Chapter 2

Buildings faintly appeared in the fog as you approached its city limits. The first thing that greet your eye with its lifeless presence were a small business that appeared to seen its better days already. You looked up and noticed how the old sign over the entrance couldn´t be read as its letters vanished by the forces of nature. Old brochures decorated the ground around its front. Most of them unreadable with exception of a few stuck in the door. This place was supposed to be a welcome committee casual to any town. Existed solely for the purpose to enlighten visitors of its attractions and locations in all greedy attempts to empty their pockets. The window smudged with filth and even when you approach it and attempted to rub a small piece away you notice it was stuck on the other side. A sigh and a look at the clock on your wrist with its relentless arms moving forward despite any of your actions. Despair squeezed around your heart in a mere push that jerked your lips.

"10:47"

Small surprise stung you with numb sensation. Your burdened head looks up at the sky and see no sun, only watchful fog. This hour was far too late for premature arrival at this small shop. The owner or employee hired to this place would be inside by now. A thought struck you at the sight of the windows. Perhaps the people inside couldn´t see you? You didn´t care if that was the case. The less people that witnessed your appearance in here only meant an easier escape and harder for pursuers to track you down like an animal. You grabbed the handle and slowly forced the door open with expectations of what to witness within this decayed place.

Nothing.

Nobody greeted you expect air heavy by cold, old skeletons of steel that once contained maps, postcards and folded pieces of paper now stood empty. Free for all who mostly picked one out of obligation. It would be rude to not do it. You have never been here before so you must pick one. Even when the obvious decay of the place entrapped you in frames of wood and won´t refill the shelves anytime soon you better pick one. Postcards scattered in disarray over the old floor. A dozen of them contained a lake and an old three stories hotel captured in sunlight and a blue sky within pale and withered edges of the card.

"Enjoy the sunset together at Toluca Lake and Lakeview Hotel."

Others contained a photograph of an amusement park with a roller coaster, a ferris wheel and a carousel as visible features. The lake with it to cast a reflection of the park.

"Share time with your loved ones at Lakeside Amusement Park."

You noticed how pleasant the scenery looked and knew why that place got privileged to décor these cards. A nice place, sunset and a beautiful lake that mirrored it in enchanted harmony. All bait to snare newcomers. Yet you couldn´t help but find the place pleasant for a mere instance. Like the places you visited before.

…With John.

You bowed your head further down and put a hand in your pocket. Felt the cell phone in your palm and stroke its lid with a finger. It slept. You wanted it to remain that way. No need to break this silence with displaced tones of unwanted reminders. As your memory passed by something else gnawed your mind from behind.

Uneasiness spread through your spine and you wanted to leave yet couldn´t until your hand clenched around a still valuable folded piece of paper. You wanted to know buss charts and locations. Anywhere there your pointless journey would bring you further away into the fog. It felt wrong to leave without a free folder. Nobody here to help you now as you tried to call for attention.

At the cashier you found what you sought with empty eyes of unhappiness. Hidden halfway behind the old cashier that didn´t desired electricity to open its mouth and devour hard earned money from tourists and child families on a visit. A greedy creature that now stood hungry and guarded this last brochure in its maws of steel like a dog with a meat bone. What once were free-for-all now became this decapitated beast´s most precious treasure.

And you tried to steal it.

You pulled its edges with caution. Afraid it would tore in two pieces if you pulled too fast. It failed. The cashier was stubborn as a bulldog. You sighed and leaned over its metal frame. Buttons covered by dust and nearly unreadable yet you noticed one of them covered with a dark red spot. You pushed it with some hesitation. Hoped it wouldn´t smudge off on your gloves in a fruitless wish to not leave traces.

A rustle of pain from the cashier as to scream over its rotten tooth that you pushed. It opened wide and its treasure hanged out in the open. You grabbed it and claimed your prize with scared sensation as you expected someone to come out in response. You weren´t permitted to do this. What would they think if anyone walked in here and saw you? Hunched over the cashier full of old dollars and dimes, spared from the decay of time in its isolation and your hands over the hatch.

