The Missing Universe # 1 : The Missing Man

1 The Hotel

1 January 2010

  There was a creaking sound in the house. It was night time but Abdul Ali was still reading his book. Mr Ali looked up from his book. The creeking sound continued. A light flickered in the living room. Someone was outside. Was it a robber? Mr Ali had to find out for himself. His other family members had already slept. He was on his own. His fingers trembled as he turned the doorknob.
  "Hello. Anyone there?"he asked. He was frightened. The main door opened and a man ran out of the house.
  "Hey you!"Mr Ali screamed at the top of his lungs. His drawer was open. It was empty. The robber had gotten his money.

1 June 2010

  An alarm woke Adam up. He felt around him for an alarm clock but there were none. He fell off the bed.
  "Ouch!" he shouted.
  "There's a fire!" Mr Ali, Adam's father screamed. Adam soon realised where he was. He was in a hotel. How could he have forgotten. It was the June holidays and his parents had brought him to KSL hotel in Malaysia for his fifteenth birthday. How could there be a fire on his birthday? The  alarm was disturbed by an announcement.
  "Pleae leave by the nearest emergency exit," the person making the announcement said. They didn't need to be told twice. They rushed out of the room and ran to the emergency exit. They ran down the stairs. It was a nightmare. The alarm blared loudly. People were scattered everywhere. Adam knew something was wrong. There was no smoke anywhere in sight. All he could see was the hotel itself. Nothing unusual there. He looked at the mall. The KSL mall was connected to it's hotel. The mall was the same as the hotel, people running from here to there, the alarm blaring loudly, there was no smoke and there was a fire truck. Wait a second, a fire truck? There was no fire. How could there be a fire truck without a fire? Something must have triggered the sensor, but what? He was scarred that there was actually a fire. Was there really a fire? He had to search the place, starting with the hotel. He just had to get out of sight from his parents. He hid behind a tree.
  "Adam, where are you?"Adam's parents, Mr Ali and Mrs Aini called out. Sweat trickled down Adam's forehead. Once the coast was clear, he fled the scene. He kept out of sight from other people as he crept into the hotel. The hotel was deserted. His birthday would have to be cancelled. No, he put those thoughts to the deepest part of his brain. He stayed in the shadows, just in case someone saw him. He checked the breakfast area. Nothing unusual there. He checked the shops. Nothing unusual there. Finally, he checked the restaurant. Someone was smoking! She laughed. Her eyes stared into his. It was the eyes of someone evil. She broke into a run. Adam followed her. She entered the mall. The shopkeepers had already left their shops.
  "You can't catch me!"she shouted. She ran into an innocent fire fighter. She pushed him out of her way.
  "What do you think you are doing?"the fire fighter shouted at her."Hey boy, get out of here." Police rushed in a second later. Adam had to catch the lady. The lady entered a shop. Adam followed inside. It was scary. The lights were turned off. He bumped into a table.
  "Ouch!"Adam shouted. It was impossible to catch her. Adam just went out of the shop with disappointment.

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  Adam and his parents were at the police station. The interviewing room was very dull. Black and white covered the walls.
  "You have gotten yourself into trouble again!"shouted Mrs Aini. He was in trouble. He was going to get grounded by his parents as soon as he got home. But he just couldn't get grounded because it was his birthday. There was going to be a suprise party waiting for him at home. Everyone would be there. After about an hour of waiting, a policeman finally entered.
  "You guys are Singaporeans?"he asked. They nodded. The policeman smiled.
  "You look familiar,"the policeman said to Mr Ali.
  "I'm a retired policeman,"he said. He wasn't lying. Mr Ali had been a policeman for twenty years until he retired a year ago. He loved staying home with his family. Mrs Aini was a housewife. Luckily, their family had no money issues. They were a happy family.
  "Your son has been a bit naughty,"the policeman said. He was a young man. The ploiceman was probably in his middle twenties. Adam shifted in his chair uncomfortably. He had a bad feeling about this.
  Adam decided to speak up. It was his fault his parents were here."I was wondering why there was no smoke when there was an alarm so I decided to check the hotel".
  "Without telling us?"his parents frowned. He could tell they were getting disappointed. Adam and his friend, Shawn loved to solve mysteries at school. Robberies, threats, you name it and he'll solve it. His mother was worried that he'd get in trouble but his father was always on his side. As Adam told his story to the policeman, his mother would shout at him once in a while. His father always stood up for him. Sometimes he said it was Adam's dreams. It was true, he had dreams to become an investigator. After about an hour, the interview was over. Adam was exhausted. It was not even in the afternoon and Adam wanted to sleep. It was still in the morning when Adam left the police station. His stomach rumbled. He was getting hungry. They went straight to the breakfast area. They found a sit near the window. Adam got up and took some croissants and some butter. He spread the butter on the croissant. It was a yummy breakfast for him.
  "Isn't it a perfect day?"asked Mr Ali.
  "Almost dad, almost."

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  The day went on normally. Well, almost normal. First, Adam went to popular and bought a few storybooks. He bought some mystery and horror books. He even had enough time to finish one of his books. It was a beautiful day.

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  At the end of the day, Adam boarded the plane with sadness. He was going home. He was going to miss this place.