“KILLER IS STILL AT LARGE.”
That is what I heard over the news channel that very morning. I’ve known what he was capable of but my heart still ache knowing that he’s still out there torturing the innocent. How long has it been since I've last heard of him? I'm already in college and my family is far away from that dreadful home where it all began. But I could never forget him.
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My family had moved to a new neighbourhood, my father was transferred to a new location to where my mother would be closer to her family, and she wanted a new change in scenery from our old home. Me and my sister didn't complain much since we both were happy knowing that we get to travel. Though she does miss her friends. I on the other hand couldn't say much, I rather sit in the comfortable silence within the community., enjoying nature's wildlife more than city life. As we unpack the car one of the neighbours kids walks up to us.
“Hi! I'm Billy!” He said as he gleefully played with his toy gun in front of us.” Where do you guys come from?” Before my mother had greeted him his mother from afar called out to him.
“My what a spunky child!” My mother said as she handed me a box. “Maybe you’ll be able to play with the kids this time!” She said with a smile. I only nodded back. Though I am twelve I've acted more mature than most prepubescent teenagers. My sister acts younger than me, even though she’s 16, she keeps telling me she will act this way till the day she leaves for college. We all chuckle every time she says that. Knowing that she may be serious with that goofy grin plastered on her face.
It took us till noon to place all the boxes inside. Thanks to the moving services and my dad being on time most of our furniture has been built and placed in our rooms. Our parents upgraded to a two story house. On the first floor were two spacious living room and kitchen, and a half bathroom. While upstairs was a whole different story. The stairs seem to come down through the kitchen and end in the beginning of the living room. As me and my sister raced towards our bedrooms we saw that our rooms were together and our parents were on the other end, the only thing separating us from them was the bathroom. The hall was somewhat eerie come to think of it. Lights could always fix that though. So he both headed to our rooms to imagine the spaces we can put our belongings in. The first thing I noticed was the window. It was blocked off by a tree. I mean it really was blocked off, it was so close that If this house was bought within 20 years the window would have been shattered and the branches would have taken the entire room. I'll make note of that in case my sister plans on coming home late.
After all the slight renovation we made, and the remaining scatter boxes left we settled down for the night. Though my room wasn't finished I can imagine what it looks like within the week. As I lay in the corner of my room, staring out the window, with the moonlight somewhat shining through the leaves, I sighed.
“I can't wait for tomorrow to come…” I muttered as I began to drift to sleep.
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.̸̯̓.̵̹͛A̵̼͠s̷̺͘ȧ̵͜.̴̬̔.̵̝̑.̷̘͠
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It was a new day, a day to explore the neighbourhood, while my mom and dad unpacked what's left in the boxes. I already finished mine in the morning. My room was complete, clean and simple minus whatever I stuffed into the closet. Sorry mom, I'll get to it later. But me and my sister get to hang out like we always do though from time to time she does like her alone time. I do sometimes too, though not today. Something was bothering me and I would tell if it was the “ I've just moved” Jitters or something like that. Do people feel this way? Maybe I was just nervous. So I didn't want to bother my family with this feeling so I kept my optimism up.
As we explored the crevices of the sidewalks and the slight foliage around the area we realised that there was another house at the corner that was sold too. Though it looked like there were already people living inside. We both looked at each other.
“What a coincidence that someone else moved here too.” My sister told me. I nodded and looked back towards the house. An uneasy feeling sets in my stomach but I mentally shook it away. “Do you think they have kids too? It looks like they do, it's a pretty big house like ours.” She continues. Suddenly I started getting light headed.
“I think I’m done for the day Nora.” I said as I began to walk back towards the house.
“Done!? We just started. Well you go on, I’ll be a minute anyway.” She said walking towards the house. I quickly glanced one more time at the house before I saw a figure at the window. It spooked me so I fastened my pace. Today is not my day today, I thought to myself.
Another day, and it was in preparation for school. My sister was walking distance while mine was a bit away, so my parents decided to take turns dropping off in the morning and picking me up, till I got the courage to ride the bus. It is a nice school. Though as soon as I got through the doors people were already mumbling/ yelling to each other. Another typical school life.
