Nirvana

Chapter Three: Mysterious Encounter

"My name is Alec. Remember it well!" he quipped. Lucy felt a slight spark of victory as soon as she managed to extract even the slightest bit of information from him.

"Alec, huh? Nice to meet you. I won't forget your name, I promise." Lucy assured, earning a nod and a smile from Alec, who believed in her promise. She extended her pinky finger, initiating a 'pinky promise' pact with Alec. He returned the gesture and raised his own. Their pinkies intertwined, sealing their pact.

"Where do you live, Alec?" Happy to have become familiar with his name, Lucy wanted to use it every chance she got. However, when her eyes met his, she noticed that his face had paled a little. She sensed she might have touched on a sensitive topic and wanted to check if he was alright.

"What's wrong-" She couldn't finish her sentence before a loud voice interrupted her mid-sentence.

"Who's there?" The voice boomed across the empty bay, and shortly after, what seemed like a middle-aged man stepped out of the shadows, searching for the source of the voice.

Barely able to catch his breath after jogging a few steps toward the source of the voice, his breath misted in the chilly night's air as he wheezed through his narrowed bronchi, indicating years' worth of accumulated toxic chemicals in his lungs.

The man's eyes examined the vicinity to locate the little girl to which the voice he just heard belonged. Right before the man's eyes landed on Lucy, a hand grabbed hers and pulled her away, taking her deeper into the shadows and hiding her behind an old building.

Lucy breathed rapidly in worry and surprise. She didn't have the chance to make sense of what just happened as it was all too quick for her.

"What's happening?" she questioned, flustered. She expected that a well-hidden bay such as that would have nobody roaming the area, even more so late at night in a town where people retired at dusk.

"Is this someone's private property?" she tried again. Alec shook his head.

"Layla?" The man called out an unfamiliar name to both Lucy and Alec. Their eyebrows furrowed as they stared at each other.

'Who could he be calling for? There was no way a 'Layla' would be out at this hour.' Lucy thought to herself. After a few more looks around the place, the man sighed in despair and turned around, heading back into the shadows from which he had emerged. His footsteps echoed as he moved further and further away from them.

"Why did we run? Do you know that man? Is he dangerous?" Questions rolled off Lucy's tongue as she watched the man's back get smaller the more he faded into the distance. Her racing heart began to slow seeing the figure disappear completely into the darkness.

"He's not exactly dangerous. He comes here often, but it's for the best he doesn't see you." Alec explained. "I believe he comes here for spiritual reasons."

"Spiritual reasons?" She repeated, glancing back at Alec, expecting further elaboration.

"It's thought that this place holds strong spiritual energy, so people come here for different reasons." Lucy nodded as she absorbed the information.

"It's a beautiful place regardless. Its energy is calming, and the sound of the waves and the scent of the sea is soothing. I'd come here often, even if it is not for a spiritual reason." Lucy confessed.

"I'd do that too," Alec also admitted.

They came out from their hiding spot behind the old building, making their way closer to the edge of the shoreline where they sat next to each other, admiring the beauty of the scenery. Lucy rested her head on Alec's shoulder as they sat in comfortable silence, their heartbeats synchronized in unison. The gentle touch of the evening breeze caressed their faces, as time ticked away without their notice.

"But why should I not let people know I go here?" Lucy broke the silence.

"It's better not to," he responded hastily. A thought lingered on the tip of his tongue, needing to be said before it slipped away. "Lucy, I think it's time you head back home. It's getting way too late."

"My dad's probably sleeping, so it won't make a difference if I go home a bit later," she argued.

"Dawn is a few minutes away. He could get up any moment, now." Alec insisted. She huffed, complying with his reasoning and nodding her head. She got up, ready to walk herself back home since she took the time to memorize the way while on their way to the bay.

"Would you like me to accompany you?" Alec offered, but Lucy didn't want to burden him too much, so she shook her head, politely refusing.

"There's no need. However..." She trailed off, "Am I going to be seeing you again any time soon?" Lucy blurted without much thinking, internally beating herself up for getting attached to someone so mysterious in so little time.

"I'm glad you found my company entertaining." Alec grinned.

"So? Your answer?" She fired questions at him, impatient with the lack of a straightforward answer. She was surprised at how fast the time she spent with him had passed.

"Yes, yes. We should meet again soon." He agreed. Lucy, feeling content, waved him goodbye and turned around, making her way back, a small smile plastered on her face.

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Hi everyone, it's me again, the author!

So...

What do you think Alec is so far?

A real person?
That would explain the way he was able to physically touch Lucy's arm as he pulled her to the bay, which suggests that he is an actual human being, not a product of imagination or a supernatural being.

A ghost?
That would explain the teddy bear that appeared out of nowhere in the prologue. However, it could also be the ghost of her mother, or maybe just Lucy's imagination since she saw it exactly how she remembers it from memory, which leads us to our third possibility.

A trauma-induced hallucinations?
That would explain why Lucy started experiencing unusual occurrences concurrently with the onset of her trauma.

Or could it be something else entirely? Let me know what you think. ;)

Side note:
Patients experiencing hallucinations, such as those with schizophrenia, trauma-induced hallucinations, etc... may perceive auditory, visual, tactile, and gustatory sensations that are not real, meaning that they might see, hear, sense as well as taste things which may feel real to them but is actually not.