Harry Mason rubbed his eyes as the road stretched onwards. Sure, it would curve every once in a while, but not often. The sun was falling behind the mountains, giving off a reddish-orange glow that only people like he and Jodie would take in as a natural beauty. That name made him smile as he turned to see her.

Jodie Mason. She was so beautiful, even during her quiet slumber. He swore he could hear her talking to someone in her sleep. Knowing her, it was probably one of her good friends at the coffee shop she would often frequent. She loved to gossip, but it was never about him. To many, they had the ideal marriage and it wasn't a lie. Harry and Jodie truly loved one another as man and woman bonded in holy matrimony.

With their perfect marriage came a fatal flaw that seemed to follow Harry wherever he went. It wasn't Jodie's fault, it always seemed to default to him. When he was younger, he enjoyed writing as an art form, long before any of his colleagues followed suit. However, the problem of being consistent was a major problem. He would only write whenever he was in the mood to do so, unlike those in his creative writing classes. They were able to write about fictional characters every day with few problems. The pride that came with writing at a young age faded as he got older, but he refused to give up. He was still hard at work with his novel, albeit it was only in the early stages.

Harry remembered the expression that Jodie gave him when he revealed the terrible truth to her. She wasn't mad or even upset, but content. They had been trying for a long time and were never able to get anywhere. Both of them had the desire to have children, but neither were willing to leave the other. They loved each other too damn much.

Looking to the dashboard of his Jeep, Harry noticed he was driving at a rambunctious 60 mph, a bit faster than the 45 mph would have liked. There had been no signs of life for a long time. Not even a single car coming down the road towards them, let alone behind them. For all intents and purposes, they were all alone. There was nothing to fear though. Ghoulies and ghosties were all part of one's imagination, it all depended on how mature that person was.

Bump!

Harry jumped in his seat as the Jeep bounced off an uneven part of the street. He looked over at Jodie once again to see that she had been shaken awake. She stretched in her seat, yawning all the while.

"I'm sorry, honey. I didn't mean to wake you." Harry said, his sight never leaving the road.

Jodie chuckled softly as she adjusted her scarf. "It's alright, Harry. It wasn't your fault. They really should get that fixed."

Harry replied by smiling awkwardly. Even though he knew her, he wasn't much of a people person. Nature was funny that way.

"How much longer until we get there?"

Harry shrugged. "I'm not sure. Can you get the map for me, hon?" Harry gestured to the glovebox.

Continuing to smile, Jodie pulled open the glovebox, taking out a crumpled map that had seen better days. Unfolding it, Harry glanced over, but couldn't see much with all the wrinkles.

"Do remember where we last stopped at?" Jodie asked, her finger trailing a road that turned out to be a wrinkle.

Harry's eyes lit up. "Brahms. I remember, it was Brahms."

After a few seconds, a simple "aha" from Jodie was all that Harry heard.

"I guess we're gonna have to pass through Silent Hill and then we should be close. But knowing you, you might get lost again."

Harry shook his head, smiling softly. She never let that one down. Five years ago on their honeymoon across the European continent, he had accidentally gotten them lost on a sideroad that led them from France into Switzerland instead of Germany. He could never forget the embarrassment that he felt when he saw the Red Cross flying above the town of Zürich.

"Thanks, honey. I appreciate you." Harry said, reaching his hand over to caress her shoulder.

Jodie reached up to grab his hand. "I don't how I'd live without you, you goofball."

Harry pursed his lips. He hated that nickname, but he loved it at the same time. He didn't have the heart to give her a nickname. Jodie was perfect for her. With his hand still on her shoulder, Harry felt her lean forward.

"Harry? What is that?" She whispered. "Can you slow down?"

Without hesitation, Harry slowed the car down to a smooth 35 mph, which felt more like a crawl than normal.

"What do you see?"

Within a second, Jodie's eyes widened. "Harry. Stop the car!"

