DAMNED (Dark Romance)

Chapter four

MARA

Nagising ako na parang sinasakal sa kama. I saw a doppelganger of myself in my dreams. She was so evil and strangling my neck until I was out of breath. It was so intense that I felt unsettled and shaken. I really thought it was real. It was just a nightmare so I convinced myself to calm down.

Agad kong nilingon ang bawat sulok ng kwarto para makasigurado, pero wala akong naaninag na kakaiba o kasama. Mapayapa at nakakabingi ang katahimikan dito na hindi mo aakalaing hindi pangkaraniwang mansyon.

Dahan-dahan akong bumangon para suriin ang aking katawan, pero wala akong naramdaman na sugat o masakit. Maging ang aking leeg kung saan bumaon ang tinidor kagabi ay naghilum. I don't know how but it disappeared and nowhere to be found.

I couldn't go back to sleep so I slipped out of bed and quietly walked to the huge door. I didn't want to attract unwanted attention kaya dahan-dahan kong binuksan ang pinto at tiningnan kung may tao o nilalang sa labas nito. I've learned my lesson that this place is no joke, so I need to be more careful.

Fortunately, no one's outside kaya parang natanggalan ng tinik ang aking puso.

I quietly roamed the place. Entered each room and memorized every space so I'd know where to go next time. If there would be next time. It felt like there were endless doors in this mansion revealing more to explore every time I entered each room.

Where exactly do I want to go? I'm not sure. Escaping isn't a good idea.

I walked past the extravagant dining area. I entered a huge hallway and passed through a few empty rooms until I reached a large space decorated in a minimalist style, with a black bed, walls, and furniture.

Oh wow, my eyes never fail to amuse me. This room is massive, even much bigger than our entire house. And there's something about this room that's drawing me in. It's captivating and feels so warm and cozy. It exudes an enchanting sense of masculinity and sophistication. At a glance, I could tell that a man owned it.

Nakalanghap ako ng malamig at sariwang hangin mula sa loob ng kwarto kaya dahan-dahan kong hinanap kung saan iyon nanggaling. Maingat akong pumasok sa loob at nagtungo sa dulo. Sobra akong namangha sa lawak nito kaya't naisipan ko itong libotin hanggang sa mapadpad ako sa isang sulok kung saan may nakabitin na mahabang kurtina sa pader.

Mistulang makapal na pintuan iyon, at dala ng sobrang kuryosidad ay hinawi ko ito kaya't tumambad ang karugtong ng mansyon na malawak na balkonahe. Naiilawan ito ng buwan at mga bituin sa kalangitan at paunti-unting akong humakbang palapit sa sementong harang. Agad kong tinanaw ang labas ng balkonahe ngunit madilim na kagubatan at mga bundok lamang ang nakita kong nakapaligid sa mansyon. Maya-maya pa pagbalik ko sa loob ay isang mahinang boses ng babae kasabay ng yabag ng sapatos at takong ang unti-unting umalingawngaw sa buong kwarto.

Shoot! What should I do?

Bumilis ang tibok ng aking puso habang paikot-ikot na naghanap ng mapagtataguan. Sa sobrang pagkataranta ko nga ay pumasok ako sa isang malaking closet at doon dali-daling nag tago. Nang nakapagtago na ako ay minabuti kong hindi mag ingay at magdasal na sana hindi ako mahuli.

My hands started to shake again as I watched the dark room in awe. I'm like this whenever I panic. But surprisingly this is a walk-in closet and I can barely see a large square table in the center and some clothes hanging in the corner. Right after I spun around, my eyes caught sight of a beam light streaming through the crack in the door. Bahagyang bukas ang pinto dahil hindi ko siguro ito naisara ng maayos sa sobrang pagmamadali.

Sumilip ako sa awang kung saan nanggaling ang munting liwanag at labis akong nagulat sa aking mga nasilayan. Nanlaki ang mga mata ko at napanganga ako sa aking mga nakita sa labas.