“Have you heard what happened to Randy and his friends?”
A girl gasped “ Yeah! I heard from Troy that they got attacked by a crazy boy in their neighbourhood!”
“Isn't that at —--” I heard a boy say. My heart skipped for a moment. That's where I lived.
“That's so awful, And isn't he new too!” a girl said.
“Yeah! He just moved in a day or two ago! How insane is that! Picking a fight right when you move into town.”
“You think this other student is gonna act the same?” I heard another girl say, Oh no, I think they're talking about me now. I quickly paced towards my locker. Ignoring the rest of the gossip happening around me. Already I felt out of place, not because of my olive skin and dark hair, but the fact that the previous new kid set a boundary. I feel saddened. Sorry mom, maybe I'll make some friends in high school. As the bells rang and children began to leave the hallways I was left alone with my thoughts until I heard the rapping of footsteps. And a groin. In the corner of my eye I say a boy with fair skin and brown hair. Next to him is a boy similar to him. But the difference was their height and eye colour. But the boy with the blue eyes felt off. Then Suddenly our eyes meet. I got flustered and turned my attention away. The smaller boy next to him chuckled and said “Hi” Though I looked at the ground and nodded. That's when everything started to change.
I had two classes with the blue eyed boy and then lunch. For some reason I couldn't let my eyes wander off of him. It was like I was drawn towards him. Something was wrong with me. Why can't I shake this weird feeling?
Suddenly a tray lay down on the table. “Hi there,” He said. “ I couldn't help but notice your new too!” I quickly looked up at him. “I heard from my brother, since it seems you both have some classes together.” He continued. I couldn't keep eye contact with him. I was nervous and uneasy about the sudden talk. All he could do was look at me until he finally noticed the discomfort. “Ah, my apologies. I didn't mean to come out strong.” he began. “ I just wanted to say hi.” He then started to leave. I didn't want my first day to be unsettling.
“I- I’m fine!” I began, He sat back down smiling. “You just startled me, that's all…”
“My name is Liu! Liu Woods.” He said, staring at me with his green eyes.
“And I’m Asa… Asa Alvarez,” I said with a slight mumble, looking slightly away from his brightness. He then looked towards somewhere, more like someone then he smiled even wider.
“Jeff!” He exclaimed. “Hey come here! Meet Asa!” I looked toward the direction he was talking to. It was the tall boy with blue eyes, his name was Jeff. My head started to hurt a little. He sat down next to us wary of the people around us. We exchanged names and continued our lunches, Liu Talked while me and Jeff just listened, occasionally we spoke but not in complete sentences. I felt eyes all around me.
Later that day Liu invited me to join him and his brother to walk home. With hesitation I simply nodded. Unsure what will happen if I continue following them. We kept walking until Liu abruptly stopped. “It was kind of you to allow me and Jeff to sit with you, you already probably heard about the rumors…” He said Jeff was behind me but I could already feel the uneasiness from the both of them. My headache began to pound more. So it’s them that beat up those kids?
“Just to let you know, whether you believe us or not, we didn't start the fight. And we didn't mean to let it go that far. But That kid Randy and his friends… they pulled out weapons…” Weapons? What type of middle schooler has those! I started looking at the floor, my hands twiddling.
“Then…” I began, “I felt both of them perk up. “Then I'll believe you, I think its wrong not to know the full story,” I told Lui. He only smiled and started his side of the
Story, while Jeff eased up and chipped in from time to time. Though I felt like he was holding something back. We ended up hanging out in their house that evening.
I thought about the day I had with the two boys. They weren't so bad. I thought as I lay staring out the window again. Maybe tomorrow will be better. As I began to drift to sleep fro the night.
