Nathan the Nobody

## Nathan the Nobody Origin by IvyDarkRose

In the past, Nathan had a normal childhood. He grew up in a great family with his maternal twin sister, Crystal. Unlike his sister, his eyes were different shades of color, the rare genetic condition called Heterochromia Iridium, this for him meaning is blue and the other eye green like his sisters. Nathan and his sister mostly raised by their mother, who cared for them almost equally. Nathan’s Father, however, tried his best.

He was about 6 years old, when he noticed his father didn’t give him the same amount of affection that he did with his sister. He was a smart kid, had an easy time in school. While his sister was a lot better at making new friends. How could she not? In his eyes, he saw her as the nicest person in his life.

Often, Nathan was quick to anger, He didn’t quite know why that was, he just got angry a lot, and so easily too. That temper would get him in many fist fights and arguments with his fellow peers and teachers.

His action would then lead to many arguments between his parents; they were as quiet as could be about it, trying to avoid fighting into front of him and his sister. His father would lose it sometimes; his face turning red with anger at the news of another outburst of Nathan’s. This was the beginning of his father’s own rage, yelling at Nathan before his mother stepped in and drag his father way to cool off.

This somehow in some odd way, made Nathan happy to see. To see his parent giving him the attention over his sister, to see how easily it was to manipulate them into certain emotions. It was thrilling to him, even if it was only for a little bit.

 One night, he woke to whispered words; he frowned, getting out of his bed. He made his way to the bedroom door; he could hear more hushed words. He made his way out into the hallway as silently as he could, the hushed words now making sense as his parents go back and forth.

“You are always too sympathetic for him! Let him off too easy!” His father quietly screeches, trying to keep from waking him and his sister.

“He’s just a kid, He’ll learn better.” His mother replies softly in a pleading voice.

“You always say that! However, he DOES know better! He’s a smart kid! He just doesn’t want to behave!”

“You’re being too harsh!”

“No, I’m not! He cannot keep doing this! Why can’t he be like his sister?! She sweet! She's calm and doesn’t rebel like this! A normal freaking child.”

“He’ll grow-”

He heard enough and snuck back to his room. His thoughts and feelings turned slightly bitter and resentful towards his sister. The next few mornings, he refused to talk or play with her. It wasn’t until she kept pestering his about why, that he yelled at her. After he stopped his yelling, his sister just stood there, his bitter feelings quickly turned to guilt. He could feel his sister’s sorrow as if it were his own, he decided to turn his bitter feelings to his father; the one that planted the seed in the first place. Still, because of all this he still bared some envy towards his sister.

However, Nathan loved and trusted his sister completely, partly because he believed she was incapable of doing any wrong. As their father seemed to imply, she’s the good one and he’s the odd twin. He and his sister understood each other on a level that not all siblings get to; of course, they had their difficulties, as most siblings do.

By the age of 9, Nathan had distance himself from his parents. They claimed they cared about him just as equally as his sister, it was clear that wasn’t the case. His grades may have been great, but he continued to fight amongst his peers. He never bothered his sister at school, the last thing he wanted was to bug her or have the bullies focus to her. So, instead he just sat away from everyone at recess and used school as a distraction from social activities.

One night, his parents went out and the two of them were left with a babysitter. The sitter was annoying to him; all she did was talk on her phone. So, he retired to his room to play, after much time past he got an unsettling feeling. Agitated, he left his room. He could hear faint sounds from the living room; this sound was followed by yelling.

When he turned the corner, his sister was in a corner crying, the babysitter above her yelling. Her hand was raised to hit Crystal, Nathan’s memory after that moment was blacked out. According to his sister, he came running in and tackled down the sitter. The sitter, caught off guard, tried to grab anything and ended up falling back into the T.V. stand. It knocked the T.V. off the stand onto her. luckily, she only had a few cuts and a broken arm.

Upon investigation of the whole incident, followed by some therapy analysis, they found that he had an issue with anger, and that blacking out was just a side effect of this. From this he become more recluse, and refused to partake in activates that are too stressful, or even just interact. When they got older, his father left with another woman leaving just them and his mother. His sister became better known, due to her outgoing personality, while he was known as the 'odd' twin; he didn't care though as long as his sister was happy and he didn’t have an “episode”.

