On the way back to the hospital countless questions run through the minds of the two boys. Christopher’s entire perception of his life is now in shambles as he questions if he ever really knew his mother.
As for Okimoto, he had to keep on asking himself things to distract himself. The image of the two dead bodies still lingers in his mind. Blood and brain matter seem to seep through his fingers as he clutches the handles of his motorcycle. Droplets of blood barrage his face as he rides against the blasting air.
The ride back to the hospital is one with no words spoken. When they return to Christopher’s Hospital room the magic of going outside again after so long is gone from Christopher’s heart. He takes off his sweater and sits on the bed before switching on the television. Okimoto falls face first into the hospital mattress causing Christopher to bob up and down beside him.
Christopher sighs, Occasionally he’d also see the two dead bodies and wonder what that situation was all about. Those two… why did they even have that much money on them anyway? Where did they get it from and what were they going to do with it. He remembers the various news broadcasts from back at the hospital. He naturally draws a connection between the now diseased Benny and Samuel burner and the bank robbery. According to the news the suspects had escaped the Canadian authorities and were currently missing. Vancouver was only around six hours away from Los Angeles, so it wasn’t too crazy for the suspects to have fled to Hollywood? The only question was why Hollywood and not some other more obscure part of California? Could it be that the Diary made them come here? Did it compel them in the form of a voice in their heads or a mysterious sense of purpose? Did the truck driver experience the same thing?
Putting these questions to the side, Christopher decides to establish a temporary goal for himself. He’d find out the truth. The truth behind all of the bizarre and utterly ludicrous things that were suddenly happening. The reason for his mother supposedly selling him off. The identity of the man with the hooked nose. The nature of the fate diary and the reason why dangerous entities are apparently after it, and why he of all people had been dragged into its affairs. He needed to know the truth. The truth behind it all.
He no longer feels as uneasy towards the man with the hooked nose. If anything he now has a way to get the answers he was after. But there is naturally a problem as Christopher doesn’t know when he’ll see the man again. It could be tomorrow, it could be next week. Could Christopher really wait that long for answers.
Christopher begins to reflect and analyse his situation. The hook nosed man knew when Okimoto had taken the diary back to his dorm. He also knew when Christopher had taken it with him and Okimoto earlier to get to the car crash, despite Christopher having never retrieved it from his pocket. He was also able to levitate the diary and manipulate it at will. With these facts taken into consideration, it’s not crazy to assume that the man is actively observing them at all times.
Christopher looks over to Okimoto who was already fast asleep.
He also realises that the man is actually in a pretty desperate situation, as he was very obviously frustrated when Christopher came with Okimoto and deviated from what the diary had specified. This was not the attitude of someone who had everything figured out and under his control, but the attitude of a person hastily making decisions. He also showed a clear distaste to the idea of Christopher being hurt and instructed him to return to the hospital where it is apparently safe. He also saved Okimodo from that “Rake” thing last night despite not addressing Okimoto in a way that indicated that he was important to his plans. This means that he likely did it because Okimoto was Christopher’s friend and allowing him to die would destroy Christopher’s chances of cooperating. This immediately tells Christopher that the hook nosed man or being clearly needs him for a long period of time and thus would rather establish a non hostile relationship.
Christopher looks around his hospital room now certain that the man is observing them. He was able to sneak into the hospital effortlessly to deliver the diary to him on two occasions after all. He was also nearby when Dr. Fredrick proposed. He could even be in the room with them right now.
Christopher gets up and mutters. “Come out already. It’s pretty obvious that you’ve been with us the entire time.”
Several seconds pass by with only the slight static of the television and occasional voices from far down the corridor.
Doubting himself, Christopher grabs the diary from the table and flips through it again. He sees that nothing has been written down and sighs.
He lies down on the bed while resting his head on Okimoto’s back.
“I don’t understand.” He says, talking under the assumption that the man was just refusing to reveal himself. “You said that my mother sold me to you… why? You said that I’m not who I think I am, you must know who I really am then right?”
Christopher yawns before lampooning. “Nothing makes sense anymore.”
