After four years...
The sun kept creeping into Fabien's room as he lied still in his bed with the blanket over his head. The shrill alarm on his phone echoed through the thin walls which the boy detested with a groan. Fabien didn't open his eyes as he reached lazily for the button to turn off his phone. Just 5 more minutes... he thought as he lied in his bed with a satisfied look. He smiled as he drifted into a dream of his favorite things...
As if he was floating in the air.
Out of nowhere, he felt a heavy weight on his body which made him choke in an instant. What's this... sleep paralysis?? No. This wasn't a dream anymore...
"Up, sleepyhead!", someone screamed, her voice small and squeaky like a mouse.
But also a bit more demanding.
Fabien coughed as he choked on the saliva in his mouth. The boy had a habit of sleeping with his mouth wide open... He pulled the blanket away from his head and stared wide-eyed at a little girl with 2 ponytails. Margery seemed to have fun torturing her brother, as usual.
"Margery, please for fu- sake. I might shoot you off to the wall!", he said groggily. Margery just grinned as soon as she stopped hopping on his stomach. She smiled at him innocently.
"Happy birthday!", she exclaimed, opening her hands wide for a hug.
"Yeah, yeah... Happy birthday, little devil..", he sighed, letting her lie all over him. His eyes were still heavy from his deprived sleep but suddenly something clicked.
"Ohh right! It's my birthday.", he thought with a smile. He instantly got up, making sure Margery didn't fall from the back. He then proceeded to grab her in his arms. Her hugging habits didn't stop after she turned 4. She still acted like a spoiled little child in front of him.
"What are you going to do today?", Margery asked him with a big smile, still clinging onto her brother's hug. Fabien sighed before answering.
"I don't know. Might as well go bowling with my friends.", he said, searching for his pants. Margery's eyes suddenly lit up.
"Bowling? Can I come too??", she asked with hopeful eyes. Fabien put a poker face on as he remembered what happened last time.
"No. I don't want anyone to shoot your head off.", he simply said, making his sister twitch in confusion. Taking little siblings to an outing was never a good idea... Out of nowhere, she put a pout on her face with a demanding glare.
"But I want to spend time with you too on your birthday...", she said, almost whining. Fabien couldn't help but sigh with a smirk.
"We always spend time together. How about, we play your Kart game after I get home. If you beat me you can have half of my birthday cake.", he said, staring at her with challenging eyes. Margery grinned while closing her eyes. The thought of the sweet cake she wasn’t allowed to eat much of ran through her mind.
"Deal!", she finally said, her eyes almost bright as the sun. Little children and their demand for sweets... Fabian thought as he couldn't stand sweet things at all. He rather preferred something crispy and salty. He sighed with a smile while putting her down.
"Good, now get off me. I have to get ready for school!", he said, ruffling her head. He forced her out of his room before closing the door behind him. He hurried up brushing his teeth while checking the time on his phone. Even though he promised himself to get to bed at the right time, he still ended up staying up late. Every morning was a hustle for him and although he regretted it, he did it over and over again.
He stepped out of the bathroom which was connected to his room as he brushed his teeth. Meanwhile, he forced himself in his pants and searched for a new shirt in his closet. He was pretty good at multitasking as he used his other hand to put the books from his tables in his school bag. He stayed up late studying but forgot to clean the desk afterward. He finally managed to finish up on time when he spitted out the paste in the sink.
Fabien's new home was a lot smaller than his old one but it still felt a lot more comfortable to live here. The floor wasn't expensive dark wood anymore but plain carpet. The rooms were a lot smaller too with one window each and the walls weren't covered in beautiful wallpapers either. It was more... Plain. But Fabien didn't complain a little since he came here, he couldn't, not after what had happened...
The boy picked up the trash from the floor and put it in the bin before leaving his room.
He walked down the stairs with a big yawn as he looked over to his mom. She was standing at the kitchen counter and shot him a bright smile as soon as she noticed his presence in the room. Margery enjoyed her cereal in front of the TV while watching cartoons and he saw his favorite breakfast placed on the dinner table. Normally she was too busy preparing for work rather to prepare anything special for her son.
"Morning.", she said with a smile, giving him a peck on the cheek. He usually doesn't like it when she does that but he can't remember when he started to let it just happen either. It became too much of a habit. He smiled back with a good morning as he sat down on the table.
"What's this? Is there a special day today?", he asked, playfully. She rolled her eyes as she exactly knew why he was smiling.
"Funny. Happy birthday Fabien. No, I didn't forget your present but you have to come back home for it.", she sighed, returning his smirk. Fabien widened his eyes in disbelief.
"But I told you that I wanted to spend the day with my friends.", he said, almost whining. But it was maybe more of a demanding tone. The worst thing he could imagine was his mom throwing a surprise party with all the relatives invited. Ariane sighed and crossed her arms.
"It's always your friends, friends, friends... Can't you make time for your family once? Margery is also tired of spending time with the babysitter as you're never home.", she said and Fabien twitched his brows in irritation. But he was pretty grateful that his mom didn't force him to look after Margery every second.
"Well, you don't need to talk. You're always busy with work and overtime shifts. Which I can't blame you but when was the last time we had breakfast together?", he simply asked, raising his brows. Ariane sighed while touching his shoulder.
"Well, let's make a deal then. You can spend the day with your friends but return before dawn. I have planned a present for you, so don't miss it when you come home.", she smiled assuredly. Fabian nodded.
"Alright.", he smiled as he got back to eating his breakfast. There were a few exchanges here and there as they talked about his birthday. But this wasn't the only thing they talked about.
The whole time, he couldn't stop smiling as he looked at her. There weren't many occasions where they could talk like they did now.
He hadn’t lied about the overtime shifts, as his mom never had the time to talk or eat at home.
She was the pillar of the family.
After the incident four years ago, the family took most of their savings and moved to the nearest city in France to try their luck anew. It took two years to get comfortable in the new neighborhood. Fabien cringed whenever he remembered the last memory he had of the town... The incidents didn't stop. Vilein was now called the mysterious town of the head hunters.
No one felt safe there.
So they all moved away. It was almost empty, somewhat resembling the town of Silent Hill.
After he was done with his breakfast, he stepped out of the house with his school bag over his shoulder. He looked ahead where he saw 3 guys waiting at a red shiny car. One of them was tall with a good build and dark skin. Another one was rather chubby and had a mischievous grin on his face. But the one he could recognize the most was the blond-haired guy with trendy clothes. He had known him for four years now.
It was a boy named Max.
He was leaning against the car as he smoked his cigarette but threw it away with a smirk as soon as he saw Fabien walking up to them.
The boy smiled as he approached his friends but out of nowhere his vision was covered in the mud-like substance. It threw him off as he stood there completely in shock. Fabien twitched by the sudden attack as he heard them snicker and chuckle in amusement. He sighed while wiping off the thing from his face. He realized it was white cream. Max held something which looked like a smashed cake in his hand.
"Happy birthday!", they laughed.