They would call the police.

Fear struck your mind. You couldn´t let the men of the law find you, question you and track you down. Even if you didn´t answer their questions, even if you lied, they would take action. Either to hold you in confinement cell of abandonment for all eternity. Or make the worst nightmare within your mind realized if they didn´t.

They could send you back.

You shook your head and retreated from the open cashier. Afraid it would bite you with its rectangular toothless maw. You looked around with fear in your eyes and both hands close to your chest away from the abandoned scenery around you. Feared that anyone would either enter from a room behind the corner or from the half-open door outside. In your fear a single thought surfaced to your mind.

Somebody watched you.

You slowly turned your head around and realized how silly it was. If someone worked here they would come by your call earlier. No footsteps outside. The door was still open and even windows filled of old dust and condensation couldn´t hide shadows from outside. You were safe.

A sigh of relief left your lips.

As you stood there and looked out through the window something small slipped out from the folds of your prize. You bowed your head down and noticed a white piece of paper not much larger than your palm. You tilted your head and picked it up to see the message more clearly.

"Feeling lonely? Don´t be! Join the circle of Silent hill today! All you need to do is to follow these simple instructions!

Write a letter.

Put a stamp on it.

And send it to "Silent hill´s chain circle"

Hundreds of people has already signed up and got friends they never expected to have. Why would YOU be any different? If you want a special friend then write the whole name of the person on the envelope. If you want to be anonymous then it´s not a problem… your mail will be a secret one and sent to a new friend instead.

No age limits.

No restrictions on contents.

And best of all…it´s FREE!

So why hesitate?

Send a mail and get a new pen pal today!

You won´t regret it

Just remember to stamp..."

The rest were torn of and you shook your head in slight hopelessness. You thought it was another way to snare people to prolong their stay in this town. Make friends with anyone? A foolish and pointless idea as you wouldn´t have need for anyone close in your escape. All you wanted was a way through this place. Too your chagrin no buss schedule existed within the folded sides. Only a simple representation from above over the town and its surroundings.

You instead acquired a map over Silent Hill.

Something scribbled down got your attention. A small square encircled by thin lines of red ink. A name within it in black letters.

"Neely´s bar"

A small notice beneath it with the swirly thin handwriting of a woman.

"Nobody will help you...just ask."

Another little chill slithered down your spine. The message startled you subconsciously and you turned to leave. Hesitated at the cashier which stood wide-open in a yawn. Can you leave it like that? Would you be blamed if someone stole its contents? You look around and outside the door only to see nothing but curtains of mist. No witnesses. None to witness your decision.

Would you leave it open in fear to be caught? Would you close it out of morality?

To make a decision.

An act you dreaded with such fear that it rendered you helpless.

You swallowed in hesitation. Your lungs breathed heavily by the idea. The walls closed in on you. A look at the cashier that demanded your response. A look at the door and the cold world outside.

You ran outside in fear.

And let it choose for you.

Outside cold air entered your lungs. You clenched with the map in your hand and held tightly around your body as you shivered in nervous panic. You didn´t know what to do. You only wanted to leave and escape. No sound from the mist around you except for your own rapid breaths. You couldn´t help it. A constant advice echoed in your head as you pushed your legs against each other on reflex. You need to move on. Can´t stay here all day. You know that.

Slowly the grip within your body eased. Your eyes went back to those red letters. Reasoned that you would find help within the town. Silhouettes of its buildings stood and waited patiently for you. All you needed was to take one step at the time. You could do this. Move onward and farther away from your fearful pursuer.

One step towards it…followed by another.

You headed to the town and the choice unresolved behind you as the house and cashier vanished. They became nothing more but a shadow in your past.

Among the others you wished to escape from.