‘The child of fate has yet to see, has yet to know and yet still dreams,
Through countless threads he’ll come to see, that rainbow eyes tame crimson steeds.’
A poem repeats in Christopher’s head without explanation.
He holds the diary over his chest as his eyes become heavy. He feels the diary become heavier as it seems to sink into his… Christopher suddenly jolts up to see that the diary is now in the middle of… merging with his flesh?
Christopher’s thoughts become wild and chaotic as his awareness expands rapidly.
He sees countless illusory red strings flicker in and out of existence.
“What the hell is going on…”
He looks around to see over a dozen hospital patients of all ages surrounding the bed, their features blurred and distorted.
Everything goes black…
He’s suddenly floating in a black void that expands on into infinity. There was no sound, no smell, no sensation, but there was something to look at.
Christopher sees two figures not too far away from him. One was a flickering crimson flame that appears as if it could die at any moment. The other, a human like figure has its back turned and stands several dozen metres away.
Christopher suddenly finds himself falling towards the spindly humanoid. As he gets closer he’s gradually overcome with shock when its appearance becomes clearer. Thick strands of hair turn out to be numerous wildly flailing black tentacles. Thousands of tiny slits appear across its red skin as it turns to face the incoming Christopher with a hunched posture. Christopher suddenly pauses right as he is about to collide with the humanoid that was now revealed to be a terrifying monster.
Christopher stares blankly at its face. It’s featureless with the exception of one large swirl shaped slit from its chin up to its forehead. The slits across its body all open at once revealing thousands of rainbow coloured eyes that seem to pierce through the darkness of the infinite void around it. The larger slit on the monster’s face had also opened revealing one massive virtical eye that glared straight into the core of Christopher’s soul.
The next thing Christopher knows he’s back in his hospital room facing the corner wall as he sits on the floor while raving like a crazy person.Lightning from outside illuminates the room as the window is rattled with rain.
“Christopher…” a concerned and familiar voice calls out to him from behind.
Okimoto kneels down behind Christopher and places his hand on his shoulder. Christopher immediately jolts with fright before slowly turning to look back at his friend.
Okimoto becomes speechless when he sees his friend’s face.
Christopher’s left eye has lost its chestnut brown colour and now glows with an ominous rainbow radiance. To Okimoto, it’s experience that can only be described as staring into a starry void filled with cosmic clouds of all colours. In the middle of this scene Christopher’s pupil resembles a black hole sucking in all light, the entire universe seemed to revolve around it. For a moment Okimoto was entranced by this supernatural sight and his thoughts started to blur.
Okimoto suddenly yells. “Snap out of it!”
At the next moment both boys return to their senses. Christopher’s eye returns to normal as Okimoto helps him to his feet.
The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.
“What’s the time?” Christopher asks.
Okimoto reaches into his pocket and takes out his phone.
“It’s one in the morning.” He says.
He then sees several missed calls from the principal of Middlecrest on his phone and kisses his teeth. “I’ll be back in a second.”
Okimoto leaves the room as Christopher sits down on the side of his bed while facing the window. A storm thunders beyond the rattling glass as Christopher reflects on whatever the hell just happened to him. He could’ve sworn that he had just seen the diary merge into him as if he and it had become one. He looks back and sees the diary resting on the table as if he had never touched it. He wonders if he had just hallucinated and was truly going insane. Maybe this was all just an illusion and he was actually in a coma having never been cured of his cancer. The very thought of it sent a terrible chill down Christopher’s spine. He hated twists like that in stories. It reminds him of a particularly terrible Pokémon theory.
He extends his hands and slaps himself at full force, causing his world to go spinning.
He feels a sting permeate his face followed by pins and needles.Christopher lets out a sigh and lays down fully having disproven that theory rather painfully. He thinks about the monster he saw, it’s many eyes and the tentacles that flailed around on its head. There was something odd about it… well odder than just regular odd. Christopher feels as if he’s seen it somewhere before but can’t recall where.
Okimoto enters back into the room before asking. “What happened just now? Are you okay?”