On that day, Nathan got ready as per usual. He grabbed some grey pants, black shirt and his favorite black jacket that his mom swore he always wore. He went downstairs and greeted his sister with a smile. She was wearing her favorite navy Jeans and the t-shirt Nathan bought her as a birthday gift last year. Nathan glance down to the long necklace, hidden in his clothes. It’s a bit feminine, but he knew crystal tried her hardest to get him something special for their birthday. He cherished it, almost as much as he cared for her.

"Morning Nat, I'm staying late at Drama today. Big rehearsal!" She explains, giving a warm smile. Nathan nods and pats his sister on her head. "Ok, I'll most likely be hanging out with Jeremy anyway; I’ll just pick you up today. How long will it be?" He asks, pulling on some combat boots.

"About 4: 00 o’clock or so." She replies.

"Ok, cool.”

“Oh, I almost forgot! My friend Bell has a huge crush on you. She sooo shy about it too it funny.” She laughs, giving Nathan a poke as they head out the door.

“She the one with red hair, right?” Nathan asks with a nonchalant tone.

“Ooooo, you like her too? Huh, huh!? Maybe now you can forget Sara?!” she teases, giving a slight shove; He only replies with a roll of the eyes.

They walk to school together, taking the same path the two of them took all the time. Talking about random little things, there was an abnormal chill in the air, something felt off to Nathan, but he just shrugged it away.

They arrive at school; Nathan gets some of the normal looks he has come to expect from people now a days, especially in comparison to his cheerful, bright sister. They look to be from completely direct worlds.

"Oh, did I tell you Dave asks me out?!" She chimes in with excitement, breaking his thoughts.

"Hm? Oh No I don't think you did. That's cool, he's the one that's on the basketball team or something right?" Nathan asks, raising a brow.

"No, he's the one that's on the swim team." She replies, jumping a bit.

"Oh." He replies indifferently, stuffing his hands into his jacket.

"You don't mind if I date him?” She asks, trying to read his face. He laughs at the odd question.

"You know I don't care about that kind of stuff. As long as you don't get in trouble again." He laughs, giving her a small shove.

The day proceeds like most school days, his sister busy with friends, and club activities; Nathan on the other hand, tends to spend most of his time listening to music or tucked away in the library with his friend, he prefers to go somewhere that was quiet rather than loud.

After school, Nathan went on his way to meet his friend, but is blocked by a couple of guys. Nathan ignores them knowing they only want to try to insult him, as Nathan walked away, he feels a soda can hit his back. He stops and silently stood there, hearing the attempted insults through his headphones, but responds to pick up the full can. He stands there for a moment contemplating possible scenarios that could happen. He sees out of the corner of his eye one of the guys coming towards him.

Nathan calmly moves out of the way, letting the person trip over his “own” feet to the ground. He gives an amused grin, seeing the guy pissed off. He holds the can above him, dropping it on the guy's face, letting gravity do all the work. As the guy freaks out over the pain, his buddy wasn't sure on whether to attack or to back away. “Nice try… tell your sister I said hi.” Nathan says with an amused grin, moving on.  His friend just standing there with stupid look on his face, not sure what to do.

Nathan moves on, walking for him and his friends meeting place. He frowns, noting the unsettling feeling once more. The one that eats away at you, warning you to stay on your toes. A scowl forms on his face, as Nathan gets lost in deep thought.

“Hey, what took you so long?” His friend Jeremy calls out, upon his arrival. Nathan shrugs in reply, taking a seat on one the benches.

“I can’t stay too long; I need to meet my sister at 4.” Nathan says, wrapping up his headphones.

“Of course you do, why do you anyway? She’s already the center of attention and doesn’t seem to need you around.” Jeremy asks, annoyance written on his face.

“She maybe be aggravating at times, but she’s my sister, and the only one in my family that gets me.” Nathan scowls more, losing himself in thought once more. His friend shrugs off the response, the area going silent.