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.̵̐ͅ.̵̝̊A̴͙͛ṡ̵̜a̸̝͝.̵̹͘.̴̩͒.̸̣͋A̴̬͘l̵̮̓v̶̟̑a̷̯̿ŗ̷̕ḛ̷͌ẕ̷̅.̶̲̅.̶͙̅.̶͎̏
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The next day, I was shocked, me and Nora came out of the house waiting on our dad, until a pair of police officers came to the Wood’s household. I sucked in my breath. What's happening!? I felt my chest squinch. Nora was curious and she wanted to come closer but I pulled her back. We silently watched as Jeff screamed out Liu’s name. And eventually Liu was escorted out by the police. The whole neighborhood was out staring. It felt wrong to look. I stared at the car until it left. Then I suddenly pulled muy sight towards the front door of the Woods household. Jeff was looking at me, He looked so distraught like his whole world was shattering. I wanted to go in front of the car and waved them down to stop Lui from going. But I didn't have the guts. I’m just like everyone else. A bystander. My Head began to hurt again. I groaned. Nora looked at me in concern.
“Asa…” She began, “Let's go inside.” She said, passing our dad out on the pavement towards the entrance of our doorway. I couldn't help but keep looking back. Are you going to be okay? I mentally said to Jeff. unsure about the situation that has behold the entire neighbourhood.
Later that night I was awake. We didn’t go to school. Mom wanted us to be safe and she decided that one day of skipping school wouldn't be so bad. Though we just got here, I wouldn't blame her for worrying about our well-being. I stared back out the window. The tree tapped slightly on the window like someone was knocking on it. I sighed and turned around. Looking at the white plastered wall instead. Maybe if I was more helpful. I would have told the police that it could have been Randy, not Liu. Though I don’t have proof, just the brothers' words. I just feel that it was wrong. I started to close my eyes until I heard my window squeak. I flinched. Unsure how to react in a situation like this. I looked up at my wall and saw a shadow figure loom closer to me. I was so scared I wouldn't move. Until I heard a familiar voice.
“...Liu… Why would he…” He softly said. My senses relaxed and I gently rolled around. It was Jeff. He looked miserable and he was looming over my bed in front of me. His eyes were swollen and he was dirty from climbing up the tree. “He’s there because of me…” He said as he slumped. I sat quickly up. Ready to catch him but he never did fall. He just swayed in front of me.
“Jeff…” I began, “ How… why are you here?” It's nerve-wracking knowing that he came across his house and climbed up our tree to stand in my room past my bedtime. I didn't like this. “Jeff I- I don't think you're allowed-” He suddenly grasped my bed and looked at me. Anger filled his eyes.
“It was me who beat those kids up, not Liu!” My heart began to race. I started to hush Jeff. Fearing that one of my parents may walk in on us. He then started jerking. He began to cry again. “If I hadn’t done those things… Liu would still be…” He was devastated. I hesitated in trying to comfort him. I'm twelve and I wouldn't know how to feel how he’s feeling. I've had a tragic moment in my life that made me cry so hard for a moment that made me want to be angry at the world. Liu was the closest person to Jeff. Not his own parents. I felt out of place again. I reached Jeff with my hands. A hug. It may not be the answer he wanted but it’s all I could give him at the moment. Jeff froze, unsure about the touch but he eventually leaned in. Taking the gesture as a warm welcome. Liu may have been the best between the two but Jeff was more lost. More lost than when I first met him. I wouldn't think we would consider me a friend yet.
Eventually he pushed me off and sat beside me. We sat in silence for a while till he moved closer and rested his head on my shoulder. I didn't know what to do. I felt weird and my stomach ached. Though it didn’t last since I started to drift again. Eventually we both began to sleep.
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“w̵h̴y̶ ̴d̷i̷d̶ ̵y̵o̷u̶ ̸l̸e̶t̷ ̷h̴i̶m̷ ̵d̶o̴ ̵t̶h̸i̷s̴”!̴
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“̴I̴t̵ ̸h̵u̴r̶t̴s̶!̸”
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“̷H̷e̵l̷p̴ ̷u̷s̵!̷”
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“̶S̷a̷ve̶ ̶u̴s̵!̸”
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“I̵t̶ ̴B̴u̸r̷n̸s̸!̵”
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I woke up with a jolt. I was hyperventilating. A nightmare. This one was the worst I ever had in years. I cradle myself for a second till I remember that Jeff was with me last night. I quickly scanned my room. He wasn't here, but my window was ajar and the tree's leaves were slightly scattered on the floor. He must have left earlier. I got up and began my morning routine.