Once again, Harry did as he was told and pulled off to the side of the road. The passenger side dipped into large tire tracks, causing little bumps for the occupants of the Jeep. Harry surmised that it was from a semi-truck, but who knew how long it had been since they had been here.

Jodie quickly unbuckled her seat-belt and practically leapt from the car towards the object that Harry still hadn't noticed. He still remained bewildered and confused. It was very rare for Jodie to act like this, even when she was really excited. Looking both ways to make sure no traffic was passing by, Harry stepped out of the Jeep and walked over to Jodie.
"Are you okay?"

Jodie didn't respond. Instead, she stood there, not moving. Walking up to her, Harry grabbed her shoulder.

"Jodie?"

Following her eyes, that's when Harry noticed it.

A baby, wrapped in a white blanket, either unconscious or…

Harry could already feel the tremble in Jodie as she placed her hands onto her mouth. Walking up to the baby, the writer reached down and picked it up, making sure to be as careful as possible. He felt a sudden surge of relief as the baby cooed, reaching out to touch his clean-shaven face. From what he could tell, it was a baby girl, left all alone out here in the middle of nowhere.

"It's alright, Jodie. She's okay."

Placing her hands on her chest, Jodie's tremble ceased, replaced with joy. She walked next to Harry to get a better look at the baby. With the tips of her fingers, Jodie tapped the baby's face, who responded with a childish laugh.

Harry and Jodie looked at each other. They knew what the other was thinking. They had both wanted this and it was like God had answered their prayers.

"What should we name her?" Jodie asked, leaning up against her husband.

Harry knew exactly what he wanted to call her. It was no contest.

Cheryl

…

Cheryl.

That was her name before the hellscape known as Silent Hill took her away from him, like the monster that it was. Yet, it wasn't his fault. To Harry, it was. He took his eyes off the road for just a moment to look at Cheryl, sound asleep like his wife once was. Or rather, still was. Her coloring book that she had started was leaning against her chest, moving up and down, breathing along with his daughter.

Then Alessa appeared in front of him, causing Harry to swerve off the road and into his worst nightmare. If only he had woken up sooner. If only he was a better parent, maybe Cheryl would still be here.

In a way, she was, but she wasn't. The Cheryl that he raised for the last seven years was gone, replaced with another baby. The memories felt more like experiences from a past life that was long gone. Harry knew he wouldn't be the same after everything. The manipulation from Dahlia, the monsters he killed, and the poor decisions he couldn't stop making.

Harry was certain about one thing. He was tired. His lungs felt like exploding as he ran away from Silent Hill, a reincarnation of the Cheryl he knew mixed with the girl that brought him here. It wasn't Alessa's fault, but Harry had a hard time forgiving her, despite her innocence.

The baby had been silent since his retreat from that town. Since his victory over the god that Dahlia had wanted to birth for so long. In the back of his mind, Harry chuckled. Never did he believe that he would ever defeat an ancient god, let alone see one. It wasn't funny. Not really.

It was becoming too much. He couldn't run anymore. At the very least, there was nothing to run from. Stopping to catch his breath, Harry felt relieved to be under a streetlight, shining its white beacon onto him. It reminded him of the girl he saw before Kaufmann intervened with whatever the hell that chemical was.

Harry looked back instinctively. For all he knew, the monsters were still following him, ready to tear him to pieces while he wasn't looking. With confirmation that he was alone, Harry looked down at the baby, somehow still asleep. He looked up towards the sky and, like a bad horror movie, it was a full moon.

That's when he saw it. Off to his right was a motorcycle. The word "Police" written in small, white font. How could he have been so careless? He didn't even try to save her. Instead, he pulled out his gun and shot her like she was just a monster. A monster that tried to kill him like everything else in that goddamn town. She didn't do anything wrong. Why did she deserve to die? If only he knew about the chemical, he could've saved her. But he was too stupid to see it. If only he could've been better…

He couldn't stop. He had to keep going.

Harry Mason had already lost his family. There was no way in hell he would let them take this baby away from him.

Even if it cost him his own life.

And with that, Harry took off running again, and this time, he didn't stop.