At about 3:45pm Nathan walks back to the school and waits outside the drama club room for his sister. Not long after, the club is dismissed, and everyone starts making their way home. Nathan greets his sister as she runs up to him.

"Not quite 4 o’ clock. Glad I showed up early, would be a shame if I came back here only to miss you.” He chuckles, “How was drama today?" He asks as they began to make their way out of the school.

"It was great, what did you do?" she asks, poking his arm.

"Oh, just some social experiments and Hung out for a while." He says, then chuckles to himself.

She raises a brow but shrugs it off with a smile. “You know, you don’t need to walk me home.” She says, the mood now getting bitter. She looks away from him, clearly getting depressed. They slow down to a stop, everything going silent for a long moment.

He sighs, breaking the silence. “I know, mom is still worried though… and… I am too. You’re still recovering after all, last thing we want is for you to…well you know.” He mutters, looking at her.

“I know, I just feel like I’m sucking away your time.” She sighs, Nathan just chuckles and pats her head.

“You’re crazy, I have too much free time and you know it. Come on, let’s go.” He smiles, moving forward again.

As they made their way home along the same familiar road on the empty neighborhood block, Nathan notices a vehicle behind them. He didn't give it much thought though, but he still urges his sister to walk faster. That unsettling feeling is back once more, the same feeling that’s been looming over him all day long. He could feel his heart start to race, like if something was eating at him.

The sun while still in the sky is slowly losing its shine over the land. He looks around the quiet neighborhood, and hardly anyone is home around this time. Most are working; some have kids with after school activities, so the walk home for them is always quiet at this time.

He glances slightly to see the car in his peripheral, its red color slightly blinding him. They were nearly home; Nathan can hear a vehicle slowly approaching them; he gently grabs his sister's arm pulling her closer. "Nathan? Are you ok? Are you having an episode?" She asks, looking at her brother with concern in her eyes, trying to read his mind.

"Just pick up the pace, let's get home. Ok?" He whispers, they’re only about a few houses away. The car slowly pulls up closer and closer, the sound of the tires getting louder. It then just passes them, Nathan sighs and scolding himself for acting paranoid. He slows down, letting go of his sister’s arm. “Are you ok?” She asks again, stopping in her tracks. “Yeah, I’m fine. Let’s go.” He says sternly. “NO, you’re not. Tell me what has you all wound up.” She says, not moving from her spot. “It nothing, I just was getting paranoid.” He frowns, feeling like a child.

“See, that’s all you needed say. I thought you were having one of your black out moments again. I…..” Crystal stops, looking behind Nathan with a puzzling expression. “What’s wro-…?” Nathan asks, but as he turns, three men jump out of a van that slowed down and had pull up behind Nathan. He pushes his sister behind him, glaring down the men. Nathan could feel his sister shake in behind him as she held onto the back of his jacket. In a moment's notice they attack, Nathan struggles to keep them away. He manages to get a few blows in, before being overpowered; both he and his sister are dragged into the van quickly.

He struggles to break free from them, the over whelming urge to protect his sister fueling him. However, Nathan is held down to the van's floor with a few punches to his face attempting to knock him out. The van dives off, “Give me… hurry.” One of them barks, the words drifting in and out of his mind as Nathan angrily wraps his hands around one of their necks. He growls feeling something stab into him, he feels himself get weak. His sister’s screams lingering in his mind as he falls into darkness.

He wakes up in a dark, cold room. The room isn't too big, it looks like a rundown basement almost; there are broken pipes along the wall, the smell of rust, dirt and mold fills the room. Nathan slowly makes his way into a sitting position, his still head pounding with every movement. He winces, noticing a door on the other side of the room; unlike the room it looks new and made of metal. He tries to collect his thoughts and recall what happened, but the sound of voices takes him away from his thoughts.

"How much do you think we can get with these two?"  One man says.

"Don't know, but their family looks like they can afford it though." Said another.

"If not, at least we can sell them on the black market or something. Maybe just the girl that is… if the other guys don't fuck her up too badly. The boy, we can just kill or something." The man somewhat laughs, Nathan barely can hear them.

