Black Roses {Skephalo}

Day Nine

————— 22 days remaining —————Tuesday, January 9th, 11:39 am
Status 1: stage 5 - Watermelon
Status 2: stage 5 - Azure

~~~

-Zak's POV-

>Skeppy is taking a break!

>Hope he's ok!

>What's going on?

>What if something happened to him!

>He's probably fine.

The notebook casts a dim red light on my desk beside me as I read through my Discord. It's been flooded with messages for the past couple of hours, ever since my last livestream.

I announced that I'd be taking a break. From uploading, from streams, from everything. Of course I didn't say why, how could I? All I said is that I'll be taking a break due to personal reason. What I really mean is, until I figure this out.

In reality, the videos aren't provoking it. It's not recording, it's who I record with. I just needed an excuse to get away from Bad.

It hurts that this is what I've had to resort to, putting on hold what I love because of my stupid feelings. The apparition's words ring through my head.

'At the rate you're going, you'll die on the sixteenth of January.'

So I asked them if that was my choice. I confess to Bad, or I die in seven days time. They told me I was wrong.

So what do I do?

The notebook glows ominously as I think. One hand is clutching my hurting chest, so I set the other down on top of the book. My fingers trace the outline of the rose, hovering over the number on the front.

The number is 4.

What does that mean?!

I flip open the book, scanning the inside cover for any sort of clue. My eyes drift to the note at the top, which has never made any sense to me.

I've seen an identical note in the same place in Darryl's. What's haunting is that it moves. It changed as time goes by, the 'days remaining' decreasing with each passing day.

Days decreasing...

The note on the inside cover reads:

'————— 22 days remaining —————Tuesday, January 9th, 11:46 am
Status 1: stage 4 - Fire
Status 2: stage 4 - Cobalt'

Something doesn't add up. This note tells me that I have 22 days left, despite the spirit telling me I have 7. The deadline they told me expires on the 16th of January, but this deadline expires on the 31st.

So how can I have two deadlines? Which one is real?

Are either of them real...

My thoughts are interrupted by my ringtone. It's slightly muffled as my phone is buried beneath my bedsheets. I drag myself from my desk to my bed, letting myself fall onto my back.

My phone lays beside me, blaring my ringtone through my apartment. It's so loud my neighbours could probably hear it. I read the contact name and sigh, answering the call anyway.

"Hello?"

"Zak?"

"Dude is it not killing your phone bills to call me from Frenchland?"