I am alive! Look, that was optimism! Anyway, this chapter is mostly about the reader in that it focuses more on the questions you may have. That doesn't necessarily mean you get answers. If anything, you end up with more questions by the end of this chapter! Thanks for reading and enjoy the chapter.
Nobody really talked after Brad left with the units. They just went to their rooms and stayed there, not coming out for the rest of the day. I can't really say anything about them, though, considering I did the same thing. I had spent the rest of the day reading my grandmother's old books and sleeping. I was determined, however, to do something today.
Around nine in the morning, I checked the house to see if anyone was awake. Once I had confirmed that they were still asleep, I grabbed my wallet and slipped out the front door. No alarms went off to signal my leaving, which made me grateful the house seemed to be stuck fifty years in the past.
I decided to just wander around the neighborhood and get myself acquainted with it. The walk also gave me time to think about what the units had said yesterday. They kept insisting that the ones still asleep could get a second chance, but why would they need one? What happened that was so horrible? Grandmother had always told me such wonderful stories about her time here, but now I wanted to know why she had brought them back to this mansion. I wanted to know why she had turned them off, forced them to sleep, for fifty years.
My thinking had led to me zoning out so, when I finally started paying attention to my surroundings again, I found myself in a park. I instantly went to the swings and sat myself down. The familiar feeling of moving back and forth calmed me down and I started listing my questions in my head.
I wanted to know what happened. I wanted to know why it happened. I wanted to know what they meant by giving second chances. I wanted to know why my grandmother didn't seem to trust me enough to tell me the truth. I wanted to know everything that has to do with that house and the people inside it.
In this moment, I realized how messed up everything really was. Here I was, someone who could barely take care of themselves unless it involved ramen for every meal, thrown into an impossibly real situation. There were five, soon to be more, people that depended on me for something and I didn't know what it was. Not only that but apparently I'm supposed to be walking into this house with total knowledge of what went down there and no one will even give me hints about it! In no reality is this deal fair. In no reality is this situation normal.
Though, if I'm being honest with myself, this is something my grandmother would do. She had a habit of dropping me into situations she thought I could handle. She was usually right too, but that didn't mean I wasn't angry with her for doing it in the first place! I sighed and placed my feet down on the ground, stopping the swing from continuing its back and forth motions. I checked my phone and realized it had been about an hour since I left the house.
I don't want to go back, but I also don't want to stay on these swings or in this playground. I stand up from the swings and continue walking, winding up in this town's version of a city center. It was actually surprising how close everything is to the house. There are a lot of coffee shops, a grocery store, a bookstore, and a few random stores packed onto the street next to each other.
The bookstore is what draws me though the coffee shop closest to me was pretty inviting. A small bell jingles as I open the door, scaring me since I was more accustomed to the electronic ones. A woman at the cash register looks up as I walk in, waving and smiling cheerfully at me. I give an awkward smile and wave back, moving to the rear of the store where I won't be seen.
Once I find a quiet corner in the back, I sit down on the floor and lean my head against the bookcase behind me. The quiet and stillness of the store have a calming effect on me, allowing me to destress after the crazy events of the past few days. I look around at the books and realize I'm in the classics section, not the modern ones either. I pull down a book next to me and read the title, Frankenstein. My grandmother used to tell me all about this book, how she always felt bad for the monster. I think she related to the monster in more ways than she let on, but that was just another thing I never got a clear answer on.
The book stays with me as I walk up to the register, determined to get the book and maybe some answers. "I'd like this book please," I say quietly, placing the hardcover book on the counter. It was weird, to say the least, to find a store full of material books, especially ones with hard covers.
"Of course. Was there anything else you needed help with?" the woman asks. Her curly, brown hair bounces as she ducks beneath the counter to pull out a plastic bag for me.
"I was wondering if you could tell me about the mansion a few miles away from here. I mean, the one that hasn't been inhabited for about fifty years," I say, trying my best to sound like an interested tourist.
The woman's brown eyes widen slightly before going back to their normal size, a reaction I would have missed if I had blinked. "That's not for me to say. It's not for you to be asking around about either. Too much has happened in that place to be dredging up out of the ground again," she answers. She shoves my book in the bag and walks out from behind the counter. She literally shoves the bag in my hands and pushes me out of the store, shutting the door immediately behind me.
"Great job (Y/N), real good at subtlety aren't you?" I mutter to myself, attracting the attention of other people. I ignore them and start walking back to the mansion, getting lost a few times on the way there. The mansion finally comes into view and I sigh in relief.
As it turned out, nobody had woken up during my whole outing. I walked back to me room and shut the door behind me, being as quiet as possible. The day had been rather unproductive. All I had gained from it was an old book and more questions than I started with.
I'm hoping a few of you recognized some of these locations, but it's ok if you didn't. Also, if you haven't already, go see Deadpool! IT'S AMAZING! Gosh, ok, I'm done now, maybe. Thanks for reading, comment your thoughts, and look forward to the next chapter.