Christopher shrugs before responding with a question of his own. “Why did you have to rush into the corridor all of a sudden?”
“She called me.” Okimoto says sitting on the bedside.
“You mean the principle right?” Christopher asks, seeking clarification.
Okimoto nods and says. “She’s really a handful, it hasn’t even been a week and she’s already breathing down my neck.”
He then looks back at Christopher before asking. “What was up with you just now? Your left eye had changed into a bizarre colour.”
“I had this weird vision.” Christopher says.
“Vision?” Okimoto enquires.
“Yeah, I was floating in a strange void where I saw a monster covered in eyes from head to toe. For a second it stared into my soul before I was suddenly snapped out of my daze by you.”
Okimoto doesn’t talk initially after hearing Christopher’s explanation. What the hell can he even say about that anyway? He partially crawls onto the bed before saying. “I’m going to sleep here, just for tonight… no homo…”
“Do seriously think I’m going to force you to go home at a time like this?” Christopher yawns before closing his eyes and shifting to the side of the bed to give his friend adequate space. He says with a smile. “The sheet is all mine though.”
Okimoto rolls his eyes and lies down before staring at the ceiling and saying. “I can’t stop seeing the two dead bodies from the crash.”
“You don’t think it’s actually your fault do you?” Christopher asks.
“It’s not really that… or least that’s not all of it.” Okimoto answers. “just strange to see a person who was once alive reduced to a piece of flesh. All the years spent going to school and then Coll and the work. The countless people they impacted as well as their friends and family. It’s crazy to think that all of that can vanish in an instant.”
“It’s best to not linger on the thought of those two, in the end it was the hook nosed man that killed them.” Christopher sighs turning to lay on his side facing the window. “I believe that he’s observing right now. You can confront him about it when he mans up and reveals himself.”
After Christopher’s words there is a long silence in the room. Christopher eventually turns off the still blaring television and falls asleep.
Okimoto continues to stare at the ceiling until he eventually returns to his slumber. The night flies by and the morning sun rises once again beyond the window.
When Christopher wakes up the next morning Okimoto is gone. Now he sits facing the diary again. After his early morning delirium passes he reaches for the diary and freezes when his fingers touch its leather cover. In that particular and completely mundane moment something is switched on inside of him. He sees several red strings sway gently infront of him as they connect him to the diary and extend out to various points.
Startled by this sudden sight, Christopher gets up and looks around his room before running into the corridor. Everywhere he looks he sees red strings fazing through the purple walls of the hospital ward.
Several chattering nurses and doctors pass him by, all of them connected to each other and the environment around them by the shimmering red strings.
“What the hell is going on…” Christopher blinks rapidly before stumbling towards a nearby hospital shower room to wash his face.
The rest of the morning flies by in a blurry haze of confusion. Everything… everyone… it is all connected by these bizarre and omni present red strings. There are thousands… no, millions of them. Outside the window they blow through the air forming a net of crimson that ensnares every building and pedestrian. They collect in the streets where the crowds brush past one another. They extend beyond the clouds and deep into the void of space where they seem to continue into infinity.
Christopher is so utterly taken aback that he doesn’t notice that Okimoto has returned and is currently observing the diary himself.
After flipping through the pages he finds that nothing has been added since yesterday. With a relaxed smile he looks at Christopher and says. “Good morning!”
Christopher slowly turns around, his gaze following a red string that connects him with Okimoto.
Okimoto immediately develops a cold sweat when he sees that Christopher’s eyes are now both glowing with the rainbow radiance from before. He immediately points it out. “Your eyes…”
“Do they look weird?” Christopher enquires curiously. “I can see these red strings… they’re everywhere and connect everything. Can I use your phone as a mirror to see my eyes?”
Okimoto nods and immediately takes out his phone before making Christopher view himself through the camera.
Christopher is initially stumped by what he sees. It’s a sight that surprises him despite him having adjusted to the supernatural at this point.
