She was standing by the window moments ago, but now there's no sign of her.
As many times as she has pulled this Houdini act, you may question that he probably has gotten used to it by now; well, he hasn't. He looked away for a second and she was gone, leaving him wondering why is she scared of that noise. Has she come face to face with that creature? He doesn't doubt that she has.
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It's already a brand new day without any more interruptions from any creature or the girl. This gives him plenty of time to work by himself peacefully. He needs to finish his pending works and projects which he couldn't do since he was holed into a hotel room for a while. He tries to divert his mind from the incident that occurred yesterday, in this very room, but soon found himself tangled in the huge pile of work. It was almost as if he forgot the other occupants of the house.
The sound of the clock ticking downstairs is still echoing.
The house has quieted down. Nothing unusual going on at this seemingly unusual house. Not since her last visit. Only with the sound of him typing away on the keyboard and that same old clock ticking making him nostalgic, the house seems dead. Something very eerie about this sort of quiet. Just like a calm before a storm is brewing. At the back of his mind, his subconscious telling him, "don't get too comfy. Havoc is right around the corner." he listens but doesn't pay heed to it. He'd prefer if things go back to normal but wonders when that will happen. Life is taking unexpected turns and all he can do is watch it unfold. Even if he finds out what the freaking hell is all this about, what was he supposed to do with that information anyway? Still, he can't help but feel driven to unravel all that mystery. If Manson hadn't told him that day about the other families, he'd have to get himself checked out by a psychiatrist. But why? Why this house is haunted. No matter how many times he refused to say it, he came to terms with the fact that Oksana is indeed a spirit that he can see. But is she aware of it?
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The backdoor downstairs creeks open. He heads towards the study door when he hears footsteps.
"Who is it?" he bellows leaning against the stairway.
A shadow is approaching the bottom of the stairs.
"It's me, Mr. Simms. Came by to drop the gardening tools." Alden speaks up as he cranes his neck from downstairs.
He sighs in relief to find Alden downstairs. "That's fine Alden. You can lock up and leave."
Yes, Mr. Simms. You need anything else?" Alden asks.
"No, that'll be all. Thank you, Alden." He turns around and goes back to his study.
Although he has never been known as impulsive, at this moment, he was anything but patient. After thoughtlessly pacing around the room for a couple of minutes, he dashes downstairs. Drinking has never called out to him but occasionally he indulged himself just enough not to falter him from his path, and he decides to just that. Just one glass and two ice cubes, but he doesn't go back to his study, nor he goes to the living room. He slowly walks towards the record player to playing something to wake the house up from its slumber. He suddenly felt growing an inclination to go outside and he finds himself walking towards the lake.
What is she doing there!
No matter how much he wanted to see her, the image of her standing by doesn't sit well with him.
"Penny for your thoughts?" He stands a few feet away from her.
"Oh, I wasn't thinking anything." She turns her back to him.
"This lake had been my piece of wood in the vast restless ocean but lately, it has been bringing nothing but agitation and fear."
"Strange, do you know why you have been feeling this way?" He sounds somewhat concerned.
"You know my memory doesn't serve me well." She chimes sarcastically.
That silenced them both. He keeps eyeing her, trying to read her but she looks lost; more lost than she has ever been before. Is she remembering something?
"You left unannounced. What happened?" He questions.
"That... that thing... It... Can we not talk about it, please?" She hesitates.
"I apologize." He pauses for a while. "Tell me where do you go when you leave."
She looks at him, taken aback by the question, and chooses not to answer him.
The sun sets down as they stand side by side, a few feet apart from each other.
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"Oksana, where are you going?" He's confused.
She doesn't answer him, walking away as if she can't even hear him, towards the lake, inching closer and closer.
He just stands there at the edge, still hasn't gotten used to all the unnatural incidents.
No trace of her anywhere.
Into Thin Air
Into Thin Air - 2
Into Thin Air - 3 - The House
Into Thin Air - 4 - Something Crawls
Into Thin Air - 5 - The Creature
Into Thin Air - 6 - Oksana