"Yeah, true. Or sell him too, men sell more if you find the right buyer. Usually some manual labor factory, or drug cartels." the other man replies.

Nathan’s minds collects itself with the realization of who the girl they spoke of is. He stands up with a stammer, his breathing becoming raspy and shallow. He hears them begin getting closer to the door, quickly he searches for something to use as a weapon but finds nothing. Instead, he waits in a corner closest to the opening, then as the door opens up, he lunges at the first man who comes in. "WHERE IS MY SISTER!" He yells, holding the man’s throat tightly to the hard, cold ground. His pulse beating against his hands, feeling himself losing to his anger.

\*Smack!\*

He barely feels something hit him over his head, knocking him off the man; Adrenaline numbing the blow. The guy hits him again, a swift blow landing to his stomach after that. Nathan doubles over holding his stomach, "Fucking prick, let him rot in there." He hears one the men say bitterly, a hint of pain lingering in his voice. They slam the door shut and with a click, it locks. Footsteps slowly become inaudible, the only noise left being the drips of the pipes.

Nathan lays there in pain, the rush of adrenaline dying off, leaving his head and stomach screaming in pain. He ties to move, but is paralyzed by the mixture of physical misery, and emotional terminal. After a moment of rest, he slowly gets up, lurching here and there. He shakes what pain remains to the back of his mind and stares down the door intensely. His skin crawled with anger, knowing his sister is being hurt while he’s locked away in the dark. He moves to the metal door and slams his fists fiercely. "I must... I WILL get out!!!" He yells, kicking the door.

He continues to hit and kick the door repeatedly, over and over; trying to break it down. After many possible hours, he couldn't keep it up any longer, sliding down to the floor in exhaustion. His body aches in pain, more so his head.  He reaches up and wipes off his forehead. When he brings down his hand, something catches his eyes. In the darkness it’s hard to tell, but there’s no doubt that its blood. Must have been from the blow earlier, but he didn't care. His sister is in pain, and he can't protect her from it.

Nathan attempts to rest, but the aching idea of his sister hurting by those men is enough to keep him from doing so. The sounds of the pipes dripping seem to echo and become louder with every drop. He tries to block it out, only to hear a scream. This sparks his energy; he holds his breath; trying to listen for anything.

\*Drip, Drip, Drip\*

Nothing. Nothing at all, was it a figment of his imagination? A hallucination? He presses his ear to the door; still the only sound is the dripping from the pipe. He gets up and begins to pace; his breathing became harsh and shallow once more. He lets out another scream, slamming at the door again.  His fist starts to throb in pain, the skin of his knuckles starting rub away. Anger blinds him, pacing again like a crazed animal stuck in a cage.

\*Drip, Drip, Drip\*

Nathan wakes up feeling gorgy, his body aching and still exhausted from sleeping on a concrete floor. He winces when getting up, His hands swollen and scabby from the missing skin. "I'm sorry… I'm so sorry sis, but don't worry… I'll get out and beat those fuckers,” Nathan whispers to himself, a smile forming on his face, imagining them in tortuous agony.

\*Drip, Drip, Drip\*

He grips his throat, looking around the barely lit room for something, anything at this point.  A pipe is leaking somewhere, he follows the sound to a far corner; a dirty, rusty pipe the source of the sound.  With some hesitation, he stares at the pipe, changing his mind for a moment. His throat, however, made the final decision. He takes a sip the small water dripping out. It tastes awful; he spits the taste away; refusing anymore. "Last thing I need… I have to get out." Nathan murmurs to himself, turning back to the metal door, trying to think of any way to get it open.

\*Drip, Drip, Drip\*

His breathing grew heavy getting frustrated again; finally, he makes a move and slams his body into the door. Not even a dent, he attempts again. When that doesn’t work, he hits it with frustration.  His hand, however, didn’t agree with that idea; they’re too swallow to keep hitting it. He slams himself once again against the door, and then kicks it. When he couldn't bring down the door that way, he begins pacing once again.

