Charles Whispers

The Nightmare

“My Queen, wake up!”

Elen opened her eyes after hearing a strange voice and faintly woke her up. The 'Queen' Elen was sure she had heard those words before. A prince from the past fading in her memory.

But when her eyes opened, she heard another voice so far away from where she was. Elen tried to hear more clearly to find out what it was.

In the midst of the eerie darkness, Elen walked slowly, trying to feel what was in front of her. Elen began to hear the sound of waves from the ocean that felt so clear, it was as if she was in the middle of the waves.

Elen rubbed her eyes, trying to get a better look around her. Little by little what was in front of her began to appear. Elen's eyes widened, she couldn't believe what she was seeing.

"Wh-where is this?" Her voice trembled. She felt her body shake slowly. Now she realizes that she is currently in a small boat in the middle of a very wide, dark and very scary ocean. Nothing but dark water.

Elen gulped, her heart beating really fast. She felt her whole body shaking, this was her greatest fear. The sea at night, she hates dark water.

Since childhood, Elen always thought that every foot she saw the surface of the dark water, she would see a terrible monster that seemed to be waiting for us in it.

"Hello…! Is anyone here...?” Elen screamed in the middle of the ocean. She didn't know what to expect in this place.

Elen sat limply, standing in the small boat would only make things worse. Elen felt nauseous, she knew it wasn't seasickness or anything. This was just part of the trauma reaction she had experienced.

“Uncle Carl? Uncle Carl...! Help me...!" Elen shouted again. Hope this time some help comes to her.

But when she realized that she was truly trapped alone in a place like this, all she could do was cry and think that she was thrown into the middle of the ocean.

"No! This can't be happening! I must be dreaming. Yes, I was just dreaming! Soon I will definitely wake up! I will definitely wake up from my sleep! Someone, please wake me up! I don't want to see this again!” Elen slapped her cheek hard. Even though she didn't feel any pain. But the slap wasn't enough to wake her up from this nightmare.

The mysterious voice sounded again, faintly from a distance. But this time it felt different, getting clearer by the minute. Even the sound of the waves now could not block the sound.

Elen realized that this was not someone's voice, but the sound of a sexophone being played from somewhere. But where? Who blows the sexophone in the middle of the ocean like this?

Elen was stunned, her fear only getting worse. But strangely, she began to enjoy the song being played, very melodious and beautiful. Elen had to hear it because she had no other choice. Little by little, her feelings began to calm down and her fear slowly disappeared. All that remains is a feeling of sorrow. This song sounds heartbreaking, as if someone who is playing it is feeling prolonged grief. A song that describes endless sadness and loneliness.

In the middle of her reflection, Elen saw something moving toward her boat. Something like the same little boat she was in.

Elen looked carefully, she saw a man wearing a white tuxedo standing on a boat. The man blew and it was clear that the song she was hearing was from the man.

“Perhaps he too is being tossed about in the sea, just like me! Was that why he was blowing on the sexophone, hoping someone would help him? In that case, I'd better ask him for help!" Elen thought.

But when the end of the boat that the mysterious man was riding in began to hit Elen's boat, Elen felt very relieved. At least someone had the same fate as her.

“E-excuse me, are you lost too?” Elen exclaimed, trying to summon the mysterious man. Elen tried to stand on her boat while reaching for the man's boat. But their boat began to drift away because it was swept away by the waves.

"Hey, can you help me? I got dumped and I don't know where it is! Can you help me? I am so scared!" Elen begged desperately, but the man didn't budge at all. He looked down as he continued to blow on the sexophone in his hand.

"Can't you hear me? I'm talking to you...!” Elen was starting to get annoyed that her words were being ignored by the man.

The darkness was getting darker, Elen was having a hard time seeing the man's face. Suddenly, a big wave came and threw their two boats. Elen's boat capsized and made her fall into the sea.

Elen opened her eyes, she realized that she was currently in the middle of a very dark sea, Elen screamed hysterically and looked around her. She tried to swim to the surface with all her might, but something pulled her legs back into the water.

“Ugh… let me go!” Elen struggled when she realized that something was pulling her right leg. Elen kept trying to swim to the surface with great fear, she didn't want to die here and she had to try to survive no matter what.

Her breath was getting short from being in the water for too long, Elen began to give up and thought that her end had come. However, a hand reached out from above the surface of the water as if to pull it to the surface.

Elen tried to grab the hand with the hope of survival that was very big. However, a sight made her realize that there is no magic help in a crazy situation like this.

Elen's eyes widened when she saw the helper who had saved her life. A man in a tuxedo with a hideous face. He didn't look like a human and he didn't look like a sea monster either.

He looks like a human without eyeballs, where his eye sockets ooze a thick black liquid, his mouth is torn to his ears.

His long dry hand gripped Elen's fingers tightly, his grip felt so strong. Elen tried to release his grip, but she was afraid that she would drown in this dark water again.

"Let me go...! Let me go...!"

Over time the creature's hands began to dry up and slowly his fingers broke off one by one, releasing blood and maggots. Elen screamed hysterically, she tried to release the creature's grip, she pulled her hand tightly and tried to immerse herself in the sea water. Elen pulled her hand with all her might, which was starting to sting from the creature's grip.

“Let me go… !”

Elen screamed loudly and woke up with a chest that felt so tight.

Elen panted, her eyes darting around her. But no ocean, not a terrible thing. She found herself in a small cabin that felt moving. Elen began to realize that she was only dreaming, all the horrors she saw were bad memories.

Elen took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. Her hand reached for the phone on the table to check what time it was.

"It's 7pm already? Geez, how many hours did I sleep?" She mumbled, she was so sure that she returned to her room around 2 pm.

Kruuuukk...

