOT. DIDN'T YOU JUST PROCLAIM TWO SECONDS AGO THAT YOU KNEW EVERYTHING? MIND USING YOUR HOLY KNOWLEDGE TO TELL US WHERE HE IS?"

The scream that had been building up inside her finally left her and it was a relief it did, but that relief never lasted. It didn't take her long to realize that even if he knew, he wasn't going to tell them anyway. She needed to find him and fast before anything could-

No!  she told herself. Nothing could've happened to him. 

 He's fine. He's fine. He's fine. He's fine. He's fine. He's fine. He's fine. He's fine. He's fine. He's fine.  He's fine. He's fine. He's fine. He's fine. He's fine.

Her cold sweat lined palms, which were still pressed flat against the wall suddenly whirred to life and propelled her forward, towards the door. Her legs are wobbly but her feet also jerk ahead, one following the other rapidly. She makes a dash outside, nearly skidding as she abruptly turned around corners to scan the small hallway.

No Max.

The tiny kitchen.

No Max.

The parents room.

She braced her heart and tried to convince herself that once she twisted the knob and pushed through she would be greeted by the sight of Max's small figure crouched in a corner whimpering, consumed by fear. She desperately clung onto the last strand of hope because this was the last part of the congested territory they called 'home'.

When she couldn't contain herself, she burst through the creaky door, stubbing her toe in the way but did that even matter? 

She heard him before she could see him.

Sniffles, hiccups and silenced cries.

"Max?" she cried out, confused, angry, furious -a dangerous concoction of boiling, raw, unfelt before, emotions.

She fumbled over and almost caught herself tripping on something on the floor. She wildly felt around on the wall for the light switch. The moment her fingertips brushed against something plastic-y, she drew her hand and slammed it on, not caring that the faulty wiring could have easily electrocuted her and ended her right there and then.

The bright flash of white light pricked her eyes but she kept them forcefully open. She needed to see Max was okay, she-

There he was. Curled up on the floor by the decaying bedframe and as disturbing as the sight was, Jules finally felt the fire in the chest being put out and oxygen actually reaching into her lungs. Her tensed muscles loosened and her knees crumpled like an old newspaper and she dropped onto the floor.

Relieved, she was.

"Oh Max, everything's gonna be okay" She said to him over and over again, panting hard and despite how useless and impractical it was to say that, it was all she could say to him. She lunged forward to hug her little brother and console him but her hands went right through him and her head slammed against the bed's framework instead.

"I don't want to go, Ju"