This continues for what seems like an eternity, his knuckles now just scrapped off flesh and bones from pounding at the door. Nathan huffs glaring at the unmoving door, he couldn't stay still any longer. The door stood there, taunting him the only thing keeping him from freedom. The room spins around, his body weak form the lack of essential needs.

\*Drip, Drip, Drip\*

"I'm…I'm going to kill them all…..Kill them…. MAKE THEM SUFFER!" Nathan yells, throwing a loss piece of concrete at the door; the echo of the metal ringed through the room. The sounds of dripping water sending chills up his spine, every second the two taunting him. Laughing at his misery, the sounds of his sisters screams filling his mind, but suddenly after some time, they went silent. Nothing left, but a rhythmic drip.

More days seem to pass him, and he slowly slips into the same cycle. Hunger getting the best of him, he’s exhausted, but he didn't stop; in fact, he couldn't stop. He hits head on the wall, "I'll kill them…." Nathan whispers to himself and repeating it over and over. He finally caved in and drank more of the water; the taste now dwindling to nothing.

The dripping stops, he paces back and forth, over and over again. He could swear he hear screaming, her screaming for him; he could hear her voice speak to him. He begins to see the door opening up, but no, only a hallucination. Nathan breaths heavily, like some rabid animal. The door screaming at him now, finally with a twitch he yells out. He grabs on to one of the heavy, rusty pipes and pulls at it. It didn’t budge at first, until finally with a snap! It pulls away at one of the rusty hinges.

He stands silently at the door, it still swaying back and forth. Slowly, he raises the heavy pipe, and with all his strength brings it down on the door.  The door makes a twisted metallic sound, as if it was screaming in agony.  He grins, pulling the pipe back up. A small dent has been made. He laughs dryly; pleased by this.

He brings the pipe down over and over again, with every hit a hope to free him and his sister. The door grows louder and louder with every hit, the metallic sound like screams of defeat. Every swing growing heavier, and with that Nathan only laughs harder. He stops to look over the dents on the door.

Nathan grins at the progress of the door, still standing there shaking. "It's time to die…." Nathan whispers, each word sliding off his tongue. Nathan raises the metal pipe high up again.

\*CREAK\*

He stands there, and looking at the dark metallic door that holds him there; the last hit making the door move away from the doorframe. He brings down the pipe with great speed; finally, the door breaks loose from its hinges.  He manages to push through the heavy door, and the sounds of the door squeaking painfully loud as he steps though.

Nathan walks through the dark basement, easily finding the door through the darkness that his eyes are adjusted to. Feelings of hope flooding him, finally the relief knowing he can save his sister pulse through him rapidly. He could go to her, he could save her.

He hears voices above him on the other floor speaking. "Are you still on that?! Sorry but I had to kill her! The bitch went going crazy, bit off some of Portman’s hand." a man speaks, no remorse in his tone. "Yeah true, I was getting tired of seeing her face anyway, all bloody and shit it was gross. Oh, speaking of which, do you think that one punk is dead by now?" speaks another, no empathy in their tone. Nathan begins to shake, tears beginning to form in his eyes. He feels something cold his shoulder.

No, this couldn’t happen! It’s a lie!! NO! NONONONONO!! He refuses to believe it, the hope in his body weighing heavily down on him, as if 2-ton boulder has been placed on his chest, slowly cutting off his air supply. He stumbles the room moving back and forth.

"Yeah. I bet it's been like over a week. Doubt he’s breathing." the other man laughs. Nathan hears them make their way to the basement stairs, and slowly start to walk down still talking away, their voices a numbing buzz. His grief quickly turns into an unquenchable rage, the wrath showing so very clearly on his face. His body pulsing with superabundance of emotions boiling out of control, his mind feeling like it’s being split violently open.

Everything then goes silent. "Nathan…..kill them...” he hears a voice whisper so clearly, the silence following these bitter words.

“…… It’s too quiet…” He looks to the doorway, “drip… drip… drip.” He mumbles, barely audible. Nathan grips the pipe in his hand, a twisted grin forming on his face; the men open the basement door, not suspecting a thing too busy talking to each other.

