Chapter 50

It's late at night time, a time at night when the people in the entire city are lying in their beds, enjoying the gift after their stressful hours of the day. But for Harrison, this is the time in which he is more productive.

The clouds in the sky are heavily crying. The massive drizzle of the raindrops on the roofs deafens everyone. The night is not peaceful, the nonstop massive thunder creates a loud noise, dramatically. Although that sound might be satisfying to anyone, it seems that the high intensity of the lightning tells something different.

The entire Fuentabella mansion is dark and silent. The maids are already taking a catnap as a reward for their exertive productivity of the whole day. But Harrison is not yet calling this time a day.

The tapping and clicking sounds of the keyboard and mouse, respectively, prove that someone is still awake from a certain room. Although the entire room is somehow black, so only the monitor is the source of light which refracts from his radiation glasses.

After all that happened earlier, he still has an appetite to accomplish things. Is he a nonchalant who doesn't mind the past? Where does he get his energy? Maybe this is his way of distressing, how is it? If the other people are so drained from the work and tension, they will just simply sleep or cry out loud to release the disappointments and sorrow.

"Arrrgghh!" he bubbled after being startled by an unexpected sound of the thunder.

He immediately closed the laptop. The hands eventually shake. He bit his lip while his face looked pale and seemed surprised. He looked around the room and stood heavily.

The surroundings became brighter due to soundless lightning. Every ten seconds, the thunder strikes again and again.

He let his left hand explore the wall to find the switch, but when nature started to go upset, he was terrified to turn on the bulb. He took a deep breath and massaged his forehead.

In just a few seconds, he hopped back after the glass wall just cracked then broke into pieces, and the remains laid down on the floor.

His eyes circled and widened while glaring at the destroyed part of his room. He stepped back little by little as he wanted to skip and get rid of danger. He looked at the door when the lightning produced light again in his place.

He moaned and crept from the unending angry thunder and lightning. He ran ahead on the door and then immediately rotated the door knob. He was supposed to exit but the door is still locked after unlocking the door knob.

He tried to pull it many times. He is already gasping repeatedly and intensely sweating while trying to open the door. Still, he failed to get out of the room.

"I must call my guard. This is not a joke. I need to leave this place or else I will be injured."

He walked like blindfolded while his arms were widely spread. While locating the table, his phone rang which guided him to reach the destination. His smile widened and he never missed the opportunity to grab the phone.

However, the incoming call just stopped. Quite weird happened, he was not expecting a call at this hour. He stared at different sides of the room.

[1 Message Received]

From: Unregistered Number

If you think you won the game, you are totally wrong. The prize rewarded by yourself is not the true battle, we haven't started yet. All of your wins are disqualified, let me teach you how to play a game to an opponent.

I know it's you who hired some goons to shake my soul until my last breath. I may be dead from the electric execution, but my presence is not a powder that easily dissolves.

I thought you were a brave man. Oh! You are not a man because you don't have balls and bones.

You were just locked in your room, you are now gasping until you lack air. You are just startled by a simple impact of lightning on your glass wall. You creeped out and then crawled backward when you saw the glass had just dramatically broken. And lastly, you feel cowardly in the dark room.

IS THAT THE DEFINITION OF BRAVE? OR YOU ARE JUST ARROGANT THAT CAN INTIMIDATE SOMEONE THAT IS LOWER THAN YOU, AREN'T YOU?

His throat unintentionally dried. He swallowed thrice heavily. He grabbed the bottled water and then unsafely filled his mouth which ended his cough.

"Come out, come out, wherever you are..."

An echoing voice creeped him out more. The voiceover keeps repeating the line with every strike of lightning.

His knee softened until he suddenly kneeled on the floor. The sudden angina is tearing him into pieces. His chest is like a sponge being squeezed by a demon. Every breath he tries aches him which pushes him not to breathe again.

He deeply sighed for the last time. "I... I... I am not a coward!"

Eventually, he managed the difficulty of breathing. He gently rises by supporting his weight with muscled hands.

"Do you think I will buy your gimmick? I am a man of steel, you can't bring me down! You are just a cockroach that I can squeeze and stomp on!"

He thought he could beat the unknown with his fake courage. His dosage of medicine has just arrived after a glance.

"Arrrghhh!" He lost his balance until he fell backward.

He gasped again and again while avoiding witnessing the bloody presence from the front. The alleged ghost of Hale just showed up with veiny arms full of cuts. It became even more terrifying when he saw the entity's strangulated and scarred neck as its eyes flowed out with blood. Its teeth slowly fell out until it vomited internal flesh.

He crawled backwards but his legs went numb while his arms were still shaking and his body was getting heavier.

"Do you still wanna play, my dear? You hated our first game, hide-and-seek. You just initiated that you want to face me. Why are you ignoring me now? You said you are not a coward, then prove it to me... NOW. NOW!"

"You are now dead. D-D-Don't you ever shake my peaceful life."

"THEN WHY DID YOU TRY TO KILL ME! AFTER WHAT YOU'VE DONE, YOU ARE EXPECTING A GOOD LIFE? HAVE YOU FORGOTTEN THAT YOU ARE THE ONE WHO DESTROYED MY NORMAL LIFE? HUH! HAVE YOU FORGOTTEN THEM ALL?"

"Hi, Hale. How are you? What is the feeling of being jailed? Did you like my gift?"

"Damn you! How dare you show your face after what you have done to me?"

"Ohh ohh hhhmm... Ssshhhh! Just relax, okay? We are not in the wet market. Don't show how cheap a personality is. Pay respect to your boss."

"Boss? You framed up me and sent me to jail, are you expecting I will still respect you?"

"Even if you turn the world upside-down, I am still your boss. I will be the one to grade you on your performance in Work Immersion, remember?"

"I will request my teacher to drop this subject. I don't want you to be my boss again!"

"That would happen if your teacher approved it. You know, I am sad that you cannot graduate this year. Well, it's your fault."

"My fault? You really planned to send me to jail just because you dislike me. I don't know why our principal appointed you to be the trainer of ABM trainees, there are still more companies that I can choose but the school didn't allow me."

"Why don't you just accept the fact that you have an itchy hand? I can't believe that I would have a theft trainee like you. You just give a bad image in my management. I will make you pay for the money you stole in triple the amount."

"You are such evil!"

"Call me whatever you want! You can call me evil, subordinate of the devil, I don't care!"

After Harrison reminisced about what he had done in the past, he looked straight down in front of the floor. He sobbed until he almost cried.

In just a few seconds, his sound turned from potential tears into unexpected evil laughs.

"Don't be so overdramatic, Hale! I will never ever regret about what I did to you because you really fucking deserve it! You are one of the people who destroys the image of our company, I put up with you but I really can't stand you for too long! You are just a nobody, you have no place in the world! You are such bad luck!"

A ghost's blood boiled. Its eyes lit up and his nails gradually grew longer. It rushed quickly until it unhesitatingly strangled the man. Its sharp-pointed index finger gets ready to poke it at him.

Harrison immediately gasped, trying to move his limbs to defend himself but unfortunately, he couldn't move them.

"H-Hewl archhkk, d-don't..."

The night has passed...

His phone rang and rang which woke him up. His left hand automatically picked up the phone to check what was going on.

The incoming call is from one of the attending board of directors. He freaked out when he realized that today was his general conference meeting.

"Hey! What took you so long to pick up the phone? Have you forgotten that you have a conference meeting today? How pathetic!"

He dropped his cell phone. He frosted like ice unable to move and ended speechless.