7. Miracle

Valerian felt his interest get caught by the individual's words. But he first wondered why he hadn't reacted rashly or fearfully. A man that wasn't living in his house had just walked into his room after all.

Heck, he felt like he had expected that entry, but there was confidence enough, so much so that he could speak to the individual without falling in fear.

"Won't people hear us?" Valerian felt compelled to voice his worry, but the individual simply shook his head.

"Then what is this thing that must be done? I hope I don't have to go on another journey," he stepped back. A deep sense of worry erupted in his mind at the thought.

"Do not fear. You are not alone; sayeth He who sits on the throne," the individual replied calmly.

"By this time tomorrow you are to leave your house and walk eastward, you will find a building you know too well. Enter it and the rest shall be taken care of," the angel explained in a commanding tone, and Valerian felt unable to respond since he fell to his knees, suddenly weak.

Succumbing to the urge of closing his eyes, Valerian did just that and felt the air in the room return to normal.

His strength filled his knees at that point and he raised his head in fear of the scenario his head played, but it had been right. The Angel was nowhere to be found.

'That was a short visitation,' Valerian sighed resting his back on his bedpost.

His eyes soon lost focus as thoughts filled his mind. He knew where the Angel had sent him to, and the said building confirmed all that he had experienced even more.

"The house of worship," he muttered. At that point, he didn't understand much of what was going on, but he would play along as long as it got him away from that place of suffering.

Spending a few minutes with his thoughts, Valerian eventually left his room to go downstairs and found that his mom had begun to prepare a meal.

His mother was a woman in her fifties, but she had a face that radiated youthfulness and looked to be in her early forties or late thirties. Good genes.

She stood at a height of 5ft3 and sported long brown hair that had already begun to feature gray portions. Her eyes used to be big and white, but excess crying and lack of sleep had forced her to develop black eye bags.

His dad, on the other hand, was also a man in his fifties, he had beautiful blonde hair which his children inherited. The man had an averagely bulky frame of 5ft6 that had begun to weaken as a result of old age.

His father; who went by the name Ronald Jones, was a hard man that had been strict with almost all he knew. A determined and ambitious young man had he been during his days of youth, and his hard work had brought him closer to the higher echelons, as money wasn't exactly a problem thanks to his company.

He had mostly neglected his children due to that but had formed a close bond with his first son. His second son however was a different case.

Thankfully the near-death experience Valerian had gone through forced his priorities to take a shift for the better. He couldn't imagine losing both his sons in one year.

With most of his thoughts still in his mind, Valerian decided to explore more. He suddenly had the urge to see his dead brother's room and moved to do just that.

The upper floor of the building had six rooms, all lined up on one passageway.

Valerian's room stood directly south of his brother's. On the other side of the passageway were two rooms on both the west and east side of the passageway.

Upon walking up the stairs that stood directly before the entrance, one would need to go a few steps to bypass the balcony that overlooked the living room.

A wall separated the balcony from the rooms, and upon arriving in the passageway, to the right was Valerian's room, and to the far left stood his brother's room.

The rest of the rooms stood on the left-hand side of the building, creating a basic layout.

Unlocking the door into his brother's room, Valerian felt his mood try to plummet when he saw that most of its details had been taken out. Only a bed and a pretty basic white curtain remained.

They had moved everything else from the room and packed them into brown boxes that were stacked neatly on the right hand of the room.

Valerian almost got angry at the sight, but he calmed himself knowing that such had needed to be done.

Truth be told, he would have found it too much of a pain to have seen his brother's things still around.

"Where are you currently?" Valerian muttered. His expression revealed his sadness, and also fear. He hoped his brother had found some way to escape the place of torment.

"I hope you are in the good pace they talk about," he sighed taking another look at the now empty basically room.

He recalled coming there during the day's things were still alright in their family.

"What a long time that has been," he muttered approaching the door. "I miss you."

There wasn't anything much he could do now that he had returned to his home. The house was silent and everyone did their own thing even if he could sense their worry.

They all had their eyes on him, and he ignored the detail since it was to be expected.

He had tried to kill himself after all. At least only they knew that that had been his true intentions. If the world knew he would have been sent to a mental hospital.

How no one had suspected that reality made no sense to him. He had not even been questioned about the events of that night.

Those thought processes eventually begged an important question, and he started to wonder what had happened after he lost consciousness.

Soon dinner was ready and it was only seven, but it was still relatively bright outside.

All remaining five of the Jones family sat before the dining table and began to eat. The most silent meal he had ever taken in his life.

Even Lilia kept her peace and made not so much as a whisper. Valerian believed Madison had hand in that odd behavior.

'They desire a conversation but are too scared to make the first move,' Valerian concluded, shaking his head inwardly.

"Say, mother. What happened to me after my jump?" Valerian struck a sensitive topic, but he wasn't afraid. He had revealed that he had truly tried to kill himself, and it made everyone except Lilia hold their breaths.

"I had picked that building for a reason, how am I In one piece?" His tone was flat and his eyes cold. He too hated that memory just as much as them, If he had never taken that action he would have never had to go through that suffering.

His mother shot a confused glance at his dad, but the man was as confused as his wife.

"According to what people say they saw, you crashed into a moving stall's canopy and was sent flying into a car's windscreen," she explained with a jittery tone.

"The injuries you sustained were a completely broken right arm and shoulder. Seven broken ribs, and seven deep cuts. The impact of both accidents had also knocked you out badly."

"According to the doctors, it's a miracle you're alive." At that juncture in the explanation, she sounded and looked ready to burst into tears.

Valerian remained calm. Even he felt shocked about his demeanor. He had no doubt that his recovery wasn't normal and that what he experienced before and afterward weren't. More reasons for his overflowing gratitude.

He recalled his promise to the shining man, and the urge to suddenly speak about his experience filled him.

"There's been something I've been wanting to say ever since I woke up," Valerian's announcement brought all attention to his dazed figure.

He paused for a little while not because it was intentional, he only required those few moments to calm himself to be capable of speaking.

"Hell exists. It truly does," he announced.