School was bad. Jeff wasn’t here and people were looking at me. I've ignored them to the best of my abilities but I wanted to disappear. The day carried on almost normally.
Later that evening I did the same thing as yesterday. I hung out with my family, we ate dinner, watched a few shows together, then it was bedtime. I sat at the corner of my bed. Looking at that window, slightly ajar as before. I didn't bother to lock the window nor leave it completely open. I wasn't sure how to feel about Jeff. Though I do wish to help him in any way. I was somewhat drowsy but I wanted to wait to see him.
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“y̶o̵u̶ ̵w̴i̵s̸h̸ ̶t̷o̸ ̴h̷e̵l̷p̸?̴” Was this a dream? I went with the flow.
“I- I wouldn't mind…” I said, unsure about the voice.
“T̵h̸e̶n̷ ̸w̶o̴u̸l̸d̶n̴'̴t̴ ̸y̷o̸u̴ ̶l̶i̶k̶e̵ ̶t̶o̶-”Before the voice could complete i was jolted awake by the window squeaking.
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It was Jeff again. He seemed different this time. Something was off putting, like he had a malicious intent. I froze in place, “J-Jeff?” I mumbled, my head started to ache and my eyes seemed to water like they were dry.. He walked towards me, I thought he was gonna do something so I flinched. Instead he embraced me like we did yesterday. I relaxed, the dull ache started to cease. We ended up doing the same thing as yesterday. From time to time he would mew out my name, and I would answer him, though he didn't reply after that. I was becoming someone who needed Jeff.
I didn’t get any dreams.
The next day was the same. Woke up, Jeff was gone. Did my morning routine and went to school. Back home and then bedtime. Before I went to bed I was told by my mom that the boy named Billy wanted to invite me to his party. His mother Barbara also met with my mother these past days and talked to her about the neighbourhood. Though my mother wasn't fond of Barbara. Dad wanted to be nice, so he convinced my mom to mingle for a bit. I wasn't ready, but maybe I'll see Jeff there.
The night went on like yesterday. Jeff came to my room, I comforted him, we sat in silence and occasionally small talk. He was opening up to me. And some for me. I've never been this close to someone my age. It was usually my sister whom I've talked to most of the time. But right now was something more. Like we were destined to meet. Though tonight was different. He left earlier than expected. I let him go.
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“.̵.̵.̵y̷o̶u̸ ̷c̶a̶n̶ ̷s̷a̷v̶e̶ ̷h̴i̸m̶.̷.̶.̸” I heard the dislocated voice again.
“What do you mean save him? I asked. It was pitched black, nothing surrounded me, though there was something there that I couldn't see. I reached out my hands, trying to feel it. Nothing.
“.̴.̶.̶d̴o̴n̵'̷t̷ ̶l̶e̷t̷ ̶h̷i̷m̴ ̷o̴u̴t̵ ̴o̵f̵ ̴y̸o̷u̸r̵ ̵s̸i̶g̵h̷t̵.̸.̶.̴ ̸A̸s̷a̸.̵.̶.̷” it called out to me. I shivered. It knows my name. Then a jumble of screams and laughter echoed around me. I couldn’t breathe. I was in a frozen state. My mind wanted me to do anything but my body was on strings. Then I felt a claw trace my face.
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I woke up, breathing heavily. I don't want to sleep again. I hold myself, feeling the tears trickle down my face gently. My mom opened the door with beaming energy.
“Good Morning!” She said, but then she saw my reddened face. I quickly wiped the excess tears away.
“I- Im fine mom! I think my allergies are starting to kick in badly today!” I say with a forced smile. She was worried at the time.
