A M A R I S

Dragging Baethan by the hand, I approach the town's only Library in a 30 mile radius. As The old wooden door creaked as I slowly opened it. The light from outside cast shadows on the dimly lit interior. "Let's find a light switch before I close the...." I was unable to finish as the door slams shut behind us. "Baethan! I told you to wait!"

"It wasn't me" Baethan replied as he tried pulling on the heavy door to open it. It wouldn't budge. Sigh, great. Because winter time is approaching, the days are colder as they are short. Shivering from a hidden draft, I feel around blindly in the dark looking for....something. Trying not to scream, I ignore the cobwebs and mice droppings as I feel for a light switch. While searching for the switch, I tripped on something made of glass causing me to fall.

"Don't move, Amaris! You might cut yourself. "
I could hear Baethan's approaching footsteps as he stepped on the glass shards with his shoes. Seeing his dark figure crouch down beside me I reach out to him. He grabs my hand and pulls me onto my feet. Using the end of his shirt, Baethan brushes any remaining shards from my body. I closely hug him when I heard voices echo around the empty room. "Let's...go. I think I've had enough for today."

"We can't."

"What do you mean we can't?"

"The door won't open. We'll have to find another way out."

Feeling stressed and scared, I nod my head even though I'm pretty sure Baethan couldn't see it.
"Don't be scared, but I have matches in my pocket."

"Really, why didn't you use them before?!!"

"I didn't want to scare you. The least we want is a to be stuck in here when a fire is started."
"True, okay, please light it."

When I heard the familiar sound of the strike of a match, images popped in my head of my past. I shake my head as if to shake away my past memories. A small section of the entrance room was lit up from the match. With the light, we were able to identify what I had tripped on. It was pieces of what once was an old lamp. Spotting more of the same kind of wicker lamps, I pick one up and motion for Baethan to light the wick inside the glass. When we accomplished that, Baethan blew out the match and we used the lamp to guide our way towards the interior of the old library. Dust and dirt covered the ancient books as we perused the creepy room. Every book was in its place and organized in alphabetical order instead of the Dewey Decimal System. Metal plates with letter of the alphabet was screwed on each shelf making it easy for us to find what we were looking for. Beginning our search at the S shelf, I sneeze from all the dust.

"Bless you."

"Thanks, Baethan" I said as I continued to search for the word Serial Killer.

"Did you say something, Amaris?" Baethan asked from the M shelves.

"I said thank you since you said "Bless You" after I sneezed." I said while not even trying to hide my annoyance. If you're going to be somewhat of a gentleman, you need to at least remember what you did.

"You sneezed?"

I rolled my eyes. "Are you having early dementia?"

Suddenly, a cold chill ran down my spine as if my whole body was doused with cold water. "If you didn't say "Bless you", then who did?"

Baethan shrugged his shoulder. "Oh! I found one!" He cried as he removed a book from its position causing a cloud of dust to surround us. Coughing and sneezing, we walk towards an old wooden table with matching stools to read his findings. The book was both unlabeled and unlike the others, it was not dusty. "Weird, wouldn't such a book be labeled as fiction?" I asked as we continued to observe the old worm eaten leather cover. Undoing the string that held the book together, pieces of loose paper fell on the floor. I bent to pick them up and felt a cold hand touch mine. "Are you cold Baethan?"

"Amaris, I'm up here." Baethan said.

"Th..the...then what am I touching?" I whimpered as I quickly picked up all the papers and sat back down in my stool. Taking the lamp I quickly shine it on the spot I was just crouching at. Nothing. I must be extra skittish today.

Reading the papers in my hand, my mouth dropped from what I saw. Instead of using black ink, the anonymous writer wrote in various shades of brown and red ink. Or so I hope. It was a diary. How did this get in the Library?!!

07/4

I like his hair. It's pretty.

I like his happy laugh. It's funny.

I like his hands. They're big.

I like his dead body. It's heavy.

07/5

I like her hair. It's brown.

She hates me :(

I like her face. It's round.

I hate her :(

I like her hands. They're pale.

I don't think she's coming back anymore from the hole I put her in.

07/6

Hi Amaris.

I like your hair. It's shiny.

I like your hands. They're small.

I like your face. It's pretty.

Do you like me too?

I dropped the book and stumbled backwards into a shelf of books. My breath forced into uneven, trembling and short puffs. What was this? Where is the person who wrote this?

How do they know me? Why was this dated today?

My arm wrenched backwards as a hand gripped my sleeve.

"There you are." the voice rasped.

I whipped around and flung my hands out in front of my face. "No!" I cried in terror as a hand reached to grasp at my own, and Baethan's green eyes stared inquisitively back into my own.

"What are you even doing?" he asked, throwing a raised eyebrow in my direction before releasing my hands and spinning around to face another shelf labeled 'U-W'. I stayed silent and mulled over how much I should tell him before deeming that whatever was scaring me was quite childish and I needn't mention it to him.

"Nothing. I was just reading that diary."

He paused. "What diary?"

"Are you freaking kidding me? You were the one who found it! At this point I think you really are suffering from some sort of memory loss." I cried into the silent library as Baethan listened to my cursing.

"Calm down Amaris. I know what book you're talking about but I just wondering why you're not holding it and why it's no where to be found."

I started and swept my gaze across the floor in surprise. Baethan's lamp swayed and the shadows of the library danced along with the light of the flames as I dropped downwards to my feet and desperately scoured the ground. Where was it?! Knocking his elbow against another shelf as Baethan jumped backwards, the section seemed to quiver with what seemed like a hidden giggle.

"What are you doing?"

I turned and stood to face him.

The book was gone.

@RedmoonBluestar
@XiaoJoeun