Nathan swings down at the first man, a loud sickening crunch following the blow. The man falls down instantly, his head way easier to break then a metal door. The other man stands there in terror and shock as Nathan smile greets him. The pipe drips from the first man’s blood that has fallen over dead, " … I was told kill you too." He says, and then laughs swinging the pipe down at the horrified man.

Thud, Thud, Thud.

Nathan continues to hit the man, making sure he suffers greatly with every blow. The man screams out in pain, until slowly he stops moving. There’s no more noise, only the sound of dripping blood. He didn't move anymore, but Nathan continues to land blows to him blindly. His heavy breathing steadies as he comes to a stop, enjoying the sound of the dripping blood.

He then made his way upstairs, quietly avoiding making any more noise. He finds the other two man on the upper floors, one too busy with what he was doing, the other rustling through something.  Neither hears a thing, Nathan steps to the men rustling through a draw. The man turns, a gun clearly in hand, but he’s too late. His face turns to horror seeing the blood-soaked young man standing behind him before the blur of something lands to his temple. He falls to the ground, unmoving.

The last man upon hearing the noises, waits in his room for Nathan and after a struggle, he goes down as well. Nathan finally makes his way to his sister, a smile on his face.

He opens a door, delight feeling his mind; so happy to see her again. "Sorry it took so long… but I'm here now…." Nathan speaks softly, he makes his way over to his sister's lifeless body. “Don’t cry, we’re safe, and I will keep you safe. After all, there are more of THEM out there right now.” He frowns, looking to doorway.

“No, no. Sshhhhh, please don’t cry anymore. I will protect you sis…. I promised after all, remember? Hehehe. I will kill them all for what they put us through… I will save you still.” He pats her head, her blood covering his hand. He didn't seem to notice her disfigurements or even blood, he completely blocks it all out that she laid there…rotting from death, ignoring the fact her skull is bashed in.

 "Let's go Nat, there's more…."  He hears her whisper softly to him; he grins so happy to be with his sister again. "Yes, let's go." He whispers, making his way down the stairs, soon, leaving the house. "I need to save you, by killing them. That’s how it works... I’ll kill them sis,” he says with a grin, holding the bloody pipe tightly in one hand.

## Nobody Saw It Coming by IvyDarkRose

Dead leaves crunch underneath, noises of crickets joining in to create a small melody for my walk back. The air while cool, is yet dry tonight, no wind in the trees. The fenced neighborhood, dark, lonely, and quiet; *though,* that being due to the late hour. My feet carry me to the familiar home, the place I know inside and out like the back of my hand.

*What time is it?*

The thought sinks into my mind. Eyes weighing heavily; specifically, from the long days of working. Or was it weeks? So much work, all important work that means life or death to me. Sleep means *nothing* to me. It just gets in the way.

I go on until the point where I might collapse. I’ve never learned my own limit. Only at a few times, I give heed to rest and find somewhere safe to sleep wherever I am. A few hours always make do, until the deadline ends. Then I can finally rest again.

I slip past the side gate of the residence in front of me, careful to not push it past three-quarters of the way, or it'll make a horrible racket. The last thing I want is noise, one huge noise that would awake any sleeping soul around. That would just be another nuisance, I don't need more eyes on me.

Well, not more than the eyes that already have been looming on me since the beginning. Watching my every move. Staring, stalking.

I approach the backside, with that feeling of still being watched, I’d rather use this door where no one can spot me. Safer, less intruding people to catch me from here. Yet, with hesitation; I still have to-*,* no, no need to look around and check the surrounding around me again.

Withholding my breath. My eyes scanning the darkness for anything. That feeling still looming over me, crushing its weight on me. I turn my attention back to the door, new locks, a new code. No one can get into this place now without the knowledge of both.

I took a deep breath. Starting to fiddle with the lock, it jammed quickly on me.

*Great.*

A low growl slips past my lips, focusing more on this stubborn lock. A defect, but a welcoming challenge. My teeth grit, my growing focus distracting me between that paranoia of being watched. This damn, stupid lock.