“If you want to talk, baby. I’m here for you, okay?” She said, “It’s Billy’s Party today, so we're gonna leave around noon.” She gave a quick smile. “I’ll see you down later?” I nodded at her as she left, closing the door. I lay back down on the bed.
“Save him?” I questioned.
Billy’s party was cowboy themed. Every child had a hat and a toy gun. All they needed now was horses to match the rest of them. I felt out of place again. I dressed a little over, with my blue sweater. Mom tells me that ill end up wearing turtle necks too one day, but I half-heartedly smiled at her. I looked across the yard at most the kids, that is when I spotted Jeff. He was wearing a hat and was shooting at the other kids too, for a moment he belonged. Nothing was worrying him. He was acting like things were normal. I felt happy for him. I started to walk towards, but he suddenly stopped. Like he was listening to something. I stopped. Looking around toward him. My head started to throb and my eyes were glassing over. I had to rub my eyes. Then suddenly Three kids jumped over the fence. Jeff was burning with malice.
“Hello, Jeff, is it?” he said. "We have some unfinished business.” Said the kid with the bruised nose. Everything was about to go wrong. It was a blur. Jeff got swept into an unfair fight. While I ended up watching again. I felt so useless. Then I couldn't find him. I was scared for him, these kids were threatening everyone with guns and knives and nobody was taking the initiative to help. I didn't want that, not anymore. That's when I remember the dislocated voice from my dream.
“.̵.̵.̵y̷o̶u̸ ̷c̶a̶n̶ ̷s̷a̷v̶e̶ ̷h̴i̸m̶.̷.̶”
It echoed in my mind over and over again, I was running all over the house wondering where Jeff was. Until I heard a familiar voice scream. I hurried to the source. Jeff was wet and covered in blood. Jeff was on top of one of the kids. Punching him repeatedly in the chest. Like he knew what he was doing. Till the boy stopped breathing and lay on the ground. I gasp. Jeff looked at me. A sense of guilt over-washed him but he shook it off, stared back at the two remaining boys and ran towards the stairs. I let out a short breath, my voice unable to come out. The boys followed after him. Upstairs I could hear them struggle. There was so much banging that I didn't want to hear it any more. Until there was silence. Everyone went quiet. Until we heard a blood curdling scream. Fire. Someone was on Fire. They fell down the stairs and into the living room. Everybody screamed. It was chaos. The person on fire quickly tried to roll but the flames kept going. Behind me was a girl. She screamed and dropped something. It was a fire extinguisher. I panicked and picked up the extinguisher and started to use it on the person. As the flames settled down and the adults started to come and help. I've finally noticed who was the burned victim. Jeff. I just stood there looking at him as people swarmed him.
It was a week since I last saw Jeff. Liu had finally been deemed innocent, thanks to someone notifying the police about the real culprits. We started hanging little by little. At first it was uneasy. Liu was on edge. He wouldn't bat an eye at his brother's name. He didn't even want to think about the incident. He kept telling me that he wanted a ‘normal’ day. But we both knew there wasn't going to be one for a while. Until one day he asked me to visit Jeff at the hospital. He had told me that Jeff wanted to hear my voice. I was scared. How do I open up to him, after seeing what I saw?
It was hard at first, since he couldn't speak. But once in a while he’ll mutter a singular word. And Liu would know exactly what he was talking about. It went on like this for a while. Liu knew that Jeff and I had a connection, so he'd sometimes go outside so we both could be alone in the room once in a while. I never spoke. And Jeff stayed silent. We just enjoyed each other’s presence. Though when we are alone. My headaches have been getting worse and so do my eyes. It's like they shut off. Or they just go completely black from time to time. There was even a time that I thought I was seeing something that wasn’t supposed to be there. And my dreams were always just me in a pitch black room. I've even thought that I've been seeing symbols too. But I've been too vexed to tell anyone, including my family. There’s already talk of us moving back. And I haven't gotten to tell Jeff about this. I was too deep in my thoughts that I jolted when Jeff tapped my arm. A sign that he wanted some comfort. I held his arm for the remainder of the day.
