Take Me Back To The Night We Met | A Story for Those Who Love To Read

Please read the first and second chapters to be able to connect and understand the character’s perspective.

Chapter I Destiny (운명) | A Story for Those Who Love to Read

Chapter II Yeoubi | Sunshower | A Story for Those Who Love to Read

The boy stood on the crossing of 11th Street clutching onto the straps of his worn-out leather bag. He had a weird affection towards the torn bag. It’s not like he was poor, or his family could not afford another new leather bag for him. In fact, they can buy ten leather bags for him if he wants but still, for some reasons unknown he dearly holds onto the tethered leather piece.

The whole path from the library’s main gate to the entrance was bedded with gray pebble stones which cease right in front of a giant wooden library gate. After finding out the residence of the book, he couldn’t convince himself to stay at home or ask his best friend Ted to tag along.

He wanted to know to whom the book belonged, who the person was, for whom the writer awaits, why the rest of the pages left blank, the sudden sun shower that happened, and many more unanswered questions that his soul demanded.

For a second, he felt cynical about the thought of entering that vintage building. He never went inside but still, it appeared in his dreams as if he had spent hours there wandering as if it was not a dream but an old memory.

The boy heard the sound of the town bells coming from a distance indicating the time. It was 1:00 pm at midnight. There were no sounds of society, not even the chirps of the cicadas, just the faint sound of the bells that made the whole ambiance eerier.

The boy took bigger steps towards the wooden door entrance as he looked up at the huge building. It was a royal building, the dukes of his town built it, ages ago. Paints were ripped off revealing the stones beneath. The creepers and climbers covered some parts of those brick walls with green shades and purple clematis, windows were framed with iron bars and tinted broken glass, pipes, and railing clogged with wildflowers and hedges.

The boy pushed the iron gate holding the rusted vintage door knob making enough space to seep in. The moment he entered he quickly switched on the flashlight and put his bag on the tiled floor to fish out matchsticks and candles.

He looked around the space. A huge chandelier hung at the center of what seemed like a common hall. Cobwebs made channels all over it and one light holder was broken.

There were 3 vibrant Chesterfield sofas and wooden book racks iced with dust and dirt. He carefully made a step towards the corridor where he met the girl in his dreams. He felt astounded at how his mind already knows which way to lead.

It was all dark, and damp with a musty smell that engulfed his senses when he halted in front of their meeting space.

His heart thudded inside his chest as if it was about to rip open. For a second he thought to scream and run out of the building but his mind was diligent to dig out answers to his unformed questions.

One of the walls was decked with a bookcase, and another with a window that had a glass painting of mother Mary with Jesus in her embrace.

There was another painting that hung on one of the walls just above what looked like a half-done fireplace. Opposite it was the doorway of that endless dark section where the girl disappeared in his dreams.

He felt shivers down his spine seeing the uncanny resemblance of his dream in reality as he tiptoed near the portrait. His hands felt clammy as he held the candle stand high up to get a better view of the portrait.

It was an oil paint portrait of the girl whom he met in his dreams. She was wearing a lavender-ruffled vintage dress. Her chocolate curly tresses were loosely pulled back away to reveal her beautiful sculpted face embellished with freckles on her nose line and beneath her deep brown doe eyes.

The boy did not feel scared for a moment even after the unnatural realization; rather he felt calm and bewitched as he saw her scarlet lips adorned with the prettiest smile he had ever seen. Although the painting was old and dusty, her honey skin gleamed under the candlelight.

She looked real as if he could trace her with his fingertips as if he was there when the painting was made. He never met the girl in real only in that one dream but something inside his heart recognized her as if she was someone whom his heart had an unspoken desire for.

The boy noticed a similarity with her. She had a small mole on the top of her nose just like him, it was so subtle that from far away it looked like freckles. He got on his toes to look into the details closely. There were small carved letters on the wooden frame colored with gold paint.

When he was about to read those embedded letters a drop of wax fell on his hand making him drop the candle stand, filling the room with infinite black

He quickly scoops down to catch the candle. His breath hitched and his hands trembled in fear as he tried to set a match to light the candle kept on the floor.

He tried multiple times but the sticks kept breaking as he desperately wished for a ray of hope. Each second felt like an hour before he finally managed to relight the candle but as soon as he did, he saw the girl in front of him.

She smiled looking at him and spoke in a hushed tone ‘Welcome back Amore’ 

The boy’s eyes widened and in an instant she blew off the candle, making the whole place overtaken by terrifying darkness again.

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Annyeong Hanami Creative lovers!

To bake a good story takes time and if it’s a short story where your day job demands a completely different role of yours other than writing and scribbling it takes a little more time and definitely that ‘little’ won’t be infinite. I promise you that.

Do read the 1st and 2nd Chapters by tapping on the link at the start of this story and behold your breath because I’m gonna soon take you all down the greatest memory lane.

Chapter IV: Kindred Spirits | A Story For Those Who Loves To Read

Chapter V: Mariage d’Amour | A story for those who loves to Read | 5th Chapter of Destiny