Elen's stomach started making strange noises. She just realized that she was very hungry now. She only ate a piece of bread this morning.

Elen got up from her bed and tried to find food outside. But there is something strange in this room. A large black suitcase lay in the corner of the room right beside the empty bed.

Elen frowned, she was sure she was the only person staying in this room. But how did a foreign bag get into her room?

"Whose suitcase is this? It's not mine!" Elen was curious about this foreign suitcase. While looking around, Elen tried to check the suitcase on the empty bed cover.

Elen found a card tied to the top of the suitcase and it had the owner's name on it.

"Edward Charlie Robinson?" Elen was stunned. She thought she'd heard that name before and it didn't seem like she'd heard that name for a long time.

Elen tried to remember when and where she had heard the name Edward Charlie Robinson and the strange face of the man she had met earlier that afternoon on the deck of the ship came into her mind.

"Oh no! That freak guy? Oh my God, why is his bag in this room? Why did he follow me all the way to this room? Damn it! Where is he? If I found him I would definitely strangle his neck!" Elen grumbled in annoyance and immediately walked out of the room with a burst of emotion.

She couldn't believe that the madman knew where her room was. Elen really couldn't forgive him. However, after aisle after aisle she searched, there was no sign of Charlie around here.

"Why isn't it there? Where did he go? If his suitcase is in that room, that means he can't be far from here!"

Kruuuukk...

Elen's stomach rumbled again and this time her hunger managed to make her unbearable

"Very hungry! How can I survive with 1500 Dollars?" She complained while looking at the contents of her wallet. There was no other choice, she just needed to come to a restaurant and buy the cheapest food.

"Elen?" Uncle Carl call her while patting her shoulder. Elen immediately looked back.

"Uncle Carl?"

"Where are you going? Have you had dinner?" Ask Uncle Carl.

"N-not yet, Uncle!" She said stuttering. Elen smiled awkwardly, she really felt like the poorest passenger on this ship.

"Then, come with me!"

"Where are we going?"

"We're going to the restaurant!"

“B-but I don't have much money to eat in a restaurant!”

“Hahahaha…calm down! As long as your uncle is here, you don't need to be afraid of starvation on this ship, you can eat as much as you want. Come on, don't be afraid!”

Despite being embarrassed, Elen was relieved because it sounded like it would be the best thing she could enjoy on this ship for weeks.

"All right, Uncle!"

Although she was quite confident now, but the moment her feet stepped into the restaurant that seemed to be the most luxurious on the ship made her confidence drop drastically.

Rich people pass by in this luxurious restaurant, wearing branded clothes and drinking wine. On the magnificent stage, the orchestra group played beautiful classical music.

“Elen, introduce, he is Mr John McCartney, he is the largest shareholder in one of the gold mines in Africa!” Uncle Carl said, introducing her to a stocky old man who looked striking in an elite suit.

"Good evening, Elen? You're James Franklin's daughter, aren't you? You're so beautiful!” The old man complimented her and Elen knew it was just an ordinary stale sentence. Elen smiled bitterly, she didn't feel comfortable being in their midst. Her thoughts were only on the delicious food that was served on the buffet table.

“Elen, he's my son, Steven McCartney. I hope you two can be friends!” He introduced his son who was handsome, tanned and athletic. Obviously that is her ideal type.

“Hi Elen, nice to meet you!” Steven smiled mischievously at her. Elen could read this youth's body language.

“Hey Steven!” Elen smiled back coquettishly. For a moment she forgot her hungry stomach.

“Want to eat with me! I'm sitting over there! We can eat and chat. How?"

"Sure, with pleasure."

Elen started to get excited, she couldn't believe that moments that only exist in tv dramas could be experienced as well. Sail without a family on a cruise and meet a sexy guy who will end up spending a wonderful night with her. This was much more fun than she had expected.

“Captain Steven said you were alone on this ship. Is that true?"

“Yeah, my family left me alone. They are flying to England by plane!"

"Why did they leave you?"

"Th-that's because I forgot, the night before we left I even stayed at a friend's house and woke up late so I was left alone. That's why I had to follow!"

"Is that so? But that's okay, Elen! Vacationing on a cruise ship is a lot of fun. It might feel pretty boring at first, but if you know how to enjoy it, you'll definitely feel at home here!"

"How to enjoy it?" Elen stared intensely. She knew what she had to do at a time like this.

Steven smiled mischievously, he could see the naughty and wild side of Elen which made him quite curious.

"We can have fun together. Want me to show you how?"

"Uhm...of course!"

"Okay, how about meeting tomorrow? There's a really good club. If you want, we can go together!"

"Okay, I don't mind! But if it's not good enough, you have to take responsibility, okay?"

"Okay!"

The atmosphere was calm, suddenly bustling when the women began to hysterically call for someone who appeared from the stage. Elen glanced at Steven who was sitting across from her, the young man was now focusing his attention on the group of musicians on the stage. She didn't know that Steven was quite curious as well.

"What is it? Why is it suddenly so crowded!” She thought. She had to join in watching the musicians who act on the stage.

"I don't understand, what's so interesting about classical music?" She was starting to get annoyed because Steven who she thought was not a classical music lover from his appearance, was fixated on the group of musicians.

Elen ate her food annoyed, in her heart kept cursing at all the things she considered stupid and annoying in this place. But when her eyes caught the figure accidentally, Elen immediately glared with her mouth wide open.

"H-he?

Elen couldn't believe it, the figure that made the women in this room hysterical and made Steven stare like this was the young man she met this afternoon on the ship's deck. Stupid and annoying guy, Edward Charlie Robinson, she even remembers his name.

"So, he's a musician here? Really? A strange man like him? Unbelievable!"

***