I could feel it growing, those eyes in such an intense stare. The image of a prey being cornered by its predator, just ready to attack and sink into the most vulnerable parts of me.

Feeling my heart started to race, I push it all into one final rough shove. Not short after, I am greeted by the heavenly click of it giving way to me.

*Yes.*

I slip inside quickly, shutting the door behind me. Making sure to lock it back up before moving to the alarm system and placing in the monotonous, long code I had learned by heart. I scan the dark room, then glance back to the door once more. I keep my gaze fixed onto the door, going through a deep string of thoughts. I stand there, my breathing being the only noise heard. My mind goes from trivial things as the door lock, then to the situations leading up to the reason of getting those new locks on the door.

Then it came to me. All the sounds around the place. The shift of things either being placed into a new location or going missing completely. The sudden broken coffee mug in the middle of the floor.

Those…

That constant sound. I could hear it clearly. Echoing, taunting me.

*Was it all in my head?*

Drip.

*Drip.*

*Drip.*

It was driving me nuts! Waking to the sound, or coming back inside from a long day away, always the same sound.

Drip... Drip... Drip.

Even thinking of it now makes my blood boil, my heart pound and fall down into my chest with an agonizing pain. I try to shake myself free out of my trance, inhaling quickly. That stopped as soon as security was changed. I gave a nod to myself, my mind reaching the conclusion that, with a bit of grease, the lock will give way without the frustration.

No need to even bother with the turning on the lights. The basement couldn’t be too hard to find. I followed my path down the stairs, letting the sounds of my exhausted steps echo loudly on the staircase. A few creaked under my weight, always on the 6th and 10th step. The door moved without any impedance, the icy chill of the room hit me, following with a musty smell reaching my nostrils.

I stop. Unable to recall where I left off, what I was looking for in here. I grumbled as I made my way around the room slowly. The solitary window giving the room a beautiful, but unsettling glow from the moon. The light casts an odd and distorting shadows on the hard, rough stone walls.

As I keep searching about, my frustration started growing over the amount of useless, annoying things gathering dust in this Cimmerian basement. In the midst of it, I caught a sound. The farther into the end of the room I got; the clearer it became.

That sound again. I froze in place, feeling my eyes widen, vision fading into a limited field, as if in a hypnotic trance. I listened to the rhythmic sound, the soft thuds.

*"One... two... three... four..."* I whisper under my breath, counting the second that pass by with each sound. I'm not longer really focusing on my actions, making my way closer to the sound, as if an invisible force urges me to go there.

My body moves in front of a leaking pipe, the water softly dripping out its weak point, clearly cracked open with rusting over time. I continued to stand there and just.... stare. With seconds passing, my mood switched from an unsettling calm to an aggravated state. My eyes gazed down on the leaking pipe with anger.

A curse leaves my lips, there is enough at the moment to deal with, I don't have time for this stupid mess. I grab a tool hanging from my belt, lifting it high into the air; readying to fix this pipe. Then I hear it, a scuffling sound. I freeze in place, listening closely.

The longer the silence fills the room, the louder the scuffles seem to get, and the more damning each drip of water feels; the noise, as if it is going to alert the thing to this location.

*Drip.*

*Drip...*

*Drip--*

I held my breath. The rhythmic drips only seemed to get louder. I could hear the noise getting closer, moving above me. I believed to hear something fumbling outside in the yard, maybe, but it was definitely coming from up above. There was a whisper, a hush voice speaking out, nearly muted by the sounds within the building.

I hear it. A click.

Twist. Turn. And with that, they opened a door upstairs.

They got in? They are in the house now. My thoughts raced on the possible outcomes, was this person here to steal? My thoughts twisted up in my head, my panic turning into anger. No, they are here to cause great harm. Great pain.

With the tool tightly in my hand, I moved down, moving quietly towards the door. I held my breath, listening to where exactly this person could be located. I could feel my pulse beating against this tool, long, heavy, and metallic tool.

