DIARY OF VALERIA [ COMPLETED ]

Chapter 15

Valeria, she was supposed to be the heroine in my story. But now, I don't know what she is. A villainess? A hopeless romantic? A lunatic angel? I was confused.

I went straight to our apartment and it was empty. The lights were off, but I didn't bother turning it on when I went inside. I was breathing heavily, and my mind was clouded with the thought that Gakud was after me. It's my fault, and if anything bad happens to Albert, I couldn't bare the guilt. Adrenaline rushed through my veins as I checked our room and it was also empty. Albert wasn't home yet.

I took my iPhone from my side pocket and there I found was a text message from my best friend, telling me that he was out on a date. I sighed with relief, knowing that he was safe. I stood there in the kitchen for a while, before I realized that I didn't close the main door when I bolted inside a few minutes ago. I turned around, walked deliberately towards the door and closed it. The room fell into sweet darkness, and along with it came the silence, pushing the noises from the avenue farther away from here. For a moment, I reveled in the stillness inside the apartment, listening to the soft beating of my heart, and the rush in my veins that was gradually subsiding. Adrenaline was trickling out of my system; I could feel my humanity coming back to me as I felt the aching of my legs and the tiredness of my body. I leaned back on the door to relax. Minutes have passed and I still felt like I ran a marathon, since my body wasn't used to any physical activities. I reminded myself to do some cardio at least once in a while, so I won't get easily winded.

I was so focused on how tired I was from my recent escapade that I even forgot to turn on the lights. My eyes were getting used to the dark room, and as my sight adjusted, I saw dark shadows dancing to the tricks of city lights from the window, forming shady images from nightmares. But there was comfort in the dark, a comfort of hiding from an unknown creature. As I stood with my back on the door, I wanted to stay in the edge of oblivion for a while. But something told me that I couldn't hide from a creature like Gakud. Something in my gut is telling me that if he wanted to find me, no matter how much I hid – he would eventually find me. The mere thought of it sent me into a frenzy and suddenly, I became afraid of the shadows that danced on the wall. I reached out to turn on the lights.

As I heard the familiar click, the fluorescent lights flooded the room, pushing away the shadows that are threatening my sanity. But instead of being relieved, my heart jumped out of my chest when I saw my window, widely opened. And the creature that stood beside it, was staring at me with its eyes while sporting a sinister smile. He was so huge, that his head was nearly touching the ceiling. He is also wearing a turban, which is probably covering his awful Rastafarian-styled dreadlocks. He was wearing a black V-neck shirt, army pants, boots, and a furry coat, like he just came from a cold winter in Russia. His smile widened, and I saw fanged teeth that pushed the voice out of my windpipe, as I screamed for dear life.

Gakud was inside our apartment. That was the last thing I remembered before darkness took over, and there was nothing.

When I woke up, my sight was foggy. As my vision cleared, I saw Albert's concerned face in front of me. I sat up right away as if reflex took over my body, but Albert's firm hand pushed me back. My head spun as I realized that I was lying on the couch inside the apartment. My mind was in a quandary; I closed my eyes for a while to settle the dizziness.

"Isaiah! Wake up. Are you okay? What happened?" Albert's questions came out in a rush and I didn't know how to answer them. I was still in panic, and all I did was stare at him to keep myself from slipping again. He held both of my shoulders and shook me; my mind rebooted as coherency found me once again, and along with it was my voice.

"Albert!" I blurted as if I was surprised to find him in the apartment with me. "Albert," I repeated.

"Yes, it's me. What happened here? I found you lying on the floor. And the room, it's a mess. Was it a thief? Did he hurt you?" Albert gave me his questions again, but this time I answered as much as I could.