Liu Told me that I couldn't come to the hospital today. It was Jeff's final day and they wanted him to adjust to his surroundings before mingling again. I nodded for his own assurance.
“Let me know if you changed your mind.” I squeezed his arm gently. He quickly smiled at me and left with his family to the hospital. I had nothing to do now. So I headed back to the house. The house was nearly empty. We had started packing the day before. I felt guilty, guilty about not telling Jeff my departure. But Liu knew and I’m sure he would tell his brother before I did. Because that's the relationship they had. Same goes for me and my sister Nora.
Later that night, I was getting ready for bed. Everything felt slow. Like the day didn’t want to end, but it was dark outside and everyone was already retiring. It was my turn to end the night as well. I laid awake that night, staring at the ceiling. My window left ajar, wondering if Jeff would once again climb up and through it like those nights. It was getting late though. I sighed and began to drift.
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“.̸.̸.̶y̷o̴u̸ ̶f̴a̵i̵l̷e̸d̷.̵.̶.̷” it was the voice again. After so many nights of dead silence it finally decided to speak. I pondered.
“I failed,” I answered back. Usure what it meant by that. It started to laugh. Echoes of laughter filled my head again. It hurts so much.
“.̷.̸.̷I̶'̵l̴l̵ ̸s̵e̶e̷ ̴y̵o̵u̷ ̸a̴g̸a̵i̷n̶.̸.̷.̵” It said as my vision began to blur out so my bedroom. But it was different, everything was in black except there were outlines of my furniture and my window. I could see a faint light. It was the moon. I was freaking out. I started to sit up but fell on the ground, my legs were jelly. Until I heard a rustle at the window.
“J-Jeff!” I screamed out. Scared. I couldn't tell who it was. All I saw was a silhouette and a symbol on that person. It was a circle with a X going through it. I was shaking. I reached my hand out, but then my parents came through the door, and my vision snapped back. I could see everything. I can see him. Jeff. My parents screamed while they dragged me into the hallway. He was covered in blood, his eyes were bulged out and he had a carved smile. He was different from when I remembered him. His brown hair was black and matted. His skin crinkled and was ashy, and his once blue eyes were dulled. Like they turned to black, but I still saw a faint colour in them from his left eye.
That was the last time I’ve seen him. He wasn’t Jefferey Woods. He went by the infamous name Jeff The Killer. Murderous serial killer within the country.
The day we moved I had one last dream though I don't remember it like the others. It was that thing again talking to me. He told me something about helping, helping those who needed it the most. I didn't understand at the time but I kept thinking about what happened to Liu and Jeff. What I could have done to prevent this from happening again. The last thing I could remember was a being with multiple mouths smiling at me as he looked down upon me. My small hand in his claws as he kept staring at me. My eyes hurt so bad. That I couldn't look at him, so when I blinked I woke up.
That was ten years ago. I signed and continued with my studies. I am near the area of the incident. Not many people want to remember it. So everybody keeps to themselves. Some pretend that they were actually there. Spooking the transfers and freshmen. Though I do wish I could have helped him.
“Jeff…” I mumbled, “Where are you now?” I said as I looked down at the floor. Suddenly I heard my window break. I swiftly turned around, then my lights went out. I walked backwards into my desk, I ended up thudding into it and fell straight to the ground. My head started to hurt again. I was panicking. Once in a while i do this. I kept telling the doctors about it but they always told me nothing was wrong. Even the test said so themselves. But I know something isn't right. The room went black like it did last time. All I could see were silhouettes of the things I have minus the figure looming closer to me. He chuckled. It was the same back on that specific night. The symbol came back stronger than ever. It was literally pulsing like a heartbeat. I was getting woosy.
“Shhhhhhh,” he said to me as he carefully pulled out what looked to be a knife. “Just go to sleep.” And I knew then and there. It was Jeff.
My vision was going in and out. But the last thing I remember before succumbing to the darkness was the woods, and an abandoned building.