The Tears of Silent Hill

3

The cool rain fell heavy upon Carley. She stood there in the middle of the deserted street. Just her and him. A man taller than she was with scars on his arms and face. Some of the scars were deep and fresh looking and others old. He had brown hair and eyes that were hazel. He had a goatee and mustache. He was stout. Not overly muscled but not under either. He was just right and his skin was tan. Not a deep tan but a tan that one would get when working out in the sun. He wore a white shirt, that now, thanks to the rain, showed more scars underneath. He also wore denim jeans and black boots. Boots that resembled engineer boots. On each of his wrists were wide leather bracelets with a single emblem on each one. It was hard to make out the emblem, but they were embedded into the leather.

"Who is he?" Carley wondered.

They continued to stare at each other. Both soaked but neither one cared. He slowly began to approach Carley. Carley didn't move but she let out her breath and you could see the condensation under the barely lit street light. Despite it being a cool autumn evening and the rain was cold, Carley didn't feel cold. 

He continued to walk towards her with his eyes locked on her. His face was expressionless but he was definitely studying her. His lips were lightly parted and with every few steps he took, you could see his breath as he exhaled. As he walked, the clunk of his boots echoed throughout the empty street. His walk seemed to be in slow motion but within a few moments, he was just a few short inches from Carley. 

Looking up at him, all Carley could hear now was the falling rain and the sounds of it pouring from the roofs of the homes nearby. They stared at each other for what seemed like forever. She wasn't scared and that surprised Carley. She felt relatively safe in this man's presence despite not even knowing him.

As he looked down upon her, he took his hand and gently touched Carley's cheek. Carley quivered slightly to his touch. His touch was warm, welcoming, and gentle. Carley folded into his hand and then into his arms as he pulled her close to his body. Embracing her. Inhaling deeply into his chest, Carley took in as much of his scent as she could, not wanting to be let go. They continued to stand in the rain not saying anything to each other. 

Carley began to feel suddenly cool and as she opened her eyes, he was gone. Before was a mirror. Her reflection in it and behind her was a tall figure in a black heavy-duty rain jacket wearing a mask of some sort with a black hood from the jacked pulled over it. They stood there gazing into the mirror. The figure placed a hand on her shoulder and Carley reached for it.

Eyes flying open, Carley was startled by the sound of the bedside alarm going off. The previous guest must have set it when they had stayed in that room. She glanced over at the clock and it read seven o'clock. Laying there for a moment, Carley thought back to her dream. It was nearly the same dream. In fact, the last part of the dream was the same, but what of this other part now? Shrugging it off, Carley decided to go ahead and grab another quick shower before she hit the road.  

After about ten minutes, Carley finished her shower, dressed, brushed her teeth, and combed through her hair, gathered her things, and began loading everything back into her truck. Before heading around to the front desk to check out, Carley went back into her room to double-check check she wasn't leaving anything behind. Satisfied with her inspection, Carley proceeded towards her truck and headed to the front desk to turn in her room key and check out. Once done, she hopped back into her truck, pulled out of the motel driveway, and pointed her truck toward the highway she would be taking next. With her stomach grumbling, Carley decided to stop and get breakfast before she started her travels. 

Finding a restaurant that served breakfast was rather easy and right next to the exit she would be taking and alongside the diner was a gas station. Carley pulled in, turned off her truck, and headed in with her atlas. An older woman greeted Carley and allowed her to sit where she wished and Carley opted for a booth next to the window. Handing the menu to Carley, the waitress asked Carley if she would like some coffee. Carley politely declined the coffee but asked for a glass of orange juice. The waitress smiled and walked off while Carley glanced at the menu. The waitress returned with the orange juice and asked if Carley was ready to order. Giving the order to the waitress, the waitress smiled and left to give the order to the chef.