Run, Valor

Chapter 3: Gentle Hands of No One

I must’ve committed something while I’m asleep. But that’s not possible! How would I commit murder? I can’t even slap a fly! 

My head’s now hurting since I’ve been thinking for too long. I can’t stop pacing back and forth in the aisle of this old church where they kept me locked in.

For some reason, these people really think that I’m a murderer. A notorious one, at that. But I’m not! I haven’t murdered anyone! I don’t plan on murdering anyone! 

What have I pushed myself into? I shouldn’t have come to this town! I should’ve made my way to my parents’ house, or better yet along with them on their graves since I’m a dead meat, either choices I make!

But now’s not the time to argue with myself. I have to get out of this hideous place. All I can see is dust covering almost the entire place. All the seats are covered with dust. They don’t even have cushions that I can sleep on to. 

But why am I kept at this old church? Why don’t they put me in a cell or something? And again, why am I treated like a murderer?!

Tired, my body just gave up on me. I collapsed in the middle and I’m just staring at the ceiling full of cobwebs and dust with some free roommates such as spiders. Thank goodness I’m not afraid of them.

The flashes of memories I have with my past issue, the scam issue, is now slowly crawling in my mind again. I’m having flashbacks of the horrible mistake that I’ve committed.

There’s this close friend of mine who apparently had an important manuscript of a late author who’s very famous in his time. He asked me if I can get a contract for it in a publishing company and I did. 

The company is small so they agreed to prepare a contract even before the manuscript was sent. He’s with me, along with the flash drive containing the manuscript in a meeting with the clients. 

He switched the flash drives after they checked it and now, they can’t find Samuel that they’re finding me instead and I didn’t even know that Samuel got money from them. I’m completely out of it but I’m their target since I’m easier to hunt, unlike Samuel who’s actually a professional swindler.

Up ‘til now my anger towards him is deeply rooted, even growing more than it should because of his stupid choices that I’m now suffering.

I rose up from laying on my back when I heard the creepy creaking of the church door opening. The town chief, along with now just one back up and the old man that gave me a ride entered the church and the chief advanced his steps until he’s near me.

“Who are you?” he asked. I almost scoffed at his question. I looked at him with disbelief and said, “You know you’re supposed to ask me that first before handcuffing me, right?” 

He blinked a few times. The young lad from his back advanced and whispered something to him. He nodded with his tattletales. I rolled my eyes and adjusted my cuffs to a comfortable position.

“Ow!” I exclaimed when my skin got caught up in the handcuff. I immediately fixed it, though they came to me with my exhilarated shriek. I almost laughed because of the surprise in their faces but I kept a straight face to maintain my credibility. If I still have some.

“Your apartment landlord cleared your suspicions. For such a young age, you’ve already gone under the knife? That’s… impressive,” he commented. I just gave him a fake smile and massaged my wrists after he removed the handcuffs. His assistant came to him and told him another batch of tattletale. 

“Mr. Gomez here will be showing you to your apartment,” he said then left. They were talking about some wanted woman and I guess it’s the woman they mistook me with. I marched towards Mr. Gomez, the truck and supermarket owner.

“Please lead the way,” I said with the obvious sarcasm. He shook his head before closing the church door. I looked at the overall view of the building. It’s an old and traditional church building with the signature cross at the top. There’s also a round window above, the kind that’s colorful enough to be called some old painter’s design.

“Be polite. I drove for you earlier,” he said. He crossed his arms while walking towards somewhere opposite of the church. I looked around and even though it’s not that dark, I can’t see most of the buildings. I only see the small houses, even far away from each other. I can’t see some that are in between them.

“Yeah, you also drove me to get jailed in a church full of dust and cobwebs,” I also said. He jokingly copied my scoff earlier and did it excessively. I chuckled while looking around.

There’s not much tall building here. As I’ve expected. There are also not many lights here for some reason. But as we walk through, I finally see houses lit with bright lights. Some of them even have decorative lanterns outside. 

I also spotted a place that seems to be a bar. I saw some people drinking on the tables just outside the almost open bar. There’s only a few people and I think I also saw kids there. That got my attention.

My mind’s completely straying off that I even bumped into someone. I just said sorry as he did and I helped him pick up some of the things that fell off his arms. When I grabbed one, I immediately knew his work.

“Woah, you’re a barista?” Amazement is very evident in my voice. I looked at him with almost glowing eyes. I’ve always liked baristas because they made good coffee. He smiled at me.

“Yeah, I run that coffee shop over there,” he said and pointed at a small establishment just near our spot. My mouth formed and O and I gave him a thumbs up. He looked so confused but he just smiled politely.

“I like coffees! What time do you open?” I asked. “I’m excited to visit. I hope your coffee fits my cup of tea, or should I say cup of coffee instead?” I joked. He just laughed and bid his goodbye when he remembered that he has to go prepare for tomorrow. I smiled and waved at him.

I looked around to find Mr. Gomez, the one that I’ve been with earlier and found him talking to an old lady. I walked to their place and even from afar, I could hear their conversation.

“The new tenant? Where?” Exactly at the time I arrived at their sight, the old lady’s eyes raked over me. She looked at me from head to toe with an understandable prejudice in her eyes. She cleared her throat and said a small thank you to Mr. Gomez who just waved at us before leaving.

“Follow me,” the lady strictly said. I nodded and followed her. We’re in front of a two-storey building, which I didn’t expect. For me, an apartment sounds like something ranging from five storeys up, not two storeys. 

“Do I stay on the first or second floor?” I asked her while she rattled on her million keys clanging to each other. The noise may even wake the sleeping demons inside me for the irritable clanking.

“I stay on the first. Tenants, all up!” she said. I just nodded at her while keeping all my opinions in my head.

I’ve never encountered a landlord who occupies a whole floor. Especially for a two-storey building, I don’t think she has the space to afford living in a whole floor. Does she even earn?

When she opened the door, it only showed a stair. I didn’t expect that. I looked left and right for a door for the first floor but there’s just the walls and the stairs. She didn’t mind me and went upstairs already. I even ran just to keep up with her.

“That’s a hell of a staircase,” I whispered to myself. It’s spiral and for some reason, I think it made the building longer and harder to climb. I shook my head off to remove all the stupid thoughts in me.

She directed me to the second room after the stairs. There’s only one way in and one way out, and that’s the stairs. She also handed me two keys: one for my room and one for the gate below. Apparently, all tenants have their keys to open the gate below to get to the second floor.

“Good night,” I told her but she just closed the door right to my face. I gasped at that. I didn’t expect that rudeness!

“Ugh! Could life be more worse?,” I groaned and dropped myself at the bed. I smiled with the feeling of the soft bed. “At least the bed’s soft,” I murmured before dozing off to sleep.

For some reason, my face feels so itchy. I flipped my hair to the back because of the irritating feeling of it in my cheeks. My brows met when I noticed something. I’ve been flipping my hair since earlier and it’s still coming back for some reasons. 

“Hmm,” I moaned when someone tried to put all my hair in front of me. My brows furrowed. My stomach felt cold and hollow when I realized something. I’m alone in my room so… who just flipped my hair?