i skipped school today.
just as Dejun did.
i looked for him on the map again. there he was...
where he said he would be.
i knew i shouldn't have doubted him but...
...
it was after school, on a warm friday.
it was hitting near night, and he was still at the convenience store.
should he be heading home now?
i followed the snap-map to his location, passing by my house and the park.
the night was finally closing in.
the air got thicker as i neared the store. but there was something wrong.
no light. no people.
as i drew closer to the building, i looked into it, to see it empty, nobody at the counter.
it's closed?
i looked back on the map.
it says he's right here. could the map be wrong?
i paced around the perimeter of the store until i reached the back, seeing a hatch on the floor unlocked.
basement? maybe he's stocking up after hours?
i peeked through the hatch, the stairs leading into complete darkness.
the moon following me, it shines down allowing me to see the stairs more carefully.
i tiptoed down, the stairs making a slight creaking sound as my foot puts weight onto it.
i was so close to the floor but couldn't see anything past my own feet.
there was a smell.
a smell that made me gag.. the smell of something close to cow meat. usually when it's going bad.
i gagged, covering my mouth and nose, protecting me from the rancid smell.
my feet hit the floor, trying to walk forward.
i pull out my phones flashlight, finally being able to see.
a door. light cracking through it.
but the closer i got.. the worse the smell was.
i was so close to the knob, until i stopped as i heard a squishing noise under my shoe.
i looked down.
the dark red thick liquid spilling through the crack of the door.
it can't be.
blood?
i swiftly opened the door and there he was.
a smile printed on his beautiful face, blood spattered all over his clothes.
in his left hand a kitchen knife, in his right..
a corpse.
someone that looks young, fairly handsome, cut open, his organs on the table around him.
blood falling through the slit of his mouth.
light headed. i couldn't faint here.
not in front of this monster.
the man i loved, the man i kissed, hugged, gave my most sacred part to..
a killer.
his eyes fall to me and his smile widens.
"hey baby,"
he pulls away from the dead body, cleaning off his knife and tracing it around my jawline.
"you're smart, huh?"
a much older man comes out from the other door, not saying a word but watching the both of us.
i couldn't move i couldn't speak.
but i let a tear race down my cheek.
he was a killer.
*
487w
