Chapter 5: He Returned...
1331 Words
"I thought it had all been an illusion... a terrifying moment that would be left behind with the journey. But I was wrong. He appeared again."
I could only stare at Mom.
The moment I parted my lips to say something, my eyes suddenly fell on the same masked man.
He was walking right past us.
He glanced at me for a brief moment, and once again, that same mysterious smile spread across his lips.
A cold shiver raced through my entire body.
Without saying a single word, he simply walked away.
Seeing him there too made my heart pound violently.
I immediately buried myself in Mom's embrace once again and whispered softly,
"It's nothing, Mom... When I woke up and couldn't find any of you on the bus, I got scared. And... I'm really hungry too. That's why I was crying."
Mom looked at me carefully, as if she wasn't entirely convinced.
"Is that really all? You're not hiding something from me, are you?"
Lowering my eyes, I replied quietly,
"No, Mom."
She continued looking at me for a few silent moments, searching my face for answers.
Then, without saying another word, she gently picked up the food and began feeding me with her own hands.
But my mind was nowhere near the food.
My eyes kept drifting toward the part of the hotel where I had last seen the masked man. It felt as though he was still somewhere nearby... watching me.
After finishing my meal, I quietly got up from beside Mom and walked toward a water bottle placed near the window.
The moment I looked up to pick it up...
My heart nearly stopped.
The same man was standing outside the window.
He stood there in complete silence, his eyes fixed on me.
Then, slowly, he raised his hand and gestured for me to come to him.
The instant I saw him, a wave of terror rushed through my body.
Panic seized me. I left the bottle where it was and hurried back to Mom as fast as I could.
Seeing me return so suddenly, Mom looked at me in surprise.
"What happened? Why did you come back so quickly? And why didn't you drink the water?"
I remained silent for a few moments.
Then, stammering, I said,
"No... it's just..."
"Just what?" Mom asked immediately.
I paused for a moment.
My heart wanted to tell her everything—to tell her the truth.
But for some reason, I couldn't gather the courage.
So instead, I quietly replied,
"The... the water is too warm. I want cold water instead."
Mom looked at me carefully before saying,
"Alright. There's cold water kept near the reception. Go and get some from there."
"No, Mom!" The words escaped my mouth before I could stop them.
Seeing the panic on my face, Mom herself was startled.
"What happened? You were the one who wanted water just a moment ago."
"No... I mean..." I stammered. "Could you please bring it for me? Or... never mind. I'm not thirsty anymore."
Mom searched my eyes for a few moments, as though trying to read the fear hidden deep inside my heart.
Then, perhaps sensing that something was wrong, she quietly stood up and went to get me a bottle of cold water herself.
I remained seated where I was.
But against my will, my eyes drifted back toward the window.
A part of me was terrified that the masked man might still be standing there...
And if I were honest, deep down I was certain he wasn't going to leave me alone so easily.
After drinking the water, I got up and joined my cousins. They were happily chatting and laughing together, but I couldn't focus on a single word they were saying.
My mind kept returning to that same masked stranger.
Who was he?
Why was he following me?
And why was I the only one who seemed able to see him?
The questions circled endlessly through my mind.
Without realizing it, my eyes lifted toward the window once again.
He was still there.
In the exact same place...
Standing in the exact same way...
And his eyes were still fixed on me.
This time, I felt more than fear.
A strange sense of dread began to consume me.
It felt as though that unsettling smile concealed a secret so terrifying... that discovering it would change my life forever.
I wanted to look away.
But for some reason, my eyes kept returning to him again and again.
And every time they did, I had the unsettling feeling that he was watching my every move... as though he were patiently waiting for the right moment.
When I could no longer bear it, I quickly borrowed Mom's phone and called Dad.
My heart was pounding with anxiety, and my eyes kept darting back toward the window.
He answered almost immediately.
"Dad," I asked nervously, "Has the bus been repaired?"
"Yes, sweetheart," he replied. "It's fixed now. We're on our way there. Tell everyone to come outside."
The moment I heard those words, it felt as though I could finally breathe again.
Relief washed over me.
I was so overwhelmed with happiness that I forgot to reply. Instead, I hurriedly ended the call.
"Come on! Hurry! The bus is fixed!" I called out excitedly to everyone.
"Dad and the others are on their way!"
Seeing how restless I was, Mom didn't waste a second. She immediately took my hand, and together we walked out of the hotel.
But just as we reached the doorway...
For reasons I couldn't explain, I turned around for one last look.
And what I saw stole the breath from my lungs.
The masked man was still there.
But this time...
He wasn't standing by the window anymore.
He was slowly...
Following us.
His eyes remained fixed on me, unwavering, and that same mysterious smile still lingered on his lips.
My heart began pounding wildly.
I instinctively moved even closer to Mom, yet I couldn't shake the feeling that his gaze was following me... as though it had attached itself to my very existence.
At that moment, there was only one thing I was waiting for...
For Dad to arrive, so we could leave that place as quickly as possible.
We had only been waiting for a short while when Dad and the others finally arrived. The moment they did, everyone breathed a sigh of relief and, one by one, began getting back onto the bus.
Without wasting a second, I hurried aboard with Mom and took my seat.
As soon as everyone had settled in, the bus pulled away.
When it began to pick up speed, I don't know what made me do it...
But I turned around for one last look.
The mysterious stranger was still standing there.
This time, he slowly raised two fingers to his eyes and made a strange gesture—as if he were saying,
"I'm watching you."
Or perhaps...
"I'm keeping my eyes on you."
A freezing chill swept through my entire body.
I kept staring at him until he finally disappeared from my sight.
And all the while, until the very last moment, he continued repeating that same unsettling gesture.
I never found out who he was...
Why he had followed me...
Or what that strange gesture truly meant.
But even today...
I have never been able to forget it.
Whenever that journey comes back to my mind, the memory of that mysterious man's terrifying smile and those haunting eyes comes alive all over again.
And somehow...
The same old fear awakens in my heart.
As though he is still somewhere nearby...
Watching me.
Whether our paths were ever meant to cross again...
Only time could answer that.
But deep within my heart, I carried one undeniable feeling—
My story with that mysterious stranger was far from over.
How I would ever escape him...
Or whether I ever truly could...
I didn't know.
- Writer