The living room, there they were. I started to sneak up, avoiding the 10th step, then the 6th that had scared me alerted earlier. I gripped the tool in my hand once more, adjusting my grip on it. At that moment, I knew I was about to do this person more harm than what they were thinking to do onto me.

My teeth grit together, breathing slowing so to become barely audible, my back pressing softly onto the wall. I pondered quickly, guessing the possible forms of attack. I heard them, messing with something metallic. Not a gun, possibly a weapon such as my own?

*A crowbar?*

*A bat?*

Doesn't matter, I needed to listen carefully and attack them. Before they can get to me at all, my knuckles ached with the pressure. So eagerly, I wished to peek out, to see exactly where they were holding up. To size them up, then take them down, but it was too risky. I could hear my heart pound faster, flooding my head.

I waited with bated breath.

*A step here, a step there.*

This person's breath laboring, still unaware that I know they are here. That sound of metal moving and ringing. Their voice was silenced, their steps slowly walking towards me. I felt my eyes widen once again, the tool in a death grip; ready to swing with all my might.

*Tap, tap, tap, then silence.*

I can hear them breathing, words whispering under their breath. This is definitely a man's voice, he is messing with something, speaking to himself.  I was about to almost sprint into action, but no, I had to keep the upper hand.

*Tap, tap, tap.*

He drew closer and closer, a few more steps and I saw the blur of motion. I quickly swung, a sickening crunch following as my tool made contact. In the merest moment, I could see the shock in his tired, dull eyes, his greasy hair moving to the tools groove.

*No control.* I can't stop myself; one hit just isn't enough. I swung again, and again. He hit the ground; I couldn’t stop. I kept slamming the tool down in a frenzy, the same way someone kills a bug for disturbing.

My wide eyes stared down at the scrawny man before me, the metal object under his hand, shaking against the tile floor where is fell with him. His greasy dark hair, slowly soaking in the liquid. His other hand, pale now and bearing the scars of one's labors and reaching out for something in his final moments.

My breath heaved, logic and rationality returning back into my mind. I stepped away, the warmth of the liquid slowly cooling on me. I shook my head, made a quick beeline for the bathroom, and flicked on the light.

My tool was set down, the rusting pipe echoing a loud thud on the countertop, liquid dripping off the ends of the pipe. My cold reflection stared back at me in the mirror glass.

The faucet was turned on quickly, going to work on washing the blood off me. Hands, my upper face. The dark cloth covering my mouth, doing its job in shielding the rest of my face from messy situations. I could smell the iron lingering around my nostrils, almost making me sick.

I leaned down close to the sink, letting the whole situation sink in deep. My eyes moved up, removing the mess of black hair out of my face. That black, unkempt, greasy long hair. I stare at my reflection for what feels like hours, the mixed color of dead eyes of green and ice-cold blue staring at the prominent scar upon my forehead, the one that bared a grim reminder and awful memories.

I grasped a towel, wiping away the water and any remain blood on my skin. Too bad my grey shirt held onto stain a lot easier than the rest of my black clothing, then I might’ve been able to forget about it by now.

Sighing, my fingers thoroughly brought out a trinket from my vest pocket, staring down the gem hiding safely within the fabric. This trinket seemed to talk to me, it always had.

*Nathan.*

Over and over I heard it call out for me. Maybe, it was just my mind playing a trick on me. But that undeniable whisper remained. I slipped back into deep, empty thoughts once more before I realized I had been staring at the gem this entire time. Placing the purple gem trinket back into the safety of the pocket, I thought of the possibility of losing it. I would die to keep that trinket safe.

I turned my heel from the mirror, moving back into the hall once more. The body caught my attention once more, the phone shaking more against the ground. I moved in close, staring at it without a single emotion on my face. Without hesitation, I stomped down with my worn boot, breaking it into several pieces.

Drip..

Drip...

Drip.

The crimson liquid had already covered the tiles, feeling no remorse about my actions. I no longer had the desire to stay put inside. After all, at this location, there would always be the feeling of us being watched by those around this neighborhood of bars.

I chuckle. A smile tugging at my lips as I moved away from the mess I had caused.

*Besides, this isn't my home.*