INMARCESIBLE

INMARCESIBLE - 12

        The word surprise wouldn't be the right one to describe my shock at the moment. My face washed blank with confusion, and my brain cogs couldn't turn fast enough to take in the information with my wide eyes. Every muscle of my body just froze as I gawked at the gorgeous Eric Warnard sitting by my bedside patting my back in the middle of the night.

My confusion just amplified as I saw the shine of serious compassion in his eyes. As far as I knew Eric Warnard, he didn't do compassion. But his eyes showed the kind of gentle concern my father used to have. He laid his hand lightly on my shoulder, and instead of flinching like I usually did, I was soothed by it. He left his hand there and spoke with such a soft voice I felt his words calming me more by the way they were said than the actual words. It felt as if I were wrapped in a blanket of his caring.

I could feel the fear in my chest slowly dissipating as I listened to his honey-toned voice soothing me, telling me to take deep breaths, making small circles in the small of my back. When the fog in my head finally cleared I sat up straighter and looked him straight in the eyes, but before I could ask him anything he stood up and said, "There's no time Phina. I wished to chat with you a little longer but seems like it's no longer possible. I will talk to you later; find me tomorrow as soon as possible." And then he jumped off my wide-open window. Just like that, he left leaving me as confused as always. Wait! Did he just jumped off the fifth floor!? But before my mind could catch up with the events that were unfolding that night my door was barged open and Lydia, the girl next door came bustling in. I heard Lena jump out of her skin as she jumped off her bed, startled like a jack-rabbit on steroids. I didn't even realize that Lena was in the room up until now, how in the world did she not wake up when Eric was here. Never realized she was such a heavy sleeper.

"Wha-What! What happened?" She shrieked, startled.

"The janitor's, he-he is dead!" Lydia shrieked in a scared voice.

"WHAT!" Both Lena and I yawped in unison.

What was going on in here. If I was right, Rudy, the janitor still had about fifteen days left till he was to kick the bucket.

So the ear-screeching scream just then was of the janitor!?

Both me and Lena quickly got up and rushed after Lydia as she led us to the scene of transgression. The emaciated man had dirt and grit all over his clothes and grimy body. His dark grey shirt (which used to be white) was tattered and shredded mainly where his heart should be. I saw a scene that did in no way exclaimed natural death. Rudy layed there on the cold hallway floor covered in his blood. Blood was still oozing out of the open wound on his chest and by the amount of blood leaking out of him you could tell the kill was fresh. I staggered back at the sight of the red liquid on the floor. The color swirled in my mind, making me feel light. The red liquid, flowed through the tiny cracks on the floor. As I watched the trails I saw it heading towards me, and every limb in my body screamed for me to run. I did not listen though. It was as if I was enthralled by the panorama itself; or maybe it was something else. I do not know. But I waited; I waited for it to touch my bare feet. And when it did, I experienced the tiny tremors that shot through me like lightning.

"Hmm, how is it?"

"Is it warm?"

"Does the blood feel warm?"

"We can feel your tremors. Khe-khe-khe..."

"Do you feel it? Isn't it magnificent?"

"Next will be you" "You!" "You!"

"Khe-Khe-Khe...hissss..." The voices that tormented me in my dream were whispering in my ears again and I was wide awake this time.

Frightened and startled, I looked around frantically but there was no one around near enough to whisper into my ears. Was I hearing voices now!? Fear drowned me as my stomach heaved, my heart beating so fast people could mistake it for a heart attack. Unintentionally so, my eyes fell over Rudy's dead body once more and I was reminded of that horrible night years ago all over again. My gut lurched, and a churning mixture of digestive fluids and yesterday's dinner almost filled my mouth, but somehow I managed to keep it down. I could feel an impending hyperventilation right on the edge. I lose my footing as I staggered back and was caught by Lena. "Sara, are you alright?" She asked, worried.