He thinks about the concept of red strings of fate and is immediately struck by enlightenment. The fate diary had somehow merged itself into him and subsequently gave him the ability to see red strings of fate. If red strings of fate are real then surely the same would apply to many other similar phenomena. Theories upon theories run through Christopher’s head as he looks around for the hook nosed man and yells.
“COME OUT!!! We know you’re lurking around watching us.”
There’s a few seconds of silence before a raspy chuckle dances through the air followed by a chilly gust of wind.
The window curtain flutters as a hunched silhouette with a prominent hooked nose appears. The man laughs as he’s framed by the window and eclipsed by sunlight seeping into the room.
“You finally absorbed the soul fragment.” The man looks at Christopher and taps his chin like a scientist observing an experiment. He looks Christopher up and down as the corners of his fin lips curl upwards.
“Soul fragment?” Christopher enquires. “What exactly are you talking about?”
“It’s exactly what it sounds like.” The man explains. “The diary had a piece of you inside of it, and now that you’ve absorbed it you’ve regained a bit of your old self and the corresponding abilities.”
Christopher takes a second to think. He immediately wonders what the man means when referring to his “old self” and “corresponding abilities”. Was he some kind of special person? If so then did it have something to do with his mother and his sudden illness? Christopher can’t shake the feeling that he’s standing at the edge of a rabbit hole involving himself and his mother’s mysterious life.
“His former self?” Okimoto repeats and then looks at Christopher before asking. “I don’t get it…did you ‘lose’ a part of yourself?”
“He doesn’t remember so don’t bother asking him.” The man says in a pitying tone. “It’s impossible for him to remember in his current state.”
Christopher sighs before saying. “Listen, I want to know everything. Tell me what this is all about.”
“I will explain everything once we get you out of this hospital.” The man leans against the window sill as he speaks. “Now that the first soul fragment is absorbed, we can finally move on to the next step which is getting rid of your identity as Christopher Marcus. Your mother will be here to pick you up at around five. Once you’ve left the hospital you’ll be transferred over to my residence and I’ll explain more from there.”
Neither Okimoto nor Christopher like where this is going.
“What do you mean by get rid of my identity?” Christopher asks increasingly. “How is all of this just being decided without my say in the matter.”
“Don’t make me laugh.” The hook nosed man chuckles. “We both know you hated the life you had, so does your mother. After I began to theorise about who you truly were me and her struck a deal. You’d suddenly become sick causing the public eye to be drawn away from you, then after a year I’d introduce a soul fragment to you to test out my theory. If you had failed to absorb the soul fragment then I would’ve been wrong and you would’ve returned to your old life eventually.”
“But he did absorb the soul fragment…” Okimoto says with a sigh.
“He certainly did.” The man nods in agreement before turning to look at Christopher and saying. “I’ll go run some errands. I’ll be back alongside your mother to officially get you discharged. I’ve already explained what will happen from that point onward.”
With that being said the man disappears into fin air, as if he had never been in the hospital room to begin with.
The two boys immediately turn to look at each other before looking back at the diary.
After picking up the book and opening it, Christopher wonders if he can now write in it. After all if it’s a part of him then surely he should be able to affect it now.
“Do you have a pen?” Christopher asks.
Catching on quickly Okimoto runs out of the room before returning with a stolen doctor’s pen.
Unfortunately the results are the same as the last time they tried to write in the diary causing an awkward silence engulf the room.
“What are you going to do now?” Okimoto asks.
“What can I do?” Christopher responds in a defeated tone. “For now I’ll just go along with this plan of theirs. Right now I have no power to affect anything so naturally big decisions will be made for me.”
Christopher sighs internally. This was the reality of his situation. Did he like the fact that all of these major decisions regarding his life had been made behind his back? Of course not, but he wasn’t delusional and wouldn’t cry about it. His mother, for better or for worse had raised him to be a pragmatic thinker. Soon it will be time for him to meet her again, and then he’ll be sure to demand that she give him an explanation with her own mouth.
His attention returns to Okimoto and he says. “Let’s wait for my mother.”
Okimoto nods and responds. “It’s about damn time.”